February 12, 2010
"If You Didn't Know Then, You Know Now--HSBA's Judicial Evaluation Process"
The HSBA’s role in the judicial appointment process has been criticized by the American Judicature Society and others in the past. Why does the HSBA Board of Directors review the qualifications of those individuals appointed as judges? The answer is that Article IX of the HSBA Constitution provides that "[t]he Board shall evaluate the qualifications of persons appointed to judicial office in Hawaii or the positions of Hawaii State Attorney General or Hawaii U.S. Attorney, and inform the confirming authority of such recommendations and evaluations.”
The HSBA board has adopted detailed procedures for this evaluation process to ensure fairness to those being evaluated. The board solicits confidential comments from members, shares any negative information with the nominee without revealing confidential information, interviews the nominee and checks the nominee’s references. The HSBA’s procedures have been continually revised to improve them. The last significant change to the policy amended the policy to eliminate the “highly qualified” rating. Thus, at present, the HSBA Board, by written ballot, classifies a nominee as qualified or not qualified. Under applicable policies, the vote is confidential.
Call for Comment on (2) Judicial Nominations Due by Noon, Tuesday, February 16, 2010.
- Lisa M. Ginoza -- ICA
- R. Mark Browning -- Circuit Court, First Circuit
Submit your comment to
president@hsba.org, a private and secured account. You may also fax your comment to HSBA at (808) 521-7936. All identifying information is confidential.
--Hugh Jones- HSBA President
February 12, 2010
Let's Mingle!
The YLD is having its first social mixer of the year on Wednesday, February 24, 2010 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at Ka Restaurant and Lounge (formerly E&O Trading Company). The YLD is co-sponsoring this event with the Shidler College of Business Alumni Association and it is open to all professionals. Event information can be found here. You must RSVP by Monday, February 22 at 3:00 p.m. We hope to see you all there!
Legal Line volunteers are still needed to help on Wednesday evenings from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. at the HSBA office. Volunteers intake questions from the public and give out legal information on a wide range of subjects including family law, landlord/tenant, bankruptcy, estates and trusts, and criminal law. To volunteer your time for this project, please call James Maruyama at 792-7338 or via email at JamesM@HSBA.org.
--Lisa K.Y. Nakahara- YLD President