| Vladimir P. Devens | |
| Office: | Associate Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court |
| Appointer: | Josh Green |
| Term Start: | January 12, 2024 |
| Predecessor: | Paula A. Nakayama |
| Birth Name: | Vladimir Paul Devens |
| Birth Place: | Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
| Education: | University of California, Berkeley (BA, JD) |
Vladimir Paul Devens is an American lawyer from Hawaii who has served as an associate justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court since 2024.
Devens' father was a managing director for Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi and his mother was a piano teacher.[1] He was born in Honolulu,[2] and graduated from Kalani High School in 1980.[3] [4] He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, magna cum laude from the University of California, Berkeley in 1984 and a Juris Doctor from the UC Berkeley School of Law in 1987.[5]
Devens is principal at the Law Offices of Vladimir P. Devens, LLC and had been a partner at Meheula, Devens & Winer, as well as at Meheula & Devens. In 2013, he served on the Governor's Hawaii Impaired Driving Task Force and as chair and vice chair of the State Land Use Commission.[6] Devens served as lead counsel in the Hawaii Supreme Court's landmark child abuse decision in Kahoohanohano v. DHS.[7] He was also a police officer with the Honolulu Police Department for six years.[8]
Devens was one of six candidates submitted by the Hawaii Judicial Selection Commission to the governor. On October 23, 2023, Governor Josh Green announced Devens as a nominee to serve as an associate justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court. On November 1, 2023, the governor sent a letter to the Senate, clarifying that Devens was nominated to the seat vacated by Justice Paula A. Nakayama who retired on April 21, 2023.[9] A hearing on his nomination was held on November 17, 2023.[10] On November 21, 2023, Devens was confirmed in the Hawaii Senate by a unanimous 21–0 vote.[11] He was sworn into office on January 12, 2024.[12]