Under the Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi, Article VI, Appointment of Justices and Judges, Section 3: “The chief justice, with the consent of the senate, shall fill a vacancy in the district courts by appointing a person from a list of not less than six nominees for the vacancy presented by the judicial selection commission.”

The Judicial Selection Commission is pleased to announce a list of nominees for the judicial vacancy of District Judge, District Court of the Third Circuit (island of Hawaiʻi), State of Hawaiʻi. The judicial office became vacant upon the retirement of District Judge, Harry P.N. Freitas in May 2019.

The list of nominees selected by the Commission to fill the vacancy for the judicial office of District Judge, District Court of the Third Circuit are listed as follows in alphabetical order:

• Paul K. Hamano
• Jeffrey A. Hawk
• William B. Heflin
• Peter K. Kubota
• Jeffery W. Ng
• Alvin P.K.K. Nishimura

The Chief Justice has 30 days from his receipt of the list today to make his appointment.

Statistics 

• Total Applicants: 11; 1 Female; 10 Males
• Government Attorneys: 6
• Private Attorneys: 5
• Per Diem Judges: 2
• Age Range: 2 (31-40); 2 (41-50); 7 (51-60); 0 (61-70)
• Years Licensed Range: 6 years to 34 years