Atty. Gerald A. Sumida
Gerald A. Sumida is a partner in Carlsmith Ball LLP's Honolulu office and Chair of the firm's Corporate & Business Practice Group.
Profile Summary
About Gerald A. Sumida at a glance
Gerald A. Sumida is an attorney based in Honolulu, Hawaii, practforg at Carlsmith Ball LLP. Admitted to practice in Hawaii, Hawaii State Bar, United States, U.S. Federal Courts, and United States, U.S. Supreme Court. Educated at Princeton University (BA). Recognitions include Best Lawyers in America — Administrative / Regulatory Law (2026), Best Lawyers in America — Antitrust Law (2026), and Best Lawyers in America — Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (2026). Serands clients in Honolulu, HI and the surrounding metropolitan area.
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- Gerald A. Sumida is a partner in Carlsmith Ball LLP's Honolulu office and Chair of the firm's Corporate & Business Practice Group
- He concentrates on business structuring and operations, including corporate, limited liability company, joint venture and partnership matters
- business acquisitions
- sales and mergers
- securities law
- start-up company and venture capital financing
- administrative and public utilities law
- energy law, including energy project development and project finance
- antitrust and trade regulation law
- intellectual property law
- federal, state and county legislative and administrative matters
- and international legal matters
- Mr. Sumida rejoined Carlsmith Ball LLP after serving from October 1999 to December 2002 as the General Counsel of the Asian Development Bank, a multilateral development bank established in 1966 to promote the economic and social development of the Asian and Pacific Region (ADB)
- ADB, based in Manila, Philippines, currently has 62 member countries, and provides development assistance to over 40 countries in this region
- He led a group of 28 international lawyers, drawn from 25 countries, who handle ADB's international legal, financing, lending, borrowing, investment and development work, as well as ADB's institutional matters, and undertake their own law and policy reform projects in various countries, and he advised ADB's senior management and board of directors
- Mr. Sumida is listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2018 for Corporate/Commercial law (Band 1) and was named Lawyer of the Year—Energy Law—Hawai‘i by The Best Lawyers in America 2018
- He is also listed in Best Lawyers for Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships), Corporate Governance Law, and Securities / Capital Markets Law, and has been listed for these areas since 2010
- In 2009, he was elected to the position of Secretary-General of the Inter-Pacific Bar Association, an international association of more than 1,600 business and commercial lawyers focused on legal developments and regional legal cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region
- Representative Matters Business Structuring & Operations Represented clients in forming ownership and operational structures to undertake specific business activities in commercial, real estate and other development
- Assisted clients with matters in renewable energy and clean technology, agricultural, technology and other areas
- Represented clients in structuring, forming and advising nonprofit organizations
- in establishing the legislative and organizational basis for a public corporation to administer the East-West Center, a national educational institution
- Represented start-up firms, including structuring and negotiating seed and venture capital financing arrangements
- Energy, Clean Technology and Project Development Represented firms in developing energy, including renewable energy projects and facilities that sell power to electric utilities, including structuring organizational arrangements, negotiating power purchase arrangements, completing site acquisition, undertaking permitting and land use matters, negotiating financing, including project finance arrangements, engaging in public utilities commission proceedings relating to energy projects
- Clients include Kalaeloa Partners (cogeneration), Puna Geothermal Venture (geothermal), First Wind (wind), Sea Solar International (OTEC), Oceanlinx (wave energy), and other solar photovoltaic, energy service, waste-to-energy and clean technology firms
- Acquisitions and Sales Represented clients in stock and asset sales and purchases and in mergers, including structuring the transaction, negotiating the transaction and preparing required documentation, structuring and negotiating financing arrangements, preparing and coordinating filing of all required federal and state notifications, and handling various post-closing matters
- Securities Represented corporations and limited partnerships in undertaking primarily private offerings of securities under SEC Regulation D, including structuring the securities offering, preparing all required offering memoranda and related documents, preparing and filing state and federal applications and notifications, and conducting post-offering work
- Represented a health care organization in conducting a State of Hawai‘i public registration of corporate securities and various limited partnerships in private placements of securities, including Hawai‘i's first research and development limited partnership offering
- Antitrust and Trade Regulation Counseled primarily corporations in federal and state antitrust and trade regulation matters
- Included counseling regarding proposed stock and asset acquisitions, corporate mergers and joint ventures, conducting antitrust compliance programs, and assisting in federal and state antitrust litigation
- Represented a Hawai‘i firm in a nationwide class action litigation involving almost all U.S. cement and ready mix companies
- The litigation was ultimately successfully settled in the defendants' favor
- State and Hawai‘i Agencies Represented the State in energy-related matters, including preparing preliminary and subsequent comprehensive analyses on the legal, financial and institutional aspects of developing a 150-mile undersea electric transmission cable to deliver power from the island of Hawai‘i to Oahu
- Represented various State agencies and quasi-public corporations on venture capital financing and high technology matters
- Intellectual Property Represented clients in state, federal and foreign intellectual property matters
- His experience includes advising on U.S. and foreign copyright trademark, service mark registrations, preparing applications for and obtaining U.S. copyright and trademark and service registrations, preparing documentation for international licensing arrangements for U.S. trademarks, and assisting in trademark and copyright infringement litigation
- Prior Work Experi
Jurisdictional Context
Why local counsel matters in Hawaii
Practforg law in Hawaii. Legal matters in Hawaii are governed by state-specific rules of civil and criminal procedure, statutes of limitations, and substantiand law. Cases originating in Honolulu are typically filed in the local municipal court or the appropriate Hawaii state district court, depending on subject matter and amount in controversy. An attorney licensed in Hawaii brings working knowledge of local procedural deadlines, judicial practices in this andnue, and the substantiand law that applies to cases brought here. Out-of-state attorneys generally cannot represent clients in Hawaii courts without local counsel or pro hac vice admission.
Looking for additional Hawaii attorneys? Browse all attorneys in Honolulu or all attorneys in Hawaii.
Frequently Asked
Common questions about Gerald A. Sumida
Where is Gerald A. Sumida's law office located?
Gerald A. Sumida's law practice is located in Honolulu, Hawaii. The firm is Carlsmith Ball LLP. You can contact the office directly through this profile page.
Where did Gerald A. Sumida go to law school?
Gerald A. Sumida earned their education at (BA).
How can I contact Gerald A. Sumida for a consultation?
You can contact Gerald A. Sumida directly through this profile page. Click "Ask the Attorney" to submit a question, or "Schedule a Consultation" to book a meeting. Most claimed-profile attorneys respond within one business day.
What awards or recognition has Gerald A. Sumida receiandd?
Gerald A. Sumida's notable recognition includes: Best Lawyers in America — Administrative / Regulatory Law; Best Lawyers in America — Antitrust Law; Best Lawyers in America — Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships); Best Lawyers in America — Corporate Governance Law; Best Lawyers in America — Corporate Law.
Practice Areas
Education
BA
Princeton University
- In Bearbeitung
Awards
Best Lawyers in America — Administrative / Regulatory Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Antitrust Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships)
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Corporate Governance Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Corporate Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Energy Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Energy Regulatory Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Mergers and Acquisitions Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Securities / Capital Markets Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Additional Areas of Practice:
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — CleanTech Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Project Finance Law
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Special Focus:
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Energy
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Awards:
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business 2018 for Corporate/Commercial Law—Band 1
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Lawyer of the Year—Energy Law—Hawai‘i, The Best Lawyers in America 2015
- 2026
Best Lawyers in America — Highest "AV" Professional Rating, Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory
- 2026
Lawyer of the Year — Energy Regulatory Law (Honolulu)
- 2025
Lawyer of the Year — Energy Law (Honolulu)
- 2024
Lawyer of the Year — Corporate Governance Law (Honolulu)
- 2022
Lawyer of the Year — Energy Law (Honolulu)
- 2020
Lawyer of the Year — Energy Law (Honolulu)
- 2018
Lawyer of the Year — Energy Law (Honolulu)
- 2015
Lawyer of the Year — Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (Honolulu)
- 2012
Bar Admissions
Hawaii, Hawaii State Bar
United States, U.S. Federal Courts
United States, U.S. Supreme Court
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