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STARN O'TOOLE MARCUS & FISHER ESTABLISHES FUND FOR EXCELLENCE AT UH MĀNOA LAW SCHOOL

Contribution will support scholarships, moot court program and lecture series

"Our law firm and the law school share a history of mutual support and friendship, and we are proud to support University of Hawaiʻi William S. Richardson School of Law with this $100,000 gift."

(Honolulu, Hawaiʻi) — William S. Richardson, founder of the William S. Richardson School of Law at UH Mānoa and former Hawaiʻi State Chief Justice, accepted a check for $100,000 to the UH Mānoa School of Law on Thursday, November 20, 2008. The check was a gift from Starn O'Toole Marcus & Fisher, one of Hawaiʻi's most prestigious business law firms.

The donation will establish the Starn O'Toole Marcus & Fisher Fund for Excellence, which will provide scholarships for law students and sponsorship of the nationally-honored moot court program. The gift will also fund a continuing lecture series in real estate law, and other programs that support legal education.

"This gift is one aspect of the law firm's community outreach, which includes providing pro bono and reduced cost legal services to community organizations," said Duane Fisher, a director at the firm. "Several of our law firm's attorneys also have served as adjunct professors at the law school."

"We particularly appreciate this generous contribution in these difficult financial times," said Aviam Soifer, dean of William S. Richardson School of Law. "We are honored Starn O'Toole Marcus and Fisher continues to support our mission."

Richardson was recently honored with the American Judicature Society's Herbert Harley Award, the premier state award reserved for individuals whose outstanding efforts and contributions substantially improve the administration of justice in their state.

William S. Richardson School of Law alumni and law firm associates and partners from Starn O'Toole Marcus and Fisher presented a check for $100,000 on November 20, 2008.
Pictured are, (back row, left to right), Peter Starn, firm Chairman; Richard Wallsgrove; Simeone Vance; Law School Dean Aviam Soifer; Norman Cheng; Shan Wirt and firm Director Duane Fisher; (front row, left to right), Allison Ito; Shyla Cockett; retired Hawaiʻi Chief Justice William S. Richardson; Tina Wakayama and Wil Yamamoto. The firm established the Starn O'Toole Marcus & Fisher Fund for Excellence which will provide scholarships for law students, sponsorship of the moot court program, and support for the Law School's Real Property Lecture Series.
Courtesy Brad Goda Photography.

Starn O'Toole Marcus & Fisher specializes in large real estate and hotel industry transactions as well as complex commercial litigation. The law firm has twenty-four attorneys, ten of whom are graduates of William S. Richardson School of Law. The law firm was selected as one of Honolulu Magazine's "Best Places to Work" in 2008.

The William S. Richardson School of Law is dedicated to providing excellence in legal education and scholarship and to promoting justice, ethical responsibility and public service. Founded in 1973, the Law School places special emphasis on the fields of law of particular importance to Hawaiʻi and the Pacific region, such as environmental law, Native Hawaiian rights, ocean law, and Pacific and Asian legal studies. The Law School now offers a part-time program. For more information about the William S. Richardson School of Law, visit www.hawaii.edu/law.

The University of Hawaiʻi Foundation Mission: To unite our donors' passions with the University of Hawaiʻi's aspirations to benefit the people of Hawaiʻi and beyond. We do this by raising private philanthropic support, managing private investments and nurturing donor and alumni relationships. Please visit www.uhf.hawaii.edu.