STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2158

 

Honolulu, Hawaii

                  

 

RE:    S.B. No. 2344

       S.D. 1

 

 

 

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

 

Sir:

 

     Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 2344 entitled:

 

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO AUTOMATIC RESTRAINING ORDERS,"

 

begs leave to report as follows:

 

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to automatically impose a restraining order upon parties filing for annulment, divorce, or separation to preserve the financial assets of the parties and their dependents.

 

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Maui County Councilmember Yuki Lei Sugimura.  Your Committee received testimony in opposition to this measure from the Domestic Violence Action Center and one individual.

 

     Your Committee finds that family court congestion can be reduced by providing for orders that automatically take effect when parties file for annulment, divorce, or separation.  Automatically imposed restraining orders to preserve the financial assets of parties and their dependents will help to create a more level playing field for unrepresented parties, parties who are unfamiliar with the court system and unaware of their legal rights and obligations, and parties who have a significant disparity in finances and resources.  Your Committee has heard testimony expressing diverse concerns with this measure, and encourages further discussion and consensus among stakeholders as this measure proceeds through the legislative process.

 

     Your Committee has amended this measure by inserting an effective date of July 1, 2035, to encourage further discussion.

 

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2344, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2344, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

 

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,

 

 

 

________________________________

BRIAN T. TANIGUCHI, Chair