Home › Hawaii › Hawaiʻi Probate Rules › Rule 113.1

Court Rules Network • courtrules.net

Haw. Prob. R. 113.1

Not legal advice. Verify against official sources before relying on this text in any legal matter.

Rule 113.1 Confidentiality of Records

Part C. Conservatorship and Guardianship Proceedings | C-V. Kokua Kanawai

← Previous Rule 113: Role and Authority of Kokua Kanawai Next → Rule 114: Probate Rules Applicable

Rule Text

In proceedings for guardianships and conservatorships, any written report of a Kokua Kanawai, any court-ordered professional evaluation, and any responses or objections thereto, shall be sealed upon filing. A court order will continue to be required to authorize the clerk to unseal a confidential report or evaluation.

Amendment history: Added April 28, 2006, effective July 1, 2006.

Plain-English Summary (for reference only — not a substitute for the rule text above)

This summary is not the rule. The rule text controls.

When a court case involves a guardianship or conservatorship, certain documents are kept private by default. This includes reports written by a Kokua Kanawai (a court-appointed helper who looks out for the person's interests), any professional evaluations ordered by the court, and any written responses or objections to those documents. As soon as these papers are filed with the court, they are automatically sealed, meaning the public cannot view them.

If someone wants to unseal these documents later, they cannot just ask the court clerk for a copy. A judge has to give specific permission first. This means anyone who wants to see these sealed reports, including family members or other interested parties, must file a request and get a court order allowing the records to be opened.

This rule exists to protect sensitive personal information. Guardianship and conservatorship cases often involve details about a person's mental health, physical condition, or ability to make decisions for themselves. Keeping these reports sealed helps protect the privacy of the person the case is about, while still allowing a judge to grant access when there's a good reason to do so.

Committee Notes

COMMENTARY:

HRS §560:5-307 and HRS §560:5-407 require Kokua Kanawai reports and professional evaluations to be sealed upon filing, but made available to the court; the respondent (without limitation as to use); the petitioner, the Kokua Kanawai, the petitioner's and respondent's lawyers (for purposes of the proceeding); and other persons (for any purpose the court may order for good cause).

The comment that accompanies both Article 307 and Article 407 of the Uniform Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Act explains:

. . . . This section is designed to protect the respondent's privacy, but still make the records accessible when needed to any of the involved parties or to others on a showing of good cause. The drafting committee recognized that "watch-dog" groups, the media, and others can perform essential functions of deterring abuse and facilitating reform, and in drafting this provision balanced the need to protect the respondent's privacy with the need of others to access this information.

Normally, documents are not filed under seal without a court order, which the filing party may seek by ex parte petition. This rule makes clear, however, that court staff must file under seal Kokua Kanawai reports filed pursuant to §560:5-303(e) or §560:5-406(e), and reports of a "physician, psychologist, or other individual appointed by the court who is qualified to evaluate the respondent's alleged impairment," pursuant to §560:5-306 or §560:5-406(f). Because the reports are sealed, responses and objections that refer to them are also sealed.

It is anticipated that at the time an individual is appointed to serve as a Kokua Kanawai or to evaluate an alleged incapacity, court staff will inform the appointee of the customary mechanics of preparing and presenting documents for filing under seal.

← Previous Rule 113: Role and Authority of Kokua Kanawai Next → Rule 114: Probate Rules Applicable