Legal self-help center to open

By JOHN BURNETT

Tribune-Herald staff writer

A new self-help center for those who represent themselves in court will start operating Monday on the first floor of the state courthouse in Hilo.

The center is the result of a joint effort involving the Hawaii Judiciary, state and county Bar Associations and the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii. Manned by volunteer attorneys, it will be open on Mondays and Fridays from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., except for holidays. The attorneys will provide legal information at no charge. The telephone number is 961-0609.

“We have private and public
attorneys giving up their lunch two days a week to help people,” Deputy Prosecutor Darien Nagata, president of the Hawaii County Bar Association, said Wednesday. “The focus will be on District Court and Family Court. It will not be on criminal law,” she added, noting that criminal defendants who can’t afford a lawyer are represented by the Public Defender or court-appointed private lawyers.

Third Circuit Chief Judge Ronald Ibarra said the volunteer attorneys can’t give legal advice, but can help those dealing with divorces, small claims, landlord-tenant issues and the like get the proper forms for their court proceedings and help them to complete and file the forms.

“Mostly this is for the people who can’t afford lawyers when they come to court,” he said. “Rather than just ignore legal documents and proceedings that they’re not familiar with, at least they can go to a place to get information. I’m not talking about legal advice. I’m talking about, for example, ‘Where do I get forms to file a divorce?’ OK, here it is; fill it out.”

Ibarra said it’s his hope that parties who represent themselves in court will do so “with some knowledge.”

“We cannot give legal advice as a judge,” he said. “We’re supposed to be the third party (who’s) neutral. It is difficult, as a judge, to see a party come into court who might have a legitimate position, and we can’t assist that party. Hopefully, it will help the party to appear in court rather than have the party who is served with legal documents completely ignore the legal documents and default (judgment) is entered against that party.” A default judgment is a ruling against a party who fails to show up in court for a civil case.

Volunteer attorneys receive training before working at the center, Nagata said.

Bill Heflin, an attorney with Crudele & De Lima and a volunteer, said he hopes the center will “help those representing themselves in District Court and Family Court and help the Judiciary clean up a backlog on their calendar.”

“Somebody can come to court and at least know what forms they’re supposed to have prepared and how to conduct a hearing,” he said. “I think that not only helps them in the court, it also helps the other attorneys.”

Another volunteer attorney, Jennifer Zelko of Torkildson, Katz, Moore, Hetherington & Harris, said she believes the center is “one of the best things to happen in our judiciary.”

“For me, it’s a way to help people to be better informed,” she said. “I do landlord-tenant law. So many people are just hung up on the technical things, like service of papers, and they have no idea of what forms they have to file … or where to file it. They don’t even know what a default judgment is.”

Those facing judicial foreclosure of their homes can also get help filing for court-ordered mediation with the lender.

“During our training … (Circuit) Judge (Greg) Nakamura came and specifically talked about foreclosure and this court-ordered mediation,” Zelko said. “There will be forms, and we’ll be able to help point the … defendants to these forms. And I believe that’s the most important thing. Because if you don’t know you can ask for it, you may never ask for it.”

Zelko and Heflin both said they consider it important to give something back to the community and feel good about volunteering.

The self-help program was instituted first on Kauai, Nagata and Ibarra said. The Hilo center is the second, with Honolulu and Maui expected to follow suit. Nagata said that 28 attorneys have been trained to work in the Hilo center and 16 have signed on to volunteer, so far.

“We’ve had a good turnout of attorneys willing to serve the public. Once we get started, there’s always room for it to grow,” she said.

An opening ceremony is scheduled at 10 a.m. Friday at the courthouse, with Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald, Judge Ibarra and Nagata to speak.

Email John Burnett at
jburnett@hawaiitribune-
herald.com.