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CWK This post is not about inverse condemnation, eminent domain, or land use law.  It is about my colleague, law partner, and friend Charles W. Key. Charlie died at home September 10, 2008. He was 79.

Charlie was a man of wry charm whose legacy in his community, with the Bar, and in our firm which bears his name, is secure. Prior to attending Stanford Law School, he served in the Navy as both an enlisted man and as an officer. He also served as President of the Hawaii State Bar Association, and was instrumental in “unifying” the Hawaii Bar, requiring that all lawyers become members. Charlie was elected as Hawaii’s delegate to the American Bar Association, and also was a member of the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics for many years. He was consistently recognized by his peers as among the Best Lawyers in Hawaii.

One of the proudest moments…

Continue Reading Charles W. Key (1929-2008)

Latest Updates – March 31, 2009

  • The opinion of the unanimous court is posted here

Oral Argument posts


Summary of the Issues

The U.S. Supreme Court will be reviewing the Hawaii Supreme Court’s decision in Office of Hawaiian Affairs v. Housing and Community Dev. Corp. of Hawaii, 117 Haw. 174, 177 P.3d 884 (Jan. 31, 2008). The Court agreed to review the following Question Presented:

In…

Continue Reading Hawaii Ceded Lands Case

Here are the filed briefs in County of Hawaii v. Richards,No.28882, the consolidated appeal from two eminent domain lawsuitsfiled by the County in 2000 and 2005.  The filed briefs are here:

          The issues in the case include:

          • application of Haw. Rev. Stat. § 101-27(1993), the statute that provides that the government must make aproperty owner whole and pay damages when an attempt to take propertyby eminent domain is discontinued or dismissed
          • whether the government may concurrently prosecute more than one condemnation lawsuit at the same time
          • the standards for demonstrating that the government’s claim of public use is pretext to hide private benefit

                Continue Reading Briefs in Kona Eminent Domain Appeals: Damages for Failed Condemnations, Abatement, and Pretext

                Ilh Insurance Law Hawaii, the law blog authored by my Damon Key colleagues Robert Harris and Tred Eyerly which covers insurance coverage issues, has been selected as one of LexisNexis’ Top 50 Blogs for Insurance. 

                “These blogsites contain some of the best writing out there on coverage,catastrophic loss, regulatory compliance, life insurance, health careand insurance issues in general. They contain a wealth of informationfor the insurance community with timely news items, practicalinformation, expert analysis, frequent postings and helpful links toother sites.

                These blogsites also show us how insurance issuesinteract with politics and culture. Moreover, they demonstrate howbloggers can impact the world of insurance law and insurance industryissues.”Continue Reading Insurance Law Hawaii Named a “Top 50 Blog for Insurance”

                Upcoming Events and Conferences

                May 4, 2018
                 
                Arizona Condemnation Summit XXII (Phoenix, AZ) 
                 
                April 19-22, 2018
                 

                Past Events and Conferences

                January 2018
                 
                35th Annual ALI-CLE Eminent Domain and Land Valuation Litigation Conference (Charleston, South Carolina) – Co-planning Chair and faculty.
                October 5-8, 2017
                August 11, 2017

                A modest but very knowledgeable crowd joined us today at the ABA Annual Meeting in New York for a panel discussion and analysis of

                …
                Continue Reading Speaking and Conference Faculty

                InsurancelawhawaiiMy Damon Key colleagues Robert Harris and Tred Eyerly have launched the new and improved version of their law blog, Insurance Law Hawaii.

                The subject of the blog is (quite naturally) Insurance Law.  It focuses on coverage issues under Hawaii law, and issues and cases of interest.  Categories include Bad Faith, Duty to Defend, Flood Coverage, UIM/UM Coverage, and Katrina.  Recent posts analyze a Ninth Circuit decision on indemnification, a Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals decision on a physician’s billing dispute with an insurer, and a Seventh Circuit case illustrating insurers’ “no pay” attitude.  Check it out and subscribe here. 

                This is the third law blog produced by attorneys at my firm.  The other two are Mark Murakami‘s Hawaii Ocean Law, and the blog you are now reading.  Continue Reading New Hawaii Law Blog: Insurance Law Hawaii

                [This article was originally published in Vol. 31 of the State & Local Law News by the ABA Section on State & Local Government (Spring 2008).  ABA members can access it here.  More on the case here.]

                Slgn_frontpage The Hawaii Constitution empowers “the counties” to determine propertytaxes.[1] On issues of local concern, theConstitution’s home rule provisions also give county voters the freedomto initiate amendments to their charters, propose ordinances, or refercouncil-enacted ordinances to the electorate for confirmation.[2]  In County of Kauai ex rel. Nakazawa v.Baptiste,[3] the HawaiiSupreme Court invalidated a voter-approved county charter amendment that rolledback property taxes on the island of Kauai to 1998 levels,and capped future increases at 2% per year. The court acknowledged thatestablishment of property tax policy is a home rule power delegated exclusivelyto “the counties.” However, the court concluded the delegation came with strings: thepeople of the counties do…

                Continue Reading Because They Can: Judicially Excising the People from the Definition of “County” in the Hawaii Constitution