Day of the Woman celebrated at the ABA Annual Meeting
Women attorneys of America – unite! Women attorneys were celebrated on Aug. 9, 2013 at the American Bar Association’s Annual Meeting in San Francisco, Calif. “The Day of the Woman,” which commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Commission on Women in the Profession, marked the progress women lawyers have made and the work still to be done. Special programs throughout the day were devoted to issues of interest to women attorneys, and a mid-day rally took place to support the progress of women lawyers.
In 1987, women made up approximately 13 percent of the lawyer population in the United States. There were no part-time jobs for attorneys, no law firm laws on sexual harassment, and the path to equity partnership was filled with roadblocks making it nearly impossible to attain. Today, women make up 50 percent of those graduating from law schools in the United States, 30 percent of all lawyers, and 15 percent of equity partners.
Programs taking place on the Day of the Woman varied on topics such as the long-standing pay gap between men and women, the development of leadership potential for women attorneys, advances made toward ensuring a level playing field for women, how to be a successful rainmaker, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and its impact on ending violence, and women’s health programs.
To read the full program from the Day of the Woman, click here.
