The Star-Advertiser reports this breaking story -- Governor makes names of court nominees public:
Following a court order prompted by a Honolulu Star-Advertiser lawsuit, Gov. Neil Abercrombie released the names of nominees to the Hawaii Supreme Court and two Circuit Court judgeships.Attorney General David Louie said the governor still disagrees with the court decision.
However, the Judicial Selection Commission, which screens and forwards the names of judicial nominees to the governor, decided last week to release the list of candidates when it submits the list to the governor.
"In light of the changed circumstances with the Commission's actions, judicial applicants will no longer have any expectation of confidentiality," Louis [sic] said.
Here is the AG's News Release. We represent the Star-Advertiser in the case. Here are the documents from that case.
Update: noting that "Abercrombie still disagrees with a ruling but effectively waives the state's appeal rights," the full story from the Sunday Star-Advertiser, Gov releases judicial candidate list:
"We are pleased that Governor Abercrombie has decided to follow the court's decision and no longer pursue this matter," said Dennis Francis, president and publisher of the Star-Advertiser. "As we have said from the beginning, transparent government is almost always the best approach."Diane Hastert, the Star-Advertiser's attorney in the case, said, "We're gratified it appears there will be no need for further litigation to secure the people's right to know the names appearing on Judicial Selection Commission's lists. The Star-Advertiser stepped forward and took responsibility to protect the public interest at a crucial time. The Court, the JSC and now the governor all agree the names will be released, which is precisely what our suit sought."
