| The Weekly MILP (Moms In the Legal Profession) Roundup** is the brainchild of Saramel (retired). It is hosted on a rotating basis at the PT-LawMom, A Little Fish in Law School, and A New Duck blogs and is usually posted no later than Monday morning. Next week’s MILP Roundup will be hosted by New Duck.
To celebrate the 100th edition of the Moms in the Legal Profession Roundup, I wanted to tell you about one of the earliest and most famous MILPs. Perhaps she will inspire those of you toiling through bar exam preparation or summer classes or looking into your babies’ eyes and trying to decide whether all of the effort is worth it.
Belva Ann Lockwood was the first female lawyer admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1879. She was born on October 24, 1830 in Royalton, NY. At age 23, she was widowed and left with a small child to raise. She graduated from what is now Syracuse University in 1857. Several years later, she moved to Washington, DC and attended the National University Law School and was admitted to the District of Columbia bar in 1873. In 1872, she was responsible for Congress passing a pay parity law for female employees in the federal government. In 1903, Lockwood authored congressional amendments giving suffrage to women in Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma. She also served as a delegate to peace congresses in Europe before her death in 1917.
Lockwood rejected dependency, for herself and for other women, and did not hesitate to confront the male establishment that kept women from voting and from professional advancement. She began practicing law in Washington only after fending off the “growl” of the young men of the National University Law School, who declared they would not graduate with a woman, and wringing her law school degree from the hands of President Ulysses S. Grant, the institution’s ex officio head, in 1873.
Three years later, in 1876, when the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court refused to admit her to its bar, stating, “none but men are permitted to practice before [us] as attorneys and counselors,” she single-handedly lobbied Congress until that body passed “An Act to relieve certain legal disabilities of women,” an effort that a reporter described as having required “an unconscionable deal of lobbying.” Lockwood agreed, writing later that to succeed, “nothing was too daring for me to attempt.” On March 3, 1879, on the motion of Washington attorney Albert G. Riddle, who had long been her champion, she became the first woman admitted to the Supreme Court bar, sworn in amidst “a bating of breath and craning of necks.” A year later, she argued Kaiser v. Stickney before the high court, the first woman lawyer to do so.
Ms. Lockwood should serve as an example to all of us of how you can make time for your career as well as your passions and your children.
I started attending law school with the intention of volunteering my time to help those who need it most in addition to working in my practice area of choice. I would encourage all of you to consider volunteering your time as a law student or lawyer to help out those who cannot afford quality legal representation. Even as a young mother, I was able to carve out 4-6 hours once a month to volunteer as a bilingual intake paralegal at a local labor law clinic. You would be surprised how little time you need to find in your schedule to give back. Most of the clinics require little-to-no preparation and give you all the tools you need when you arrive onsite.
A few links:
National Pro Bono Search Tool (search for state and local opportunities)
Military Pro Bono Project (serving active duty military and veterans)
Paralegals and Pro Bono
International Pro Bono (overseas opportunities)
Immigration Volunteers
And now, the 100th edition of the Weekly MILP Roundup.
Lag Liv reminds us that sometimes the stereotypes are true (yet another reason why we as women should strive to be as kind and supportive as possible to other women)
After being royally screwed into unemployment, Certifiable is marking time and looking for the right job.
Cee shares her dreams and disillusionment regarding her legal career. Her husband is also being a completely insensitive asshole man! (And *he* should be sleeping on the couch, not you, girl. Send him to Good Husband school.)
Shelley illustrates the need for high tech caller ID.
Clownfish is making strides towards future legal brief writing (or NY Times Bestseller or doctors notes or whatever wonderful career he chooses).
GoogieBaba has a baby update and what sounds to me like a super-fun fall law school schedule.
PBB is making her voice heard (password-protected, but available to those MILPs who read regularly. Contact dr_andrea at yahoo if you think you should have access.)
New Duck still has me craving pie after this post. I have resisted all week (mostly because it makes me sick… but I love it).
ProtoAttorney is experiencing the beginnings of toddler angst (cute, cute, CUTE Cora picture in this post!!)
TrannyHead, Sumo and the cute little baby belly are all wonderfully delicious.
Magic Cookie had some fond and less-than-yummy memories at her 10-year college reunion.
(Okay, so I can’t really blame her for the late roundup – I just was having too much fun and forgot!)
