Joanne Lo Grimes

Joanne Lo Grimes is a partner at Carlsmith Ball LLP in Honolulu, HI, with a practice focused on labor and employment law, employee benefits, and nonprofit organizations. Grimes advises companies and institutions on workplace issues, benefits, and government procurement. The practice involves identifying legal requirements, reviewing important facts, and addressing the practical issues that arise as a matter develops. Whether the assignment calls for advice or formal proceedings, the work centers on the relevant rights, obligations, documents, and decisions.

Grimes’s educational background includes a J.D. from the University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law, an M.I.M. from Thunderbird School of Global Management, and a B.S. from the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business. That academic preparation informs work on labor and employment law, employee benefits, and nonprofit organizations by providing a grounding in legal reasoning and the analysis of detailed records.

Grimes works on matters such as employee benefits questions, charitable organizations, trusts, and public procurement matters. These issues often involve substantial records, differing legal positions, or several parties with competing interests. An effective response calls for understanding the documents and chronology, identifying the controlling questions, and considering the available procedures. Whether a matter is advisory or contested, the legal work must account for both immediate requirements and possible longer-term consequences.

Joanne Lo Grimes has a professional background marked by her business and legal education and focus on obligations facing employers and nonprofit institutions. In each engagement, Grimes focuses on the documents, facts, and legal rules that matter to the issue presented. This often means explaining complex questions in terms of the choices and obligations facing the client. The combination of subject-matter experience and careful analysis supports a practical approach to counseling, negotiation, and litigation where those services form part of the practice.

Law Office Affiliations

• Partner, Carlsmith Ball LLP
• Member, Hawaii State Bar Association
• Former Secretary and Director, Hawaii Justice Foundation
• Former President and Director, Hawaii Women Lawyers
• Former President and Director, Legal Aid Society of Hawaii
• Member, Access to Justice Commission HRPC Rule 6.1 Task Force
• Member, Guam Bar Association
• Member, Hawaii Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism
• Former Chair and Director, PBS Hawai’i
• Emeritus, CFP Board
• Member, City & County of Honolulu Ethics Board of Appeals
• Member, Daughters of Hawaii

Licensed State

• Hawaii

Education

• University of Hawaii, William S. Richardson School of Law
  Juris Doctor (JD)
• Thunderbird School of Global Management
  M.I.M.
• University of Colorado Leeds School of Business
  Bachelor of Science (BS)

Awards & Badges