Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals panel to hear oral arguments at William S. Richardson School of Law

A three-member panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments, involving at least four cases, at the William S. Richardson School of Law from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 12, 2017, in the Moot Courtroom, with overflow in Classroom 4.

The oral arguments are open to the public, but are aimed at offering law students an opportunity to see the court in action as well as to meet with the judges after the proceedings.

The Ninth Circuit has made it a practice to bring oral arguments to the UH law school a number of times over the past few years, especially when the cases involve island issues.

The three federal judges are Mary Murphy Schroeder, Dorothy Wright Nelson and M. Margaret McKeown. They will hear arguments on cases including:

• Huinan Lin v. Jefferson Sessions.  A citizen of China petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals' denial of asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture.
• USA v. Melvin Ada.  Appeals from sentence and restitution order following conviction for theft or embezzlement in connection with health care, health care fraud and money laundering.
• Frost-Tsuji Architects v. Highway Inn.  Appeals from the district court's summary judgment and award of attorneys' fees in a copyright infringement action.
• Hawai‘i Wildlife Fund v. County of Maui.  The County of Maui appeals the district court's ruling that, under the Clean Water Act, a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit is required for the Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility.

The hearings are scheduled to end at 11:30 a.m., after which the judges will confer until noon. They will return for a question-and-answer session from the bench with law students and the public.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for our students to see how the court operates, and we are grateful for the Ninth Circuit’s willingness to bring this panel to Hawai‘i and the law school,” said Acting Dean Melody K. MacKenzie. “Decisions of the Ninth Circuit have an immense impact on Hawaiʻi, so this is a unique chance for our students to observe this distinguished panel of judges and to see justice in action.”

While the hearings begin at 9:30 a.m., attendees may begin checking in at 8:30 a.m. Identification is required to sign in; bags, backpacks and beverages are not allowed in the courtroom.

Electronic devices such as cell phones and laptops are allowed into the courtroom with certain stipulations: “Persons may use such devices to take notes, transmit and receive data communications and access the internet. Persons may not use these devices for telephone calls, photographs, or audio or video recording or transmission.”

For more information, visit: https://www.law.hawaii.edu/