Civil Beat Staff

Stewart Yerton

Stewart Yerton reports on business and the economy for Honolulu Civil Beat. Those are subjects he spent more than a decade reporting on — at publications in New York, New Orleans and Honolulu.

He’s written about the U.S. treasury bond market, the business of big law firms, controversies surrounding the world’s largest gold mine on the island of New Guinea and corruption in the Louisiana casino industry. His reporting on the human cadaver trade, published in The Times-Picayune newspaper, won the Society of American Business Editors & Writers 2005 Best in Business Award for Enterprise Reporting in the large newspaper category.

Stewart’s first big newspaper story, for The Birmingham (Ala.) News, was about a political battle between a small-town mayor and the volunteer firefighters who were trying to oust him from office because of the mayor’s 30-year-old conviction for making moonshine whiskey. The story briefly thrust the tiny town of Brookside, Ala., into the national spotlight when The Washington Post came to write about the comic-gothic brouhaha.

A member of the Hawaii State Bar Association since January 2012, Stewart graduated cum laude from University of Hawaii’s William S. Richardson School of Law, where he earned the environmental law certificate. His paper “Procedural Standing and the Hawaii Superferry Decision: How a Surfer, a Paddler, and an Orchid Farmer Aligned Hawaii’s Standing Doctrine with Federal Principles” was published in the Asian Pacific Law & Policy Journal in 2011. In law school, Stewart externed for U.S. District Court Judge David Alan Ezra and served as the law school’s first Jarman Environmental Law Fellow. Stewart also has worked as an analyst with the Hawaii State Auditor’s office.

When not working, Stewart can often be found practicing yoga and Argentine tango, attempting to play guitar, and chauffeuring his two daughters around Oahu.

Condo Task Force Facing Deadline May Punt To State Auditor Instead Cory Lum/Civil Beat/2022

Condo Task Force Facing Deadline May Punt To State Auditor Instead

The task force report is due at the end of this month, but a draft went nowhere. The auditor could look into critical issues affecting as many as 1 in 4 residents.

Japanese Travelers Are Steering Clear Of Hawaii David Croxford/Civil Beat/2023

Japanese Travelers Are Steering Clear Of Hawaii

Once Hawaii's top international tourist market, Japanese visitors are staying away from the islands amid inflated prices and a weak yen

Hawaii Governor Wants To Entice Maui Property Owners To Rent To Fire Victims Marina Riker/Civil Beat/2022

Hawaii Governor Wants To Entice Maui Property Owners To Rent To Fire Victims

Gov. Josh Green is proposing using taxpayer and private funds to build new housing and to pay home owners well above market value if they rent long term. Short-term rentals would simply be banned.

Maui Wildfire Lawyers Try To ‘Manage The Unmanageable’ Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2023

Maui Wildfire Lawyers Try To ‘Manage The Unmanageable’

With billions of dollars at stake and the potential for thousands of lawsuits, lawyers are trying to bring order to the chaos of litigation sweeping into Hawaii courts.

Lawmakers Discuss Draft Report On Maui Business And Jobs Recovery David Croxford/Civil Beat/2023

Lawmakers Discuss Draft Report On Maui Business And Jobs Recovery

Recommendations include business loan forgiveness, enhanced childcare and worker training.

Spectrum Seeks To Move Lahaina Fire Case To Honolulu Court David Croxford/Civil Beat/2023

Spectrum Seeks To Move Lahaina Fire Case To Honolulu Court

The notice of removal, if allowed to stand, would avoid a Maui jury and could lead to an exodus of cases from the island that has suffered most.

Governor: Money For Hawaii Projects Statewide Will Go To Maui Fire Response Instead Brittany Lyte/Civil Beat/2023

Governor: Money For Hawaii Projects Statewide Will Go To Maui Fire Response Instead

A state budget memo highlights trade-offs the public will make to support the state's response to the Aug. 8 fires.

Hawaiian Electric Has Ample Cash For Now But Few Answers To Key Questions Kevin Fujii/Civil Beat/2023

Hawaiian Electric Has Ample Cash For Now But Few Answers To Key Questions

An earnings call with investors highlighted uncertainties surrounding Hawaii's electric utility and its parent following the Maui wildfires.

$150 Million Fund Is Established For  Families Of Maui Wildfire Victims David Croxford/Civil Beat/2023

$150 Million Fund Is Established For Families Of Maui Wildfire Victims

The fund is the start of what Gov. Josh Green described as a multi-part plan to compensate survivors and help them rebuild.