Nālani Fujimori Kaina

Nālani Fujimori Kaina is general counsel and vice president for Kamehameha Schools. Her kuleana includes overseeing the Legal Group which contributes to Kamehameha Schools’ educational mission by protecting and upholding the purpose and integrity of the last will and testament of Kamehameha Schools founder Ke Aliʻi Pauahi Bishop. The Legal Group provides support to the education, administrative, endowment, tax, trust, litigation and real estate needs of Kamehameha Schools.

Nālani has more than 25 years of experience in leadership and serving the legal needs of Hawai‘i families and the Native Hawaiian community. She previously served as executive director of the Legal Aid Society of Hawai‘i, a position she held for thirteen years. Prior to becoming executive director, she began her career with Legal Aid as a staff attorney on Moloka‘i and later served as Maui County managing attorney and Legal Aid deputy director. Her legal work focused on low-income families and children in ensuring their access to basic necessities, and to resolve legal barriers. Her noteworthy work with Legal Aid, included the drafting of a report which led to the creation of the Hawaiʻi Access to Justice Commission and raising the national profile of Legal Aid through speaking engagements with the American Bar Association and at the White House Access to Justice Forum.

As a past president and former director of the Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC), Nālani served RCAC’s mission to partner with underserved rural and Indigenous communities to achieve their vision and well-being through technical assistance, training, financial resources, and advocacy in the rural West and in the Pacific.

Nālani has also served on the board of directors of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, is a former chair of the Hawai‘i State Advisory Committee to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, and a past president and former director of Hawaiʻi Women Lawyers.

An alumnus of KS Kapālama, Nālani holds a juris doctorate from the New York University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Macalester College.