Legal Services & Lawyers

Joy Yanagida started Yanagida & Associates in 1991, specializing in business law, real estate disputes, and family law. She received her J.D. from the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley and her A.B. with distinction from Stanford University.

She is admitted to practice law in Hawaii, the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She also is an inactive member of the California and District of Columbia bars.

Before starting Yanagida & Associates, Ms. Yanagida served in these positions:

* Associated with Dickstein, Shapiro & Morin in Washington, D.C.
* Of counsel, Center for International Environmental Law, Washington D.C.
* Staff attorney, Task Force on Iran Contra Matters (Tower Commission)
* Attorney-adviser, U.S. State Department Office of the Legal Adviser

David C. Farmer received his law degree from the William S. Richardson School of Law in 1985. He practices primarily in the areas of commercial litigation and bankruptcy. He was previously an associate and partner with Case & Lynch, a partner with Lynch & Farmer, counsel with Ashford & Wriston, and an associate with Wagner Watson & DiBianco. He has been a member of the American Bar Association since 1982, and its litigation and business sections, and the Hawai`i State Bar Association since 1983. He has served on the HSBA Publications Committee and been an editor and contributing author to the Hawai`i Bar Journal since 1991. He is Editor-in-Chief and a contributing author to three editions of the Hawaii Collection Manual. He has served as the President and a Director of Bankruptcy Law Section, Treasurer and Director of the Collection Law Section, and member of the CLE Committee. He is also a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute. He taught Secured Transactions, Debtor-Creditor Rights, and Business Reorganization in Bankruptcy from 1998 to 2005 at the William S. Richardson School of Law as a Visiting Assistant and Adjunct Professor. He currently serves as a Panel Trustee for the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Hawaii.

Although Phil Brown has been a full time litigation attorney since 1985, he became a Hawaii attorney after moving to Honolulu in 1993. Mr. Brown started this office in 1997 after working for some of the finest law firms in Hawaii, New York and Virginia.

Upon graduating from Washington and Lee University School of Law in 1985, Mr. Brown was an associate at Hunton and Williams. In 1987 Mr. Brown joined the New York office of Reid and Priest (later known as Thelen Reid and Priest). Mr. Brown often credits these two highly regarded, national law firms as the main reason for his strong background in commercial litigation.

In 1993 Mr. Brown moved to Honolulu and joined its then largest law firm, Carlsmith Ball. At Carlsmith Ball, he litigated against some of Hawaii's finest attorneys, including famed Plaintiffs attorney, David C. Schutter. Following one oral argument, Mr. Schutter offered Mr. Brown the opportunity to join Schutter and represent the claims of some 4000 annuity holders in a case against a national financial institution. Mr. Brown candidly admits when he met Schutter, Brown had little experience representing the rights of Plaintiffs. However, Brown accepted the challenge and two years later mediated a Thirty-Nine Million Dollar settlement for the annuity holders.

Mr. Brown started this office in 1997. Relying on his diverse experience, Mr. Brown represents Plaintiffs and Defendants in Commercial Litigation, Real Estate Litigation, and Personal Injury cases. Moreover, because Mr. Brown was trained at two of the biggest law firms in the United States, he is often the Hawaii lawyer or local counsel for clients and law firms seeking an attorney in Hawaii.

Mr. Brown has Martindale Hubbell's highest legal/ethics ratings and is listed in the Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers under Civil Trial Practice, Commercial Litigation and Personal Injury. Mr. Brown is also listed in The Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers. Mr. Brown has also been recognized in Honolulu Magazine's Best Lawyers in Hawaii and was honored by the American Trial Lawyers Association as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer.