2014: Law School Sends Memo About Inappropriate Student Cleavage, Hooker Heels
As we so eloquently stated when we first caught wind of this memo, “How many times do women in the law need to be told not to dress like streetwalkers? Enough already…” Two years ago, the externship director at Loyola Law sent this missive to all students working in judicial chambers, government agencies, and public interest law firms. There were some rather condescending style guidelines included for women, but none included for men. Ladies, please pay attention to the third bullet point featured below, lest you bring shame to the law school with your short skirts, low necklines, and too-high heels. There were surely more delicate ways to get this message across.
2014: Judge Refuses To Postpone Hearing Because Maternity Leave Isn’t A Good Enough Excuse
What Biglaw Can Learn From Personal Injury Firms
How a former insurance agent built a Houston injury practice around systems, empathy, and disciplined advocacy.
Above the Law was first on this story that quickly spread across mainstream media outlets. Georgia lawyer Stacy M. Ehrisman-Mickle was forced to bring her infant child to an immigration hearing because the judge presiding over the case refused to approve her motion for a continuance of the matter due to her maternity leave, writing that she had “no good cause” to change the date. Rather than leaving her clients without counsel, Ehrisman-Mickle attended the hearing with her newborn, only to have her parenting skills questioned by the judge. She filed a formal complaint against the judge, an excerpt of which appears below:
I was forced to bring my weeks old daughter with me as day care centers do not accept infants less than 6 weeks of age and I have no family in Georgia that could help me look after my baby. … When the IJ saw me with my daughter, he was outraged. He scolded me for being inappropriate for bringing her. He questioned the fact that day care centers do not accept infants less than 6 weeks of age. He then questioned my mothering skills as he commented how my pediatrician must be appalled that I am exposing my daughter to so many germs in court. He humiliated me in open court.
(Flip through the following pages to see the rest of the most depressing stories related to women in the law over the course of the last 10 years.)
Staci Zaretsky is an editor at Above the Law. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. Follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.