Broken Trust: Greed, Mismanagement & Political Manipulation at America’s Largest Charitable Trust

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University of Hawaii Press, Jan 31, 2006 - History - 336 pages

Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop was the largest landowner and richest woman in the Hawaiian kingdom. Upon her death in 1884, she entrusted her property--known as Bishop Estate--to five trustees in order to create and maintain an institution that would benefit the children of Hawai‘i: Kamehameha Schools. A century later, Bishop Estate controlled nearly one out of every nine acres in the state, a concentration of private land ownership rarely seen anywhere in the world. Then in August 1997 the unthinkable happened: Four revered kupuna (native Hawaiian elders) and a professor of trust-law publicly charged Bishop Estate trustees with gross incompetence and massive trust abuse. Entitled "Broken Trust," the statement provided devastating details of rigged appointments, violated trusts, cynical manipulation of the trust’s beneficiaries, and the shameful involvement of many of Hawai‘i’s powerful.

No one is better qualified to examine the events and personalities surrounding the scandal than two of the original "Broken Trust" authors. Their comprehensive account together with historical background, brings to light information that has never before been made public, including accounts of secret meetings and communications involving Supreme Court justices.

 

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Contents

Princess for a New Hawaii
9
A Culture Suppressed
29
Where Are All the HawaiianLooking Ones?
41
Newfound Wealth Cultural Rebirth Seeds of Discontent
51
The Trust Plays Politics as Activism Grows
63
ShellShocked Lottery Winners
79
The Black and Blue Panel
87
Five Fingers One Hand
95
Mistrust and Paranoia
183
A World Record for Breaches of Trust
193
Thats Just the Way You Do It
209
Public Pressure Forces a Political Shift
217
Trustees Surrounded
227
End of the Line
243
Healing and Closure
265
Eternal Vigilance
281

The Education Trustee
103
We Must March
123
A Tinderbox Waiting for a Match
141
Time to Say No More
149
Like Investigating the CIA
165
Afterword
297
The Charitable Trust Provisions of Princess Pauahis Will and Two Codicils
299
Credits for Photographs and Editorial Cartoons
303
Index
305
Copyright

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About the author (2006)

Samuel P. King is Senior U.S. District Judge, District of Hawai‘i, appointed in 1972, following eleven years as a Hawai‘i State Circuit Court judge.

Randall W. Roth is professor of law at the University of Hawai‘i.

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