Sabrina S. McKenna at a glance
- Current role
- Associate Justice
- Jurisdiction
- Hawaii · State
- Judicial service
- Active
- Term and retention
- Current term ends March 2, 2031
Sabrina S. McKenna
Associate Justice · Supreme Court of Hawaii
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Biography
Professional career
- Sabrina Shizue McKenna is an American judge and Associate Justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court, serving since March 3, 2011, and currently holding the position until March 2, 2031
- Judge, Hawaii Supreme Court, 2011-present
- Acting Chief Justice — served from October 1, 2025, to May 5, 2026, succeeding Mark E. Recktenwald
- Associate Justice, Hawaii Supreme Court — appointed January 25, 2011 by Governor Neil Abercrombie, confirmed unanimously by the Hawaii Senate
- Circuit Court judge (1995), and Senior Judge of the First Circuit Family Court (2009–2011)
- held the role of District Court judge (1993)
- Civil litigator, corporate counsel, and law professor before becoming a Hawaii state trial court judge in 1993.
- Deputy Public Defender, the Office of the Public Defender in Honolulu and as a law clerk to First Circuit Judge Marcia Waldorf
- Law professor, Legal academia
Education
- Law degree — William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawaii — 1982
- William S. Richardson School of Law, University of Hawaiʻi, where she was Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review — J.D. (1982)
- University of Hawaii at Manoa
Additional information
- Civil litigator, Civil litigation
- Corporate counsel, Corporate legal practice
Applicable Court Rules & Procedures
Extended Coverage Notice
Statewide
Hawaii requires news media to notify a court coordinator before electronic or photographic coverage of a judicial proceeding, including audio recording, film, videotape, or still photography.
The news media must notify a court coordinator of their intent to provide any electronic or photographic coverage of a judicial proceeding.Cameras and Audio Equipment ↗
Camera Microphone Placement
Statewide
Hawaii leaves courtroom camera and microphone placement to the judge and cautions that judges may differ on placement rules.
The judge will decide where cameras and microphones can be placed in the courtroom. Judges differ on this - so please ask.Cameras and Audio Equipment ↗
Sources
Identity source checked August 22, 2026.
Biography sources checked August 22, 2026.
Hawaii State Judiciary official judicial roster
Identity source · HTML · Source checked August 22, 2026
View Hawaii State Judiciary official judicial roster ↗CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · Source checked August 2, 2026
View CourtListener judicial biographical directory ↗Cameras and Audio Equipment
Statewide source · HTML · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Cameras and Audio Equipment ↗Remote Court Hearings via Zoom
Statewide source · HTML · Source checked July 26, 2026
View Remote Court Hearings via Zoom ↗