Hawaii Supreme Court - Definition and Overview

<center>

<center>Supreme Court

<center>Intermediate Appeals Court

<center>Circuit Courts

<center>District Courts

<center>Family Courts

<center>Tax Appeal Court

<center>Land Court

Ali'iolani Hale in downtown Honolulu is the home of the Hawai'i State Supreme Court.

The Hawai‘i State Supreme Court is the highest court of the State of Hawai‘i in the United States. Its decisions are binding on all other courts of the Hawai'i State Judiciary. The principal purpose of the Supreme Court is to review the decisions of the trial courts in which appeals have been granted. Appeals are decided by the members of the Supreme Court based on written records and in some cases may grant oral arguments in the main Supreme Court chamber. Like its mainland United States counterparts, the Supreme Court does not take evidence and uses only evidence provided in previous trials.

Functions

The Hawai‘i State Supreme Court has original jurisdiction to answer questions of law that have been passed to it from trial courts or the federal court, hear civil cases submitted to the Supreme Court on agreed statements of facts, and decide questions coming from proceedings of writs of mandamus, prohibition and habeas corpus.

Justices

• Ronald T. Y. Moon
• Simeon R. Acoba, Jr.
• James E. Duffy, Jr.
• Steven H. Levinson
• Paula A. Nakayama

Resources

• Hawai‘i State Judiciary (http://www.courts.state.hi.us/)