Paula Aiko Nakayama (born October 19, 1953) is an American lawyer who served as an associate justice of the
Hawaii State Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Hawaii is the highest court of the State of Hawaii in the United States. Its decisions are binding on all other courts of the Hawaii State Judiciary. The principal purpose of the Supreme Court is to review the decisions of ...
from 1993 to 2023.
After
Rhoda V. Lewis
Rhoda Valentine Lewis (August 31, 1906September 12, 1991) was the first female justice on the Supreme Court of Hawaii.
Biography
Lewis was born in Chicago on August 31, 1906, to parents Charles Tobias and Josephine Lewis. She moved to Honolulu ...
, Nakayama is second woman to ever serve on the Hawaii State Supreme Court. She is also the first Asian American woman to serve as a state supreme court justice nationwide.
Currently serving her third term, Nakayama served her first term from 1993 to 2003 and her second term from 2003 to 2013.
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Early life and education
Nakayama is the daughter of Harry Nakayama, a WWII veteran of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team
The 442nd Infantry Regiment ( ja, 第442歩兵連隊) was an infantry regiment of the United States Army. The regiment is best known as the most decorated in U.S. military history and as a fighting unit composed almost entirely of second-gene ...
, and Harriet Nakayama, who were both born and raised on Maui
The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...
. At a young age, Nakayama moved to San Jose, California
San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...
where she graduated from Blackford High School. She then went on to study at the University of California at Davis
The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...
where she obtained her bachelor's degree in consumer economics
Consumer economics is a branch of economics. It is a broad field, principally concerned with microeconomic analysis behavior in units of consumers, families, or individuals (in contrast to traditional economics, which primarily government or b ...
. She obtained her doctorate of jurisprudence at the Hastings College of Law
The University of California, Hastings College of the Law (UC Hastings) is a public law school in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1878 by Serranus Clinton Hastings, UC Hastings was the first law school of the University of California as ...
.
Career
In 1979, Nakayama joined the staff of the Prosecuting Attorney of Honolulu
The Prosecuting Attorney of Honolulu is one of only two countywide elected positions in the City & County of Honolulu
Honolulu County (officially known as the City and County of Honolulu, formerly Oahu County) is a consolidated city–county ...
as a deputy prosecutor.[ In 1982, she joined the law firm Shim, Tam, Sigal and Naito where she became a partner.
In 1992, Governor ]John D. Waiheʻe III
John David Waihee III (born May 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the fourth governor of Hawaii from 1986 to 1994. He was the first American of Native Hawaiian descent to be elected to the office from any state of the United Stat ...
appointed Nakayama to the Hawaii State Judiciary as a circuit court judge.[ Confident of her skill, the governor elevated Nakayama to the Hawaii Supreme Court in 1993 — the first woman on the court in 26 years.] The Hawaii Judicial Selection Commission retained and reappointed Nakayama for a second term in 2003 and for a third term in 2013. She retired from active service on April 21, 2023.
Nakayama's notable written opinions include her 1996 opinion that ruled policyholders can sue insurance companies for acting in "bad faith" for delaying payment of claims, and her 2000 majority opinion rejecting part of the state water commission's landmark decision that divided Waiahole Ditch water between Windward and Leeward Oahu, which reaffirmed the state's commitment to the public trust doctrine "to protect, control and regulate the use of Hawai'i's water resources for the benefit of its people."
Personal life
Nakayama is married to attorney Charles Totto, who formerly served as executive director of the Honolulu Ethics Commission.
See also
* List of Asian American jurists
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakayama, Paula A.
1953 births
Living people
People from San Jose, California
University of California, Davis alumni
University of California, Hastings College of the Law alumni
Hawaii state court judges
Justices of the Hawaii Supreme Court
American jurists of Japanese descent
20th-century American judges
21st-century American judges
20th-century American women judges
21st-century American women judges