STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2651

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    GOV. MSG. NO. 240

Honorable Colleen Hanabusa

President of the Senate

Twenty-Fifth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2010

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Government Operations, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 240, submitting for study and consideration the appointment of: 

Intermediate Court of Appeals, State of Hawaii

G.M. No. 240

LISA M. GINOZA, for a term of ten years,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Your Committee received testimony in support of the appointment of Lisa M. Ginoza from the State Attorney General; the State Public Defender; Major General Robert G.F. Lee, State Adjutant General of the State Department of Defense; Brigadier General Gary Ishikawa, State Department of Defense; Director of Human Resources Development; Director and Deputy Director of Labor and Industrial Relations; Director of Transportation; Deputy Director of the Airports Division, Department of Transportation; Chairperson of the Board of Land and Natural Resources; Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture; Administrator of the Budget, Program Planning and Management Division, Department of Budget and Finance; House Speaker Calvin Say, State House of Representatives; the Honolulu Prosecuting Attorney; and fifty-one individuals.  Comments regarding the appointee were submitted by the Board of Directors of the Hawaii State Bar Association.  Written testimony presented to your Committee may be reviewed on the Legislature's website.

     The Hawaii State Bar Association found the appointee to be qualified for the position of Judge, Intermediate Court of Appeals, based upon the criteria of integrity, legal knowledge and ability, professional experience, judicial temperament, diligence, financial responsibility, and public service, collegiality, and writing ability.

     Lisa M. Ginoza received a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science with a minor in Economics from Oregon State University, from which she graduated with the highest distinction and was named as a Presidential Scholar.  Ms. Ginoza also received a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Hawaii, William S. Richardson School of Law, where she was a member of and an editor with the law review.  Since 2005, she has been the First Deputy Attorney General with the Department of the Attorney General, where she is responsible for supervising over one hundred seventy attorneys and over seven hundred employees, as well as having detailed involvement in litigation by and against the State, gives advice and counsel to Hawaii's public officials, and reviews administrative and criminal investigations, asset forfeiture cases, and legislative matters.  Prior to her work as the First Deputy Attorney General, Ms. Ginoza worked in private practice at McCorriston Miller Mukai MacKinnon between 1990 to 2005, first as an associate and then as a partner, concentrating her practice in civil litigation, within areas as diverse as insurance litigation, personal injury, commercial and contract disputes, employment litigation, and products liability.  Between 1989 and 1990, she served as a law clerk to Judge Samuel P. King, of the United States District Court, District of Hawaii.

     Ms. Ginoza has also demonstrated a commitment to the legal community by serving on an American Judicature Society Special Committee on the American Bar Association (ABA) Model Code of Judicial Conduct, which submitted recommendations to the Hawaii Supreme Court for the adoption of the ABA Model Code.  Additionally, she has acted as an adjunct professor at the University of Hawaii's William S. Richardson School of Law for appellate advocacy.  She continues to serve as a practice judge in moot court competitions for the law school's moot court teams.

     Testimony indicates that Ms. Ginoza has a reputation in the legal community for her deep intelligence, superior analytical skills, fair-mindedness, civility, diligence, and professionalism.  Testifiers spoke of her abiding respect for the law and her ability to quickly identify legal issues, thoroughly research and investigate all pertinent facts and law, and consistently make sound and quality decisions.  By both former adversaries and former co-workers, Ms. Ginoza is characterized as a strong team player, who is easy to work with, and who is unflappable and consistently even tempered.  Additionally, many testifiers addressed her sense of commitment to fairness and justice.  Overall, your Committee finds that Ms. Ginoza's breadth and depth of legal experience and knowledge, her integrity, and her exceptional character will make her a well-qualified Intermediate Court of Appeals judge.

     Your Committee finds that, based on the testimony submitted on her behalf, Lisa M. Ginoza has the experience, temperament, judiciousness, and other competencies to be an Intermediate Court of Appeals judge, and has a good sense of where the equities, rights, and responsibilities lie in a case, which is essential for an Intermediate Court of Appeals judge.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Government Operations that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, experience, and qualifications of the appointee, has found the appointee to be qualified for the position to which appointed and recommends that the Senate consent to the appointment.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary and Government Operations,

____________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair