Editorial: A wise ruling for Kawananakoa

First and foremost: Those who claim to treasure Hawaiian heiress Abigail Kawananakoa, 92, should ensure her continued well-being — not maneuver to claim her treasure. The now-fragile heiress has been a benefactor to many Native Hawaiian causes over the decades, so it’s been sad to see the public court fight that’s erupted for control of her $215 million fortune.

This week, though, came a laudable ruling that can be seen as honoring Kawananakoa’s life’s work and her dedication to the Hawaiian people, even as it found her now mentally incapable of handling complex finances due to a stroke she suffered last year.

First Circuit Judge R. Mark Browning’s ruling held good and bad for both sides, but set a pono path forward. The Campbell Estate heiress and Hawaiian royalty descendent was found incapable of changing or revoking her trust or replacing its trustee, which had been sought by Kawananakoa and wife Veronica Gail Worth, companions for years who wed after last summer’s stroke. But Browning did remove current trustee James Wright — Kawananakoa’s longtime lawyer who has since fallen out with the heiress — and appointed First Hawaiian Bank, named in the trust’s document as Wright’s successor.

The stakes are certainly high when $215 million is involved. At least half of the estate, for instance, is expected to underwrite the Abigail K.K. Kawananakoa Foundation, which Kawananakoa had set up as a charity to fund Native Hawaiian causes following her death, a significant legacy. For now, Kawananakoa still receives over $400,000 monthly via her trust’s investment income.

Browning was on point in urging the fortune fight to cease and for focus, instead, on compassion and care for Kawananakoa: “It would be unfortunate for her to live the rest of her years under the spectre of litigation.”