The attorney general of Hawaii () is the chief legal officer and chief law enforcement officer of Hawaii. In present-day statehood within the United States, the attorney general is appointed by the elected governor with the approval of the state senate and is responsible for a state department charged with advising the various other departments and agencies of state government. The attorney general is responsible for the prosecution of offenses under state law. The attorney general can only be removed by an act of the state senate. In rare occasions, the attorney general serves as acting governor in the absence of both the governor and lieutenant governor from the state for an extended period of time.
The office has existed in several forms throughout the history of the Hawaiian Islands. It was created by Kamehameha III and was part of the administration of each successive monarch of the Kingdom of Hawaii. The office was kept in the provisional government, after Liliuokalani and the monarchy was overthrown, and became a part of the succeeding administration of the Republic of Hawaii. A regular part of the American model of the executive branch of government, the office of attorney general was part of the Territory of Hawaii under Section 80 of the Hawaiian Organic Act and made an appointed office after statehood was achieved in 1959.
Though a non-partisan office, in territorial days the office of attorney general was traditionally appointed from the political party of the sitting president of the United States who appointed the territorial governor. Similarly in statehood, the office of attorney general has traditionally been appointed from the incumbent governor's political party, thus far Republican or Democratic.
The current attorney general is Anne E. Lopez, who was appointed by Governor Josh Green. The Hawaii Senate confirmed Lopez's nomination on December 5, 2022.
Agencies The attorney general leads a department of 180 attorneys and 500 professional and support personnel. The department oversees various public services. These include administering the Hawaii Criminal Justice Data Center, running the Missing Child Center, Child Support Enforcement Agency, Hawaii Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, Hawaii Internet and Technology Crimes Unit, Office of Child Support Hearings, Tobacco Enforcement Unit, among others. In accordance with Chapter 846E of the Hawaii Revised Statutes, the Criminal Justice Data Center maintains a registry of sex offenders in the state. Likewise, the agency provides other criminal history information through the statewide criminal history record information system and Automated Fingerprint Identification System.
History
Origins
John Ricord served as the first attorney general of Hawaii. He arrived in the Kingdom on February 27, 1844, on the Columbia. He was the first Western-trained lawyer in the islands. The previous year a land dispute by Richard Charlton led to a British occupation known as the Paulet Affair. A related case of Ladd & Co. required lengthy arbitration. These cases would consume his entire time on the islands. Within a few weeks he swore allegiance to Kamehameha III and on March 9, 1844, was appointed first attorney general. In July 1845 he joined the Privy Council. On October 29, 1845, the executive branch of the government was formally organized through legislation he proposed. On May 17, 1847, he resigned all his offices, and on June 12 was released from his oath of allegiance, so he could resume his citizenship of the United States. He left August 19, 1847. The office of attorney general was suspended until the 1860s. His work on organizing the courts was taken over by the second trained attorney to arrive in the islands, William Little Lee.
Revival On August 26, 1862, Kamehameha IV revived the office and appointed Charles Coffin Harris as attorney general. Having an attorney general proved useful on constitutional matters. Kamehameha V insisted on a new constitution that would restore some of the power to the monarchy that had been lost over time. Harris issued his legal opinion that the king had such a right and produced an early draft. A constitutional convention failed to reach agreement, so Harris got the cabinet to negotiate directly with Kamehameha V leading to the promulgation of the 1864 Constitution.
Controversies A more modern controversy happened with the failed 1998 confirmation by the state senate of popular sitting attorney general Margery Bronster, as political payback for her actions to reform the corrupt Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate whose trustees were friends of various powerful legislators, many Hawaii residents called for the right to elect the attorney general. Several attempts failed to create the constitutional amendment.
In 2026, the US government decertified and defunded Hawai‘i’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (part of the AG's responsibility) as one of the lowest-performing fraud units in the country. Demands to improve their performance began in 2014, in the Obama Administration. From 2021 to 2025, Hawai‘i’s Medicaid funding increased by 27%, as Medicaid enrollment went up 40%. MFCU did not obtain a single fraud indictment from 2021 to 2025.
List of attorneys general The attorneys general with dates of service:
Kingdom of Hawaii Name Portrait Term start Term endMonarch(s) served under John Ricord March 9, 1844 May 17, 1847Kamehameha III Charles Coffin Harris August 26, 1862 December 21, 1865Kamehameha IV Charles Coffin Harris March 26, 1866 September 12, 1866Kamehameha V Stephen Henry Phillips September 12, 1866 January 10, 1873Kamehameha V Albert Francis Judd January 13, 1873 February 19, 1874Lunalilo Alfred S. Hartwell February 18, 1874 May 28, 1874Kalākaua Richard H. Stanley May 28, 1874 November 5, 1875Kalākaua John Smith Walker November 5, 1875 February 15, 1876Kalākaua William Richards Castle February 15, 1876 December 5, 1876Kalākaua Alfred S. Hartwell December 5, 1876 July 3, 1878Kalākaua Edward Preston July 13, 1878 August 14, 1880 Kalākaua W. Claude Jones August 14, 1880 September 27, 1880Kalākaua John Smith Walker September 27, 1880 November 29, 1880Kalākaua William Nevins Armstrong November 29, 1880 January 17, 1881 Kalākaua Henry A. P. Carter January 17, 1881 November 5, 1881 Kalākaua William Nevins Armstrong November 5, 1881 May 19, 1882Kalākaua Edward Preston May 19, 1882 May 14, 1883Kalākaua Walter M. Gibson May 14, 1883 December 14, 1883 Kalākaua Paul Neumann December 14, 1883 June 30, 1886 Kalākaua Walter M. Gibson September 18, 1884; August 3, 1885 September 18, 1884; August 3, 1885Kalākaua John T. Dare July 1, 1886 October 13, 1886Kalākaua John Lot Kaulukou October 13, 1886 October 23, 1886Kalākaua Luther Aholo October 23, 1886 November 14, 1886Kalākaua Antone Rosa November 15, 1886 June 28, 1887Kalākaua Clarence W. Ashford July 1, 1887 June 14, 1890Kalākaua Lorrin A. Thurston November 22, 1889 November 22, 1889Kalākaua Arthur P. Peterson June 17, 1890 February 25, 1891 Kalākaua William A. Whiting February 25, 1891 July 27, 1892Liliʻuokalani Hermann A. Widemann July 27, 1892 August 29, 1892LiliʻuokalaniPaul Neumann August 29, 1892 August 30, 1892Liliʻuokalani September 12, 1892 October 17, 1892Liliʻuokalani Charles F. Creighton November 1, 1892 November 8, 1892Liliʻuokalani Cecil Brown November 8, 1892 January 12, 1893Liliʻuokalani Arthur P. Peterson January 13, 1893 January 17, 1893Liliʻuokalani
Republic of Hawaii Name Portrait Term start Term end William Owen Smith January 17, 1893 October 25, 1895 Francis March Hatch October 25, 1895 November 6, 1895 Henry E. Cooper November 6, 1895 December 13, 1895 William Owen Smith December 13, 1895 February 10, 1897 Henry E. Cooper February 10, 1897 April 16, 1897 William Owen Smith April 16, 1897 March 20, 1899
Territory of Hawaii
Name Portrait Term start Term endTerritorial governor(s) served under Henry Ernest Cooper March 20, 1899 June 14, 1900 - Edmund Pearson Dole June 14, 1900 February 1, 1903Sanford B. Dole Lorrin Andrews (grandson of missionary Lorrin Andrews) February 1, 1903 November 21, 1905George R. Carter Emil C. Peters November 21, 1905 August 15, 1907George R. Carter Charles R. Hemenway August 15, 1907 January 30, 1910Walter F. Frear Alexander Lindsay Jr. January 30, 1910 December 31, 1912Walter F. Frear Wade Warren Thayer January 1, 1913 April 16, 1914Walter F. Frear Lucius E. Pinkham Ingram M. Stainback April 17, 1914 April 18, 1918Lucius E. Pinkham Arthur G. Smith April 18, 1918 August 30, 1918Lucius E. Pinkham Charles J. McCarthy Harry Irwin August 30, 1918 August 31, 1922Charles J. McCarthy Wallace Rider Farrington John A. Matthewman September 1, 1922 March 26, 1925Wallace Rider Farrington William B. Lymer March 27, 1925 June 20, 1928Wallace Rider Farrington Harry P. Hewitt June 21, 1928 April 30, 1934Wallace Rider Farrington Lawrence M. Judd William B. Pittman May 1, 1934 December 20, 1936Lawrence M. Judd Joseph Poindexter Joseph V. Hodgson February 15, 1935 February 15, 1935Joseph Poindexter S. B. Kemp January 2, 1937 June 30, 1938Joseph Poindexter Joseph V. Hodgson July 1, 1938 June 7, 1942Joseph Poindexter Ernest K. Kai June 8, 1942 October 4, 1942Joseph Poindexter Ingram Stainback J. Garner Anthony October 4, 1942 December 31, 1943Ingram Stainback Cyrus Nils Tavares January 1, 1944 June 30, 1947Ingram Stainback Rhoda Valentine Lewis July 1, 1947 October 13, 1947Ingram Stainback Walter D. Ackerman Jr. October 14, 1947 February 29, 1952Ingram Stainback Oren E. Long Michiro Watanabe March 1, 1952 March 2, 1953Oren E. Long Samuel Wilder King Edward N. Sylva March 3, 1953 November 14, 1956Samuel Wilder King Richard K. Sharpless November 15, 1956 May 7, 1957Samuel Wilder King Shiro Kashiwa May 8, 1957 June 8, 1957Samuel Wilder King Herbert Young Cho Choy June 13, 1957 November 30, 1958Samuel Wilder King William F. Quinn Jack H. Mizuha December 16, 1958 1959William F. Quinn
State of Hawaii
+ Attorneys general of the State of Hawaii Attorney general Image Term of office State governor(s) served under Jack H. Mizuha
1959 William F. Quinn Shiro Kashiwa
1959–1960 Bert Kobayashi 1962–1969 John A. Burns Bertram Kanbara
1969–1971 George T. H. Pai
1971 Ronald Amemiya
1974–1978 George Ariyoshi Wayne Minami
1978–1981 Tany S. Hong
1981–1984 Michael A. Lilly
1984–1985 Corinne Watanabe
1985–1986 Warren Price, III
1986–1992 John D. Waiheʻe III Robert A. Marks 1992–1994 1994–1995 Ben Cayetano Margery Bronster
1995–1998 Earl I. Anzai
1999–2002 Mark J. Bennett
2003–2010 Linda Lingle David M. Louie
2011–2014 Neil Abercrombie Russell Suzuki
2014–2015 David Ige Doug Chin
2015–2018 Russell Suzuki
2018–2019 Clare E. Connors
2019–2021 Holly Shikada
2021–2022 Anne E. Lopez
2022–present Josh Green
See also Cabinet of the Kingdom of Hawaii
References
External links Hawaii Attorney General official website