List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Hawaii explained

This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Hawaii. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are other distinctions such as the first minority men in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in Hawaii's history

Lawyers

• First male of Japanese descent: Keigoro Katsura (c. 1855)^[1]
• First African American male: Thomas McCants Stewart (1875)^[2]
• First Native Hawaiian male: Joseph Nāwahī (c. 1888)^{[3] [4] [5]}
• First Chinese American male to practice before the Supreme Court of Hawaii: Anthony Yuen Seto^[6] (1916)
• First Filipino male: Pablo Manlapit (1919)^[7]

State judges

• First male of Native Hawaiian descent (Chief Justice; Supreme Court of Hawaii): Kamehameha III in 1840^[8]
• First African American male: William F. Crockett during the 1900s^{[9] [10]}
• First Chinese American male (circuit court): William "Billy" Heen in 1917^[11]
• First Asian American male (magistrate): Tomekichi "Tom" Okino in 1931^[12]
• First Asian American male (Japanese descent) (First Circuit Court): Robert K. Murakami in 1953
• First Japanese American male (Supreme Court of Hawaii): Masaji Marumoto 1956-1960—Territory of Hawaii; 1967-1973)^{[13] [14]}
• First Japanese American male (Chief Justice; Supreme Court of Hawaii): Wilfred Tsukiyama (c. 1924) in 1959^{[15] [16]}
• First Chinese American (and Native Hawaiian) male (Chief Justice; Supreme Court of Hawaii): William S. Richardson in 1966^[17]
• First Filipino American male (circuit court): Ben Menor in 1968^{[18] [19]}
• First Filipino American male (Supreme Court of Hawaii): Ben Menor in 1974
• First Samoan American male (family court): Bode Uale in 1991^[20]
• First Korean American male (Chief Justice; Supreme Court of Hawaii): Ronald Moon in 1993^[21]

Federal judges

• First Chinese American male (United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit): Chuck Mau in 1950^[22]
• First Japanese American male (U.S. Court of Claims): Shiro Kashiwa (1936) in 1972:
• First Asian American male (U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii): Dick Yin Wong (1950) in 1975^[23]
• First Japanese American male (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit): Shiro Kashiwa (1936) in 1982
• First African American male (U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii): Micah W.J. Smith in 2024^[24]

• First Asian American male (Territory of Hawaii): Michiro Watanabe in 1952^[25]
• First Japanese American male (after statehood): Shiro Kashiwa (1936):^[26]

Deputy Attorney General

• First Chinese American male: Chuck Mau circa 1936

United States Attorney

• First Japanese American male: Yoshimi Hayashi in 1967^[27]

Deputy Public Prosecutor

• First Asian American male: Ralph T. Yamaguchi in 1937^[28]

Political Office

• First male of Native Hawaiian descent (Governor of Hawaii): John D. Waiheʻe III (1976) from 1986-1994^[29]

• First Chinese male admitted to bar: Hong Yen Chang (1889)^[30]
• First Japanese American male to pass the bar exam: Arthur K. Ozawa (1910)
• First Filipino males admitted to bar: Peter Aduja and Ben Menor (1953)^{[31] [32]}
• First Japanese American male (president): Masaji Marumoto in 1954

Firsts in local history

• Masaji Marumoto: First Japanese American male to serve as the Honolulu City and County Attorney (1933)
• Ralph T. Yamaguchi: First Asian American male to serve as a deputy public prosecutor for the Honolulu district

See also

• List of first minority male lawyers and judges in the United States

Other topics of interest

• List of first women lawyers and judges in the United States
• List of first women lawyers and judges in Hawaii

Notes and References

1. Book: Kimura, Yukiko. Issei: Japanese Immigrants in Hawaii. 1992-01-01. University of Hawaii Press. 9780824814816.
2. Book: Smith, Jr., J. Clay. Emancipation: The Making of the Black Lawyer, 1844-1944. 1999-01-01. University of Pennsylvania Press. 0812216857.
3. Book: Court, Hawaii Supreme. Reports of Decisions Rendered by the Supreme Court of the Hawaiian Islands. 1897. H.L. Sheldon. en.
4. Web site: Ulukau: ʻŌiwi Vol. 1 (1998). www.ulukau.org. 2018-12-01.
5. Book: Coffman, Tom. Nation Within. 2016-08-01. Duke University Press. 9780822373988. en.
6. Book: Siddall, John William . Men of Hawaii: Being a Biographical Reference Library, Complete and Authentic, of the Men of Note and Substantial Achievement in the Hawaiian Islands : Volume 1 . 1917 . Honolulu Star-Bulletin . en.
7. Web site: Filipino Migration to the U.S.: Links. opmanong.ssc.hawaii.edu. 2016-10-20.
8. Book: Vile, John R. . Great American Judges: An Encyclopedia . 2003 . ABC-CLIO . 9781576079898 . en.
9. Book: Jackson, Miles M.. They Followed the Trade Winds: African Americans in Hawaiʻi. 2004. Department of Sociology, University of Hawaii at Manoa. 978-0-8248-2965-0. en.
10. Web site: Maui County finally honors its African-American history. mauitime.com. 2020-03-09.
11. Chen . Li . 2015 . Pioneers in the Fight for the Inclusion of Chinese Students in American Legal Education and Legal Profession . Asian American Law Journal . 22.
12. Book: Tamura, Eileen. Americanization, Acculturation, and Ethnic Identity: The Nisei Generation in Hawaii. registration. 241. 1993. University of Illinois Press. 978-0-252-06358-9. en.
13. Book: Martin, Mart . The Almanac Of Women And Minorities In American Politics 2002 . 2018-04-24 . Routledge . 9780429976483 . en.
14. Book: Clarke, Thurston . Pearl Harbor Ghosts: The Legacy of December 7, 1941 . 2007-12-18 . Random House Publishing Group . 9780307416360 . en.
15. Web site: Coe College History - People - Alumni - Wilfred Tsukiyama . 2019-07-20 . www.public.coe.edu.
16. Web site: Wilfred Chomatsu Tsukiyama . 2019-07-20 . archives.starbulletin.com.
17. Web site: 2023-02-17 . Trailblazing Chief Justices in the American States . 2024-05-16 . judicature.duke.edu . en-US.
18. Web site: November 22, 2005 . FAMOUS FILIPINOS . 2019-07-20 . archives.starbulletin.com.
19. Book: Cordova . Dorothy C. L. . Distinguished Asian Americans: A Biographical Dictionary . Fugita . Stephen S. . Chuong . Chung H. . Ng . Franklin . Singh . Jane . 1999 . Greenwood Publishing Group . 9780313289026 . en.
20. Web site: 2009-01-17 . Honolulu mayor honors his Samoan heritage . 2022-05-04 . Church News . en-US.
21. Web site: For Moon, applying the law was foremost. 2010-09-19. Honolulu Star-Advertiser. en-US. 2019-07-20.
22. Book: Coffman, Tom . The Island Edge of America: A Political History of Hawai'i . 2003 . University of Hawaii Press . 9780824826628 . en.
23. Book: Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. 1976. U.S. Government Printing Office.
24. Web site: Senate Confirms Micah Smith and Shanlyn Park Hawaii Federal Judge > Hawaii Free Press . 2024-02-22 . www.hawaiifreepress.com.
25. Web site: Wilfred Watanabe, respected ex-judge The Honolulu Advertiser Hawaii's Newspaper. the.honoluluadvertiser.com. 2020-02-14.
26. Book: Danico, Mary Yu. Asian American Society: An Encyclopedia. 2014-08-19. SAGE Publications. 9781483365602.
27. Web site: Retired justice Yoshimi Hayashi The Honolulu Advertiser Hawaii's Newspaper. the.honoluluadvertiser.com. 2020-02-14.
28. Book: Tamura, Eileen . Americanization, Acculturation, and Ethnic Identity: The Nisei Generation in Hawaii . 1994-01-01 . University of Illinois Press . 9780252063589 . 241 . first japanese american lawyer arthur ozawa. . registration.
29. Book: The American Bench. Clapp. Jeanie J.. Bliss. Mary L.. 1999. Reginald Bishop Forster & Associates. 9780931398391. en.
30. News: 1889-08-09 . The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, August 09, 1889, Image 3 ]. National Endowment for the Humanities . 2022-03-08 . 2157-2127.
31. Book: From Mabuhay to Aloha: The Filipinos in Hawaii . 1991 . Filipino Association of University Women . en.
32. Web site: Peter Aduja, distinguished local Filipino The Honolulu Advertiser Hawaii's Newspaper . 2019-07-20 . the.honoluluadvertiser.com.