Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1849-1916 (Creation)
Level of description
Series
Extent and medium
1.7 cubic feet in 4 5-inch boxes.
Context area
Name of creator
Administrative history
On October 8, 1840, Kamehameha III granted the first constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, which vested the judicial power of government in a Supreme Court, consisting of the King as chief judge, Premier (kuhina nui), and four individuals appointed by the representative body. Island courts held by their respective governors functioned as circuit courts on their respective island. The island governors were given powers to appoint judges who functioned as district magistrates for the island. Chapter XLVII of the Laws of 1842 mandated that the Supreme judges assemble in Honolulu each June and in Lahaina each December to try cases appealed to them. Selection criteria for foreign and native juries were provided for in the Laws of 1842. The Third Act of Kamehameha III in 1847 titled "An Act to Organize the Judiciary Department of the Hawaiian Islands" created four levels of courts - the Supreme Court, the Superior Court of Law and Equity, four circuit court jurisdictions, and district courts.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Consists of letters regarding court expenses, fines, sentencing, administrative procedures, summons, applications to practice law, appeals from the police and district courts, appeals to the Superior Court and Supreme Court, jury duty excuses, transmittals of court documents, jury lists, court payments and receipts. Also includes miscellaneous items such as Oaths of Loyalty to Republic (1894), Petitions to Practice Law in the District and Police Courts, Court examinations for clerks and lawyers, Court Permission to Marry, Petitions to Impeach District and Police Court judges, and Court Calendar announcements.
Correspondents include district judges, police judges, marshals, sheriffs, practicing attorneys, Supreme Court justices, Superior Court judges, Judiciary Department clerks, island governors, government officials mainly from the Department of Finance, Interior Department, Education Department, Auditor General, and local businessmen.
Approximately 40 percent of the series contains materials in the Hawaiian language. This material is concentrated from 1849 to 1869 and from the 1880's to 1895.
There are gaps in the correspondence for 1908, 1910 and 1911.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Arranged chronologically.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
- English
- Hawaiian
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
Uploaded finding aid
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Created on 1994-06, P. Lai
Revised on 1996-10, 1996-11, 1997-04, 2001-06, and 2002-06
Additions on 2002-11, A. Hoof
Language(s)
- English
Script(s)
Sources
Archivist's note
1994-06, P. Lai: Created
1996-10, 1996-11, 1997-04, 2001-06, and 2002-06: Revised
2002-11, A. Hoof: Additions
2020-09-09, Joel Horowitz: Entered into AtoM