STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1320

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    GOV. MSG. NO. 648

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Seventh State Legislature

Regular Session of 2013

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred Governor's Message No. 648, submitting for study and consideration the nomination of: 

Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation

G.M. No. 648

LANI EWART, for a term to expire 6-30-2017,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Your Committee has reviewed the personal history, resume, and statement submitted by the nominee and finds Lani Ewart to possess the requisite qualifications to be nominated to serve on the Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of the nomination of Lani Ewart from the Department of the Attorney General and four individuals.

     Ms. Ewart earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and graduated with highest honors.  She received her Doctorate of Jurisprudence from Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California at Berkeley.  She is licensed to practice law in Hawaii and is admitted to practice law in California as an inactive member of the California Bar Association.

     Ms. Ewart is a Partner at Goodsill Anderson Quinn & Stifel LLP, where she concentrates her practice in the area of financing, particularly in real estate secured lending, and represents lenders and borrowers in a variety of financial transactions involving term loans and revolving lines of credit.  She also handles general real estate matters, including acquisitions, leases, and sales of commercial properties.  She also serves as a member of various nonprofit organizations, including the Honolulu Zoo Society, Honolulu Aquarium, Diamond Head Theatre, Manoa Valley Theatre, Hawaii Theatre, Hawaii Public Radio, PBS Hawaii, Honolulu Museum of Arts, Bishop Museum, Friends of Honolulu Botanical Gardens, Hawaiian Historical Society, and Historic Hawaii Foundation.

     Ms. Ewart is nominated for reappointment to the Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation and currently serves as the Chairperson of the Commission.  Testimony in support of her nomination indicates that she has been a hard working, conscientious, and dedicated member during her entire tenure.  She has previously served on the Executive Committee of the Uniform Law Commission, also known as the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, thereby raising the profile and stature of the Hawaii delegation.  She has participated in drafting committees that draft proposed uniform laws for approval by the National Conference and later by the states.  She has acted as a liaison between the National Conference and local interest groups and provides testimony to the Legislature on uniform laws that are being considered for enactment.

     In recognition of her dedicated service to the promotion of uniform laws, Ms. Ewart was elected in 1998 to Life Membership in the National Conference.  To become a Life Member, a commissioner must serve the National Conference in the voluntary drafting and review of uniform laws for at least twenty years, be recommended by the National Conference's Executive Committee, and be elected by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the commissioners present and voting at the session at which the recommendation is made.  She was the first female commissioner to be elected to Life Membership in the 106-year history of the National Conference.

     Accordingly, based on the testimony submitted, your Committee finds that Lani Ewart is exceptionally qualified to continue to serve on the Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation.  The nominee's professional experience will serve the Commission and public well.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary and Labor that is attached to this report, your Committee, after full consideration of the background, experience, and qualifications of the nominee, has found the nominee to be qualified for the position to which nominated and recommends that the Senate advise and consent to the nomination.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary and Labor,

____________________________

CLAYTON HEE, Chair