Hawaii State Bar Association E-Mail On Leonard CJ Nomination

This just received:

Aloha Members:

Undoubtedly you are aware of the controversy and media coverage surrounding the confirmation process now underway for several judicial positions.  In particular, the Board's assessment that ICA Associate Judge Katherine Leonard is "not qualified" for the position of Chief Justice has come under attack.  The Senate committee however has indicated that the Board's input has been helpful.

Since 1990, the HSBA's constitution has required that the HSBA participate in this process and submit testimony to the confirming authority on a nominee's qualifications.  Over the last 20 years, the HSBA has evaluated and submitted testimony on every nominee except for one occasion, when the board did not take a position due to insufficient time to address its concerns.  The Board policy and procedure for evaluating nominees, developed over 20 years, provides opportunity for member comment and input in a confidential fashion.  For similar reasons, the Judicial Selection Commission's deliberations are confidential under Hawaii's constitution. The existing policy does provide that the nominee is apprised of any significant negative comments or concerns before they are interviewed by the full board so that they may respond to those comments.
 
Your elected Board members take this responsibility seriously for each nominee.  I invite you to look at the HSBA website to review the policy/procedures, and the reprint of an article which appeared last year in the Hawaii Bar Journal about this process.  Please again familiarize yourself with this process and comment, if you feel appropriate. These resources will allow you to speak knowledgeably about the process to family, friends and associates. You can play an important role in helping the public better understand the balanced and impartial way the Board arrives at its recommendations based on input from its members and direct interviews with the nominees.
 
Finally, the HSBA’s policy has been amended several times to make adjustments and improvements and the Board members welcome your comments and suggestions on the current policy and will consider additional changes if deemed warranted or appropriate, giving due consideration to all competing factors.
 
Your opinions do matter and will be considered by the HSBA Board.
 
Please direct inquiries from the press to me or the HSBA office. You could also direct people who are interested in learning more about the process to our website.
 
Thank you.
 
Hugh R. Jones

President, HSBA

Our live blog of yesterday's Judiciary Committee hearing.