The Honorable Gail C. Nakatani retired as a Circuit Court Judge for the State of Hawai‘i in 2002. Judge Nakatani served 10 years on the First Circuit bench. As a general jurisdiction trial judge, she presided over civil and criminal matters and was assigned to both the civil motions and criminal motions. Inasmuch as pretrial practice is the heart and soul of most civil cases, civil motions was an invaluable assignment to understanding and learning the essence of civil litigation.

Judge Nakatani has presided over a thousand civil motions, numerous civil jury and non-jury trials, and has conducted hundreds of judicial settlement conferences and non-judicial mediations. The subject matters of these proceedings include breach of contract, medical malpractice, legal malpractice, wrongful death, construction defects, commercial transactions, wrongful termination, sexual harassment, defamation, real estate disputes, slip and fall, automobile accidents, and employment claims. In addition, Judge Nakatani was assigned to complex cases involving asbestos, latex, and real estate disputes.

Judge Nakatani was born and raised in Pepeekeo, Hawai‘i, a small but vital plantation camp on the Big Island from where a supreme court justice, a leader of HGEA, and a state senate president also emerged. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota (B.A. in Economics) and the University of Puget Sound School of Law (J.D.). After 5 years as a deputy public defender, Judge Nakatani attended Boston University and earned an LLM in Taxation. Prior to her appointment as a judge, she was a private practitioner for 10 years. Her practice included general litigation, condominium management and disputes, real estate transactions, and estate planning.

Judge Nakatani was an adjunct professor at the William S. Richardson School of Law where she taught Pre-trial Litigation. She also participated in the Law School’s Appellate Advocacy class for approximately 10 years, and the moot court program.

Judge Nakatani is available to serve as Mediator, Arbitrator, Special Master, and other neutral services at uniform cost on all islands.