PRESS RELEASE FROM OFFICE OF DISCIPLINARY COUNSEL
HONOLULU, HAWAIʻI – On January 11, 2023, the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court indefinitely suspended Honolulu attorney Dexter K. Ka’iama from the practice of law in Hawai̔i. Mr. Ka’iama refused to cooperate with the Office of Disciplinary Counsel (ODC) in its investigation into specific acts of misconduct raised with the ODC, and he refused to comply with ODC’s lawfully issued subpoena. Later, after ODC sought Mr. Ka’aima’s suspension for the failure to cooperate, and an Order to Show Cause (OSC) was issued by the supreme court, he would not comply with that OSC, and instead “tender[ed] his resignation and/or surrender of his license to practice law.” ODC objected to the purported resignation as procedurally improper and asked the court to impose the sought relief of suspension. Ultimately, the court granted the petition and imposed this indefinite suspension until such time as Mr. Ka’iama seeks reinstatement with proof that he has cured the failure to cooperate.
Upon entry of the January 11, 2023, suspension order, Mr. Ka’iama shall not accept any new retainer or engage as attorney for another in any case or legal matter of any nature. He is also required to promptly notify all of his clients, and any attorneys for any adverse party in any pending litigation, of his suspension and consequent inability to act as an attorney. Mr. Ka’iama shall surrender to all clients all papers and property to which the clients are entitled and any advance payments of fees that have not been earned.
Mr. Ka’iama, was admitted to the Hawaiʻi bar in 1986, and is a graduate of the University of Hawai̔i, William S. Richardson School of Law. If there are any questions, please contact me at (808) 469-4026.
Case information: ODC v. Ka’iama, SCAD-22-0000623
ILind: Hawaii Supreme Court formally suspends Dexter Kaiama from the practice of law
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Another Sovereignty Mortgage Scammer loses law license
ILind Jan 1, 2023: … Dexter K. Kaiama announced his resignation from the state bar in a sworn declaration filed in the Hawaii Supreme Court on Thursday, December 29, at 6:54 p.m.
His resignation came in response to an order by the Supreme Court to “show cause…informing this court of any reasons as to why he should not be suspended from the practice of law immediately” for failing to cooperate with an active investigation of alleged misconduct carried out by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel.
The court, in its December 19 show cause order, said Kaiama “knowingly and wilfully failed to obey a lawful subpoena, issued by ODC under the authority of this court,” contrary to his duty, as an attorney licensed to practice law, to cooperate with the Disciplinary Counsel. He was given ten days to answer or face immediate suspension.
Kaiama, 63, also claims the title of appointed attorney general of the “Hawaiian Kingdom” headed by David Keanu Sai, one of several competing sovereignty groups that claim to represent a resurrected, reinstated, or reestablished Hawaiian Kingdom government.
He was admitted to the practice of law in Hawaii in October 1986.
In multiple cases and court filings over a number of years, Kaiama has used the legally-discredited notion that Hawaii’s annexation to the U.S. in 1898 wasn’t legal, the Hawaiian Kingdom continues to exist as a state pursuant to international law and has been under a prolonged and illegal occupation, leaving Kingdom law still in effect. As a result, Kaiama has argued federal and state courts have no jurisdiction in civil or criminal matters.
Although this legal argument has never succeeded in court, Kaiama has nonetheless continued to push it in a number of criminal and civil cases in both state and federal courts, which has brought him into conflict with the Disciplinary Counsel and other agencies.
In 2019, the Supreme Court approved an ODC recommendation that Kaiama be publicly censured for accusing Circuit Court Judge Greg K. Nakamura of being a “war criminal.” Kaiama argued Hawaii is an “occupied territory” under the international laws of war and disputes properly belong in a military courtroom, and that Nakamura therefore was a war criminal for allowing the foreclosure case to go forward.
In June 2020, Kaiama was permanently barred from providing “legal services or any other assistance” to any homeowner whose property is facing actual or threatened foreclosure. The action came after the State Office of Consumer Protection filed a civil lawsuit alleging Kaiama had been part of a foreclosure defense scheme that violated the state’s Mortgage Rescue Fraud Prevention Act….
read … Attorney known for arguing Hawaiian Kingdom sovereignty gives up his law license
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