Office of the Governor — News Release — Governor Green Appoints New Chief Judge for Intermediate Court of Appeals

STATE OF HAWAIʻI 
KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI 
 
JOSH GREEN, M.D. 
GOVERNOR
KE KIAʻĀINA 

GOVERNOR GREEN APPOINTS NEW CHIEF JUDGE FOR  INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
Hawai‘i’s Female Judges will Outnumber Males by Summertime

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 3, 2025

HONOLULU — Governor Josh Green, M.D., today announced the appointment of Karen T. Nakasone as the new Chief Judge of the Intermediate Court of Appeals (ICA). Nakasone will fill the vacancy left by the elevation of Judge Lisa M. Ginoza to Associate Justice of the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court.

“It is my pleasure to name Karen as Chief Judge of the ICA. Her hard work and stellar track record demonstrate that she has earned the appointment, and the comments of profound support submitted by her peers confirm that she is the right choice,” said Governor Green.

Nakasone has served on the ICA as an associate judge since she was sworn in on November 2, 2020. Initially appointed to the Circuit Court on O‘ahu by former Governor Neil Abercrombie on November 1, 2011, she served as a trial judge for nine years, in both the Civil and Criminal Divisions.

Earlier in her career Nakasone served as law clerk to ICA Judge Simeon R. Acoba Jr., then worked for 15 years as a criminal trial and appellate lawyer for the State Office of the Public Defender.

Judge Nakasone is a Pacific Century Fellow, class of 2008, and was named among the Best Lawyers Under 40 by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association in 2009.

A graduate of the Boston University School of Law and Bryn Mawr College, Nakasone also attended the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa and studied abroad at the University of the Ryukyus in Okinawa, Japan, on an Okinawan Prefectural Government scholarship from the Hawai‘i United Okinawa Association. Her high school alma mater is Hawai‘i Baptist Academy.

“Serving as Chief Judge on the second highest court of the state of Hawaiʻi is a tremendous honor, challenge and responsibility,” Nakasone said. “I am grateful for this opportunity to continue serving the people of Hawaiʻi on a court that I care very deeply about. I thank Governor Green for this appointment and look forward to the Senate confirmation process.”

Based on the gender totals on the bench today, the Governor’s four newest appointments will have 41 women and 38 men seated in the Judiciary.

According to the American Bar Association, there is widespread disparity across state and federal courts. “It has always been my priority to achieve male and female balance on the bench — and to get there with great attention to each appointee’s qualifications and careful deliberation, much the same way a judge makes decisions,” the Governor said. “Hawai‘i can be proud that we have so many well-qualified female judges. Young women who aspire to legal careers can see clearly in our courts, the heights that can be attained.”

A photo of Judge Nakasone can be found here.

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Media Contacts:   
Erika Engle
Press Secretary
Office of the Governor, State of Hawai‘i
Office: 808-586-0120
Email: [email protected] 

Makana McClellan
Director of Communications
Office of the Governor, State of Hawaiʻi
Cell: 808-265-0083
Email: [email protected]