HAWAII FIELD FILE

What Hawaii law actually says, in the words people use, with the statute on every line. Free, every tool too, and no account.

129 sections63 deadlinesverified October 2026How this works

Find a page in the Hawaii guide

Start with a situation

Traffic stopsGetting pulled over, documents, searches, and what happens roadside.
Being stoppedOn foot, on the street, and what you owe an officer who stops you.
Marijuana and drugsWhat the state legalized, what it did not, and where state and federal law disagree.
Impaired drivingImpaired driving stops, field tests, breath and blood tests, and implied consent.
Court and moneyDebt, eviction, work, family and records. The side of the system with no officer in it.
Your homeRenting and the landlord, and when the police may come inside.
RecordingFilming police, recording calls, and whose consent the law requires.
Carrying a firearmCarry rules, the duty to disclose, where guns are barred, and self defense.
Charges and penaltiesHow offenses are graded, jail ranges, fines, and repeat offense steps.
How you carry yourselfSilence, counsel, complying now and contesting later.

New in Hawaii

Someone asked

“How long does a landlord in Hawaii have to return a deposit?”

Getting the Deposit Back

A security deposit may not exceed one month's rent, plus, where a pet is allowed, a pet deposit of no more than another month's rent. No pet deposit may be charged for an assistance animal that is a reasonable accommodation for a disability. At the start of a tenancy, the landlord may take nothing but the first month's rent and the deposit.

HRS 521-44

Read the whole section →

Legal information, not legal advice. Every block on this site carries the source it rests on.

Walk it through

20 situations taken one decision at a time, with what the law asks of each side written out at every step. Each opens on its own page.

Not in the Hawaii guide yet?

Ask for a page

Name the topic or the situation. A person reads every request, and what people ask for decides which Hawaii pages get written next.

The topicWhat you hoped to find (optional)Only if you want to hear when it is added (optional)

Leave it blank and the request stays anonymous. We do not record your IP either way.

About this guide — education built from the Hawaii Revised Statutes as the Legislature publishes them, not a law degree in a webpage. Applying them to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Hawaii attorney or a legal aid office. Current as of October 2026.

This guide covers common situations in real Hawaii encounters. Not the whole body of law, not a replacement for a lawyer.