Jump to content

List of first women lawyers and judges in Illinois

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Illinois. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are women who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in state history

[edit]
Ida Platt: First African-American female lawyer in Illinois (1894)
Catherine Waugh McCulloch: First female Justice of the Peace in Illinois (1907)
Mary Bartelme: First female judge in Illinois (1923)

Law School

[edit]
  • Ada Kepley (1881):[1] First female law graduate in Illinois (1870)

Lawyers

[edit]
  • Myra Bradwell (1890 (1869*)):[2] She aimed to be the first woman admitted to the Illinois State Bar. Denied admission in 1870 because she was a woman, she was admitted nunc pro tunc in 1890, backdated to her 1869 application, in honor of her efforts.[3]
  • Alta M. Hulett (1873):[4] First female lawyer in Illinois admitted to the bar. (After the Bradwell case, the state legislature changed the law to allow women to become lawyers)
  • Ellen A. Martin (1875):[5] First female (a lawyer) to successfully vote in Illinois after finding a loophole in the Lombard town charter in 1891, which was upheld in court.
  • Mary A. Ahrens (1889):[6] Sole female in the inaugural group of 33 lawyers sworn to the bar of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in 1891.
  • Ida Platt (1894):[7] First African-American female lawyer in Illinois
  • Helen M. Cirese (1921):[8] First Italian American female admitted to the Illinois State Bar
  • Elizabeth K. Ohi (1937):[9] First Japanese American female lawyer in Illinois
  • Renee C. Hanover (1969):[10] First openly lesbian lawyer in Illinois
  • Lola Miranda Hale (1969), Virginia Martinez (1975) and Viola Armijo Rouse (1975):[11][12][13] First Latino American female lawyers in Illinois

State judges

[edit]
  • Catherine Waugh McCulloch (1886):[14][15][16] First female elected as the Justice of the Peace in Illinois (1907)
  • Mary Bartelme:[17][18] First elected female judge (1923) and appointed assistant judge (1913) in Illinois
  • Edith S. Sampson (1927):[19] First African American female judge in Illinois (1962)
  • Jane D. Waller (1973):[20][21][22] First female to serve on the Nineteenth Circuit in Illinois (1981)
  • Rita B. Garman (1968):[23] First female to serve as the Presiding Judge for the Fifth Circuit (1987) and the Fourth District Appellate Court (1995) in Illinois
  • Consuelo Bedoya-Witt (1977):[20] First Hispanic American female judge in Illinois (1988)
  • Rosemary Collins:[24] First female to serve on the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court in Illinois (1989)
  • Lynne Kawamoto (1981):[25][26][27] First Asian American female (who is Japanese American) judge in Illinois (1991)
  • Mary Ann McMorrow (1953):[28] First female to serve on the Supreme Court of Illinois (1992) and its Chief Justice (2002)
  • Nancy J. Katz:[29] First openly LGBT female judge in Illinois (upon her appointment to the Cook County Circuit Court in 1999)
  • Rena M. Van Tine (1986):[30] First Indian American female judge in Illinois (2001)
  • Pamela Leeming:[31][32] First known Pakistani American (female) judge in Illinois (2009)
  • Laura Liu (1991):[33][34][35] First Asian American female judge in Illinois (2010) and serve on the Illinois Appellate Court (2014)
  • Jessica Arong O’Brien:[36][37] First Filipino American (female) elected as a judge in Illinois (2012)
  • Vershenia Ballance Moody (1995):[38] First (African American) female to serve on the 6B Judicial District in Illinois (2013)
  • Lisa Holder White (1993):[39][40] First African American female to serve on the Fourth District Appellate Court (2013) and the Supreme Court of Illinois (2022)
  • Brenda Claudio:[41] First Latino American female to serve as a Judge of the Twenty-First Judicial Circuit in Illinois (2021)
  • Tionn Fambro Carter:[42] First African American female to serve as an Associate Judge of the Fourteenth Judicial Circuit in Illinois (2024)

Federal judges

[edit]

Attorney General

[edit]

Deputy Attorney General

[edit]

Assistant Attorney General

[edit]
  • Jean Williams (1949):[53][54] First African American female to serve as the Assistant Attorney General of Illinois

Solicitor General

[edit]

United States Attorney

[edit]

Public Defender

[edit]
  • Pearl M. Hart (1914):[56][57][58] First female (and LGBT) to serve as a public defender for the Moral Court of Chicago, Illinois (1933)

Bar Association

[edit]
  • Carole Bellows:[59] First female to serve as the President of the Illinois State Bar Association (1977)
  • Sonni Choi Williams:[60][61] First female of color (she is of Korean descent) to serve as Vice President (2022) and President (2024) of the Illinois State Bar Association

Firsts in local history

[edit]

See also

[edit]

Other topics of interest

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Gorecki, Meg (October 1990). "Legal Pioneers: Four of Illinois First Women Lawyers" (PDF). Illinois Bar Journal: 510–515.
  2. ^ "Women Lawyers and State Bar Admission:Law Library of Congress". memory.loc.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  3. ^ Wills, Leonard (October 31, 2017). "Myra Bradwell: The First Woman Admitted to the Illinois Bar". Practice Point. American Bar Association. Retrieved 2020-01-09.
  4. ^ "The remarkable life and times of Alta May Hulett | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  5. ^ Ben-Amots, Zach (2020-03-07). "First woman to vote in Illinois honored by new suffrage exhibit by Lombard Historical Society". ABC7 Chicago. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  6. ^ The Chicago Legal News: A Journal of Legal Intelligence. Chicago Legal News Company. 1892.
  7. ^ "History | Cook County Bar Association". cookcountybar.org. Retrieved 2016-10-07.
  8. ^ Congress, United States (1967). Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office.
  9. ^ The Virginia Bar Association Journal. Virginia Bar Association. 1994.
  10. ^ "Renee Hanover ('69) Remembered as First 'Out' Lesbian Lawyer | University of Illinois Chicago School of Law News". news.law.uic.edu. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  11. ^ Atencio, Dolores S. (2023). "Luminarias: An Empirical Portrait of the First Generation of Latina Lawyers 1880-1980". Chicana/O Latina/o Law Review. 39 (1). doi:10.5070/cllr.v39i1.61869 (inactive 2024-06-22). ISSN 1061-8899.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of June 2024 (link)
  12. ^ "Women's History Month Feature: Virginia Martinez". CBA's @theBar. 2022-04-01. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  13. ^ O'Brien, Jessica A. (September 29, 2015). "One person's effort to increase Latino representation in city, downstate". Chicago Daily Law Bulletin.
  14. ^ a b Thomas, Sue; Wilcox, Clyde (2014-01-02). Women and Elective Office: Past, Present, and Future. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199363759.
  15. ^ a b Vandenberg, Donna; Society, American Judicature; (U.S.), National Association of Women Judges (1980). National roster of women judges, 1980. American Judicature Society. ISBN 9780938870074.
  16. ^ a b c Women Lawyers' Journal. National Association of Women Lawyers. 1911.
  17. ^ a b CBA Record. Chicago Bar Association. 2003.
  18. ^ a b "The First Woman Judge". cdnc.ucr.edu. April 21, 1914. Retrieved 2019-02-26.
  19. ^ Bracks, Lean'tin (2012-01-01). African American Almanac: 400 Years of Triumph, Courage and Excellence. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 9781578593828.
  20. ^ a b c d "2009 REPORT - RECOGNITION OF RETIRED JUDGES" (PDF). Illinois Courts. 2009.
  21. ^ a b "Retiring Lake County judge broke the glass ceiling". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  22. ^ a b "Super Husband-and-wife Team Striving For Order And Justice". tribunedigital-chicagotribune. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  23. ^ a b c Wilkins, Emily (2016-06-06). "A Career of Firsts for Illinois Chief Justice Rita Garman". Roll Call. Retrieved 2018-12-27.
  24. ^ "Joe Bruscato to seek vacant judgeship". The Rock River Times. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  25. ^ a b "Asian American Compass: A Guide to Navigating the Community (4th Edition)" (PDF). Asian American Institute. 2011.
  26. ^ a b "Chicago Hope". Newsweek. 1997-03-23. Retrieved 2018-02-15.
  27. ^ a b "JACL SADDENED AT PASSING OF JUDGE SANDRA OTAKA". BlackRadioNetwork. Retrieved 2018-02-15.
  28. ^ "Female judges in Illinois: Where are we now? | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
  29. ^ "Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 12 - RECOGNIZING THE ALLIANCE OF ILLINOIS JUDGES". www.govinfo.gov. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  30. ^ Sullivan's Judicial Profiles. Law Bulletin Publishing Company. 2006.
  31. ^ a b "Judicial Guide Glossary". South Side Weekly. October 24, 2018. Retrieved 2019-07-17.
  32. ^ "Asian American Compass: A Guide to Navigating the Community" (PDF). Asian American Institute. 2011.
  33. ^ "Justice Laura Cha-Yu Liu 1966-2016 | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  34. ^ Seibert, Dustin J. (June 1, 2014). "Liu keeps moving forward". Chicago Lawyer.
  35. ^ "Laura Liu, Illinois' first Asian-American appellate judge, dies". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
  36. ^ a b "Ex-Judge Jessica Arong O'Brien breaks down before getting 1 year in prison". Chicago Sun-Times. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 2019-01-09.
  37. ^ a b "H.R. 504" (PDF). Illinois General Assembly.
  38. ^ "Historic Oath | The Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald". www.roanoke-chowannewsherald.com. 7 January 2013. Retrieved 2018-02-09.
  39. ^ "Hon. Lisa Holder White becomes 1st African-American to sit on 4th District Appellate Court". Illinois Lawyer Now. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
  40. ^ "Downstate Republican Justice Lisa Holder White named first Black woman to serve on Illinois State Supreme Court". Chicago Sun-Times. 2022-05-11. Retrieved 2022-06-06.
  41. ^ Fern, Rossana (2021-09-25). "Hon. Brenda Claudio sworn in as the First Latina Judge in the 21st Judicial Circuit". Illinois Latino Judges Association. Retrieved 2022-03-07.
  42. ^ "1st Black woman named 14th Circuit judge". WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. 2024-04-09. Retrieved 2024-06-05.
  43. ^ Technologies, Instructional and Web Services, Cornell Information. "Hon. Ann Claire Williams". www.lawschool.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2018-01-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  44. ^ SOUTHERN, THE. "Rosenstengel nominated for U.S. judgeship". The Southern. Retrieved 2019-01-11.
  45. ^ Fagenson, Zachary. "First black, openly gay man confirmed as U.S. federal judge". U.S. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  46. ^ "Judge Martha M. Pacold Sworn-in as District Judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois" (PDF). Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. April 23, 2019.
  47. ^ "The Honorable Rebecca Pallmeyer, '79: To Become the First Woman to Head Chicago's Federal Court | University of Chicago Law School". www.law.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
  48. ^ Greene, Morgan. "'Eminently fair' Rebecca Pallmeyer takes the reins as Chicago federal court's 1st female chief judge". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-07-07.
  49. ^ "Senate confirms Nancy Maldonado: To be first Hispanic woman federal district court judge in Illinois". Chicago Sun-Times. 2022-07-20. Retrieved 2022-08-12.
  50. ^ "Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan: The State's Human Rights Lawyer". Columbia Law School. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  51. ^ a b "Journalism alumna Wine-Banks receives 2019 Chicago Illini of the Year award | College of Media". media.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
  52. ^ a b Whitfield, Kay. "Jill Wine-Banks: Legal Analyst for MSMBC". Classic Chicago Magazine. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
  53. ^ "Jean Williams, 1st Black female municipal judge in Phoenix, dies". azcentral. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  54. ^ Smith, Zachary Alden (2002). Politics and Public Policy in Arizona. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 9780275971182.
  55. ^ "Someone you should know: Miriam Miquelon | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  56. ^ "Pearl Hart". Legacy Project Chicago. Retrieved 2019-10-08.
  57. ^ Stewart-Winter, Timothy (2016-02-16). Queer Clout: Chicago and the Rise of Gay Politics. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812247916.
  58. ^ Bullough, Vern L. (2014-02-04). Before Stonewall: Activists for Gay and Lesbian Rights in Historical Context. Routledge. ISBN 9781317766285.
  59. ^ "Chief Judge Evans begins series of sweeping changes throughout the court system". Illinois Circuit Court of Cook County. Retrieved 2018-12-31.
  60. ^ "Sonni Choi Williams Announces Candicacy..." infoweb.newsbank.com. February 15, 2022. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  61. ^ "Sonni Choi Williams Installed as 148th President of the Illinois State Bar Association | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2024-06-04.
  62. ^ SOUTHERN, ThE. "Region's first woman judge Spomer dies". The Southern. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  63. ^ "Alumni - IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law - Illinois Institute of Technology". alumni.kentlaw.iit.edu. Retrieved 2018-12-31.
  64. ^ "VIEWPOINT: Judge Pethers explains leaving the bench - Windy City Times News". Windy City Times. 2016-08-05. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  65. ^ Ruthhart, Bill. "Lori Lightfoot elected Chicago mayor, making her the first African-American woman to lead the city". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  66. ^ Writer, Jennifer Vigil, Tribune Staff. "ESTHER ROTHSTEIN, DEDICATED LAWYER". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-12-31.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  67. ^ a b "Timeline - Cba 150". chicagobar150.org. Retrieved 2024-07-16.
  68. ^ "Filipina is first Asian president of Chicago Bar Association". www.bellowslaw.com. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  69. ^ "Judge Gorman named first woman Chief Judge of 10th Circuit". CIProud.com. 2020-12-09. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  70. ^ "First woman associate circuit judge appointed in Adams County". Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  71. ^ "Wellborn to fill open seat on Eighth District bench". Herald-Whig. 2014. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  72. ^ "Wellborn appointed associate judge in 8th Circuitpublisher=Illinois State Bar Association". Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  73. ^ "Princeton Bureau County Republican Archives, Nov 4, 1976, p. 1". 4 November 1976.
  74. ^ "Taylorvilles first lady lawyer". Herald and Review. 1915-10-13. p. 11. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
  75. ^ [email protected], DAVE FOPAY. "Righter says it was 'honor to serve' in her 20 years as judge". JG-TC.com. Retrieved 2019-02-28.
  76. ^ "Girl Assistant to Hoyne". cdnc.ucr.edu. October 22, 1918. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  77. ^ "Woman Begins Work as Prosecutor's Aid". Daily Capital Journal. 1918-11-16. pp. PAGE SEVEN. ISSN 2163-8535. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  78. ^ Darrow, Clarence (2013-06-20). In the Clutches of the Law: Clarence Darrow's Letters. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520954588.
  79. ^ Manufacturers' News: A Weekly Journal Devoted to the Industrial and General Business Interests of the Middle West. Glenn. 1918.
  80. ^ Mount, Charles. "COOK'S 1ST FEMALE PRESIDING JUDGE FACES TROUBLED JUVENILE COURT". Retrieved 2019-09-09.
  81. ^ "Asian American Compass: A Guide to Navigating the Community" (PDF). Asian American Institute. 2011.
  82. ^ Cepeda, Esther J. "Anita Alvarez: A trailblazing Latina who fell short of expectations". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2018-02-17.
  83. ^ Parker, Molly. "First African-American woman elected Cook County State's Attorney says SIU laid the foundation for her success". The Southern. Retrieved 2019-07-17.
  84. ^ "Erica Reddick Becomes 1st Woman to Oversee Cook County's Criminal Court Division". WTTW News. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  85. ^ "Patricia Mell's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  86. ^ "R. Kelly Prosecutor Breaks Racial, Sex Barrier as New Judge (1)". news.bloomberglaw.com. Retrieved 2023-12-14.
  87. ^ "DCBA Brief - Back Issues - September 1999". DuPage County Bar Association. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  88. ^ Tribune, Chicago. "FORMER DUPAGE JUDGE HELEN KINNEY". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-01-10.
  89. ^ "Illinois Supreme Court appoints Chantelle Porter as 1st African American female judge in DuPage County". Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts. Retrieved 2023-08-28.
  90. ^ Karau, Dean (March 18, 2022). "Vera Binks, Henry County's First Woman Lawyer". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
  91. ^ Turnquist, Jerry. "A look at Elgin news 100 years ago". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2017-10-16.
  92. ^ "New judge looking forward to continuing career". Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  93. ^ a b Hitzeman, Harry. "Another Kane first: Latina attorney selected by peers as new judge". Daily Herald. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  94. ^ [email protected], Courtney. "First black woman judge in Kankakee County to be appointed". The Daily Journal. Retrieved 2018-01-20.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  95. ^ "The "Women of the West" Outreach Reception | Illinois State Bar Association". www.isba.org. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
  96. ^ "First female lawyer in LaSalle Co. welcomes granddaughter into practice | Illinois Lawyer Now". iln.isba.org. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  97. ^ "Donnelly becomes La Salle County's first female chief prosecutor". Newstrib. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
  98. ^ "Memorial". apps.westpointaog.org. Retrieved 2017-10-16.
  99. ^ "Fannie Adele Bivans - First Woman Lawyer Fiery". Herald and Review. 17 November 1974. p. 51. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  100. ^ "First female judge in Madison County retiring". The Times. Retrieved 2018-01-05.
  101. ^ Gvillo, Heather Isringhausen. "Mary Copeland is first woman to be appointed Madison County Chief Public Defender". Madison - St. Clair Record. Retrieved 2022-02-03.
  102. ^ "Former McLean County judge named to Pritzker transition team". www.wjbc.com. December 1, 2018. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  103. ^ "Carla Barnes is First Black Judge in 11th Judicial Circuit". NBC Chicago. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  104. ^ "Difference makers: CAST alums who found niche at ISU are leaving their mark on the world". News. 2022-03-23. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
  105. ^ GORMAN, ANN. "Menard judge appointed to appellate court". The State Journal-Register. Retrieved 2019-07-13.
  106. ^ "Loos v. Cnty. of Perry, 3:20-CV-1107-MAB | Casetext Search + Citator". casetext.com. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
  107. ^ "'Restoring the decorum' | Latina judge reacts to Biden's promise of Black woman SCOTUS nominee". wqad.com. February 3, 2022. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  108. ^ Atty. Otis-Lewis Elected to Bench in E. St. Louis. Johnson Publishing Company. August 10, 1992. p. 27. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  109. ^ "Baker Sterchi Member Laura Beasley to Serve as 2021-2022 IDC President | Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice L.L.C." www.bscr-law.com. Retrieved 2021-08-04.
  110. ^ "First Woman to Practice Law in Sangamon County". IllinoisChannelTV. 2012-09-14. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  111. ^ BAKKE, DAVE. "Dave Bakke: Mystery surrounds bar certificate of county's 1st woman lawyer". The State Journal. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  112. ^ "Suzanne Patton, '99, appointed as first female judge in Stark County, IL". law.siu.edu. Retrieved 2018-12-10.
  113. ^ "pg. 23- Illinois Issues, January, 1981". www.lib.niu.edu. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  114. ^ "Will County's first female judge Kathleen Kallan dies". Shaw Local. 2024-08-13. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  115. ^ "ILLINOIS SUPREME COURT FILLS SECOND VACANCY IN WILL COUNTY SUBCIRCUIT" (PDF). Illinois Courts. January 5, 2007.
  116. ^ "Smoot appointed first female judge in Williamson County". Illinois Lawyer Now. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
  117. ^ "Eureka woman attorney first in Woodford". The Pantagraph. 18 May 1929. p. 13. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_first_women_lawyers_and_judges_in_Illinois&oldid=1240393578"