An out-of-court settlement has been reached in a lawsuit by three Japanese nationals who claimed they were sold undeveloped land in Puna by another Japanese national under fraudulent pretenses and at inflated prices.
An out-of-court settlement has been reached in a lawsuit by three Japanese nationals who claimed they were sold undeveloped land in Puna by another Japanese national under fraudulent pretenses and at inflated prices.
The agreement will give the plaintiffs, Toshio Nishio, Yumoko Motoda and Tadao Motoda $10,000, collectively, from defendants Benfact U.S.A., Katsuko Yamazaki and Hisashi Yamazaki. The main defendant, Hiroshi Yamazaki, Katsuko Yamazaki’s husband and Hisashi Yamazaki’s father, died Jan. 9, 2015, according to the lawsuit’s dismissal document, filed Oct. 24 in Hilo Circuit Court. The dismissal of the case is with prejudice, meaning the claims cannot be refiled.
Terms of the settlement include no admission of breach of contract, negligence, fraud or misconduct of any kind.
“Mr. Yamazaki had passed away during the litigation and that probably had something to do with how this matter ended,” Andrew Daisuke Stewart, a Honolulu attorney who represented Benfact and the Yamazakis, said last week. “I’ve never actually met Mr. Yamazaki, but I’ve met his wife, who was named in the litigation and I met the son, and I can unequivocally say that they had nothing to do with it, whether the allegations are true or not. It’s unfortunate their names got dragged through the mud, so to speak, especially since it’s a small community in Pahoa.”
The lawsuit, which was filed Feb. 12, 2014, claims Hiroshi Yamazaki, through Benfact and his former company, Hilo Hawaiian Corp. — which is unrelated to the hotel of the same name — sold a number of lots to the plaintiffs who between 2006 and 2012 with representations such as “foreign ownership of property in Hawaii was not normally allowed,” that the property “was part of a ‘special’ development” by the state for foreign ownership only, and that lots on the property “were allocated on a ‘lottery’ basis administered only by select companies” such as Yamazaki’s.
The suit also alleged that Yamazaki was not licensed to sell real estate in Hawaii, but in two instances acted as Nishio’s agent, breaching his fiduciary duty by not informing her of Benfact’s ownership of the properties.
Stewart said Benfact is no longer selling real estate.
“Benfact, the company, is inactive ever since Mr. Yamazaki passed away. So that’s not occurring,” he said.
Stewart said media disclosure of the allegations in the suit caused Hisashi Yamasaki, a U.S. citizen who lived in Puna, to be shunned in the community and to ultimately leave the island, but his mother, a Japanese national, remains here.
“I’m hoping people keep an open mind. There’s no admission of liability; there’s no judgment. I think the settlement amount speaks for itself. Ms. Yamazaki, she’s very attached to the community and she hopes to keep active in the community and do what she can to help out. She is hoping people keep an open mind about herself and the family. It’s an unfortunate situation.”
Brian De Lima, the plaintiffs’ attorney, didn’t return multiple phone calls this week seeking comment.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.