Hawaii Supreme Court Upholds $222 Million Lawyer Fund While Removing Appeal Ban
The Hawaii Supreme Court kept a $222 million pool for attorneys handling the Maui wildfire settlement but struck down rules that barred fee-award appeals.
Three years after the Lahaina wildfire killed 102 people, Hawaii’s highest court ruled that a $222 million Common Benefit Fund for attorneys will remain intact. The justices upheld most of Judge Peter Cahill’s tiered fee schedule, which caps lawyer fees and creates a review board to allocate the fund. Plaintiffs Michael Bates and attorneys Anthony Ranken, Alex Edrenkin and John Thickstun argued the fund was void, but the court found the special proceeding was still active.
It also rejected broader constitutional claims that the fund constituted an illegal taking or discrimination. The court struck down three provisions that made fee awards final and barred appeals, ordering that any frozen payments be released and permitting future challenges. The board, chaired by retired Associate Justice James Duffy, continues to process applications, while attorneys can now appeal fee caps without payment freezes.
Why it matters
The ruling determines how billions of settlement dollars are distributed to victims and the lawyers representing them.
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