About Law Office of Roman Amaguin, Esq.

Aloha!  My name is Roman Amaguin.  I am an attorney in Honolulu, Hawaii, and in my practice I emphasize employment and labor law litigation, and general civil litigation.

I graduated from U.C. Berkeley, where I was a student-athlete, with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History.  I received my Doctor of Jurisprudence (JD) from the University of Hawaii, where I was the Executive Editor of the Law Review.

Prior to starting my own office, Law Office of Roman Amaguin, I practiced at two large law firms in Hawaii.  Between 1995 and 2006, I was an employment and labor lawyer and became a partner/director for one of the largest law firms in Hawaii. 

In 2007 and 2008, I practiced at another large Hawaii law firm as an “Of Counsel” attorney.  In addition to building on my employment/labor law practice, I litigated general civil cases ranging from complex business disputes and class actions to personal injury and real property disputes.

Since I began my career the big law firm model that relies on growth and yearly increases in hourly rates, accompanied by increases in billable hours expected of the firm’s attorneys to maintain a certain level of profitability, is very difficult to sustain in today’s economy–especially, in Hawaii.  More importantly, that model did not necessarily translate to value to a firm’s clients.

Accordingly, my law practice focuses on efficient pricing, cost-effectiveness, and personal attention to clients.  As part of the public demand that the practice of law be more efficient and sustainable, I invite all of my clients to discuss the potential of entering into capped or flat rate agreements.

What is a flat rate agreement?  The lawyer and client agree on a fee at the outset.  Regardless of the time spent or the outcome, that is the fee that is paid for the scope of work that it covers.  That scope of work may be the whole course of a matter, or it may be one component part.

What is a capped rate agreement?  The attorney’s bills are time-based, but within the agreement is a capped budgeted maximum. Thus, the client knows in advance what the worst-case fee could be.

If you are interested in speaking further about my representing you, you can contact me at roman@amaguinlaw.com, romanamaguin@yahoo.com, use this contact form, or call me at 808-271-1088.  Mahalo.

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Representative Published Cases (These examples are illustrative only and reference to these cases must not be considered as a guarantee, warranty, or predicted outcome of any other legal matter, regardless of any similarities):

Hotel Employees & Restaurant Emp. Union v. Honolulu Country Club, 100 F.Supp.2d 1254 (D.Haw. 1999) (represented Defendant club and obtained summary judgment for Defendant affirming arbitrator’s decision).

Lesane v. Aloha Airlines, Inc., No. 04-16793 (9th Cir. 2006) (represented Defendant airline to summary judgment for Defendant and dismissal of lawsuit by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals).

Rutledge v. Berish, et al, No. 99-16813 (9th Cir. 2001) (represented Defendant Hotels, pension plan, and administrators to affirmation by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals of dismissal of Plaintiffs’ class action lawsuit by the United States District Court of Hawaii).

Yasui v. Maui Electric Co., Ltd., 78 F.Supp.2d 1124 (D.Haw. 1999) (represented Defendant utility company in a case where the United States District Court granted summary judgment against Plaintiff and for Defendant, and dismissed lawsuit).

Other Representative Cases:

Carvalho v. Department of Education, State of Hawaii, et al., Civil No. CV00348 (D.Haw. 2010) (represented Plaintiff to settlement in wrongful termination lawsuit, which included reinstatement of employee to his job).

Kaleuati et al v. Tonda et al, Civil No. 07 CV00184 (D.Haw. 2007) (represented class action Plaintiffs to settlement, which included requiring the State of Hawaii Department of Education, the Superintendent, and the Board of Education to provide homeless children with equal access to public education and remove barriers to their educational success).

Markowitz v. Interscholastic League of Honolulu et al., Civil No. 1CC-09-00521 (2009) (represented Plaintiff photojournalist in First Circuit Court to settlement, which included formal apology to the Samoa News for denying plaintiff access to cover ILH sports events and granting access equal to mainstream media as a member of the press).

Quiton v. Straub Clinic and Hospital, Civ. No. CV1008 (D.Haw. 1998) (represented Defendant Hospital to summary judgment and dismissal of lawsuit).

Santiago v. California Association for Research in Astronomy, Civil No. CV00054 (D.Haw. 2003) (represented Defendant research facility to summary judgment and dismissal of lawsuit by U.S. District Court of Hawaii).