Hawaiʻi Supreme Court Associate Justice Sabrina S. McKenna will become Acting Chief Justice of the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court on October 1, following the retirement of Chief Justice Mark E. Recktenwald at the end of September due to the state’s mandatory retirement age of 70 for justices and judges.
Justice McKenna has served on the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court since 2011 and previously served as a judge in the District, Circuit, and Family Courts in the First Circuit, including as Senior Family Court Judge. She is the longest-serving active jurist in the Judiciary.
In addition, Administrative Director of the Courts Rodney A. Maile will retire at the end of September after nearly 15 years in the Judiciary’s top administrative role. Brandon M. Kimura, currently Director of the Judiciary’s Policy and Planning Department, has been appointed to succeed Maile as Administrative Director of the Courts effective October 1. He will serve in that capacity with Deputy Administrative Director of the Courts Daylin-Rose Heather.
Kimura has served in multiple leadership roles within the Judiciary, including six years as Deputy Administrative Director of the Courts. In 2022, he became the first person from Hawaiʻi to earn certification as a Fellow of the Institute for Court Management at the National Center for State Courts.
