Lawyers are urged
to return to ideals
The new president of the Hawaii bar
association also seeks global links
Richard Turbin: Law firm founder will lead the 4,300-member association for one year
Honolulu attorney Richard Turbin was sworn in Friday at the association's annual dinner and fund-raiser, which also benefited Ka Hale Ho'ala Hou No Na Wahine, a transitional residential program for women leaving the women's prison.
Turbin's one-year term begins Jan. 5.
Regarding his appointment, Turbin said, "I look forward to utilizing my experience, legal training and, perhaps most importantly, my idealism in serving as president of the HSBA in the coming year. We need to spread our own magic in the community by a renaissance of idealism to serve those who need assistance."
He also added that now is the right time to move the Hawaii bar association into the international sphere.
Turbin has already established contacts to include an Asian-Pacific focus in the annual bar convention, working with bar associations around the Pacific Rim.
Turbin is the founder and president of the Law Offices of Richard Turbin, which specializes in personal injury, wrongful death and malpractice.
Turbin received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1969 and was named a Traphagen Distinguished Alumni in 2002. He was a former Peace Corps lawyer in Samoa and former Honolulu deputy public defender, and he founded the Kaneohe office for the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii.
He has served as a Civil Rights Commission member since 2002, president of the Consumer Lawyers of Hawaii from 2002 to 2003 and chairman of the Kahala Neighborhood Board for 12 years.