Women's History Month: Great Women in the Legal Profession

March is Women's History month. In honor of the women who have made their way in the profession and achieved great things, here are just a few tidbits about inspiring women lawyers and their accomplishments in the profession:

Alice Paul (1885-1977): Lawyer Alice Paul was the founder of the World Woman's Party in 1913 and the author of the proposed Equal Rights Amendment. She was quoted as saying, "There will never be a new world order until women are part of it."

Burnita Shelton Matthews (1894-1988):  Matthews was a judge on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, appointed by Harry Truman in 1949. She was the first woman appointed to any United States District Court.

Sandra Day O'Connor: Justice O'Connor was the first woman Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been nominated by Ronald Reagan in 1981.

Janet Reno: The first female Attorney General of the United States, Reno was appointed in 1993 by President Bill Clinton.

Roberta Cooper Ramo: First woman President of the American Bar Association, inaugurated in 1995.

Since I'm from New York, I can't help but point out some of the New York women lawyers who've been 'firsts':

Judith Kaye: Judge Kaye is the present Chief Judge of the State of New York, and the first woman to ever occupy that office - the highest office in the New York State Judiciary. She was appointed in 1993 and is the first Chief Judge ever to complete a 14 year term. She was appointed to a second term in 2007. She was also the first woman ever to serve on New York's highest court, having been appointed to the Court of Appeals in 1983.

A. Gail Prudenti: Justice Prudenti is the Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division, Second Department. She was the first person to simultaneoulsy hold the positions of Surrogate Court Judge and Administrative Judge in Suffolk County, before she was appointed to the Appellate Division. She is also the first female Presiding Justice of the Appellate Division.

Geraldine Ferraro: Chosen as the vice-presidential candidate on the Democratic slate by presidential candidate Walter Mondale, Ferraro was the first woman in United States history to be on the presidential ticket of a major party.

Whether you like these women or not, and whether you agree with their politics or not, their efforts and accomplishments, along with those of many other women lawyers, have helped pave the way for advances of women in the profession. But as Justice O'Connor said, "Despite the encouraging and wonderful gains and the changes for women which have occurred in my lifetime, there is still room to advance and to promote correction of the remaining deficiencies and imbalances."

For more information about women's legal history, check out the Women's Legal History Biography Project.