STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1714

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    JUD. COM. NO. 7

Honorable Donna Mercado Kim

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2015

State of Hawaii

Madam:

     Your Committee on Judiciary and Labor, to which was referred Judiciary Communication No. 7, submitting for study and consideration the appointment of: 

District Family Court of the First Circuit

J.C. No. 7

DYAN M. MEDEIROS, for a term to expire in 6 years,

begs leave to report as follows:

     Your Committee has reviewed the resume and statements submitted by the appointee and finds Dyan M. Medeiros to possess the requisite qualifications to be appointed to the District Family Court of the First Circuit, State of Hawaii.

     Testimony in support of the appointment of Ms. Medeiros was submitted by Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii and twenty-two individuals.  Comments regarding the appointee were submitted by the Hawaii State Bar Association.

     The Hawaii State Bar Association (HSBA) Board of Directors found the appointee to be qualified for the position of District Family Court Judge, First Circuit, based on all categories of the HSBA criteria that includes:  integrity, diligence, legal knowledge and ability, professional experience, temperament, financial responsibility, public service, health, and ability to fulfill the responsibilities and duties of the position.

     Ms. Medeiros was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English with Honors from the University of Hawaii at Manoa where she was a Regents' Scholar during her four years of undergraduate study.  She obtained her Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaii at Manoa where she was a Dean's Scholar.

     Ms. Medeiros currently is a Partner at Kleintop, Luria & Medeiros, LLP where her duties include managing human resources issues for the firm.  She focuses her practice on family law matters, including divorce, abuse, and paternity cases.  Prior to joining Kleintop, Luria & Medeiros, LLP in 2008, she served as an Associate at Stirling & Kleintop from 1998 to 2008 and Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert from 1996 to 1998.

     Ms. Medeiros is licensed to practice law in Hawaii and is an active participant in the legal community.  Since 1996, she has volunteered her time at Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii by conducting family law clinics to provide advice and legal counsel to individuals and families on how to navigate the legal system to best resolve their legal issues.  She was also instrumental in launching the Uncontested Divorce Workshop to help self-represented parties understand and finalize their divorces without prolonged litigation.  She also has invested her time by serving on Family Court Committees as well as the Family Law Section of the Hawaii State Bar Association.

     Testimony in support of Ms. Medeiros' appointment indicate that she is a skilled and talented lawyer who has devoted the last seventeen years of her professional practice to family law.  She has demonstrated extraordinary listening, analytical, organizational, and leadership skills in representing her clients effectively in settlement negotiations, alternative dispute resolution efforts, and trials and motion hearings.  She is extremely diligent in her preparation, articulate in her oral and written communications, persuasive in her reasoning, and unfailingly decisive, compassionate, and committed to her clients and the legal profession.

     Of particular note, for the last five years, Ms. Medeiros has frequently been appointed by the Family Court to be a Volunteer Settlement Master for high conflict, multi-issue cases that the Family Court did not have the time to address before trial.  In this role, she has been particularly effective due to her calm and caring demeanor, patience, attention to detail, reasoned guidance, and fairness.  She has settled nearly all of the cases assigned to her by the Family Court and earned the respect of counsel and parties for her skills in this role.  These skills will seamlessly transfer to her role on the bench.

     As such, your Committee finds that, based on testimony submitted on her behalf, Dyan M. Medeiros has the experience, temperament, judiciousness, and other competencies to be a District Family Court Judge.  She has a good sense of where the equities, rights, and responsibilities lie in a case, which is essential for a District Family Court Judge.

     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 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 Labor,

________________________________

GILBERT S.C. KEITH-AGARAN, Chair