reglab/housing_qa huggingface dataset:
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 275 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 12 - Construction Liens|Subchapter IV - Enforcement of Lien|§ 275. Wrongful conduct under this chapter; remedies

 (a) If the owner or any claimant shall, in bad faith deprive or attempt to deprive any owner, claimant or other person of benefits to which he is entitled under this chapter by giving or recording false affidavits, invoices, statements, or in any other manner, (1) any person injured thereby is entitled to recover any damage caused to him, and (2) the court may issue temporary and permanent injunctions, whether or not irreparable damage has been or will be done. (b) If a claimant in bad faith overstates the amount for which he is entitled to a lien, or fails to record a statement of cancellation as required by section 264(e) of this title the court may (1) declare his lien void; (2) award the owner or any other person injured thereby actual damages suffered; and (3) award the owner punitive damages in an amount not exceeding the difference between the amount claimed as a lien and the amount which the claimant was actually entitled to claim as a lien. (c) Damages awarded under this section may include the costs of securing cancellation of the lien of record, including reasonable attorney's fees and court costs.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 276 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 12 - Construction Liens|Subchapter IV - Enforcement of Lien|§ 276. Form of documents

 The Office of the Lieutenant Governor shall prescribe the form of all documents which this chapter requires or permits to be recorded.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 751 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter I - General Provisions|§ 751. Rent; liability of person in possession; actions

 (a) Every person in possession of land out of which any rent is due, whether it was originally demised in fee, or for any other estate or freehold, or for any term of years, shall be liable for the amount of proportion of rent due from the land in his possession, although it is only a part of what was originally demised. (b) Such rent may be recovered in an action, and the deed or demise, or any other instrument in writing, if any, showing the provisions of the lease, may be used in evidence by either party to prove the amount due from the defendant. (c) Nothing contained in this section shall deprive landlords of any other legal remedy for the recovery of their rents, whether secured to them by their leases or provided by law.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 752 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter I - General Provisions|§ 752. Termination of estates at will or by sufferance

 All estates at will or by sufferance may be terminated by either party, by three months' notice in writing given by the other party. When the rent received in a lease at will is payable at periods of less than three months the time of such notice shall be sufficient if it is equal to the interval between the times of payment. In all cases of neglect or refusal to pay the rent due on a lease at will, fourteen days' notice to quit, given in writing by the landlord to the tenant, shall be sufficient to terminate the lease.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 781 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 781. When entry allowed; forcible entry prohibited

 No person shall enter upon any land, tenement or other real property, but in cases where entry is given by law; and in such cases the entry shall not be made with force, but only in a peaceful manner.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 782 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 782. Action for forcible entry or detainer

 (a) When a forcible entry is made upon any premises, or when an entry is made in a peaceable manner and the possession is held by force, the person entitled to the premises may maintain an action to recover the possession thereof. (b) If the unpaid rent or the value of the real property involved does not exceed $500, exclusive of interest and costs, the Superior Court shall have exclusive jurisdiction of such action. In all other cases, the Superior Court and the district court shall have concurrent jurisdiction.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 783 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 783. Complaint

 In an action under this subchapter it shall be sufficient to state in the complaint a description of the premises with convenient certainty, that the defendant is in possession thereof, that he entered upon the same with force, or unlawfully holds the same with force, as the case may be, and that the plaintiff is entitled to the possession thereof.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 784 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 784. Procedure generally

 Except as provided in this chapter and the rules of court, an action for forcible entry and detainer shall be conducted in the same manner as other civil actions.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 785 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 785. Time for summons and answer; default judgment

 Upon the filing of the complaint, a summons shall be served and returned within 3 days, requiring the defendant to appear within 3 days after service thereof, and show cause why a judgment of dispossession should not be entered against him. In the event of the failure of the defendant to appear and show cause, judgment shall be rendered against him by default.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 786 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 786. Continuance

 No continuance shall be granted for a longer period than two days, unless the defendant applying therefor gives an undertaking to the adverse party, with good and sufficient security, to be approved by the court, conditioned for the payment of the rent that may accrue if the judgment be rendered against the defendant, and all costs.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 787 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 787. Form of execution

 The execution, should judgment of restitution be rendered, may be in the following form:To the Marshal for the ____Whereas a certain action for the forcible entry and detention (or the forcible detention, as the case may be) of the following described premises, to wit: ____, lately tried before me, wherein ____ was plaintiff and ____ was defendant, judgment was rendered on the ____ day of ____, anno Domini ____, that the plaintiff ____, have restitution of said premises; and also that he recover costs in the sum of ____ In the name of the Government of the United States Virgin Islands you are therefore hereby commanded to cause the defendant to be forthwith removed from said premises, said plaintiff to have restitution of the same; also, that you levy on the goods and chattels of said defendant, and make the costs aforesaid and all accruing costs; and of this writ make legal service and due return.Witness my hand this ____ day of ____, anno Domini ________
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 788 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 788. Appeal bond

 If judgment is rendered against the defendant for the restitution of the real property described in the complaint or any part thereof, no appeal shall be taken by the defendant from such judgment until, in addition to any undertaking otherwise required by law upon appeal, he gives an undertaking to the adverse party, with two sureties, who shall justify in like manner as bail upon arrest, for the payment to the plaintiff of twice the rental value of the real property of which restitution is adjudged from the rendition of such judgment until final judgment in the action, if such judgment shall be affirmed upon appeal.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 789 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 789. Failure to pay rent; expiration of lease; time for notice to quit

 (a) The following shall be deemed cases of unlawful holding by force within the meaning of this chapter— (1) When the tenant or person in possession of any premises fails or refuses to pay any rent due on the lease or agreement under which he holds, or deliver up the possession of the premises for three days after demand made for such possession; (2) When, after a notice to quit as provided in this chapter, any person continues in the possession of any premises at the expiration of the time limited in the lease or agreement under which such person holds, or contrary to any condition or covenant thereof, or without any written lease or agreement therefor. (b) An action for the recovery of the possession of the premises may be maintained in the case specified in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section when the notice to quit has been served upon the tenant or person in possession for the period of 3 days before the commencement thereof, unless the leasing or occupation is for the purpose of farming or agriculture, in which case the notice shall be served for the period of 6 months before commencement of the action. (c) The provisions of this section are suspended during the effective period of subchapter III of this chapter relating to rent control, and this section shall take effect upon the termination of such subchapter under section 846 of this title.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 790 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 790. Form and service of notice to quit

 A notice to quit shall be in writing and shall be served upon the tenant or person in possession by being delivered to him or left at the premises in case of his absence therefrom.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 791 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 791. Rent paid in advance

 The service of a notice to quit upon a tenant or person in possession does not authorize an action to be maintained against him for the possession of the premises before the expiration of any period for which such tenant or person has paid the rent of such premises in advance.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 792 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 792. Access of tenant to cultivate and harvest crop

 When the leasing or occupation is for the purpose of farming or agriculture, the tenant or person in possession shall, after the termination of such lease or occupancy, have free access to the premises to cultivate and harvest or gather any crop or produce of the soil planted or sown by him before the service of notice to quit.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 793 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 793. Merits of title; limitation of action

 In an action to recover the possession of any land, tenement or other real property, where the entry is forcible or when the possession thereof is unlawfully held by force, the merits of the title shall not be inquired into, and three years' quiet possession of the premises immediately preceding the commencement of such action by the party in possession, or those under whom he holds, may be pleaded in bar thereof, unless the estate of such party in the premises is ended.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 794 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 794. Fees and costs

 The total court fees and costs for the summary proceedings provided for by this chapter shall be $2.00.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 795 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter II - Forcible Entry and Detainer|§ 795. Landlord's obligation to install water and/or electric meter

 Unless otherwise agreed in writing, upon the request of a tenant, the landlord of a dwelling unit/commercial unit shall install a water and/or electric meter for the purpose of recording the amount of water and/or electricity used by the tenant. Nothing contained in this section shall prohibit the landlord from assessing costs and charges against the tenant for water and/or electricity; provided that the tenant shall be charged based on the amount of water and/or electricity the tenant uses.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 831 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 831. Definitions

 As used in this subchapter, unless it is otherwise provided or the context requires a different construction, application, or meaning— “accommodations” means any building, structure or part thereof, or land appurtenant thereto, or any other real or personal property rented or offered for rent for living, dwelling, or business purposes in the Virgin Islands, including land rented for the location of a superficiary house; “landlord” includes an owner, lessor, sub-lessor, or other person entitled to receive rent for the use or occupancy of any housing or business accommodations; “maximum rent ceiling” means the maximum rent which may be demanded or received for the use or occupancy of accommodations; “rent” means the consideration, including any bonus, benefit, or gratuity demanded or received per day, week, month, year, or other period of time, as the case may be, for the use or occupancy of accommodations; and “tenant” includes a sub-tenant, lessee, sub-lessee, or other person entitled to the use or occupancy of any housing or business accommodations, other than the owner.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 832 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 832. Administration and enforcement

 The provisions of this subchapter shall be administered and enforced by a Rent Control Officer, under the direction and general supervision of the Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation. There shall be a Rent Control Officer for St. Croix, and a Rent Control Officer for Saint Thomas and Saint John.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 833 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 833. Powers of Rent Control Officer

 In addition to any other powers granted to him by this subchapter or other law, the Rent Control Officer may— (1) with the approval of the Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation, promulgate, issue, amend, or rescind such rules and regulations as he deems necessary for the proper administration of this subchapter; (2) issue such orders as he deems necessary or proper to carry out the purposes and provisions of this subchapter or to prevent the circumvention or evasion hereof; (3) make such studies and investigations, and obtain and require the furnishing of such information under oath or affirmation or otherwise, as he deems necessary or proper, to assist him in prescribing any regulation or order under this subchapter, or in administering and enforcing this subchapter or any regulations or orders hereunder; and (4) for such purposes, require— (A) by subpoena or otherwise, the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of documents at any designated place; (B) persons to permit the inspection and copying of documents and the inspection of housing and business accommodations; and (C) by regulation or order, the making and keeping of records and other documents.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 834 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 834. Maximum rent ceilings

 The maximum rent ceilings in the Virgin Islands shall be as follows— (1) for housing accommodations, rents in force and effect on July 1, 1947; (2) real property used for business purposes or on which superficiary houses are constructed, rents in force and effect on July 1, 1947; (3) for newly constructed housing or business accommodations first rented on and after the aforesaid maximum rent date, or accommodations changed on or after such date, so as to result in an increase or decrease of the number of dwelling or business units in such accommodations, the first rent for such accommodations after the change or maximum rent date as the case may be, but in no event more than the maximum rent provided for such accommodations by an order of the Rent Control Officer upon application properly made; and (4) for housing accommodations or real property used for business purposes or on which superficiary houses are constructed, not rented on July 1, 1947, and not covered by clause (3) this section, the last rent in force and effect prior to July 1, 1947.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 835 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 835. Rents in excess of maximum ceilings

 All rentals shall be deemed unjust and unreasonable if they are in an amount greater than as set forth or authorized in this subchapter.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 836 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 836. Petitions for adjustment of maximum rent ceilings

 (a) Any landlord may petition the Rent Control Officer to adjust the maximum rent ceiling applicable to his accommodations to compensate for a substantial major capital improvement or structural change as distinguished from repair, replacement, or maintenance. (b) Any tenant may petition the Rent Control Officer to adjust the maximum rent ceiling applicable to his premises on the ground that unduly high rents are being charged or that the maximum rent ceiling permits the receipt of rent substantially in excess of the prevailing rent for equivalent accommodations.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 837 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 837. Consideration of petitions; hearings; orders

 (a) Any petition filed under section 836 of this title shall be promptly considered by the Rent Control Officer. Pursuant thereto, he shall hold a hearing, which shall be conducted in accordance with regulations promulgated under clause (1) of section 833 of this title. At this hearing, the landlord and tenant shall be given an opportunity to be heard or to file written statements, with due regard to be given to the utility and relevance of the information offered and the need for expedition. (b) After the hearing referred to in subsection (a) of this section, the Rent Control Officer shall make findings of fact and issue an appropriate order. If the order is favorable to the landlord pursuant to a petition filed by him under subsection (a) of section 836 of this title, it shall provide for an adjustment of the maximum rent ceiling in such manner or amount as the Rent Control Officer deems proper to compensate the landlord for the capital improvement or structural change referred to in such subsection, in whole or in part, if the Rent Control Officer finds the adjustment necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this subchapter; but no such adjusted maximum ceiling shall permit the receipt of rent in excess of the rent generally prevailing for comparable accommodations as determined by the Rent Control Officer. If the order is favorable to the tenant pursuant to a petition filed under subsection (b) of section 836 of this title, it shall, as the case may be, fix a new maximum rent ceiling which shall be substantially equal to that fixed for other properties of like kind and use, or provide for an adjustment of the existing maximum rent ceiling in such manner or amount as, in the judgment of the Rent Control Officer, will effectuate the purposes of this subchapter and provide a fair and reasonable rent for the premises. Copies of the findings and order of the Rent Control Officer shall be served upon the parties to the proceeding. (c) Any adjusted maximum rent ceiling ordered under this section shall be the maximum rent ceiling for the accommodations subject thereto, except that, if the order of adjustment is stayed or set aside by the Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation or the court, the maximum rent ceilings theretofore applicable to such accommodations under this subchapter shall remain in full force and effect.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 838 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 838. Appeal to Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation

 Any person aggrieved by an order of the Rent Control Officer issued under this subchapter may appeal to the Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation within 10 days after issuance of the order. The Commissioner shall issue an order affirming, modifying, or reversing the order from which the appeal was taken.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 839 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 839. Judicial review

 (a) Within 10 days after issuance of an order of the Commissioner of Housing, Parks and Recreation under section 838 of this title, any aggrieved party may file a petition to review such action in the district court and shall forthwith serve a copy of such petition upon the Commissioner. Thereupon the Commissioner shall certify and file with the court a transcript of the record upon which the other complained of was entered. Upon the filing of such transcript the court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to affirm or set aside such order or remand the proceedings. The Commissioner may at any time, upon reasonable notice and in such manner as he deems proper, rescind, modify or set aside, in whole or in part, any such order, at any time, notwithstanding the pendency of the petition to review. (b) No order shall be set aside or remanded unless the petitioner establishes to the satisfaction of the court that the order is not in accordance with law, or is not supported by substantial evidence. (c) The commencement of proceedings under this section shall not operate as a stay of the order of the Commissioner.
V.I. Code tit. 28, § 840 (2019)
2019 US Virgin Islands Code|Title 28 - Property|Chapter 31 - Landlord and Tenant|Subchapter III - Rent Control|§ 840. Grounds for recovery of possession; proof and defenses

 (a) No action shall be maintained to recover the possession of rented premises in the Virgin Islands, except upon the ground that— (1) the owner seeks, in good faith, to recover possession of the premises for his own personal use; (2) the owner desires, in good faith, to recover possession of the premises for the purpose of demolishing them with the intention of constructing a new building, plans for which have been completed and the owner is actually ready to construct same; (3) the tenant maintains a nuisance on the premises, causes and permits unreasonable damage to the premises, or repeatedly engages in or permits serious misconduct on the premises; or (4) the tenant refuses or fails to pay the rent due on the premises. (b) No action to recover possession for nonpayment of rent shall be maintainable unless the landlord proves that the rent is no greater than the amount for which the tenant is liable for the month preceding the default. Nothing in clause (4) of subsection (a) of this section or this subsection shall preclude the tenant from interposing the defense that the rent claimed or contracted is unjust and unreasonable and that the agreement under which the action is brought is oppressive and violative of the provisions of this subchapter.