Honolulu attorney L. Richard “Rick”  Fried Jr. has been appointed as the new chairman of the Hawaii Tourism Authority board of directors. 

Fried takes over for Aaron Sala, who served as the board chair from 2014 and as a board member since 2011. Craig Nakamura and Lorrie Stone will continue as co-vice chairs.

“On behalf of the HTA board of directors, I would like to also extend a sincere aloha and mahalo to Aaron Sala for his service to the HTA, our visitor industry, community and the state,” said George D. Szigeti, who was recently selected as the HTA president and CEO. “This is an exciting time for the HTA as we begin a new chapter for the agency, and I am pleased that Rick will be our chairperson for the board of directors and Craig and Lorrie will continue as our vice chairs.”

Fried, who has served on the HTA board since 2012, is a founding member of the law firm Cronin, Fried, Sekiya, Kekina & Fairbanks. A practicing attorney for more than forty years, Fried also served as past president of the Hawaii Association for Justice (formerly the Consumer Lawyers of Hawaii) and has been named in “Best Lawyers in America” for more than 25 years. He also has been active with the Honolulu Symphony, Hawaii Theatre, Shriners Hospitals for Children and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). 

“As a well-established member of the community, Rick will provide a different perspective for our organization and help us to better gauge the community at-large as we continue to balance the needs of the state and the visitor industry,” Szigeti said.