A look ahead: Q&A with Hawaii's law firms - Pacific Business News - Pacific Business News (Honolulu)

Pacific Business News speaks with some of Hawaii's top law firms to see what their focus is going into the new year.

What practice areas or specializations has your firm added or done away with in the last year?

Andrew Lautenbach, director, commercial litigation at Starn O’Toole Marcus & Fisher: While not a new practice area for the firm, in the last 12 months, we have devoted resources to enhancing our firm’s eminent domain practice. The rail project has driven the need for significant work in this area. Our firm has also recently added intellectual property as an area of specialty.

Motooka Rosenberg Lau & Oyama: Representation of Homeowner Associations has required us to learn and advise on various impacts of Covid-19 on Association operations.

Have your hiring strategies changed in the last year? What positions are you hiring for currently?

Lautenbach: No, our hiring strategy is to remain flexible and to always be on the lookout for the best people. I expect that we

will be adding one to two new attorneys over the course of the next 12 months.

Oyama: We have had to consider more options for out-of-state, licensed-in-Hawaii attorneys as well as support staff who work from home. We expect to hire two to three more attorneys if new and current client needs continue to grow at the same pace as in 2021.

In what business sectors have you seen the biggest increases in demand for service since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic?

Lautenbach: We have seen a significant increase in commercial landlord/tenant disputes. Restaurants, offices, and retail spaces have struggled because of government-mandated shutdowns and the need to implement social distancing and other precautionary measures. This has given rise to many disputes with respect to whether the pandemic conditions trigger a force majeure provision or otherwise excuse or delay a tenant’s obligations, and how the risks and losses associated with the pandemic should be allocated.

As the economy progresses through the pandemic, and tourism starts to return in full force, we expect to see values in hotel and resort properties quickly returning and growing. We anticipate that this will lead to increases in trading of such properties, and the attendant need for related legal services in areas such as acquisitions and lending. Increased transactional activity also leads to the increased likelihood of litigation in related areas.

Richard Budar, managing director at McCorriston Miller Mukai MacKinnon: Litigation should increase with the opening of the courts and real estate and public finance should increase with projects opening.

Oyama: Continued growth of association representation as more boards of directors seek advice in a new environment.

What emerging technologies has your firm adopted?

Lautenbach: The increased adoption of videoconferencing technology in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. Over the past two years, counsel, clients, and the courts alike have all been forced adapt to a world where large groups cannot meet in person, and the ability to freely travel is no longer a given. As a result, remote participation in meetings, depositions, court appearances, and even arbitrations and other evidentiary proceedings has become the norm.

There are platforms and services available now that not only provide for videoconferencing, but also assist with managing exhibits and other logistical challenges that arise during depositions and evidentiary hearings. It used to be commonplace for Hawaii attorneys to travel to the Mainland to depose out of state witnesses, and similarly, Mainland clients would regularly be required to travel to Hawaii for settlement conferences or other mandatory court proceedings. Now, almost everything – with the important exception of jury trials – can effectively be completed remotely. This has created significant savings in terms of both time and costs for clients.

The tools that we regularly use in our practice continue to evolve. As just one example, the platforms that we use for the collection and management of electronic discovery have become both more powerful and more user-friendly. When we have a data collection or production that is comprised of what would be millions of pages of paper, we now regularly use algorithms to pinpoint the relevant materials. This process, called predictive coding or technology assisted review, significantly reduces the need for manual review of documents by attorneys, and therefore results in meaningful cost savings for our clients.

Oyama: Virtual education programs for clients statewide have allowed for more programs.

*Answers edited for length and style.

source: https://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/news/2022/01/14/q-a-with-hawaiis-law-firms.html

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