James J. Bickerton

Jim Bickerton has been practicing law in Hawaii for more than 33 years and is a founding partner of the firm. Jim is widely regarded as one of the best trial attorneys in Honolulu and has been continuously listed as one of the "Best Lawyers in America" and "Hawaii's A+ Attorneys" since 1993. In addition to the hundreds of individual clients Jim has successfully represented over the years, his client list has included such notables as Honolulu Mayor Frank Fasi, The New Yorker magazine, the NCAA, USA Today, developer Bruce Stark, hotelier Andre Tatibouet, the Hawaii State Campaign Spending Commission, Tokyu Corporation, the ownership of The Kahala Mandarin Oriental Resort, Simon & Schuster, and several past presidents of the Hawaii State Bar Association.

Jim currently represents a wide range of both plaintiff and defendant clients in commercial and real estate litigation, consumer class actions, professional liability of attorneys, accountants, and real estate brokers, medical malpractice, serious personal injury and wrongful death, and First Amendment and defamation issues. In addition to his defense work on some of the most complicated civil litigation cases, Jim has obtained numerous recoveries in excess of $1 Million by jury verdict, by arbitration award, and by settlement and, in the past three years alone, has recovered well over $10 million for his clients.

In addition to his trial practice, Jim is a past Director of the Hawaii State Bar Association, past Governor of the Consumer Lawyers of Hawaii, a member of the Hawaii Chief Justice's Committee on the Adoption of the ABA Model Rules of Professional Conduct, and most recently chaired the Hawaii State Bar Association's Special Committee on Appellate Issues. Jim and founding member William Saunders, Jr. are also well-known in the community for their extensive pro bono representation on behalf of many of the most significant environmental, free speech, and community causes over the past two decades, including Save Sunset Beach, Kaimana Beach Coalition, Save the Star-Bulletin, Honolulu Weekly, and others.

Jim was born in England and lived in Africa, the Caribbean, South America, and Europe before moving to Hawaii in 1972. He graduated from Roosevelt High School in Honolulu and the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 1978, where he received a bachelor's degree in Psychology with distinction. Jim received his law degree from the U.C.L.A. School of Law in 1981. When he is not working, Jim enjoys spending time with his family and still enjoys the challenge of big wave surfing and tow-surfing on Oahu's North Shore as shown in this video.