Devens, Nakano, Saito, Lee, Wong & Ching

Roots that reach back to 1951

This is a Honolulu law firm with a long history in Hawaii. It was founded in 1951 by Dick Yin Wong, Ben Lau, and Richard C. Lo. That founding date places the practice among the older continuing firms in the state.

Several people tied to the firm went on to public roles. Dick Yin Wong became a Circuit Court Tax Judge for the State of Hawaii. George Koga was elected to the Honolulu City Council, and Paul Devens served as Corporation Counsel and later as Managing Director of the City and County of Honolulu.

As a reviewer, I read that public service history as a sign of a firm woven into local civic life. It suggests the people here have worked inside Hawaii's institutions, not only in front of them.

Focus and practice areas

The work spans a wide set of civil and business matters. The firm lists business law, business succession planning, estate planning, probate and trust administration, and tax law. It also handles real estate, immigration, civil litigation, and bankruptcy.

Trust and estate litigation appears alongside guardianships and conservatorships. Those are the disputes and protective arrangements that often follow estate work. Keeping both the planning side and the litigation side under one roof is worth noting.

A niche in food and drink

One practice area stands apart from the usual list. The firm keeps a restaurant, alcoholic beverage, and packaged-food and beverage practice. In my opinion that focus fits a place where hospitality carries so much of the economy. It points to real familiarity with licensing and the rules that food and drink businesses live under.

How the team is built

The site names eight attorneys, and several are partners. The group covers a broad mix of subjects rather than a single lane, which matches the range of practice areas.

Russell K. Saito is a partner. His work centers on business planning, estate planning, tax, pension and profit sharing, and the sale and acquisition of businesses. That is a fitting spread for owners thinking about the long life of a company.

James H.Q. Lee is a partner who attended the William S. Richardson School of Law. His practice covers real property, estate planning, taxation, and commercial transactions. Outside the firm he has served as managing director of Let's Eat Hawaii and of K. B. Lee Corp., a real estate development company.

Depth across banking and litigation

Thomas J. Wong is a partner and also a Richardson graduate. He handles general civil work, banking, bankruptcy, corporate, and immigration matters. He belongs to the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the Asian Law Caucus.

Stanley L. Ching is a partner who earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Hawaii in 1981 and a Juris Doctor from the William S. Richardson School of Law in 1985. His practice reaches real property, banking, taxation, corporate, probate, commercial transactions, and intellectual property.

Sofia Hirosane McGuire is a Member of the firm. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature from the University of Washington, earned in 1999, and a Juris Doctor from Seattle University School of Law, earned in 2003, where she served as an Executive Editor of the Seattle Journal for Social Justice. Her practice focuses on estate matters.

Of Counsel and other names

Terrance W. H. Tom serves as Of Counsel. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Hawaii in 1970 and a Juris Doctor from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1973. His work covers general civil practice along with lawsuits and disputes.

Two more names round out the roster. Paul Devens, whose public service is noted above, and Wilfred H.C. Youth are both listed among the firm's attorneys.

What the public record shows

The firm points to a few concrete threads of work. It has represented Central Pacific Bank in commercial transactions. That is a long-standing local bank, and the firm's office sits in Central Pacific Plaza.

On the litigation side, the firm has handled heptachlor and asbestos cases. Both are familiar from Hawaii's history of contamination and injury claims. This is the kind of complex, science-heavy litigation that takes staying power.

Day to day, the described work runs through wills and trusts, probate, tax and business planning, and real estate transactions. It reads like a practice built for families and businesses that want steady, ongoing counsel.

Who the firm is built for

The practice serves clients throughout the State of Hawaii. The mix of business, tax, estate, and real estate work points toward owners, families, and people planning for the years ahead. The litigation and bankruptcy capacity means the firm can also step in when plans go sideways.

In my opinion the clearest strength here is breadth held together by long tenure. A client can handle succession planning, a real estate deal, and a probate matter without leaving the building. For someone looking for a general civil and business firm with deep Honolulu roots, that continuity counts.