Gov. Josh Green has nominated Judge Lisa M. Ginoza and attorney Vladimir Devens as associate justices to the Hawaii Supreme Court.

“One of my guiding principles for judicial nominations is to ensure diversity — in terms of gender and ethnicity, yes — but also in background and experience,” Green said in statement released on Monday. “These nominees have very different legal backgrounds, but the breadth and depth of their experience in different areas of law and practice were compelling reasons for me to choose them.”

The Hawaii State Senate will convene a special session, it’s second of 2023, to consider the two appointments.

Ginoza has spent 13 years with the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals, the last five as chief judge. She also served as first deputy attorney general from 2005 to 2010, assisting the attorney general in leading a department of more than 700 employees including 170 attorneys across 16 legal services divisions and five non-legal divisions covering Crime Prevention, Criminal Justice Data Center and investigations, among others.

In private practice with some of the top law firms in Honolulu, Ginoza oversaw various types of litigation and handled cases at all court levels, including the Hawaii Supreme Court, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ginoza is a member of the boards of directors of both the Judiciary History Center and the American Judicature Society. She chairs the Hawaii Supreme Court’s Commission to Promote and Advance Civic Education. A graduate of Kailua High School, she received her juris doctor from the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. 

“I am grateful to Governor Green for his confidence in me and thank him for this opportunity,” Ginoza said.  I look forward to meeting with senators in the coming weeks as they consider my nomination. I also thank the Judicial Selection Commission for its earlier role in this important process.”

Devens is principal at the Law Offices of Vladimir P. Devens, LLC and had been a partner at Meheula, Devens & Winer, as well as at Meheula & Devens. He served as lead counsel in the Hawaii Supreme Court’s landmark child abuse decision in Kahoohanohano v. DHS, has litigated constitutional privacy right cases, and handled significant litigation involving child sexual abuse issues and numerous wrongful death cases. He also represents several labor unions.

Devens serves as a member on the Disciplinary Board of the Hawaii Supreme Court and as a director for the nonprofit Crime Stoppers Honolulu, Inc. His previous public service roles include participation as a member on the Governor’s Hawaii Impaired Driving Task Force in 2013 and as chair and vice chair of the State Land Use Commission.

His activity within the legal community includes several roles with the Hawaii State Bar Association since 2011 and he serves as a volunteer attorney with the Access to Justice Center. Following a six-year career with the Honolulu Police Department attaining the rank of corporal, Devens remains a volunteer reserve police officer.

Devens graduated from Kalani High School and earned his juris doctor from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law.

“Having been born and raised in this community and having had the opportunity to serve many over the decades through a very diverse legal practice and through work in our community, it is an honor to be nominated,” Devens said. “And should the State Senate confirm me, I will bring the same values, hard work, commitment and dedication that has marked my decades of work as a litigator and through my service in the community.”

Ginoza and Devens were selected to fill vacancies on the Hawaii Supreme Court resulting from the retirements of Associate Justice Michael Wilson in March and Associate Justice Paula Nakayama in April. They were among six recommendations provided to the Governor after a thorough review of the backgrounds and qualifications of all applicants by the Judicial Selection Commission.

The confirmation process will begin with a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing chaired by Senator Karl Rhoads on Nov. 17 at 10 a.m. The Senate will convene a floor session on Nov. 20 at 11 a.m., to be followed by a separate decision-making meeting of the Judiciary Committee at 11:30 a.m.

Final Senate votes on the appointments are expected on Nov. 21.

Rhoads congratulated both Ginoza and Devens on their appointments.

“Being a State Supreme Court Justice is an incredible responsibility, and the Senate has the vital constitutional obligation to ensure that these appointees are qualified to sit on the highest court in our State,” Rhoads said. “Between now and the special session in November, the Senate, the Judiciary Committee, and I will conduct a thorough review of the appointees.”