The state Senate voted Monday to confirm Circuit Judge Michael Wilson as an associate justice of the state Supreme Court after finding that Wilson has the experience, temperament and legal insight to serve on the state’s highest court.
The 23-1 vote sent a forceful message that senators rejected the Hawaii State Bar Association’s rating that Wilson was "unqualified."
Wilson, 60, replaces Associate Justice Simeon Acoba, who has reached the mandatory retirement age of 70 for judges. His term on the court is 10 years.
Wilson has served on the Circuit Court since 2000 and is a former director of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, state consumer advocate and environmental and civil-rights attorney. But his confirmation was dominated by questions about his character and work ethic, including confidential comments from attorneys about his conduct toward women in professional settings.
"I am humbled by and grateful for the consent of the Senate," Wilson told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser after the vote. "(Senate) President (Donna Mercado) Kim and all the members of the Senate treated me with patience and kindness and fairness and due process. I’m especially grateful for the courage and the strength and the wisdom of Chairman (Clayton) Hee throughout this process."
Wilson chose not to comment on the confirmation process itself, but said a discussion would likely await the Senate and the state Judiciary.
Gov. Neil Abercrombie, who appointed Wilson, said the bar association should examine its rating process. He said everyone should have the right to confront their accusers.
"Shadowy accusations, innuendo, have no place in our society," the governor told reporters. "If you want to talk about transparency, transparency needs to work both ways."
Several senators described the screening process for judicial nominees as flawed. Senators have savaged the bar association in particular for allowing negative comments made confidentially by attorneys to influence the bar’s ratings. The bar association has defended the rating process, arguing that confidentiality promotes candor and protects attorneys and their clients from possible reprisal from judges.
SENATORS and the legal community have struggled to improve a process in which the Judicial Selection Commission, the bar association, the governor and the Senate each have an important oversight role. Most judicial nominees are easily confirmed by the Senate after confirmation hearings where the overwhelming testimony is positive.
The criticism of the process has been the loudest when the bar association issues "unqualified" ratings, yet the bar is the closest reflection of how nominees are viewed by their peers.
Hee (D, Heeia-Laie-Waialua), chairman of the Senate Judiciary and Labor Committee, said senators take claims of sexual harassment and discrimination seriously. He also recognized the courage required for people to come forward publicly with harassment claims.
But he said the committee held a second confirmation hearing on Wilson to provide an opportunity for people to express or substantiate concerns about Wilson’s conduct. No one publicly substantiated any of the confidential comments about the judge.
Senate Minority Leader Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head-Kahala-Hawaii Kai) likened Wilson’s vetting to a "public colonoscopy of a judge who deserves better."
The Senate women’s caucus had asked Wilson to disclose his personnel file and judicial performance reviews to help answer questions about his character and work ethic. Wilson turned over his personnel file to the Senate on Saturday but did not share his judicial performance reviews after legal experts told the Senate that Wilson did not have the legal authority to release the information.
Only one senator — Sen. Rosalyn Baker (D, West Maui-South Maui) — voted against Wilson’s confirmation.
Baker said she had been told confidentially that Wilson created a hostile work environment, did not treat subordinates with respect and did not have the appropriate judicial demeanor or worth ethic.
"I expect more of a judge, whether in the Circuit Court or on the Supreme Court," she said.
Baker said there were too many questions surrounding Wilson for her to conclude that he represents the "best, brightest and most diligent."
Baker also stood up for the people who complained about Wilson confidentially. She said not everyone is in a position to offend their employers or, for attorneys early in their legal careers, to offend people in power.
"Those of us with power sometimes lose touch with those who are without it," she said. "That makes it our responsibility to deepen our understanding, allow for the possibility that powerlessness is immobilizing, and assist in whatever ways we can to protect (against) exploitation, wherever it may occur."
