The Hawaii Constitution requires that a member of the state House of Representatives be a “qualified voter” of the district she or he represents. In Hussey v. Say, No. CAAP-13-0002255 (Apr. 24, 2014), the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals analyzed how someone who asserts that the representative from District A is in actuality a
“Incidental Public Benefits – Such As Employment Opportunities, Increased Tax Revenue” Does Not Make A Project “Public”
Check out this language from a recent decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of D.C.:
The CityCenterDC development may be a laudable and exciting public-private partnership, and it may entail a more comprehensive level of urban planning and cooperation than the ordinary project, but the exercise will result in the creation of
HAWSCT Considering Whether A County Has A Duty To Maintain Accurate Public Records
Here’s an interesting case upcoming on the Hawaii Supreme Court’s oral argument calendar that is worth following. (April 29, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. – the court is taking the show on the road, and the arguments will be at the gym at Kealakehe High School, in Kailua-Kona, on the Big Island.)
In Molfino v.
HAWSCT On Water, Public Trust Duties, And Autoapproval Requirements
The Hawaii Supreme Court has issued an opinion in Kauai Springs, Inc. v. Kauai Planning Comm’n, No. SCWC 29440 (Feb. 28, 2014). In its preview of the case, the court framed the issue thusly:
In its application, Kauai Springs argues that the ICA gravely erred by: 1) concluding that Kauai Springs impliedly assented
Bad Idea, Part II: There’s Already A “Private Right Of Action” To Enforce Zoning Ordinances
Word comes our way that a bill has been introduced in the Hawaii legislature that would eliminate the primary jurisdiction doctrine and the requirement to exhaust administrative remedies for a narrow class of cases to allow a neighbor to “enforce zoning violations related to transient vacation rental on neighboring property.”
4th Cir: Uniform Relocation Act Requirements Are Like The Pirate’s Code – “More What You’d Call ‘Guidelines,’ Than Actual Rules”
One portion of the federal Uniform Relocation Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4651, requires Federal agencies participating in projects requiring the acquisition of private property to be guided by certain policies that “assure consistent treatment for owners . . . and . . . .promote public confidence in Federal land acquisition practices,” such as (and we’re paraphrasing
Does Hawaii Need An “Environmental Court?” (Part II)
Looks like they’re at it again, a solution in search of a problem: a bill has been proposed in the Hawaii Legislature to create an “Environmental Court,” whose mission would be to handle “environmental disputes” arising under a wide range of state statutes:
…administrative proceedings and proceedings for declaratory judgment on the validity of agency
HAWSCT: Damage To Unique Property Subject To Unique Rules
There’s not much doubt that the now-notorious large-scale unpermitted upland grading and grubbing by a Kauai property owner on its private land caused the runoff that catastrophically damaged the adjacent beach and the reef offshore. The damage was pretty bad, and resulted in the “largest storm water settlement [with the federal EPA] in the United
HAWSCT: State Agency Must Consider “Historical Evidence” Of “The Upper Reaches Of The Wash Of The Waves” When Certifying Shorelines
Today, the Hawaii Supreme Court issued an option in Diamond v. Dobbin, No. SCWC-30573 (Jan. 27, 2014), a case about shoreline certifications that we’ve been following.
It’s a beach case, obviously, but not about ownership. Shoreline certifications approved by the State Department of Land and Natural Resources are used as the baseline from which
Cert Briefs In Admin Due Process Case
Here are the cert briefs in Kellberg v. Yuen, No. SCWC-12-0000266 (Haw. Jan. 22, 2014), the case in which the Hawaii Supreme Court held that there is only one “final decision” that a challenger must administratively appeal when objecting, and that due process requires the agency to give a challenger notice of the administrative