Education
- B.A., University of Hawaii at Manoa
- J.D., William S. Richardson School of Law (University of Hawaii)
Bar and Court Admissions
- All Hawaii state courts
- U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii
- 9th Circuit Court of Appeals
Recognition and Awards
- The Best Lawyers in America© in Litigation-Real Estate (since 2017), Litigation-Environmental (since 2017; Lawyer of the Year in 2020), Commercial Litigation (since 2020), Information Technology Law (since 2021)
- Super Lawyers, since 2013 (named one of Top 25 Hawaii lawyers by Super Lawyers in 2014, 2019, 2020, and 2024)
- Rated AV (Preeminent) by Martindale-Hubbell
- Pacific Business News “Forty Under 40” Class of 2012
- Named a Future Star by Benchmark Litigation, Since 2015
- Co-Editor-in-Chief, University of Hawaii Law Review
- Member of national championship team, National Environmental Moot Court Competition (1999)
Community Involvement
- Transformation Health Network (Secretary, 2019 – present)
- Civil Justice Improvement Task Force of the Hawaii State Judiciary (Member)
- Hawaii State Bar Association (2012 Chair, Litigation Section)
- Hawaii Technology Development Corporation (Vice-Chair, 2018 – 2020; Director, 2015 – 2020)
- Hawaii Strategic Development Corporation (Director, 2016 – 2018)
- Hanalani Schools (Board of Trustees, 2017 – present; chair 2020 – 2023)
- McKinley High School Foundation (Director, 2002- 2023)
- Center For Tomorrow’s Leaders (Director, 2020-2023)
- Legal Aid Society of Hawaii (Director, 2014-2020)
- HisBiz Ministries (Secretary, October 2007 – present)
- Good Shepherd Lutheran Church (2002-2006; President, 2003-2006)
Speaking Engagements
2021
- Practicing Law – Virtually Speaking
Event/Audience: Kauai Bar Association - E-Commerce & Privacy Laws for Your Growing Business
Event/Audience: MBDA Enterprise Women of Color Business Center at YWCA O`ahu and the Veterans Business Outreach Center of the Pacific - Ethics of Technology (panel presentation)
Event/Audience: Will Weinstein Ethics Conversation Series
2020
- Cybersecurity and Data Privacy
Event/Audience: Hawaii Bar Association Government Lawyers Section - Cybersecurity and Legal Ethics (panel presentation)
Event/Audience: Hawaii Bar Association - Data Privacy
Event/Audience: Honolulu Board of Realtors - Business Disruption & the Law (panel presentation)
Event/Audience: Hawaii Employers Council
2019
- Internet Law (panel presentation) – online privacy
Event/Audience: Intellectual Property and Technology Section of Hawaii Bar Association - Legal Ethics and Cybersecurity
Event/Audience: Hawaii Bar Association
2018
- “Social Media for Litigators”
Event/Audience: Federal Bar Association - CERCLA Liability
Event/Audience: Cades Finance, Real Estate, and Corporate Department Academy - Social Media Legal Issues Affecting Jurors
Event/Audience: U.S. District Court, District of Hawaii Conference - “Social media for employers”
Event/Audience: IIA/ISACA - Panel discussion on GDPR
Event/Audience: INTERFACE Conference
2017
- “Navigating Security Issues in a Cloud Environment”
Event/Audience: American Intellectual Property Law Association (Mid-Winter Institute) - Cybersecurity
Event/Audience: Cades Corporate Counsel Series - Social media ethics for attorneys”
Event/Audience: Hawaii State Bar Association - “Technically Legal: Managing Legal Risks in a Digital World”
Event/Audience: Hawaii Independent Insurance Agents Association - “Social Media Legal Issues”
Event/Audience: American Judicature Society, Hawaii Chapter annual meeting
2016
- “Legally Social”
Event/Audience: Manoa Communicators Group - Chair, Hawaii Water Law Seminar and presenter on“Survey of Hawaii Supreme Court Law: Public Trust Doctrine, Contested Cases, Constitutional Claims”
Event/Audience: The Seminar Group – 2016 Hawaii Water Law Seminar
2015
- “Open Government Laws”
Event/Audience: National Federation of Paralegal Associations - Cyber Insurance” co-presented with Christopher Goodin, Esq.
Event/Audience: Hawaii Association of Adjusters - “Legal Ethics and Social Media: What Attorneys Need to Know”
Event/Audience: Hawaii State Bar Association Live Webcast - “Online Ethics”
Event/Audience: NBI Seminar
2014
- “Files Are Our Friends: Strategies For Complying With Recordkeeping Laws and Avoiding Disputes”
Event/Audience: Hawaii Employers Council - “Social Media Evidence–a Primer”
Event/Audience: Hawaii State Judiciary Judges Conference - “Ethics in a Wired and Wireless World”
Event/Audience: Hawaii State Bar Association Spring Conference - “Social Media Policies: Rules of the Road”
Event/Audience: Anthology Group - “Technically Legal: What Employers Need to Know About Law and Technology”
Event/Audience: Risk and Insurance Management Society, Hawaii Chapter - “Image Sharing Apps: Or, the Perils of Picture Posting”
Event/Audience: Anthology Group - “Use of Technology and Social Media in the Practice of Law”
Event/Audience: Senior Counsel Division, Hawaii State Bar Association - “Digital Strategies For Business Growth” co-presented with Tara Coomans, Mary Fastaneau, Emi Hart, Michael Tam
Event/Audience: Pacific Business News panel “Legal ‘Buzz’: The Law of Online Endorsements” - “Legal ‘Buzz’: The Law of Online Endorsements”
Event/Audience: Anthology Group
2013
- “Social Networking With a Purpose” co-presented with Evan Shirley, Esq.
Event/Audience: Litigation and Appellate Sections, Hawaii State Bar Association - “BYOD Challenges: When Employees Bring Their Own Devices To Work”
Event/Audience: BLR/HR Hero’s Advance Employment Issues Symposium 2013 - “Social Media for 2014 and Beyond: How to Reap the Benefits and Avoid the Risks”
Event/Audience: BLR/HR Hero’s Advance Employment Issues Symposium 2013 - “The Perks and Perils of Social Media”
Event/Audience: Senior Counsel Division, Hawaii State Bar Association - “Tech@Work: How Employers Can Thrive in the Digital Workplace”
Event/Audience: Hawaii Employers Council, Training Seminar - “A Primer on Social Media and the Law”
Event/Audience: Hawaii Social Media Summit & Expo - “Social Media Hiring Practices”
Event/Audience: Hawaii Civil Rights Commission/EEOC Honolulu Local Office Annual Training Program - “Ethics and Social Media: What Attorneys Need to Know”
Event/Audience: National Business Institute CLE seminar
2012
- “Use and Discovery of Social Media Evidence”
Event/Audience: Litigation Section, Hawai‘i State Bar Association - “What Employers Can Do Regarding Social Media Policies, Procedures, Emails and Handbooks” co-presented with Amanda M. Jones, Esq.
Event/Audience: 2012 Conference of the Society of Human Resource Management—Hawaii Chapter - “E-Discovery in Hawai‘i: Navigating the Pitfalls of Preservation and Production”
Moderator
Event/Audience: Hawai‘i State Bar Convention - “Social Media in E-Discovery: A New Tool and Emerging Law”
co-presented with Don Swanson
Event/Audience: International Legal Technology Association - “The 4 P’s of Social Media in the Workplace”
Event/Audience: Society of Human Resource Management—Hawai‘i Chapter
Publications
- Elijah Yip and Martin E. Hsia, Confidentiality in the Cloud: The Ethics of Using Cloud Services in the Practice of Law, Hawaii Bar Journal(August 2014)
- Jeffrey S. Portnoy, Peter W. Olson, and Elijah Yip, Privilege Compendium (Hawaii chapter) (Reporter’s Committee for Freedom of the Press: 2007)
- Jeffrey S. Portnoy, Peter W. Olson, and Elijah Yip, Mass Communication Law in Hawaii, (New Forum Press: 2003)
- Hawaii State Bar Association’s Federal Appellate Practice Manual(2013), Chapter on Oral Argument
- Elijah Yip & Eric K. Yamamoto, “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Jurisprudence of Process and Procedure,” 20 U. Haw. L. Rev. 647 (1998)
After over 25 years of practicing law, Elijah Yip has learned that every client has a story. The storyline could be a matter of injustice because someone broke the contract or lied to them. Or it could be about trying to start a new business and being overwhelmed by the maze of regulations. The law is part of the story, but other themes are in play too, and they often reveal the best way to deal with the legal issues. Elijah’s philosophy to practicing law is to listen and understand the client’s story, determine how the client would like the story to unfold, and devise legal strategies to get there.
Using this approach, Elijah has counseled clients from all sectors of the community—from major public corporations to mom-and-pop stores and individuals, and everything in between. He has worked with health care providers, contractors, tech companies, nonprofits, media publishers, marketing professionals, churches, schools, and landowners, just to name a few.
Elijah practiced at one of the largest law firms in the State of Hawaii for many years, spending the last ten years there as a partner. During that time, Elijah innovated a new practice group for the firm focused on digital media and internet law. In 2018, Elijah took another step in his entrepreneurship journey and started Luminate Law with the aim of making legal services more accessible to small and mid-sized businesses.
