Paula A. Nakayama
From dKosopedia
Associate Justice of the Hawaii State Supreme Court, Paula A. Nakayama.
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Born:
- Oct. 19, 1953 in Honolulu.
Term:
- 1993-2003,
- 2003-2013
Education:
- Hastings College of Law, juris doctorate;
- University of California at Davis, bachelor's degree in consumer economics;
- Blackford High School in San Jose.
Legal career:
- Associate and partner, Shim, Tam, Sigal and Naito, 1982-92;
- city deputy prosecutor, 1979-82.
Judicial career:
- Appointed Hawaii State Supreme Court associate justice by Gov. John D. Waihee III, 1993;
- appointed Circuit Court judge by Waihee, 1992.
Family:
- Married;
- two children
According to a Honolulu Advertiser article by Lynda Arakawa, entitled Top jurists represent diverse backgrounds and dated 11-23-03:
"She's described as a master of procedure who has sometimes been the swing vote on the five-member court.
Paula Nakayama reached the Hawai'i Supreme Court bench in 1993 on a fast track, having gone from city deputy prosecutor to private attorney to circuit judge to the high court in 14 years.
Nakayama also was notably young, 39, when she was appointed to the state's highest court.
Nakayama is recognized in the legal community largely for writing the 2000 majority opinion rejecting part of the state water commission's landmark decision that divided Waiahole Ditch water between Windward and Leeward O'ahu. The 166-page opinion reaffirmed the state's commitment to the public trust doctrine, "to protect, control and regulate the use of Hawai'i's water resources for the benefit of its people."
Nakayama also is known for her 1996 opinion that ruled policyholders can sue insurance companies if the companies acted in "bad faith" for delaying payment of claims.
That opinion is one Nakayama "can chalk up in her hall of fame," said former Hawai'i Supreme Court associate justice Robert Klein.
"She has, I think, grown into her role on the Hawai'i Supreme Court," he said. "She started very young, and I think being a woman on the court had additional pressure on her when she started. I think she handled it very well."
Born in Hawai'i and raised in California, Nakayama is married to Charles Totto, executive director of the Honolulu Ethics Commission." [1]
External Links
- Top jurists represent diverse backgrounds (Honolulu Advertiser, 11-23-03)
- Hawaii State Supreme Court Justices {Hawai’I State Judiciary)
- Manslaughter conviction overturned - fetus not “person” (Poinography, 11-30-05)
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