 Think Tech of Hawaii, civil engagement lives here. Aloha and thank you for joining us for another edition of Living Legend Lawyers on Think Tech. This program is a project sponsored by the Hawaii State Bar Association that seeks to recognize and chronicle Hawaii attorneys who have made significant contributions to our profession and the community. I'm Craig Wagdoll, an attorney with a law firm of Bays, Lung, Rose, and Homa and a former president of the Hawaii State Bar Association. And I have the pleasure of serving as host of today's program, which is entitled Building International Bridges. During the next 30 minutes, we're going to talk about developing international ties between Hawaii attorneys and legal practitioners in other countries. Our guest today has demonstrated that even attorneys who practice in areas wholly unrelated to international law can be the catalyst to develop relationships that span oceans and bring together lawyers from different countries. Before I introduce him, let me just say that if you want to ask a question or make a comment, you can tweet us at Think Tech, H.I., or call us at 374-2014. Our guest today is a well-known litigation attorney and 2005 president of the Hawaii State Bar Association, Richard Turbin. Rich, thanks for being here. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you for inviting me, Craig. Well, Richard, tell us a little bit about how you got into, first of all, just a practice of law. How did this strike you? Well, when I was a young kid growing up, I grew up in New York City. I read about professions when I was a little kid, and I really liked the idea of being a lawyer. When I read about what lawyers do, defend people, advocate for people, help them out in courtrooms that really resonated with me. And then at the same time, I was just an avid reader of history. I just wanted to travel. I loved reading about politics, foreign policy, history. And I just really had a tremendous curiosity to get to know about other countries and meet people from other countries. I remember whenever a young kid came into my class who had just immigrated from another country, I wanted to make friends with that, you know, with that young person and get to know them and see what they're all about. So that's how it happened with me. And then I went on to Cornell University. I majored in history. And then on to Harvard Law School. And then right after I finished Harvard Law School, I took as many international law classes as I could. I joined the Peace Corps and became a lawyer. Had you done any international travel before you went on to the Peace Corps? I had gone to Europe one summer. I did the mandatory hitchhiking across Europe between college and law school. I made some extra money. And so that was the only international travel I had done. I didn't grow up with a lot of money in my family and had to work hard to pay for school in law school. Sure. But then out of law school, you headed into the Peace Corps. Yeah. I was a Samoa and I was a lawyer, kind of assistant district attorney for the new nation of Western Samoa. It had just become a brand new nation. And we did our Peace Corps training, learn the Samoan language and all of that on the island of Molokai. Was that right? Yeah. Pukau. Molokai, you know, kind of living in a campsite for three months, learning Samoan language and culture. And I just fell in love, fell in love with Hawaii. So to ask you, was that your first exposure then to Hawaii? That was my first exposure to Hawaii and I just, I just fell in love with it. So I promised myself when I finished my Peace Corps work in Samoa, I was going to come back to Hawaii and find a job and settle here. And lo and behold, that's what happened. I've never left. Well, when was that? So give me a time. 1970. That was, yeah. Yeah. So that's when you came back to Hawaii? Yeah. That's correct. Yeah. And you started into the practice of law here? Yeah. I started out as a public defender. I got a job. They just opened up a public defender's office for the state of Hawaii. I was one of the first deputy public defenders hired. And I worked as a public defender for three years doing trial after trial after trial. So that was like good practice for litigation. And then I became a legal aid lawyer. I mean, I was committed to serving, serving the poor, serving the people who couldn't afford lawyers. And then after doing that for two years, I opened up my own law practice in 1975. And then just did everything. And then about 1980, I started emphasizing personal injury work, doing plaintiff's personal injury for... And that's what you've continued to do all along? I've continued to do that for some, you know, 35 years. But at the same time, I never lost my yen. I never lost my desire, you know, to get involved in global affairs and international law. That was really a passion. So then in the 1980s, I signed up for the American Bar Association, the tort and insurance section. That's a personal injury section. That's right. And you were one of the leaders in that. Yeah. And then I was elected chair of that organization for 1999, 2000. And my goal was, I just thought that the American Bar Association was too... The word for it is too parochial, too insular. There wasn't enough interaction in law associations around the world. So my goal as chair was to bring the American Bar Association into the international sphere. So first, I organized an American Bar Association mission to Moscow and St. Petersburg, Russia. Oh, is that right? Yeah, yeah. The Iron Curtain had just collapsed, you know. Now, this is through the torts section? Right. Right, right. Because they have an international section as well, right? Right, right, right. So I just decided, hey, let's start, even on the torts level, at such start expanding our reach and our horizons with other legal systems that may be quite different than ours. Right. And to help them, too, because I had the Peace Corps experience and like Russia had just kind of overthrown communism and entered the capitalist kind of semi-democratic world. So our goal was to help them with their laws, with their new laws, and specifically that mission was to help them with their environmental law. I see. Yeah. And then organized a much bigger, more elaborate mission to China in 1999-2000. And then I grabbed the Hawaii State Bar Association and that was a joint mission to China, Guangzhou, Beijing, Hainan Island, joint between the Hawaii State Bar Association and the American Bar Association. And that was a—and our goal there was to help train the Chinese to do jury trials. Is that right? Do they have jury trials in China? Yeah, beginning to, beginning to in the criminal area. So this was—we did mock jury trials, you know. Had you been to China before? I mean, were you familiar with their legal system and how things worked there? Or how did you get interested in setting that one up? Well, you know, it was called the Fourth—the Fourth Seminar and the Principles of Chinese American Law. And actually, the initiator was Li Waidu, the former city councilman who's got strong ties in China. And when he found out that I was chair of the Torton Insurance Practice Section, he thought, well, now maybe we can really—we'll have the money and we'll have the wherewithal, the help, the clerical help to put together this trip. So I got extremely excited when he talked to me about it. He says, let's go. And then we got the Hawaii State Bar Association committed also. We brought then Chief Justice Ron Moon and his wife as the titular heads of the delegation. And it was—and we were giving the red carpet treatment, because ironically and serendipitously, this was the first American trip that the Chinese invited to China after they broke off relations when the U.S. bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade, Yugoslavia in the late 90s. And so they kind of cut off these types of trips with the United States for several years. And ironically, we were the first—we were the model trip, you know, the first one when relations began to improve. Were there challenges in setting that up or in— We didn't know what was going to happen until about two months before it happened. We had heard that they were going to invite us over as their initial trip after relations began to improve. And then we were, you know, the out-of-the-box group invited. So we really got the red carpet treatment. Oh, that's fantastic. So China, now you've been involved with the Bar Association's now, you know, Hawaii State Bar Association came after that, right? You weren't leading the Bar Association then. Right. And then in 2003, I got elected to be the Bar—the Hawaii State Bar President for 2005. That's right. And when I got elected, I said, you know, my goal, my major goal is to try to drag the Hawaii State Bar Association into the global world and help the Hawaii State Bar Association get out of its singular focus on Hawaii, you know, making business in Hawaii, and get the Bar Association involved in the rest of the world, particularly Asian Pacific, because I always thought that Hawaii, you know, should be the center, the locus of certainly Pacific law, but also Asian law, too. And at that time, we had an international law section, which was very inactive and extremely small. So I got together, you know, interested lawyers, you know, such as yourself, Craig, you were a big help, Mark Shklav, you know, others, other Hawaii lawyers interested in international affairs, and we decided to put on an international bar convention. And we did that in October of 2005, very successful. And of course, the, you know, the most important aspect of that was establishing a friendship agreement with the Daichi Tokyo Bar Association, between the Daichi Tokyo Bar Association, which was the first bar association in Japan and the Hawaii State Bar Association. And we signed the papers, as you know, in October 2005. Right there. And I was serving as chair of the international law section at the time, so I remember being in that with you, and it was somewhat of a momentous occasion. But let's explain a little bit about what was involved with that, because the Daichi Tokyo Bar Association, which sounds like a mouthful, is essentially one of three of the major Tokyo Bar, and then there are other bar associations as well. Right. Right. Well, I mean, the Daichi Tokyo Bar Association is the oldest bar association in Japan and the most prestigious, and I know several of the Supreme Court justices of Japan were former members of that bar association. So when we signed the friendship agreement, we didn't want it to be, you know, just a, you know, just a one-time deal. In our contract, it's an agreement, every two years we get together. So in 2005, they had come to Hawaii, so the deal was in 2007, we were going to go see them. In 2009, they come back to Hawaii, and we always do programs on, you know, on global aspects of our law, international law in Hawaii, international law in Japan. You know, it's educational, it's an educational adventure, but also a social adventure where we really get to know each other. And just this past weekend— I was going to say, wait a minute, we just had them, yes? Right. They were over here, and we had a wonderful program. I mean, they got here on Friday. They left, I think, yesterday morning, and I know you were involved in organizing a wonderful educational program for them on Monday. We had a very nice reception with them at my home Sunday night, and a wonderful reception at Cafe Julia Monday night. Yeah. Very, very successful. And of course, we've become good friends with them now also. I got you. Well, I want to, I'm going to show a picture of that when we come back, okay? We're going to take a short break. You're watching Building International Bridges on Hawaii's Think Tech. I'm Craig Wagdolls. I'm here with Richard Turbin. We'll be back very shortly with more information, some pictures, some really exciting stuff. Thanks for being here. Do you want to be cool? If so, watch my show on Tuesdays at one called Out of the Comfort Zone. I sing this song to you because I think you either are cool or have the potential to be seriously cool. And I want you to come watch my show where I bring in experts who talk all about easy strategies to be healthier, happier, build better relationships, and make your life a success. So come sit with the cool kids at Out of the Comfort Zone on Tuesdays at one. See you there. Aloha. I'm Kaley Ikeena, and I'm here every other week on Mondays at 2 o'clock p.m. on Think Tech Hawaii's Hawaii Together. In Hawaii Together, we talk with some of the most fascinating people in the islands about working together, working together for a better economy, government, and society. So I invite you into our conversation every other Monday at 2 p.m. on Think Tech Hawaii Broadcast Network. Join us for Hawaii Together. I'm Kaley Ikeena, Aloha. And welcome back. I'm Craig Wagdolls. I'm sitting here with our guest Richard Turbin, and this is Living Legend Lawyers, brought to you by the Hawaii State Bar Association and Think Tech Hawaii. We've been talking about building international bridges, building bridges between attorneys here in Hawaii and with attorneys from other countries. And I have the pleasure of talking with Richard Turbin, who is our 2005 HSBA president, but has also been serving in all different capacities, his role both as attorney and just as a community member in helping build relationships with the Bar Association's attorneys and just the people of a bunch of different countries. And when we left, we were talking about the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association and the relationship, the friendship agreement it has with our Hawaii State Bar Association and the fact that they were just here meeting with us, but we have a photo and maybe we can pull that up. I'd like to take a look at that and maybe you can tell me about this because this wasn't just this last weekend. What is this? OK, Craig. Well, this is 2009. Remember in 2005, we signed a friendship agreement with the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association. We had a wonderful program here, a reception in Hawaii. And then under the terms of the agreement in 2007, the Hawaii Bar Association was to go to Tokyo, which we did. And we had a wonderful time in Tokyo. We had educational programs, social programs, travel programs. You know, a good time was had by all and very, very constructive. We met with Supreme Court justices from Japan and other important people. Well, two years later, 2009, now it's four years after the agreement was signed, the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association came back to Hawaii. Again, a wonderful educational program, social program. This is a photo of, of course, myself in the middle. My wife Ray and my wife Ray, just to my left, Jeff Sia, just to her left. And Jeff was the president of the Hawaii State Bar Association at the time. Ray actually then became president of the Bar Association. And next to me on the right is a very prominent Japanese lawyer, Kenji Hashidate. And he was the head of the international section of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association. And he was the one that signed the friendship agreement with me. And then to his right is the president of the Daiichi Tokyo Bar Association, another prominent member to his right. And this is in your house, correct? That's right. It's in my house. As I recall, every time they have come, you have hosted a gathering and a reception there at your, at your home. And it's wonderful. Right. It's a lot of fun. And we also have a tennis tournament also, whether it's a golf tournament, tennis tournament, and it's, it's really a wonderful, wonderful occasion. Well, in addition to that, you've hosted or been involved with, you know, Bar Association and gatherings of attorneys and others from numerous different countries. And maybe we could look at, at the photo number two here for a minute. And you can tell me a little bit about this one, because obviously not Japan, but another opportunity where you were helping to build a, build a bridge and meet with some attorneys and people from another country. Right. Now this is a photo of myself with Ambassador Sarna. He is the ambassador from India to the United States. And this picture was taken at the East West center. I was very fortunate to be appointed by the governor of Hawaii to the East West center board, the board of governors. And since 2016, I've had the good fortune to be the chair of the East West center board of governors. And I, you know, I love that work. Of course, it's not paid, but, you know, I'm in charge of the governing board of the East West center and I'm fortunate enough to go to a lot of meetings and receptions. And this was an educational program given by the, by Ambassador Sarna, Ambassador to the United States. And that's in Burns Hall of the East West center in Honolulu, Hawaii. And the East West center, of course, you know, has done programs with the Hawaii State Bar Association and the East West center. It probably is most of you know, is a very important educational and diplomatic institute founded by Congress, U.S. Congress in 1960 and located next to the University of Hawaii in Manoa. And it has six buildings, which were the architect was the renowned architect, I.M. Pye, very, very beautiful. Rich, and I should point out, as you mentioned, you know, unpaid type position, but most of the positions that you've held from the HSBA president to serving with the torch section of the ABA, to many of these other activities and positions that you've held to try and build these relationships have all been essentially pro bono. They've been unpaid positions and they've been done as a labor of love. Exactly, exactly. And it's really probably the most satisfying work I've done in my life, these unpaid pro bono positions. So my advice to any young lawyer is take on the unpaid pro bono positions and you'll find out it'll be the most satisfying work in your life. I'm so fortunate I had the opportunity to serve in these positions. Well, I still remember sitting around in a bar restaurant area with you and your wife and of all things, your son had come into town down there in downtown Tokyo and ordering up food and drink and enjoying time with ourselves and with a bunch of attorneys from Japan. And I echo that. I mean, some of the best times I've had have been just all of us getting together. Roppongi Hills. It was a restaurant club in Roppongi Hills in Tokyo. Absolutely beautiful, you know, just stunning surroundings and being with Japanese lawyers, life doesn't get much better than that. We had one other photo. And I want you to tell me a little bit about the two gentlemen that are in this photo with you, I believe also taken at the East West Center. Who do we have here? And what was this involved? Yeah, this is this was a very exciting event in Los Angeles put on by the Pacific Rim Society, which is a society of people interested in international relations around the Pacific Rim. It's based in based in Los Angeles. And its founder is a prominent Korean American businessman, Spencer Lee. And at this event, there were several hundred people there. Very, very interesting people. The honorees was former Secretary of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon and his to my right. And the other honoree was the East West Center. And as chair of the East West Center Board of Governors, you know, I was there to accept the ward along with the president of the East West Center at the time, Charles Morrison. And Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General of the United Nations, who's retired now, has always been a hero of mine, really an exemplar of an international leader, a wonderful international leader whose whose heart just goes all out for, you know, for sponsoring peace and prosperity throughout the world. We don't know how many wars he prevented. And just to have the opportunity to talk to him and and learn from him was such an honor. He was such a he's accomplished so much in his life and is so modest. I mean, really a modest, humble individual. Rich, you mentioned at one point, you know, recommendations. And that's what I want to ask you about in the minute that sort of we have left for you to give the message. If you were talking to our younger attorneys, the attorneys are coming to the practice now and wondering, well, how can I get involved? How can I do things like what you're doing? What are your recommendations to that? You find your passion, you know, whatever your passion is, you know, my passion was history is still is history, foreign policy, foreign affairs. And I sought out my passion and I did things that spoke to that. If your passion, and I'm talking to young lawyers, is to help out the poor, to to to help out with the homeless problem and the, you know, climate change problem and get involved in climate change organizations or poverty organizations such as Legal Aid that help out the homeless. You know, whatever floats your boat, whatever answers your passion, work in those areas and it'll be the most satisfying work of your lifetime. Well, I'm excited to see where you're not just your career, because you built your career, but where this whole experiment and experience goes for you going forward. And I am going to be tagging along with you. Good. Thank you very much, Craig. So happy for your support. And that, unfortunately, brings us to the end of our show that we've enjoyed having you with us as we discussed building international bridges with our special guest, Hawaii attorney, Richard Turbin. If a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step, Rich is a guy who started walking decisively towards his vision of closer relationships between the attorneys of the world and has never stopped. He's been a leader and an example of how lawyers, no matter what their area of practice, can develop relationships that bring together attorneys from different states and different countries. If you want to see this show again, go to thinktechhawaii.com or youtube.com backslash thinktechhawaii. There you'll find a link to this show and many others just like it that you might want to look at. Thanks so much to our studio staff and all of you, watch, care, and contribute to our thinktech productions. My name is Craig Wagdoll and I appreciate you watching and look forward to seeing you again. Mahalo and Allah.