Leas v. Ching

Opinion

Electronically Filed

Supreme Court

SCPW-18-0000325

24-APR-2018

08:15 AM

SCPW-18-0000325

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAI#I

DAVID BARTLEY LEAS, Petitioner, vs.

THE HONORABLE GALE L.F. CHING, Judge of the Family Court of the First Circuit, State of Hawai#i, Respondent Judge,

and

CRYSTAL WAITKUS LEAS, Respondent.

ORIGINAL PROCEEDING

(FC-D NO. 16-1-1014)

ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS (By: Recktenwald, C.J., Nakayama, McKenna, Pollack, and Wilson, JJ.)

Upon consideration of petitioner David Bartley Leas’s petition for writ of mandamus, filed on April 10, 2018, the documents attached thereto and submitted in support thereof, and the record, it appears that, based on the record presented and the current state of the family court proceedings, petitioner fails to demonstrate that he is entitled to an extraordinary writ to prevent irreparable and immediate harm from the family court’s October 17, 2017 order denying the motion to disqualify counsel,

2

and petitioner has alternative means to seek relief. See Kema v. Gaddis, 91 Hawai#i 200, 204, 982 P.2d 334, 338 (1999); Wong v. Fong, 60 Haw. 601, 604, 593 P.2d 386, 389 (1979). Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the petition for writ of mandamus is denied.

DATED: Honolulu, Hawai#i, April 24, 2018.

/s/ Mark E. Recktenwald

/s/ Paula A. Nakayama

/s/ Sabrina S. McKenna

/s/ Richard W. Pollack

/s/ Michael D. Wilson