Professional Law Activities:

Licensed to practice in the State Courts of Hawaii and the Federal Courts.  Member of the Hawaii Bar Association and Member of the American Bar Association, Member of the State of Hawaii’s Judicial Selection Commission  from 1985 through 1991.  Member of the American Trial Lawyers Association and the American Board of Trial Advocates, and a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.  Member of the American Board of Trial Advocates.

Areas of Concentration

Commercial and complex litigation; business fraud, construction disputes and contract drafting; administration proceedings, real estate litigation

 Honors:

Mr. Kobayashi has been listed since 1993 in Best Lawyers in America under the categories of Commercial Litigation and Insurance Defense and later in the additional fields of Antitrust and Construction Law.  He has also been listed each year in the Honolulu Magazine’s issues featuring the Best Lawyers in the State of Hawaii in Commercial Law and Litigation and Insurance and subsequently, Antitrust and Construction law from the inception of these ratings recognizing outstanding lawyers in the state.  He has been recognized by Corporate Counsel’s publication in 2011 as among the Top Lawyers, and by Hawaii Super Lawyers in 2011; he holds a Band 1 ranking from Chambers and Partners under the category: General Commercial Hawaii.

 Educational Background:

Mr. Kobayashi attended the University of Hawaii and graduated from Gettysburg College, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with minors in psychology and mathematics and received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.

Military Service:

Mr. Kobayashi was commissioned in 1962 as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Military Intelligence Branch.  He entered active duty in 1965 as a First Lieutenant and was trained at the Combat Infantry Platoon Leaders School at Fort Benning, Georgia (IOBC 21) and the Counter Intelligence School at Fort Holabird, Maryland.  Mr. Kobayashi served in Vietnam with the 519th MI Battalion HHQ Co. from June 1966 to June 1967.  He was the head of the Psyops1Infra-structure Section of the R&A Branch of MACV in Saigon and head of the strategic interrogation team for Operation Hastings in Quin Yon in 1967. He received his honorable discharge with the rank of Captain in 1967.

Arbitration Experience/Training

Mr. Kobayashi has served as a party advocate for over 50 commercial mediations and mediated approximately a dozen commercial matters.  He has attended the AAA’s advanced mediator training series: Expanding the Mediator’s Toolbox – Blending Advanced Mediator Strategies.