NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER
Electronically Filed Intermediate Court of Appeals CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX 19-JAN-2024 08:00 AM Dkt. 101 SO
NO. CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX (Consolidated with NO. CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX)
IN THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
OF THE STATE OF HAWAI‘I
CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX STUART B. GLAUBERMAN, by his Managing Agent, KFG PROPERTIES, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CELESTE M. GONSALVES, Defendant-Appellant
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT KO‘OLAUPOKO DIVISION (CIVIL NO. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX)
and
CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX STUART B. GLAUBERMAN and VICKY RAMIL, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. CELESTE M. GONSALVES, Defendant-Appellant
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT KO‘OLAUPOKO DIVISION (CIVIL NO. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX) NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER
SUMMARY DISPOSITION ORDER (By: Leonard, Acting Chief Judge, Hiraoka and Guidry, JJ.)
In these consolidated appeals, self-represented
Defendant-Appellant Celeste M. Gonsalves (Gonsalves) appeals
from the September 29, 2021 Order Granting Plaintiff's Motion
for Summary Judgment Filed on September 7, 2021, in favor of
self-represented Plaintiff-Appellee Stuart B. Glauberman
(Glauberman), by his Managing Agent, KFG Properties, Inc. (KFG
Properties), and the October 4, 2021 Judgment for Possession in
favor of Glauberman and Plaintiff-Appellee Vicky Ramil (Ramil),
entered by the District Court of the First Circuit Ko‘olaupoko
Division (District Court),1 in Civil Nos. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX and
1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX respectively.
Glauberman and Ramil rented an accessory dwelling unit
to Gonsalves, and self-managed the rental unit until December
2020, when they hired KFG Properties as their property manager.
On February 21, 2021, Glauberman and Ramil filed a Complaint
(Assumpsit, Summary Possession/Landlord – Tenant Damages)
against Gonsalves in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX, alleging
Gonsalves caused electrical and plumbing damage to the premises,
failed to properly dispose of garbage and refused their requests
1 The Honorable Karin L. Holma presided. 2 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER for an inspection, and that they had given Gonsalves a 10-day
non-monetary default notice on February 9, 2021.
On March 3, 2021, Glauberman, through KFG Properties,
filed a Complaint (Assumpsit, Summary Possession/Landlord –
Tenant Damages) against Gonsalves in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX,
alleging Gonsalves refused to vacate after a 45-day notice that
the owners' son was moving in.
Gonsalves filed counterclaims in both cases, alleging
that Glauberman and Ramil were retaliating against her because
she started withholding rent in October 2020, after complaining
to them about the neighbor's yardman smoking while operating
machinery to trim a hedge in close proximity to her rental unit.
Gonsalves deemed that to be a fire hazard, and complained that
the secondhand smoke from the neighbor's yardman smoking often
came into her unit. Gonsalves stated that because Glauberman
and Ramil did not resolve the issue, she reported it to her
Section 8 Housing Assistance officer and withheld her portion of
the rent.
The district court heard Civil Nos. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX
and 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX together for trial on the issue of
possession. Gonsalves failed to appear twice in person for
trial on the issue of possession, first on July 30, 2021, when
she did not appear at all, and again on August 6, 2021, when she 3 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER appeared by Zoom even though trial was scheduled to be in
person. Both times Gonsalves submitted notes from her doctor,
and requested continuances due to medical reasons. The first
time Gonsalves failed to appear, the district court rescheduled
the trial to August 6, 2021. When Gonsalves failed to appear in
person again on August 6, 2021, the district court instructed
Glauberman and Ramil to file motions for summary judgment, and
the district court ultimately granted motions for summary
judgment filed by them, leading Gonsalves to file these appeals.
Gonsalves contends the district court committed the
following errors in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX: (1) denying her
July 8, 2021 non-hearing motion for continuance of the August 6,
2021 trial; (2) instructing Glauberman, at the August 6, 2021
hearing, to file a motion for summary judgment; (3) informing
Glauberman, at an August 27, 2021 hearing, that the court would
deny his motion for summary judgment but allowing him to
withdraw the motion rather than ruling on the motion; (4)
denying Gonsalves's motion for reconsideration or new trial on
September 24, 2021; (5) granting Glauberman summary judgment on
possession on September 24, 2021; and (6) engaging in ex parte
communications with Glauberman's counsel on September 10, 2021,
when she was not present in the courtroom.
4 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER Gonsalves contends the district court committed the
following errors in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX: (1) denying her
request for continuance made at the hearing on August 6, 2021;
(2)instructing Glauberman and Ramil to file a motion for summary
judgment at the August 6, 2021 hearing; (3) denying her request
to continue the August 27, 2021 hearing on Glauberman and
Ramil's motion for summary judgment; (4) granting Glauberman and
Ramil's motion for summary judgment at the August 27, 2021
hearing; (5) basing the August 27, 2021 grant of summary
judgment on testimony given by Gonsalves in other cases; (6)
notifying Glauberman and Ramil at the hearing held on
September 10, 2021 that they attached the wrong copy of the
rental agreement to their motion for summary judgment and had
not given proper notice of their motion; (7) not bringing
Gonsalves into the courtroom for the September 10, 2021 hearing;
(8) granting Glauberman and Ramil summary judgment on
September 24, 2021; and (9) denying Gonsalves's motion to
dismiss at the September 24, 2021 hearing.
Upon careful review of the record and the briefs
submitted by the parties, and having given due consideration to
the arguments advanced and the issues raised by the parties, we
resolve Gonsalves's points of error as follows.
5 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER We review the grant or denial of a continuance for an
abuse of discretion. Sapp v. Wong, 62 Haw. 34, 41, 609 P.2d
137, 142 (1980) (citations omitted). Generally, to constitute
an abuse of discretion it must appear that the court clearly
exceeded the bounds of reason or disregarded rules or principles
of law or practice to the substantial detriment of a party
litigant. Schmidt v. Bd. of Directors of Ass'n of Apartment
Owners of Marco Polo Apartments, 73 Haw. 526, 533, 836 P.2d 479,
483 (1992).
We review the grant or denial of summary judgment de
novo using the same standard applied by the district court.
Nozawa v. Operating Engineers Loc. Union No. 3, 142 Hawaiʻi 331,
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NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER
Electronically Filed Intermediate Court of Appeals CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX 19-JAN-2024 08:00 AM Dkt. 101 SO
NO. CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX (Consolidated with NO. CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX)
IN THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS
OF THE STATE OF HAWAI‘I
CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX STUART B. GLAUBERMAN, by his Managing Agent, KFG PROPERTIES, INC., Plaintiff-Appellee, v. CELESTE M. GONSALVES, Defendant-Appellant
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT KO‘OLAUPOKO DIVISION (CIVIL NO. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX)
and
CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX STUART B. GLAUBERMAN and VICKY RAMIL, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. CELESTE M. GONSALVES, Defendant-Appellant
APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE FIRST CIRCUIT KO‘OLAUPOKO DIVISION (CIVIL NO. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX) NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER
SUMMARY DISPOSITION ORDER (By: Leonard, Acting Chief Judge, Hiraoka and Guidry, JJ.)
In these consolidated appeals, self-represented
Defendant-Appellant Celeste M. Gonsalves (Gonsalves) appeals
from the September 29, 2021 Order Granting Plaintiff's Motion
for Summary Judgment Filed on September 7, 2021, in favor of
self-represented Plaintiff-Appellee Stuart B. Glauberman
(Glauberman), by his Managing Agent, KFG Properties, Inc. (KFG
Properties), and the October 4, 2021 Judgment for Possession in
favor of Glauberman and Plaintiff-Appellee Vicky Ramil (Ramil),
entered by the District Court of the First Circuit Ko‘olaupoko
Division (District Court),1 in Civil Nos. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX and
1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX respectively.
Glauberman and Ramil rented an accessory dwelling unit
to Gonsalves, and self-managed the rental unit until December
2020, when they hired KFG Properties as their property manager.
On February 21, 2021, Glauberman and Ramil filed a Complaint
(Assumpsit, Summary Possession/Landlord – Tenant Damages)
against Gonsalves in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX, alleging
Gonsalves caused electrical and plumbing damage to the premises,
failed to properly dispose of garbage and refused their requests
1 The Honorable Karin L. Holma presided. 2 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER for an inspection, and that they had given Gonsalves a 10-day
non-monetary default notice on February 9, 2021.
On March 3, 2021, Glauberman, through KFG Properties,
filed a Complaint (Assumpsit, Summary Possession/Landlord –
Tenant Damages) against Gonsalves in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX,
alleging Gonsalves refused to vacate after a 45-day notice that
the owners' son was moving in.
Gonsalves filed counterclaims in both cases, alleging
that Glauberman and Ramil were retaliating against her because
she started withholding rent in October 2020, after complaining
to them about the neighbor's yardman smoking while operating
machinery to trim a hedge in close proximity to her rental unit.
Gonsalves deemed that to be a fire hazard, and complained that
the secondhand smoke from the neighbor's yardman smoking often
came into her unit. Gonsalves stated that because Glauberman
and Ramil did not resolve the issue, she reported it to her
Section 8 Housing Assistance officer and withheld her portion of
the rent.
The district court heard Civil Nos. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX
and 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX together for trial on the issue of
possession. Gonsalves failed to appear twice in person for
trial on the issue of possession, first on July 30, 2021, when
she did not appear at all, and again on August 6, 2021, when she 3 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER appeared by Zoom even though trial was scheduled to be in
person. Both times Gonsalves submitted notes from her doctor,
and requested continuances due to medical reasons. The first
time Gonsalves failed to appear, the district court rescheduled
the trial to August 6, 2021. When Gonsalves failed to appear in
person again on August 6, 2021, the district court instructed
Glauberman and Ramil to file motions for summary judgment, and
the district court ultimately granted motions for summary
judgment filed by them, leading Gonsalves to file these appeals.
Gonsalves contends the district court committed the
following errors in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX: (1) denying her
July 8, 2021 non-hearing motion for continuance of the August 6,
2021 trial; (2) instructing Glauberman, at the August 6, 2021
hearing, to file a motion for summary judgment; (3) informing
Glauberman, at an August 27, 2021 hearing, that the court would
deny his motion for summary judgment but allowing him to
withdraw the motion rather than ruling on the motion; (4)
denying Gonsalves's motion for reconsideration or new trial on
September 24, 2021; (5) granting Glauberman summary judgment on
possession on September 24, 2021; and (6) engaging in ex parte
communications with Glauberman's counsel on September 10, 2021,
when she was not present in the courtroom.
4 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER Gonsalves contends the district court committed the
following errors in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX: (1) denying her
request for continuance made at the hearing on August 6, 2021;
(2)instructing Glauberman and Ramil to file a motion for summary
judgment at the August 6, 2021 hearing; (3) denying her request
to continue the August 27, 2021 hearing on Glauberman and
Ramil's motion for summary judgment; (4) granting Glauberman and
Ramil's motion for summary judgment at the August 27, 2021
hearing; (5) basing the August 27, 2021 grant of summary
judgment on testimony given by Gonsalves in other cases; (6)
notifying Glauberman and Ramil at the hearing held on
September 10, 2021 that they attached the wrong copy of the
rental agreement to their motion for summary judgment and had
not given proper notice of their motion; (7) not bringing
Gonsalves into the courtroom for the September 10, 2021 hearing;
(8) granting Glauberman and Ramil summary judgment on
September 24, 2021; and (9) denying Gonsalves's motion to
dismiss at the September 24, 2021 hearing.
Upon careful review of the record and the briefs
submitted by the parties, and having given due consideration to
the arguments advanced and the issues raised by the parties, we
resolve Gonsalves's points of error as follows.
5 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER We review the grant or denial of a continuance for an
abuse of discretion. Sapp v. Wong, 62 Haw. 34, 41, 609 P.2d
137, 142 (1980) (citations omitted). Generally, to constitute
an abuse of discretion it must appear that the court clearly
exceeded the bounds of reason or disregarded rules or principles
of law or practice to the substantial detriment of a party
litigant. Schmidt v. Bd. of Directors of Ass'n of Apartment
Owners of Marco Polo Apartments, 73 Haw. 526, 533, 836 P.2d 479,
483 (1992).
We review the grant or denial of summary judgment de
novo using the same standard applied by the district court.
Nozawa v. Operating Engineers Loc. Union No. 3, 142 Hawaiʻi 331,
338, 418 P.3d 1187, 1194 (2018) (citations omitted). Summary
judgment is appropriate if the pleadings, depositions, answers
to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the
affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to
any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a
judgment as a matter of law. Id. at 342, 418 P.3d at 1198. A
fact is material if proof of that fact would have the effect of
establishing or refuting one of the essential elements of a
cause of action or defense asserted by the parties. Id. The
evidence must be viewed in the light most favorable to the non-
moving parties. Id. 6 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER We review a ruling on a motion to dismiss de novo.
Young v. Allstate Ins. Co., 119 Hawaiʻi 403, 411, 198 P.3d 666,
674 (2008). "A complaint should not be dismissed for failure to
state a claim unless it appears beyond doubt that the plaintiff
can prove no set of facts in support of his or her claim that
would entitle him or her to relief." Flores v. Logan, 151 Haw.
357, 366, 513 P.3d 423, 432 (2022) (citations omitted).
We review the denial of a motion for new trial for
abuse of discretion. Kato v. Funari, 118 Hawaiʻi 375, 381, 191
P.3d 1052, 1058 (2008) (citation omitted).
Gonsalves has not shown the district court abused its
discretion in denying her requests for continuance of the
August 6, 2021 hearing, and hearing the cases together. While
we agree that the district court erred when it proceeded with
the hearing and granted summary judgment on August 27, 2021, the
error was harmless because the district court subsequently
granted Gonsalves's motion to set aside the summary judgment.2
The district court did not err when it granted summary
judgment to Glauberman and Ramil on September 24, 2021 and
2 The district court set aside its August 27, 2021 grant of summary judgment to Glauberman and Ramil because Glauberman and Ramil's motion for summary judgment was not filed and served at least ten days prior to the hearing, as required by District Court Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 56(c), and Glauberman and Ramil attached an incomplete copy of their rental agreement with Gonsalves, which was missing the Section 8 Housing and Urban Development (HUD) tenancy addendum. 7 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER denied Gonsalves's September 22, 2021 motion to dismiss their
complaint. Gonsalves alleged that Glauberman and Ramil were
retaliating against her because she began withholding rent due
to the neighbor's yardman smoking near her unit. Retaliatory
eviction was not a valid defense for Gonsalves, however, because
she admitted to withholding her portion of the rent starting in
October 2020. Ryan v. Herzog, 142 Hawai‘i 278, 284, 418 P.3d
619, 625 (2018) ("Once one of those three triggering [eviction
under Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) § 521-74(a)] events occurs
and the tenant continues to pay rent, the landlord is prohibited
from retaliating by evicting the tenant, raising the rent, or
decreasing services.") (emphasis added) (citing HRS § 521-74(a)
(2018) (a "good faith" complaint to a "governmental agency
concerned with landlord-tenant disputes of conditions in or
affecting the tenant's dwelling unit" is a defense to a summary
possession action provided that "the tenant continues to tender
the usual rent to the landlord.")).
The Section 8 HUD tenancy addendum, which was part of
Gonsalves's rental agreement, allows the landlord to terminate
the tenancy for good cause, during the initial term of the
lease, and to the extent permitted by state law thereafter. The
record reflects that Gonsalves's tenancy was terminated after
the initial term of the lease had ended. Gonsalves admitted 8 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER that she had put a lock on the front water faucet, did not place
her garbage in the trash bins, removed then glued back a light
switch faceplate, and refused their request for an inspection,
which were the reasons given by Glauberman and Ramil for issuing
her a 10-day notice of termination of tenancy on February 9,
2021. Gonsalves submitted a photograph of the glued light
switch faceplate, taken on September 19, 2021 with her notation,
"[f]aceplate can be changed in 48 hours by licensed
electrician." Even assuming arguendo that those acts were not
material breaches that would provide grounds for termination of
the tenancy, HRS § 521-71(a) (2018) separately allows a month-to-
month tenancy to be terminated on a 45-day written notice.
HRS § 521-71(1) (2018) ("When the tenancy is month-to-month, the
landlord may terminate the rental agreement by notifying the
tenant, in writing, at least forty-five days in advance of the
anticipated termination."). That requirement was met.
Gonsalves does not dispute that she received a 45-day notice of
termination of tenancy, and the writ of possession and judgment
for possession were issued by the district court after Hawai‘i's
COVID-19 eviction moratorium had expired.3
3 Hawai‘i's COVID-19 eviction moratorium went into effect on April 17, 2020, with the issuance of Governor David Ige's Fifth Supplementary Proclamation on COVID-19, and was extended through August 6, 2021 with
(continued . . .) 9 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER Finally, there is no dispute that the district court
should not have conducted the September 10, 2021 hearing while
Gonsalves was left outside in a waiting room. However, there
was no prejudice to Gonsalves by the district court proceeding
with the hearing, with Gonsalves being absent, as the district
court granted her motions and set aside the judgment. We also
find that the district court did not err by directing Glauberman
and Ramil to file a motion for summary judgment during the
earlier August 6, 2021 hearing, and that the district court did
not improperly give legal advice to Glauberman and Ramil. In
directing Glauberman and Ramil to file motions for summary
judgment, the district court balanced Gonsalves's request that
trial on possession be postponed with Glauberman and Ramil's
interest in having an expeditious resolution of their claim to
recover possession.
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the district
court's September 29, 2021 Order Granting Plaintiff's Motion for
(. . . continued) Governor Ige's Twenty-First Supplementary Proclamation. Hawai‘i Emergency Proclamations are posted on the County of Hawai‘i website: https://coronavirus-response-county-of-hawaii-hawaiicountygis .hub.arcgis.com/documents/hawaiicountygis::5th-proclamation/explore
https://coronavirus-response-county-of-hawaii-hawaiicountygis .hub.arcgis.com/documents/hawaiicountygis::21st-proclamation/explore
10 NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN WEST'S HAWAI‘I REPORTS AND PACIFIC REPORTER Summary Judgment Filed on September 7, 2021, in favor of
Glauberman in Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX, and the October 4, 2021
Judgment for Possession, in favor of Glauberman and Ramil in
Civil No. 1DRC-XX-XXXXXXX, and reject all points of error raised
by Gonsalves in these appeals.
DATED: Honolulu, Hawai‘i, January 19, 2024.
On the briefs: /s/ Katherine G. Leonard Celeste M. Gonsalves, Acting Chief Judge Self-represented Defendant-Appellant. /s/ Keith K. Hiraoka Associate Judge Jean Malia Orque, for Plaintiffs-Appellees /s/ Kimberly T. Guidry Stuart B. Glauberman and Associate Judge Vicky Ramil in CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX.
Stuart B. Glauberman, by his Managing Agent, KFG Properties, Inc., Self-represented Plaintiff-Appellee in CAAP-XX-XXXXXXX.