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Notice of Anticipated Judicial Vacancy – Chief Justice, Supreme Court, State of Hawai‘i (Release Date: 11/22/2024)

Posted on Nov 22, 2024 in JSC Press Releases, JSC Vacancy, Judicial Selection Commission, Our Judges, Vacancy

For immediate release: November 22, 2024

The Judicial Selection Commission is accepting applications and nominations to fill the following anticipated judicial vacancy in the State of Hawaiʻi:

Chief Justice, Supreme Court, State of Hawai‘i

The Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi requires that the persons selected by the Commission be residents and citizens of the State of Hawaiʻi and of the United States, and have been licensed to practice law by the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court.  The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall have been licensed for a period of not less than ten years preceding nomination.  No judge shall, during the term of office, engage in the practice of law, or run for or hold any other office or position of profit under the United States, the State or its political subdivisions.

The term of office of the Chief Justice shall be ten years.  The annual salary in Hawaiʻi of the Chief Justice is $248,124. [1]

The Judicial Selection Commission will be publishing the list of all applicants to the Judicial Selection Commission website as provided under Judicial Selection Commission Rule 5, Section Two:  Confidentiality A.

When the names of all the applicants are published, the public will be invited to provide comments to the Judicial Selection Commission for a specific period of time.

The Chief Justice also receives employer contributions to premiums for enrollment in the state-sponsored medical, drug, vision and dental plans, a free life insurance policy, state retirement benefits, a deferred compensation supplemental retirement savings plan, 13 paid holidays annually (14 days during election years), 21 vacation and 21 sick leave days per year.  Benefits are subject to modification or termination due to changes in statutes, pertinent rules and regulations.  The Chief Justice shall be retired upon attaining the age of seventy years.

The Commission invites anyone from all islands who meets the constitutional requirements and is interested in the position to apply directly to the Commission.

The Commission also invites persons to nominate qualified individuals for the position.  Nominators: Mail your nomination to the address below with the nominee’s full name and mailing address as soon as possible and not later than the nomination deadline of Monday, January 6, 2025.

TO APPLY: Please visit the Commission’s website and fill out the form JS-P-084, the Application for Judicial Office Form.  The application must be postmarked to the address below on or before the application deadline of Thursday, February 20, 2025.

Commission Chair Kamani B. Kualaʻau
Judicial Selection Commission
State of Hawaiʻi
417 South King Street
Honolulu, Hawaiʻi 96813

[1]  The salary is current as of the press release date and is subject to change. The salary is determined by the Commission on Salaries pursuant to Article XVI, Section 3.5, of the Constitution of the State of Hawaiʻi and Section 26-56, of the Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes, and any subsequent action taken by the Legislature.

For more information, visit the Judicial Selection Commission webpage or contact the Commission via email at judselect.comm@courts.hawaii.gov.

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