--- title: "Hawaii: AI rules for lawyers" url: "https://ailawframework.com/jurisdictions/hawaii" type: "jurisdiction" site: "AI Law Framework" id: "US-HI" kind: "state" country: "US" parent: "United States" last_checked: "2026-10-31" as_of: "2026-10-31" last_reviewed: "2026-11-03" --- # Hawaii: AI rules for lawyers > Hawaii: court and regulator AI instruments and the tasks that change here. Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/jurisdictions/hawaii Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt ## What this means for lawyers No Hawaii statute, court rule or Supreme Court order specific to lawyers' use of AI was found. In the AI committee's final report, its Ethics Subcommittee found the existing Hawai‘i Rules of Professional Conduct (HRPC) and Hawai‘i Rules of Civil Procedure (HRCP) Rule 11 sufficient and "adequate", proposed no rule changes "at this time" and recommended a "wait and see" approach. Treat the HRPC as fully applicable to AI use. The Chief Justice's January 2025 letter to the Hawai‘i State Bar Association (HSBA) lists HRPC 1.1, 1.3, 1.4, 1.6, 1.15, 3.1, 3.3, 3.4 and 5.3 and HRCP 11 and 37 as the rules attorneys using AI should know, and says these obligations are "currently broad enough" to govern AI use. Verify every citation and authority before filing. The committee says HRCP 11 and 26(g) already address the main risk of an attorney failing to understand AI's limits, and that the lawyer must supervise AI output as if it were a law clerk or new associate. A court-wide AI disclosure declaration for state court filings has been proposed but, as far as could be found, has not been adopted. The committee's final report (15 Dec 2025) says it is "under consideration" by the Supreme Court. Check for a later order before filing. As at 31 October 2026. ## Telling the court and the client **Tell the court:** Varies by court Court disclosure: depends. No state-court rule found requiring it; a proposed state declaration is under consideration; one federal judge in D. Haw. requires it. Client disclosure/consent: no rule found. The committee says attorneys "should discuss" potential GAI use with clients and "obtain client consent" before using it on a matter, and must comply with a client's request for disclosure, but this is committee commentary, not an adopted rule. - [Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts' Final Report to the Hawai‘i Supreme Court (SCMF-24-0000305)](https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/121625_SCMF-24-305_CommitteeOnArtificialIntelligenceAndTheCourts_FinalReport.pdf) - [Disclosure and Certification Requirements – Generative Artificial Intelligence (Chambers of a U.S. District Judge)](https://www.hid.uscourts.gov/cms/assets/95f11dcf-7411-42d2-9ac2-92b2424519f6/AI%20Guidelines%20LEK.pdf) **Tell the client:** Varies Same basis and sources as above. ## Last checked Last checked 31 October 2026. ## What changed in Hawaii in the last 12 months - 17 December 2025 · Dated: [Order Continuing the Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts (SCMF-24-0000305)](#ai-rule-jr-us-hi-standing-ai-committee-order) - 15 December 2025 · Dated: [Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts' Final Report to the Hawai‘i Supreme Court (SCMF-24-0000305)](#ai-rule-jr-us-hi-ai-committee-final-report) ## AI instruments ### Courts and tribunals #### Order Continuing the Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts (SCMF-24-0000305) - Type: Court rule or order · Administrative order - Issuer: Hawai‘i Supreme Court - Date on page: December 17, 2025 - Effective date: 17 December 2025 - Status: 17 December 2025; start date not confirmed - Last checked 31 October 2026 - URL: https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/order584a.pdf Orders that the AI committee remain in place as a Standing Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts to keep abreast of and explore AI tools, with the same membership. It does not adopt the proposed AI declaration and places no duties on lawyers. Key points: - Membership continues to include the HSBA, the law school, the Access to Justice Commission and the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawai‘i. - Signals that AI rules remain under review rather than settled. #### Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts' Final Report to the Hawai‘i Supreme Court (SCMF-24-0000305) - Type: Report, research or submission · Report - Issuer: Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts, Hawai‘i Supreme Court - Date on page: December 15, 2025 - Effective date: 15 December 2025 - Status: 15 December 2025; start date not confirmed - Last checked 31 October 2026 - URL: https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/121625_SCMF-24-305_CommitteeOnArtificialIntelligenceAndTheCourts_FinalReport.pdf Final report of the Supreme Court's AI committee. Its Ethics Subcommittee finds the Hawai‘i Rules of Professional Conduct and HRCP Rule 11 adequate for AI use, proposes no rule changes at this time and recommends a wait-and-see approach; the committee recommends education and CLE with the HSBA and law school. It describes a proposed AI-use declaration for court filings as under Supreme Court consideration. It is a committee report, not a rule binding lawyers. Key points: - Says attorneys must verify AI output, supervise it like a law clerk or new associate, and protect client confidentiality; HRCP 11 and 26(g) already address the main risk. - Says attorneys should discuss potential generative AI use with clients and obtain consent before using it, and must comply with a client's request for disclosure; this is committee commentary, not a rule. - Reports a proposed Order Regarding Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools and Declaration about Use of Artificial Intelligence, based partly on D. Haw. orders, as under consideration by the Supreme Court. - Recommends the Judiciary work with the HSBA and law school on CLE, webinars and resources; suggests further discussion rather than mandatory AI CLE. #### Disclosure and Certification Requirements – Generative Artificial Intelligence (Chambers of Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi) - Type: Court rule or order · Standing order - Issuer: U.S. District Court, District of Hawai‘i (Chambers of U.S. District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi) - Date on page: Not stated - Effective date: Not stated - Last checked 31 October 2026 - URL: https://www.hid.uscourts.gov/cms/assets/95f11dcf-7411-42d2-9ac2-92b2424519f6/AI%20Guidelines%20LEK.pdf A federal chambers requirement of Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi, stated to be consistent with FRCP 11(b). Any party, pro se or represented, who uses generative AI to prepare a filing must disclose in the document that AI was used and which tool, and certify that the person checked accuracy including citations and authority. Failure may lead to sanctions. It applies to matters before that judge; no court-wide rule was confirmed. Also relevant to US-FED. Key points: - Disclosure must name the specific AI tool. - Filer remains responsible under FRCP 11 and the rules of professional conduct or attorney discipline. - Document is undated; currency not confirmed. Text confirmed 2026-10-31. Corrected: the judge is named on the document (Leslie E. Kobayashi). Still undated; whether it is current was not confirmed. ## Sources - Hawai‘i Supreme Court: [Order Continuing the Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts (SCMF-24-0000305)](https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/order584a.pdf) · last checked 31 October 2026 - Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts, Hawai‘i Supreme Court: [Committee on Artificial Intelligence and the Courts' Final Report to the Hawai‘i Supreme Court (SCMF-24-0000305)](https://www.courts.state.hi.us/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/121625_SCMF-24-305_CommitteeOnArtificialIntelligenceAndTheCourts_FinalReport.pdf) · last checked 31 October 2026 - U.S. District Court, District of Hawai‘i (Chambers of U.S. District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi): [Disclosure and Certification Requirements – Generative Artificial Intelligence (Chambers of Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi)](https://www.hid.uscourts.gov/cms/assets/95f11dcf-7411-42d2-9ac2-92b2424519f6/AI%20Guidelines%20LEK.pdf) · last checked 31 October 2026 - [Hawai‘i State Bar Association](https://hsba.org/catalog/on-demand/1248920-ai-llms-and-the-hrpc-how-to-use-artificial-intelligence-without-losing-your-license-recorded-11525) · last checked 31 October 2026 - [Disciplinary Board of the Hawai‘i Supreme Court / Office of Disciplinary Counsel](https://dbhawaii.org/legal-ethics-advice-for-hawaii-lawyers/) · last checked 31 October 2026 ## Key facts - Kind: State - Task versions written for this jurisdiction: 0 - AI instruments recorded: 3 *Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*