The “reporter-hosts” at Honolulu Civil Beat are doing a very valuable public service by putting on an event this Thursday focusing on the Hawaii State Bar Association’s role in judicial nominations. Featured speakers are Hugh Jones (current HSBA president), and Michael Lilly (former State Attorney General). It’s open to the public.
The recent unqualified rating for Supreme Court Chief Justice nomineeKatherine Leonard placed the Hawaii State Bar Association’s review processunder intense scrutiny. In Hawaii Bar Association’s Secrecy Under Fire,Civil Beat Land Reporter-Host Michael Levine asked questions about thereview process itself. “Why so last-minute? Why no results? And why norationale?”
We will be hosting our next Beatup to discuss the role of the barassociation in the judicial nomination process. Key thought leaders on thetopic will speak about what was learned from the Leonard nomination and how thebar association might consider changing its approach. As always, the audiencewill be active participants in the discussion.
Despite the name for these gatherings — “beatups” — they are actually quite civil, and unlike staged town-hall type meetings, productive. More details, including RSVP information, here.