Biography

Professor Barkai joined the Hawaii law faculty in 1978, but started full-time law teaching in Detroit in the Fall of 1973, the same semester that the UH Law School opened. As such, he has been a law professor longer than any other professor who has ever taught at our law school.

Prior to coming to Hawaii, Professor Barkai was a criminal trial lawyer in Detroit, and later a tenured faculty member at Wayne State University Law School (1973-1978). He currently co-directs the clinical program, and teaches Negotiations & Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), Prosecution Clinic, Evidence, and has taught many other courses such as criminal law, criminal procedure, international business transactions, and other clinics. He has taught International Negotiations at the Shidler College of Business in the Japan-focused and China-focused Executive MBA programs (1985-2007), as well as EMBA Negotiations courses (2000-present), Intercultural Negotiations at the Japan American Institute for Management Science (JAIMS) (1986-2020), the Asia-Pacific Center for Securities Studies (2010-2014), and mediation workshops for judges from the Kingdom of Thailand four times (2008-2014.) Professor Barkai also served as the Associate Dean at our law school.

Professor Barkai has worked in the field of ADR since 1979, when he was a member of the first group of mediators trained at the Neighborhood Justice Center of Honolulu (now the Mediation Center of the Pacific). He has taught intensive or extended negotiation and ADR courses of a week or more at Hamline, Idaho, Ohio State, and Pepperdine law schools, as well as City University of Hong Kong (full sabbatical semester), Shinshu University (Japan), Central European University (Hungary), Helsinki School of Economics and Business (Finland), and La Trobe Law School (Australia). He has taught or made presentations in Australia, American Samoa, Canada, England, Federated States of Micronesia (Kosrae & Pohnpei), Finland, Hong Kong, Hungary, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Netherlands, Palau, and Russia, and was the United States representative to APEC ADR in Executive Education Project.

Professor Barkai’s scholarship has focused on evidence, negotiation and mediation, clinical teaching, and communication skills. In addition to numerous articles in those fields, since 2018 Professor Barkai has published over 130 evidence handbooks for a 100 jurisdictions, two cartoon books, and a negotiation and mediation book. He has a series of Evidence Handbooks with Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations for all 50 U.S. states, District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Federal Rules, Military Rules, the Pacific Island nations and states of American Samoa, Chuuk, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Guam, Kiribati,  Kosrae, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Pohnpei, Papua New Guinea, Samoa,  Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, and Yap, as well as Antigua and Barbuda, Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia, Bangladesh, Canada and its provinces of  Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Cyprus, Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Singapore, Sierra Leone, and UK (United Kingdom).

Professor Barkai has been active in the legal community, and served the profession as a member of the Hawai’i Supreme Court’s Standing Committee on the Rules of Evidence since 1993, a board member and then President of the Board of Directors of the Mediation Center of the Pacific, Chair and Co-Chair of the ADR Section of the Hawai’i State Bar, President of the Legal Aid Society of Hawai`i, Chair of the AALS Committee on Clinical Legal Education, member AALS Evidence Section Executive Committee, Chair of the AALS ADR Section on Dispute Resolution, and ran the ABA’s Section on Dispute Resolution Magazine’s cartoon captioning contest for 14 years.

Professor Barkai has served as a consultant to the Hawai`i Judiciary, the Supreme Court of the Federated States of Micronesia, the State Court of Kosrae, the Marshall Islands Judiciary, Pacific Judicial Council, and the Minister of Justice for Papua New Guinea.

Professor Barkai has twice been voted the “Outstanding Professor of the Year” at the Law School, and received the University of Hawai’i’s highest teaching award — the Regents’ Medal for Excellence in Teaching.

He has also run 35 Honolulu marathons.

Selected Publications

Books

• Hawaii Rules of Evidence (2018)
• Hawaii Rules of Evidence Handbook with Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations (2020)
• Federal Rules of Evidence Handbook with Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations (2020)
• Military Rules of Evidence Handbook with Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations (2020)
• The Pocket Guide to Common Trial Objections & Evidentiary Foundations (2020)
• Negotiation and Mediation Communication Gambits for Breaking Impasses and More: What Do I Say When I Want To … (2022)
• Humor in Trial Evidence: Cartoon Caption Contest Winners and Challenges from My Evidence Class  (2020)
• Humor in Negotiations & ADR: Cartoon Caption Contest Winners from the ABA Dispute Resolution Magazine  (2020) Teacher’s Manual for Mediation Representation: Advocating as a Problem-Solver in Any Country or Culture (N.I.T.A. 2010 with Abramson).
• And, about 125 other evidence handbooks in his Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations series of books (updated annually) for approximately 100 jurisdictions, including two cartoon books, and a negotiation and mediation book. He has a series of Evidence Handbooks with Common Objections & Evidentiary Foundations for all 50 U.S. states, District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Federal Rules, Military Rules, the Pacific Island nations and states of American Samoa, Chuuk, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Guam, Kiribati,  Kosrae, Marshall Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Pohnpei, Papua New Guinea, Samoa,  Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, and Yap, as well as Antigua and Barbuda, Australian states of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia, Bangladesh, Canada and its provinces of  Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario, Cyprus, Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Singapore, Sierra Leone, and UK (United Kingdom). All the above books have been self-published and are available on Amazon. Search Amazon for – Barkai + [jurisdiction name].

Articles

• “Let’s Stop Spreading Rumors about Settlement and Litigation: A Comparative Study of Settlement and Litigation in Hawaii Courts”, 29 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 85 (2014). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “The Hardest Case I Never Settled”, 13 Hawaii Bar Journal (2009). SSRN
• “The Education and Training of Mediators”, The Fifth International Conference on Multi-National Joint Ventures for Construction Works (Oct. 2009). SSRN
• “Bringing Mediation (Back) to Micronesia” (July 2009). SSRN
• “What’s a Cross-Cultural Mediator to do? A Low Context Solution for a High-Context Problem”, 10 CARDOZO J. CONFLICT RESOL. 43 (2008). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Cultural Dimension Interests, the Dance of Negotiation, and Weather Forecasting: A Perspective on Cross-Cultural Negotiation and Dispute Resolution”, 8 PEPP. DISP. RESOL. L.J. 403 (2007-2008).  HeinOnline| SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Mediation of Construction Disputes in the United States”, proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Multi-National Joint Venture For Construction Works, Tainan, Taiwan (Oct. 2008). SSRN
• “A Profile of Settlement,” co-authored with Elizabeth Kent, and Pamela Martin, 42 Court Review, Issue 3-4, (Fall/Winter 2006) 34. SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Settling Civil Lawsuits in the Hawaii Circuit Courts,” co-authored with Elizabeth Kent, and Pamela Martin, 10 Hawaii Bar Journal No.13, 73 (2006). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Motions in Limine: Character Problems and Bad Acts”, Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Winter Convention Reference Materials 109 (2006). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Using Alternative Dispute Resolution Techniques In Construction Disputes,” Proceedings of the 3rd International Symposium on Infrastructure Management and Financing, Kyoto University, Kyoto Japan, 2003. SSRN
• “Settling Civil Lawsuits In The Hawaii Circuit Courts,” co-authored with Elizabeth Kent, Pamela Martin and Ashley Masuoka. A monograph for the State of Hawaii Judiciary, 2003. 
• “Teaching Negotiation and ADR: The Savvy Samurai Meets the Devil,” 75 Nebraska Law Review 704 (1996).  An earlier version was published as University of Hawaii, Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series: 1996-1. HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “The Court Annexed Arbitration Program Interim Evaluation Report: March 1991,” in T. Kojima, T. Atsumi, H. Hokama & M. Shimizu, The Grand Design of America’ Justice System 172 (1995). Tokyo: Chuo University Press. (with Gene Kassebaum) 
• “What Happens When Mediation Is Institutionalized?” 9 Ohio St. J. on Disp. Resol. 307 (1994) (with James Alfini, Robert Baruch Bush, Michele Hermann, Jonathan Hyman, Kimberlee Kovach, Carol Liebman, Sharon Press, & Leonard Riskin) SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Investing in Vietnam: An Ancient Land Looks for Modern Money,” Legal Times, 36 (June 1994). (with Laurence Brahm) SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Using Electronic Mail for International Negotiation Simulations,” (with Andrew Clark) University of Hawaii, Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series: 1993-1. SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Applying The Hawaiian Mediation Model To Disputes and Conflicts,” 11 Interspectives 40 (1992). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Electronic Negotiation: The International Electronic Mail Computer Negotiation Project,” 11 Interspectives 71 (1992). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Court-Annexed Arbitration in Hawaii: Is it Worth it?” Hiroshima Bar Journal, Japan, September, 1992 (in Japanese) SSRN
• “Hawaii’s Court Annexed Arbitration Program Interim Evaluation Report: March 1991,” (with Kassebaum) in T. Kojima, America’ Civil Justice System 261 (1992). (in Japanese). Tokyo: Chuo University Press.
• “Hawaii’s Court-Annexed Arbitration Program: The Final Report, 1992”, Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series (1992) & 16 Hiroshima Law Journal (1992-1993) (in Japansese). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “American Alternative Dispute Resolution: Mediation – An Overview and Mini-Training,” 15 Hiroshima Law Journal 157 (1991) (in Japanese). SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Pushing the Limits on Court-Annexed Arbitration: The Hawaii Experience,” 14 Justice System Journal 133 (1991) (with Kassebaum).  An earlier draft was published in the Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series: 1990-2. SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Nonverbal Communication from the Other Side: Speaking Body Language,” 27 San Diego Law Review 101 (1990). HeinOnline | SSRN| ScholarSpace
• “Hawaii Court-Annexed Arbitration Evaluation is the First to Show Cost Reduction to Litigants,” 3 BNA’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Report 140 (1989) (with Kassebaum). 
• “Using Court-Annexed Arbitration to Reduce Litigant Costs and to Increase the Pace of Litigation,” 16 Pepperdine L. Rev. 43 (1989) (with Kassebaum).  An earlier version was published as Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series: 1989-2. HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “The Impact of Discovery Limitations on Pace, Cost and Satisfaction in Court Annexed Arbitration,” 11 U. Haw. L. Rev. 81 (1989) (with Kassebaum).  Also published in Japan as 13 Hiroshima Law Journal 132 (1989).  An earlier version was published as Court-Annexed Arbitra¬tion in Hawaii: An Evaluation of Cost, Satisfac¬tion, and Pace, Program on Conflict Resolution Working Paper Series: 1988-3. HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “The Lecture-In-Disguise”, 18 New Mexico L. Rev.  117 (1987-88). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “How to Develop the Skill of Active Listening,” 30 Practical Lawyer  (June 1984). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Active Listening,” 20 Trial 66 (August 1984). SSRN
• “Empathy Training for Lawyers and Law Students,” 13 Southwestern Univ. L. Rev., 505 (1983) (with V. Fine). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Sensory Based Language in Legal Communication”, 27 Practical Lawyer No. 1, 41 (1981). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “A New Model for Legal Communication:  Sensory Experience and Representational Systems,” 29 Cleveland St. L. Rev. 575 (1980). HeinOnline | SSRN| ScholarSpace
• “Lower Criminal Courts:  The Perils of Procedure,” 69 J. Crim. L. 270 (1978). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “Accuracy Inquiries for All Felony and Misdemeanor Pleas, Voluntary Pleas But Innocent Defendants”, 126 U. Pa. L. Rev. 88 (1977). HeinOnline | SSRN | ScholarSpace
• “The Present Legal Status of Plea Bargaining,” (Video Cassette), Center for the Administration of Justice, Detroit, Michigan (1974).

Book Reviews

• “How To Get and Keep Good Clients,” 23 Trial 94 (Aug. 1987). 
• “The Legal Education of Plea Bargaining Participants,” 68 Ky. L. J. 240 (1979). SSRN