Thirty attorneys were honored for their volunteer service during the Self-Help Recognition Awards on Nov. 6 at the Kona Courthouse in Kealakekua.
The attorneys provided free legal information to West Hawaii residents who visited the Self-Help Desk at the Kona Courthouse.
The Kona Self-Help Desk was established in October 2013 as part of the Hawaii State Judiciary’s commitment to increasing access to justice in the courts.
Since opening, the Self-Help Desk has helped more than 1,000 people, with volunteer attorneys providing approximately 400 hours of legal information about District and Family Court civil matters, such as temporary restraining orders and divorce. These services have been provided at almost no cost to the state.
“I am grateful to the attorneys who volunteer their time at our Self-Help Desk, assisting individuals who must represent themselves in court,” said Hawaii Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald. “The generous donation of professional services by these attorneys has been essential to advancing our goal of ensuring that all Hawaii residents have equal access to justice.”
The attorneys honored are: Joanna Sokolow (most volunteer shifts), Al Lerma, Charlie McCreary, Herman Heimgartner, Dean Kauka, Kaua Jackson, Dawn Henry, Kim Taniyama, Cynthia Tai, Michael Schlueter, Jason Kwiat, Catherine Gibson, Mark Van Pernis, Rebecca Colvin, Daniel Peters, Gerald Garcia, Fred Gianinni, Ann Datta, Stephen Whittaker, Mitch Roth, Jennifer Heimgartner, John Powell, Andrew Kennedy, Shawn Nakoa, Mike Matsukawa, Bob Borns, Wendy DeWeese, Peter Olson, Carol Kitaoka and Robert Olson.
Also acknowledged were: Erin Henschel, Madeline Taomia, Heather Basham, AmeriCorps Advocates who, through the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii, organize the Self-Help Desk at the Kona Courthouse each week.
Recktenwald also thanked the West Hawaii Bar Association, the Hawaii State Bar Association, the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii and the Access to Justice Commission for their support of the Self-Help Desk.
For more information about the Kona Self-Help Desk as well as the Self-Help Center at Hale Kaulike in Hilo, visit http://bit.ly/1MpcAOd.
