§ 91. — Hawaii.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 28USC91]
TITLE 28--JUDICIARY AND JUDICIAL PROCEDURE
PART I--ORGANIZATION OF COURTS
CHAPTER 5--DISTRICT COURTS
Sec. 91. Hawaii
Hawaii constitutes one judicial district which includes the Midway
Islands, Wake Island, Johnston Island, Sand Island, Kingman Reef,
Palmyra Island, Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Canton
Island, and Enderbury Island: Provided, That the inclusion of Canton and
Enderbury Islands in such judicial district shall in no way be construed
to be prejudicial to the claims of the United Kingdom to said Islands in
accordance with the agreement of April 6, 1939, between the Governments
of the United States and of the United Kingdom to set up a regime for
their use in common.
Court shall be held at Honolulu.
(June 25, 1948, ch. 646, 62 Stat. 877; May 24, 1949, ch. 139, Sec. 64a,
63 Stat. 99; Pub. L. 86-3, Sec. 14(i), Mar. 18, 1959, 73 Stat. 11; Pub.
L. 86-624, Sec. 19, July 12, 1960, 74 Stat. 416.)
Historical and Revision Notes
Based on sections 641 and 642a of title 48, U.S.C., 1940 ed.,
Territories and Insular Possessions (Apr. 30, 1900, ch. 339, Sec. 86, 31
Stat. 158; Mar. 3, 1909, ch. 269, Sec. 1, 35 Stat. 838; July 9, 1921,
ch. 42, Sec. 313, 42 Stat. 119; Feb. 12, 1925, ch. 220, 43 Stat. 890;
Dec. 13, 1926, ch. 6, Sec. 1, 44 Stat. 919; Aug. 13, 1940, ch. 662, 54
Stat. 784).
Section consolidates parts of sections 641 and 642a of title 48,
U.S.C., 1940 ed.
The provisions of section 641 of title 48, U.S.C., 1940 ed., with
reference to regular and special terms and the times of holding same
were omitted as covered by sections 138 and 141 of this title.
Provisions of section 642a of title 48, U.S.C., 1940 ed., relating
to jurisdiction of civil actions and criminal offenses, were omitted as
covered by the general jurisdictional provisions of this title and
revised title 18 (H. R. 3190, 80th Cong.).
Provisions of section 642a of title 48, U.S.C., 1940 ed., as to
appeals were omitted as covered by section 1295 of this title.
Provisions of said section 642a with reference to juries and jury trials
were omitted as covered by chapter 121 of this title.
Other provisions of section 641 of title 48, U.S.C., 1940 ed., are
incorporated in sections 132 and 133 of this title.
Changes were made in phraseology.
Amendments
1960--Pub. L. 86-624 struck out Kure Island.
1959--Pub. L. 86-3 included Palmyra Island.
1949--Act May 24, 1949, inserted provisions relating to inclusion of
Canton and Enderbury Islands.
Effective Date of 1959 Amendment
Section 14 of Pub. L. 86-3 provided that the amendments of sections
91, 373, 1252, 1293, and 1294 of this title, sections 3771 and 3772 of
Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, and section 644a of Title 48,
Territories and Insular Possessions, the repeal of sections 536, 539,
634, 634a, and 645 of title 48, and notes set out under sections 371 and
373 of this title, are effective on admission of the State of Hawaii
into the Union. See Admission of Hawaii as State note below.
Canton and Enderbury Islands; Sovereignty of Kiribati
By a treaty of friendship, TIAS 10777, which entered into force
Sept. 23, 1983, the United States recognized the sovereignty of Kiribati
over Canton Island and Enderbury Island.
Admission of Hawaii as State
Admission of Hawaii into the Union was accomplished Aug. 21, 1959,
on issuance of Proc. No. 3309, Aug. 21, 1959, 25 F.R. 6868, 73 Stat.
c74, as required by sections 1 and 7(c) of Pub. L. 86-3, Mar. 18, 1959,
73 Stat. 4, set out as notes preceding section 491 of Title 48,
Territories and Insular Possessions.
Court of the United States; District Judges
Section 9(a) of Pub. L. 86-3 provided that: ``The United States
District Court for the District of Hawaii established by and existing
under title 28 of the United States Code shall thence forth be a court
of the United States with judicial power derived from article III,
section 1, of the Constitution of the United States: Provided, however,
That the terms of office of the district judges for the district of
Hawaii then in office shall terminate upon the effective date of this
section and the President, pursuant to sections 133 and 134 of title 28,
United States Code, as amended by this Act, shall appoint, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate, two district judges for the said
district who shall hold office during good behavior.''
Section 9 of Pub. L. 86-3 provided in part that subsec. (a) of that
section should be effective upon the admission of the State of Hawaii
into the Union.
Continuation of Suits
Section 12 of Pub. L. 86-3 provided that: ``No writ, action,
indictment, cause, or proceeding pending in any court of the Territory
of Hawaii or in the United States District Court for the District of
Hawaii shall abate by reason of the admission of said State into the
Union, but the same shall be transferred to and proceeded with in such
appropriate State courts as shall be established under the constitution
of said State, or shall continue in the United States District Court for
the District of Hawaii, as the nature of the case may require. And no
writ, action, indictment, cause or proceeding shall abate by reason of
any change in the courts, but shall be proceeded with in the State or
United States courts according to the laws thereof, respectively. And
the appropriate State courts shall be the successors of the courts of
the Territory as to all cases arising within the limits embraced within
the jurisdiction of such courts, respectively, with full power to
proceed with the same, and award mesne or final process therein, and all
the files, records, indictments, and proceedings relating to any such
writ, action, indictment, cause or proceeding shall be transferred to
such appropriate State courts and the same shall be proceeded with
therein in due course of law.
``All civil causes of action and all criminal offenses which shall
have arisen or been committed prior to the admission of said State, but
as to which no writ, action, indictment or proceeding shall be pending
at the date of such admission, shall be subject to prosecution in the
appropriate State courts or in the United States District Court for the
District of Hawaii in like manner, to the same extent, and with like
right of appellate review, as if said State had been created and said
State courts had been established prior to the accrual of such causes of
action or the commission of such offenses. The admission of said State
shall effect no change in the substantive or criminal law governing such
causes of action and criminal offenses which shall have arisen or been
committed; and such of said criminal offenses as shall have been
committed against the laws of the Territory shall be tried and punished
by the appropriate courts of said State, and such as shall have been
committed against the laws of the United States shall be tried and
punished in the United States District Court for the District of
Hawaii.''
Appeals
Section 13 of Pub. L. 86-3 provided that: ``Parties shall have the
same rights of appeal from and appellate review of final decisions of
the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii or the
Supreme Court of the Territory of Hawaii in any case finally decided
prior to admission of said State into the Union, whether or not an
appeal therefrom shall have been perfected prior to such admission, and
the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Supreme
Court of the United States shall have the same jurisdiction therein, as
by law provided prior to admission of said State into the Union, and any
mandate issued subsequent to the admission of said State shall be to the
United States District Court for the District of Hawaii or a court of
the State, as may be appropriate. Parties shall have the same rights of
appeal from and appellate review of all orders, judgments, and decrees
of the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and of
the Supreme Court of the State of Hawaii as successor to the Supreme
Court of the Territory of Hawaii, in any case pending at the time of
admission of said State into the Union, and the United States Court of
Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States
shall have the same jurisdiction therein, as by law provided in any case
arising subsequent to the admission of said State into the Union.''
Extension of Jurisdiction of United States District Court for District
of Hawaii and of Civil and Criminal Laws to Midway, Wake, Johnson, Sand,
etc., Islands
The jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the
District of Hawaii and the laws of the United States relating to civil
acts or offenses consummated or committed on the high seas on board a
vessel belonging to the United States were extended to the Midway
Islands, Wake, Johnson, Sand, etc., Islands by section 644a of Title 48,
Territories and Insular Possessions.
