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NO. CAAP-19-0000043 

IN THE INTERMEDIATE COURT OF APPEALS 

OF THE STATE OF HAWAIʻI 

LAND VALUE HOLDINGS, LLC, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. 

RICHARD AMONG, JONAH KUMULAE, HELEN M. KUMULAE, 

RAYMOND K. ORNELLAS, JR., JONATHAN KONO, 

LYSA KONO, JONAH KUMULAE III, LUANA KUMALAE, 

 LLEWELLYN KUMULAE, CELESTE KUMALAE, MARK KANE, 

ALEXIS KANE, KRISTEN VAN BAMBERGER, KONALE MACHADO, 

CRAIG KAGAWA, JARRI KAGAWA, WANDA FUJIMOTO, BUCK HAR BOGAEV, 

PAULINE KAWAMATA, NORINE UEHIRA, STATE OF HAWAIʻI, 

and DOES 1-100, Defendants-Appellees. 

APPEAL FROM THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE THIRD CIRCUIT 

PUNA DIVISION 

(CIVIL NO. 3RC13-1-001020)

SUMMARY DISPOSITION ORDER

(By: Wadsworth, Presiding Judge, Nakasone and McCullen, JJ.) 

Plaintiff-Appellant Land Value Holdings, LLC (LVH)

appeals from the District Court of the Third Circuit, Puna 

Division's1 two December 5, 2018 Orders of Dismissal 

1 The Honorable Harry P. Freitas presided.

Electronically Filed

Intermediate Court of Appeals

CAAP-19-0000043

20-MAY-2024

08:11 AM

Dkt. 92 SO
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(collectively, 2018 Dismissal Orders) in Case No. 3RC13-1-

001020. On appeal, LVH contends the district court abused its 

discretion in dismissing the case.

Upon careful review of the record and the briefs 

submitted by the parties and having given due consideration to 

the issues raised and the arguments advanced, we resolve the 

point of error as discussed below, and affirm. 

LVH is a Wyoming-based limited liability company, with 

its principal place of business in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Among the 

twenty-one (21) named defendants (collectively, Defendants), 

only Wanda Fujimoto (Fujimoto) and Pauline Kawamata (Kawamata) 

filed answering briefs in this appeal. According to LVH's 

pleadings, the parties in this case own real property located in 

Puna, Hawai‘i Island (Property) as Tenants in Common. 

In December 2013, LVH filed a complaint in district 

court, claiming it paid $5,049.75 in "delinquent real property 

taxes" assessed on the Property and seeking reimbursement of 

that money with interest, attorneys' fees, and costs. Kawamata 

and Fujimoto answered, denying owing any property taxes.

Between December 19, 2014 and February 27, 2015, no 

action took place in this case, so the district court2 sua sponte

dismissed the case pursuant to the Rules of the District Courts 

2 The Honorable Barbara T. Kai Takase presided over the 2015 Dismissal

Orders. 
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of Hawaiʻi (RDCH) Rules 28 and 29 on February 27, 2015 

(collectively, 2015 Dismissal Orders). LVH then moved to vacate 

the 2015 Dismissal Orders, which the district court granted.

No further substantive action took place for over 

three years, between March 10, 2015 and December 5, 2018.3 The 

district court again dismissed the case via the 2018 Dismissal 

Orders, and LVH moved to vacate. The district court denied 

LVH's motions, and LVH appealed. 

In its motions to vacate the 2018 Dismissal Orders, 

LVH's Hawai‘i counsel explained: (1) he was attempting to have 

counsel based on the continent send money to pay the costs for 

service by publication, but was not informed of that counsel's 

"1985" death4 until late 2017; (2) it was impossible to know if 

the volcanic eruptions on Kīlauea would render the Property 

"useless and valueless";5 (3) he suffered medical issues 

rendering him unable to work for six months; (4) Defendants 

"have not been prejudiced in any manner"; and (5) "we exercised 

due diligence under the circumstances." 

3 The only filing between March 10, 2015 and December 5, 2018 was an 

April 10, 2017 notice by Fujimoto's attorneys of the law firm's name change.

4 LVH suggests this is a typographical error as counsel based on the 

continent purportedly died in 2015.

5 LVH offers no specific reasoning as to or timeline on how the 

eruptions caused delays in litigating this case before the district court.
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A trial court's sua sponte dismissal for want of 

prosecution is reviewed for abuse of discretion. Ryan v. 

Palmer, 130 Hawaiʻi 321, 323, 310 P.3d 1022, 1024 (App. 2013) 

(quoting Compass Dev., Inc. v. Blevins, 10 Haw. App. 388, 397-

98, 876 P.2d 1335, 1340 (1994)). "To determine whether the 

circumstances justify dismissal for failure to prosecute, we 

must examine the procedural history of the case." Compass Dev., 

Inc., 10 Haw. App. at 398, 876 P.2d at 1340; see also Hawaii 

Auto. Retail Gasoline Dealers Ass'n v. Brodie, 2 Haw. App. 99, 

101, 626 P.2d 1173, 1175 (1981) ("What constitutes a failure to 

prosecute depends on the facts of each case and the court must 

consider all pertinent facts . . . ."). 

 In the time period between the filing of the Complaint 

in 2013 and entry of the 2015 Dismissal Orders, it appears no 

attempt was made to serve at least six of the defendants, 

including the State. Likewise, in the time period between 

vacating the 2015 Dismissal Orders and entry of the 2018 

Dismissal Orders, no meaningful action of any kind took place in 

the case. 

LVH's attempts to explain its inaction are vague and 

conclusory at best. The death of continent-based counsel, the 

volcanic activity, and the inability to work for six months do 

not justify the lack of service and prosecution for over three 

years. See generally, Compass Dev., Inc., 10 Haw. App. at 398, 
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876 P.2d at 1340. In light of these circumstances, the district 

court did not abuse its discretion in dismissing this case under 

RDCH Rules 28 or 29.6

Based on the foregoing, we affirm the district court's 

2018 Dismissal Orders. 

 DATED: Honolulu, Hawai‘i, May 20, 2024. 

On the briefs: 

Everett Walton, 

for Plaintiff-Appellant. 

James Shin, 

Lois H. Yamaguchi, 

(Roeca Luria Shin), 

for Defendant-Appellee 

Wanda Fujimoto. 

Steven E. Tom, 

for Defendant-Appellee 

Pauline Kawamata. 

6 In her answering brief, Fujimoto asserts LVH's violation of Hawai‘i 

Revised Statutes § 428-1008 (2004) as a basis for affirming the dismissal of 

this case, but based on our decision here, we need not address Fujimoto's 

assertion. 

/s/ Clyde J. Wadsworth 

Presiding Judge 

/s/ Karen T. Nakasone 

Associate Judge 

/s/ Sonja M.P. McCullen 

Associate Judge