University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law

UH Law Clinical Building at dusk
Giving to Richardson

Your gift can help support our mission to develop highly qualified, ethical professionals through excellence in teaching, scholarship, and public service at the William S. Richardson School of Law. Maintaining excellence in our programs and preparing Law School students to become the next generation of leaders would not be possible without the support of our community.

Strategic Plan

The William S. Richardson School of Law is Hawai‘i’s only law school.  Founded in 1973 through the vision of our state’s Chief Justice, after whom it is named, the school recognizes and honors a special responsibility to ensure both that Hawai‘i’s residents have access to outstanding legal education and that the state’s diverse and unique needs for legal education and research are met.  In the half-century of its existence, the school has produced many of Hawai‘i’s top lawyers, judges, business and community leaders, and members of the executive and legislative branches of the state’s government.  In addition to providing access to legal education to the state’s residents, it has historically provided a pathway to pursue legal education for many from the Pacific region and members of the military. 

At its fiftieth anniversary, the School has many strengths.  The School continues to lead in environmental law, international and comparative law with a special emphasis on the Pacific and Asia, and Native Hawaiian law.  Its student body is unique and engaged; it has done significant hiring to replace much-admired and beloved faculty who have retired, and to attract an experienced and respected dean; and it has completed the construction of a new building to house its expansive clinical programs. Most recently, it has sought to expand opportunities through an innovative online J.D. program to those Hawai‘i residents and others across the Pacific for whom a move to the school’s physical location is difficult and for others for whom the school’s unique offerings are attractive.  The School is instrumental to the state and its contributions to the education of the residents of Hawai‘i has more than lived up to Chief Justice Richardson’s founding vision.  At this point in its history, moreover, the School draws students from around the nation and the world. Some of these students ultimately choose to practice in our state.  Others, including many members of our nation’s armed services, and those who come from across the globe for programs offered only at our school, ultimately use their degrees in other states or countries.  All of Richardson’s many graduates, both in the state and elsewhere, are invested in the school’s health and reputation. 

The School also faces significant challenges, both common immediately following the worldwide pandemic and specific to the School.  The retirement of many of its long-time faculty, coupled with the evolving bar examination environment, makes it a necessary time to ensure that the curriculum reflects strength in the areas in which students plan to practice and supports successful bar passage for the School’s graduates.  The School suffers from an aging physical and technological infrastructure that does not support the competitive recruitment of students and faculty, including both the original buildings and the furnishings of those buildings.  As with many institutions in the post-pandemic environment, the School has struggled to attract and retain talented staff to support its mission.  As a result, it has been unable to capitalize on or realize fully the ambitions of the School’s administration to strengthen the policy and communications infrastructure that supports the mission.  The challenges with the physical, technological, policy, and staffing infrastructure threaten to undermine the School’s revitalization through excellent hiring, its critical mission within the state, and its return to the full intellectual vibrancy of the pre-pandemic period.

OUR MISSION

The William S. Richardson School of Law is a collaborative, multicultural community preparing students for excellence in the practice of law and related careers that advance justice and the rule of law. We develop highly qualified, ethical professionals through excellence in teaching, scholarship, and public service. We embrace Hawai‘i’s diversity and values and recognize a special responsibility to our state and the Pacific region. We lead in environmental law, Native Hawaiian law, and Pacific-Asian legal studies.

OUR VISION

A community of creative problem solvers, effective advocates, and courageous leaders who seek justice.

VALUES

  • Kuleana:  to accept responsibility and the privilege of having responsibility
  • Nā‘au Pono: to foster a deep sense of justice or balance; what is appropriate
  • Aloha aku, aloha mai:  to respect and to receive respect
  • Huli Ao: to strive for enlightenment; to seek out knowledge
  • Mālama kekahi i kekahi: to care for one another
  • Kūpale: to defend and protect; to strongly advocate
  • Ho‘owaiwai: to create wealth and well-being for the community
  • No‘eau:  to become a skilled expert; to achieve excellence

STRATEGIC GOALS AND PRIORITIES

1. PREPARING STUDENTS FOR SUCCESS AND EXCELLENCE IN THE PRACTICE OF LAW AND RELATED CAREERS

The William S. Richardson School of Law will prepare all of its students for success in the ethical practice of law and related careers by ensuring an up-to-date, comprehensive, and rigorously taught curriculum; providing appropriate student support in all of our programs; and supporting their successful entry into the profession through first-time bar passage.  We will ensure, in particular, that students in our innovative online J.D. program are successful by paying special attention to the staffing needs of that program.  We will ensure that the unique or special programs that attract students to the school, such as our certificate programs, reflect current strengths with broad appeal and support at the school.

  • 1.1 Improving first-time bar passage rates.
  • 1.2 Ensuring a robust and up-to-date curriculum that supports our students’ aspiration.
  • 1.3 Analyzing and implementing appropriate levels of resources for our in-residence and innovative online J.D. programs.
  • 1.4 Identifying, supporting, and promoting our curricular strengths.

2. NURTURING A VIBRANT COMMUNITY OF TEACHERS AND SCHOLARS

The success of our mission depends on the strength of our faculty. The William S. Richardson School of Law commits to supporting our faculty and providing the intellectual, logistical, and financial environment to ensure their success as teachers, scholars, and public servants.  The School also recognizes its special role in the continuing development of and engagement with the Hawai‘i legal community, and is grateful for that community’s interest in and support of the School, including in our teaching mission. We commit to furthering that interest and engagement through opportunities for involvement in the community life of the school.

  • 2.1 Supporting our faculty’s success in teaching, research, and public service.
  • 2.2 Fostering a robust intellectual community.
  • 2.3 Engaging our alumni and friends more deeply in the life of the school.
  • 2.4 Uplifting our special mission to serve Hawaiʻi and the Pacific region.

3. ALIGNING OUR OPERATIONS AND INFRASTRUCTURE WITH OUR MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES

The success of our mission depends on the attraction and retention of a well-qualified staff, supported by a policy infrastructure that ensures the School’s smooth operation, and a functional, attractive, and technologically current physical infrastructure adapted to the needs of our educational program.  We will continue to develop as a learning and working community that effectively welcomes, challenges, and supports the success and well-being of all students, staff, and faculty.

  • 3.1  Rigorously analyze and vigorously pursue support for staffing needs.
  • 3.2  Ensure that the physical and technological infrastructure supports our mission.
  • 3.3  Develop a strong policy infrastructure for mission-critical activities.
  • 3.4  Facilitate cross-department meetings and communications.

4. TELLING OUR STORY EFFECTIVELY TO ENGAGE THE COMMUNITY

The strength of our programs depends on ensuring that our supporters and friends, both locally and around the world, understand what we are doing to create and sustain excellence.  Our community will tell its story effectively through a well-executed set of supporting publications, websites, and materials that follow a plan for enhancing our reputation and support.

  • 4.1  Develop and execute an annual communications plan for alumni and friends.
  • 4.2  Ensure use of appropriate branding standards.
  • 4.3  Develop and execute a reputational campaign.
  • 4.4   Analyze internal communications to ensure support for operations.

5. EXPANDING OUR RESOURCES TO SUPPORT OUR MISSION

The execution of this plan will involve garnering new resources. Having the right structures in place to achieve a significant increase in resources, particularly to support our dean and development office, is crucial.

  • 5.1 Launch a capital campaign committee of advisors, alumni, and friends.
  • 5.2 Launch a capital campaign to support the objectives of this plan.