Background
Colleen Lasham was a party to a foreclosure action in the Third Circuit Court of Hawaiʻi (Case No. 3CCV-24-0000100). While that case was pending on appeal (CAAP-25-0000800), Lasham filed a petition for a writ of prohibition in the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court on January 13, 2026, seeking to halt the lower court proceedings.
A writ of prohibition is an extraordinary remedy by which a higher court may prevent a lower court from exceeding its jurisdiction. Petitions for such relief are reviewed on the original jurisdiction of the supreme court and are granted only in limited circumstances.
The Court’s Holding
The Supreme Court of Hawaiʻi denied the petition for writ of prohibition, finding that the petition had been rendered moot by intervening events. Specifically, the underlying foreclosure case had been dismissed without prejudice, eliminating the controversy that gave rise to Lasham’s request for extraordinary relief.
Because no live controversy remained, the court declined to reach the merits of the petition and denied it on mootness grounds. The order was entered unanimously by Chief Justice Devens, Justices McKenna, Eddins, and Ginoza, and Circuit Judge Castagnetti, sitting by assignment.
Key Takeaways
- A petition for an extraordinary writ becomes moot when the underlying proceeding it sought to restrain is dismissed before the appellate court rules.
- Dismissal without prejudice of the lower court case was sufficient to eliminate the live controversy and warrant denial of the prohibition petition.
- Courts will not issue advisory rulings on extraordinary writs where the challenged conduct is no longer ongoing.
Why It Matters
While procedurally routine, this disposition reinforces the well-established principle that Hawaiian appellate courts — like courts generally — will not adjudicate requests for extraordinary relief once the underlying dispute has ended. Parties seeking writs of prohibition must ensure the targeted proceedings remain active; voluntary or involuntary dismissal of the lower court action will defeat the petition.
For practitioners in Hawaiʻi foreclosure litigation, the case illustrates that a dismissal without prejudice, even one that leaves open the possibility of refiling, is nonetheless sufficient to moot a pending writ petition directed at that proceeding.