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An honors graduate of Harvard Law School and former president of the Hawai`i State Bar,
Ellen is a leading authority on healthcare law and dispute resolution in the state of Hawai`i.
Ellen has thirty years of litigation and dispute resolution experience, successfully representing clients in federal and state courts, agency proceedings, arbitration and mediation. Her work has included a broad variety of complex matters, including health care, constitutional, civil rights, environmental, contracts, real property and employment.
Her practice focuses on representing health care providers, hospital facilities, health plans and innovative health care companies in the regulatory world of health care law. Ellen previously practiced with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., doing civil rights work in the General Counsel's Office. Her work currently includes a broad range of health care advice related to risk management, peer review, credentialing, HIPAA, ERISA, COBRA and medical malpractice defense. She has provided hundreds of presentations on health care compliance, risk management and related health care issues. Her clients have included most of the major health plans and hospital facilities in Hawai`i as well as numerous individual medical providers. She has successfully litigated health care issues in federal and state appellate courts, including a successful challenge to Hawai`i's external review law by securing a unanimous Hawai`i Supreme Court decision finding the law was preempted by ERISA.
She is nationally recognized as one of the lead counsel in the class action suit for Americans of Japanese ancestry who were exiled from their homes and imprisoned in racial prison camps by the United States government during World War II. That case resulted in findings of fraud and concealment by the U.S. government in regard to the mass deprivations of civil rights. While judicial relief was ultimately denied, the lawsuit assisted in obtaining a Presidential apology to those imprisoned and Congressional redress payments to those who survived.
Ellen also serves as an arbitrator or mediator on a broad variety of legal disputes and has served on the panel of neutrals for numerous arbitration programs, including Dispute Prevention and Resolution, Inc., the American Arbitration Association, the National Association of Securities Dealers and the Court Annexed Arbitration Program. She is co-chair of the state Bar's Alternative Dispute Resolution Section.
Ellen's childhood was spent in the Appalachian mountains of east Tennessee, where she was strongly influenced by acts of racism, sexism and religious intolerance that were too often accepted rather than challenged. Her concern about these injustices inspired her to become a lawyer to improve laws that affect people's lives and dignity.
Leadership
Ellen's excellence in legal practice has been recognized by numerous awards and leadership positions. She was the second woman to be elected as president of the Hawai`i State Bar Association in over 100 years and has been president of many other community organizations dedicated to protecting those who can least protect themselves, including the Institute for Human Services (emergency housing for homeless persons), the Sex Abuse Treatment Center, Hale Kipa (shelters for runaway and homeless youth) and the Washington D.C. Rape Crisis Center.
One of Ellen's lifelong goals is achieving equality for women and minorities. As president of Hawai`i Women Lawyers, Ellen took the lead in filing complaints against private clubs in Hawai`i that discriminated against women, resulting in those clubs eliminating their discriminatory practices and opening their doors to women. Ellen has devoted over 5,000 hours to providing legal advice and counseling to sexual assault survivors and speaking on national television and at conferences on the topic of legal rights and remedies for sexual survivors. Ellen also served as lead counsel for Hawai`i Planned Parenthood in over a dozen legal challenges to abortion services in Hawai`i, defending the right of access to appropriate medical services
As a strong and visionary community leader, her commitment and dedication have been recognized by numerous local and national organizations. In 2006, she received one of the American Bar Association's highest awards, the Margaret Brent Award for Women Lawyers of Achievement, which is awarded to only five women each year who have made major contributions toward securing equality for women.
Speeches and Presentations
A sought after speaker, Ellen enjoys public speaking and has provided hundreds of lectures, seminars and media commentaries on a variety of legal issues. She has lectured on risk prevention, dispute resolution and litigation strategies for the health care industry, realtors, employers and the business community. She has spoken across the United States on issues of constitutional rights, women's rights, Japanese American redress and legal rights for sexual assault survivors. She crafts her presentations to make complex legal matters easily understandable and provides businesses with concrete action steps that reduce legal risks, assure compliance and to respond to threats of litigation. She educates both her clients and the public on effective dispute resolution skills.
Areas of Practice
- Health Care
- Medical risk management (seminars, advising, and development of risk-prevention policies)
- Emergency court orders and advising on emergency health care issues
- Credentialing, peer review and health care quality improvement issues
- Medical records confidentiality, including HIPAA and ARRA compliance
- Electronic health records and security issues
- Record-keeping practices
- Health insurance issues
- ERISA, COBRA, and Prepaid Health Care issues
- Healthcare compliance and conflict of interest concerns
- Innovative health care start-up companies
- Internal governance, bylaws, and parliamentary issues
- Administrative law (for matters before the Board of Medical Examiners, Department of Health, SHPDA, Insurance Commissioner's Office, etc.)
- Certificates of need and licensing
- Defense of medical malpractice claims (in the courts, arbitration, mediation, and agency proceedings)
- Civil rights and constitutional litigation
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
- Mediator
- Arbitrator
- Facilitator
- General business advising
- Commercial litigation
Awards and Recognition
- Best Lawyers in America™
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (2006-2010)
- Health Care Law (2005-2010)
- Martindale-Hubbell AV rating (1996-present)
- Chambers USA™, Leading Lawyers for Business in Commercial Litigation (2006-2010)
- Benchmark Litigation
- "Litigation Star" (2008-2010)
- Super Lawyers
- Honolulu Magazine, Best Lawyers in Hawai`i (2005-2009)
- American Bar Association Margaret Brent Award for Women Lawyers of Achievement (2006)
- Hawai`i Women Lawyers - Distinguished Service Award (2001)
- Hawai`i Lawyers Care - Outstanding Contribution to the Delivery of Legal Services (1996)
- Hawai`i Foodbank - Na Hoku Malamalama Award (Brightest Star Award) (1996)
- Hawai`i Women Lawyers - Outstanding Woman Lawyer Award (1992)
- Hawai`i Women Lawyers - Outstanding Service Award (1991)
- YWCA - Award for Outstanding Woman Professional in Hawai`i (1990)
- Hawai`i State Bar Association - Pro Bono Award for Meritorious Community Service (1989)
- Marquis Who's Who in the World (1998-2002), in America (2002-2004), in American Law (1998-1999, 2005-2009), in the West (2000-2001, 2006-2007), in American Women (2006-2007), and in Finance and Industry (2000-2005)
State Bar Admissions
- Hawai`i (active)
- District of Columbia (inactive)
- Maryland (inactive)
Court Admissions
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
- U.S. Court of Claims
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai`i
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Community Leadership & Affiliations
- Hawai`i State Bar Association
- President (1996)
- Numerous committee leadership positions, from 1994 to date
- Hawai`i Women Lawyers
- Institute for Human Services
- Organ Donor Center of Hawai`i
- Vice President (2007-2009)
- National Council for Japanese American Redress, Ronin
- Hawai`i Supreme Court Disciplinary Board, Former Director
- Hawai`i Justice Foundation, Former Director
- Sex Abuse Treatment Center
- Hale Kipa Emergency Youth Shelter
- Church of the Crossroads
- Coordinating Council and Director (2004)
- Central Union Church
- President of Trustees (2001-2002)
Education
- Harvard Law School (J.D. cum laude, 1980)
- Teaching Assistant for Legal Methods Classes
- Board of Student Advisors (1977-1979)
- Coordinator of First Year Orientation Program (1977)
- Honorable Mention, Best Brief, Ames Moot Court Alternative
- University of Tennessee (B.A. summa cum laude, 1976)
- Independently designed curriculum in Constitutional Law
- U.T. College Scholars Honors Independent Study Program
- Chancellor's Citation for Extraordinary Academic Achievement (University's highest academic award)
- Outstanding Student of Military History
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