Case Notes

• Jurisdiction: Hawaii,United States
• Citation: Vol. 21 No. 05
• Publication year: 2017

CASE NOTES

Supreme Court

Civil Procedure

Bank of America v. Reyes-Toledo, No. SCWC-15-0000005, February 28, 2017, (Pollack, J.). This case raised issues of standing and appellate jurisdiction that pertained to foreclosure proceedings. The Hawaii Supreme Court considered whether a foreclosing plaintiff seeking summary judgment must prove it had standing to foreclose on the homeowner's property at the commencement of the lawsuit to be entitled to foreclosure of the subject property. The Hawaii Supreme Court also determined the extent of appellate jurisdiction over interlocutory orders leading up to a foreclosure decree. The Hawaii Supreme Court concluded that there was a material question of fact as to whether Appellee was the holder of the Note at the time the foreclosure proceedings were commenced, which in turn raised the issue of whether Appellee had standing to foreclose on the Property at the time it brought the foreclosure action. Second, as an appeal from a final judgment, the appeal from the circuit court's Judgment brought up for review "all interlocutory orders not appealable directly as of right which deal with issues in the case." See Ueoka v. Szymanski, 107 Hawai'i 386, 396, 114 P.3d 892, 902 (2005) (quoting Pioneer Mill Co. v. Ward, 34 Haw. 686, 694 (1938)). The circuit court's orders concerning the dismissal of Appellant's counterclaims were both issued prior to the Foreclosure Decree and concerned issues involving the foreclosure in this case. Thus, the appeal of the circuit court's Judgment to the ICA brought up for review the circuit court's Order Granting Motion to Dismiss Counterclaims and Order Denying Motion for Re-consideration and Certification.

Hyland v. Gonzales, No. SCWC-15-0000053, March 2, 2017, (Pollack, J.). Haw. Rev. Stat. § 11-25 provides procedures for the challenging of a person's voter registration status. When a challenge is brought prior to the day of an election, Haw. Rev. Stat. § 11-25(a) applies, which allows a voter to challenge "the right of a person to be or to remain registered as a voter in any precinct" through a written challenge. The challenge must set forth the grounds upon which it is based and be delivered to the county clerk of the respective county; the clerk is required to promptly investigate and rule on the challenge. In cases where the clerk rules on a challenge prior to election day, appeals may be made from the clerk's ruling to the local board of registration pursuant to Haw. Rev. Stat. §...