Marcia Greenberger, Co-President, National Women’s Law Center (Guest Author)

Fifty years ago, women made up barely four percent of law students. Since then, women have made significant inroads into the legal profession: for twenty-five years, approximately 45% of law students have been women; in the last decade, women’s representation has approached 50%.

This lack of progress is cause for concern because, as the readers of this blog are well aware, female judges make a difference in the courtroom. They bring to the bench an understanding of the impact of the law on women and girls, who make up over half of the US population. Female judges contribute important worldviews and experiences that round out judicial perspectives. And that contribution improves the quality of justice for men and women alike. For example, a 2010 study demonstrated that male federal appellate court judges are less likely to rule against plaintiffs bringing claims of sex discrimination if a female judge is on the panel. And confidence in the courts as a neutral purveyor of justice is higher, when judges are representative of the population they serve.

It has become increasingly clear, however, that the increased representation in the “pipeline” hasn’t yet been matched by women’s representation on the federal bench. Only 30 percent of federal judges are women, and a mere 8 percent are women of color. And unfortunately, the number of women on the federal bench has seen little improvement in recent years. 

By Suzanne Swaner

Spring Break. To a teenaged girl in Prior Lake, Minnesota in the mid-1980s, those words signaled one thing – time to hit the tanning bed. It was an annual Rite of Spring for my girlfriends and me to purchase ten sessions from the local tanning salon (which, as an aside, was also a video store). There were two reasons to do so: (1) build up a base tan for an upcoming trip to Florida or Mexico to avoid the uncomfortable and unattractive burn and peel cycle of tanning; or (2) build up a sufficient base tan to make it appear as though we went to Florida or Mexico over Spring Break. You see, very little could top a mid-spring dark tan in the frozen tundra, especially one enhanced with big permed hair accented by Sun-In created highlights. (Sun-In, by the way, was another great invention for a Spring-Breaker, real or faux, as it worked by the heat of the real sun or the heat of the hair dryer.) The tan and the hair combined to create a look that was, like, totally awesome, at that time anyway.

Fast forward 25 years. These days, use of a tanning bed not only gives me pause, the concept of Spring Break does as well. (No comment on the highlights, although my colorist, known here only as hairsaviour, does use much-improved technology.) At the outset, I am fully aware I should be precluded from complaining about Spring Break at all. Every year our school district sends out proposed school calendars and solicits a vote before adopting the final schedule. Because they do not offer an option without Spring Break, I never vote. Perhaps next year (or the year after, since next year's calendar is probably already set) I will launch a write-in campaign to eliminate Spring Break and give everyone an extra week of summer, or to have Spring Break anytime other than spring, which also happens to be the peak of Litigation Season.

By: Sandra Giannone Ezell

Remember that pit that starts in your stomach when you sign your first student loan and grows and grows as you go on to law school and tell yourself that it will all be worth it because you will one day have a job that will make all of these financial and personal commitments worth it. Then the day(s) come when you have to justify to yourself, your supporters and the world the investments that have been made for the past years were worth it…you interview. Now, what (not?) to wear?

Perhaps no one understands the phrase "living on a budget" better than the thousands of law students aspiring to be our next generation professionals. Ramen or heavy books? Study guides or a new suit? These are very important law school questions. Luckily, we have all been there and we want to help. Take a minute and remember the days before the DSW membership (no, not gym, DSW) and the black pants collection you now enjoy and HELP your future colleagues.

By Sandra Giannone Ezell

Yesterday I retweeted (and it still does surprise me to say things like this since I consider myself a technological dinosaur) something to the effect that you should be the woman that you want your granddaughters to read about in the history books. I was stricken by this notion for a number of reasons.

First, I am already old enough to have granddaughters and I used to think that that was something that would define me in a negative way... you know that I am getting "old." But, I am excited at the notion of having grandchildren and what this tweet actually did to me was jettison me right past the point where I was holding the fat-cheeked little bald bundle in my arms to the point where they grew up, grew hair and looked at the totality of my life and made a decision as to whether I was important, wanting, relevant, inspirational, powerful, and historically interesting.

By Andrea L. Moody

Given the grim statistics of women as partners in Am Law 200 law firms (15%), of women managing partners of Am Law 200 law firms (5%), and with nearly 50% of Am Law 200 firms having one or no women on their highest governing committee, The Center for Women in Law at the University of Texas School of Law sought to change some of these statistics by convening prominent women in the legal profession with the goal of advancing women lawyers into positions of powers and influence ("the Summit"). For three days, law firm managing partners, judges, general counsel, law school deans, and other senior attorneys engaged in an unprecedented examination of power and leader with academics and business leader. As a result of the Summit, Linda Bray Chanow and Lauren Stiller Rikleen for The Center for Women in Law recently published a white paper entitled, Power in Law: Lessons From the 2011 Women's Power Summit on Law and Leadership. In this white paper, Chanow and Rikleen present "seven strategies for getting, using and keeping power that emerged from the 2011 Women's Power Summit on Law and Leadership".

There should be no doubt that Chanow's and Rikleen's work, in its entirety, is a must read. However, because of its relevance and critical message to The Courtroom Divas' audience, I have noted these seven strategies for getting, using, and keeping power with an abbreviated version of Chanow's and Rikleen's summary of the Summit's discussions.

By Sandra Giannone Ezell

One of our fellow divas is always quick to remind me that one role can define her completely—be it an attorney, mother or otherwise. And, now that you have come to know her better through her posts, I am sure you can see why Diva Alana Bassin is a complex and fascinating woman, lawyer, mom, law partner, mentor, student, teacher, role model and so many other things. A local Minneapolis magazine, however, couldn't resist profiling her, and if you take a look at the article you will understand why. Recently, the unique cacophony that is her family machine, composed of her significant other, David, their four children, Talia, Solomon, Ari and Judah, and "Mama Bear" Alana herself were included in an article titled "The Kid Cities," in the February issue of Minneapolis St. Paul Magazine.

By Suzanne Swaner

I was recently at the dentist when I found myself with a few minutes of down time while the numbing agent took effect. "Grab a magazine. I'll be right back," the dentist said. I got out of the chair and flipped through the choices in the Lucite magazine rack on the wall. Field and Stream? Uh, no thanks. Parents? Only as a last resort. MORE? What is MORE? Reading more closely, I saw the complete title. MORE For Women of Style and Substance. Hmmmm. Style? I looked down. A navy Lily Pulitzer blouse and scarf, semi-cool jeans, and navy blue patent leather Tory Burch heels. A lot of blue, admittedly, but I am proud of those shoes. So, for that day and perhaps that day only, an enthusiastic "yes" on Style. Substance? I think so, although candidly I am not above the occasional idle chit chat a/k/a gossip if there is something newsworthy that requires vetting among friends. So "yes" on Substance, albeit with slight pause. I picked up the magazine and turned around to head back to the dental chair. As if to somehow validate my magazine selection, I made a pit stop at my purse and applied some Laura Mercier lip gloss (Style) and checked my iPhone for an important email I was waiting on for work (Substance). Satisfied with the legitimacy of my choice, I sat down and started reading.

By Suzanne Swaner

Change, it seems, truly is inevitable, isn't it? By way of introduction, I am excited and honored to be the new Courtroom Diva. Let me start by thanking my fellow Divas for their posts. I read and learned from all of them, especially early on where each of them defined "diva" and put this new role into perspective for me. I'd also like to thank the Divas for the invitation to join their ranks in the world of social networking. I hope to provide posts that are engaging, entertaining, insightful and true to the Courtroom Diva spirit, with a Texas spin.

A little about me. I am a native Minnesotan, turned Texan, by way of four years in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Dallas is home, as I have been here an unbelievable 18 years. ("Y'all" is part of my vocabulary, but "fixin" is not.) My husband and I have three energetic sons (ages 8, 5 and 2) who keep us busy to say the least! Every day an epic battle is re-enacted somewhere in our house, usually with minimal casualties. In addition to my roles outside of the office, I have practiced law for nearly 15 years and have worked alongside some of the best and most supportive attorneys in my field. This past year was one of professional change for me, as five of my partners from my former firm and I opened the doors to this firm's new Dallas office on February 1, 2011. We did so amidst record-breaking snowfall in the Dallas area that resulted in a "snow day" our first day in business. We survived those first cold and icy days, and a really really really hot summer, and look forward to toasting our one year anniversary with the firm in a couple months.

By Alana Bassin

It has taken me a while to blog because I was trying to find an interesting article and I find that so many articles are re-run on themes related to women: women attrition in the work force, the world needs more women leaders etc. Sadly, I have not been any more original . . . I have blogged about these exact topics. And then an article from The Daily Beast came across my desk entitled "Don't Call Me a Mom: Why It's Time for Women to Drop That Identity" by writer Amy Reiter where she essentially writes that once she became a mother, much of her identity in how she was perceived by others became the fact that she was a mom and no longer a writer. Separate and apart from the fact that this article created an extensive amount of discussion – women who agreed that this was a problem and women who were offended by the same - this article caught my eye.

By Suzanne Swaner

I had planned on making my debut as the newest Courtroom Diva with an introductory post, but then came something much more important than the back-fill on me, my life, and how I got here. We will get to all that later. For now, while I hate to be the bearer of any bad news, especially with my first post, the results of a recent study are a little concerning and worth disseminating as widely as possible.

An article recently appeared in the National Law Journal entitled, "Opportunities diminishing for women at large law firms, study finds." A study conducted by the National Association of Women Lawyers ("NAWL") reportedly found the percentage of female attorneys entering the country's 200 largest law firms dropped compared to last year, from 48 percent to 47 percent. This is, apparently, the first time that has happened in five years. One percent does not seem like a big deal, in and of itself. But when considered in conjunction with the apparent downslide in the numbers of women even entering law school, a fact also noted in the article, that downward trend could become downright scary. And then, when layered the fact that women tend to leave large firms more quickly than men, the numbers of female lawyers on the horizon at big firms could appear even more grim.

By Sandra Giannone Ezell

It is a privilege to "sing the praises" to a deserving colleague and a fellow diva! Check out the September, 2011, article Women in the Law: Andrea L. Moody - Michigan Lawyers Weekly. It's a great commentary about Andrea, both professionally and personally, leading-in with some delightful references to the Courtroom Divas blog, which is always a good way to start any report or conversation! It wasn't just about the author's observation of her as it also includes a good number of quotes by Andrea. One of particular significance to me is a reference by her on the subject of diversity: "We live in a very diverse world, but oftentimes our workplace doesn't reflect that. And when we talk about diversity, it's not just gender or racial makeup. It's really diversity in thought." Andrea is a brilliant woman and it makes me feel better about the profession generally to know that she is one of the next generation of leaders. She gets it and it is great to see her getting the recognition she deserves.