Staying Abreast Of The Law

It should not feel embarrassing or unprofessional to ask for reasonable accommodations in order to pump.

(Image via Getty)

Ed. note: This is the latest installment in a series of posts on motherhood in the legal profession, in partnership with our friends at MothersEsquire. Welcome Elizabeth Harris to our pages.

Almost four years ago, I found myself in an attorney’s conference room outside a Houston courtroom, half-undressed in a skirt suit and heels, trying to frantically pump over a brief lunch break during a week-long jury trial.  The door did not have a lock, so I shoved a chair against the door and hoped I would have enough time to shout — “THIS IS A PRIVATE MEETING!” — if anyone tried to walk in.

It was my first trial after returning from maternity leave, and I had a four-month-old daughter who was still breastfeeding.  At my firm, I had a private office with a lock on the door and a mini fridge next to my desk.  There was one close call with a window washer unexpectedly appearing outside my window on the 17th floor — it is amazing how quickly you can dive underneath your desk, even in a pencil skirt and heels. Other than that, though, pumping had been smooth sailing once I got used to the awkwardness of typing emails while sitting half clothed in my office every three hours.

However, a few days before my trial started, it dawned on me that I would have to pump at the courthouse while in trial.  And I realized I had absolutely no idea how to make that work.

The judge and all of the other attorneys were men, and I did not feel comfortable as the youngest (and only female) attorney in the courtroom raising the issue during the pretrial conference.  (In hindsight, this was a mistake.)  I showed up on the first day of trial living on a prayer that I could find a way to make it through the day.

I ended up finding that attorney conference room and making it through the week, but the circumstances were less than ideal.  No one should be cross-examining a witness while simultaneously worried that there might be a “situation” involving their silk shirt.

About two months after that trial wrapped up, I had a deposition for a multi-party construction case involving a concrete pump truck breaking down during a pour. Most of the attorneys at this particular deposition were women with children, and I mentioned to them during a break that I needed to pump.  The one male attorney was within earshot and I know he overheard me.  After we had been going all morning, I requested a brief, 30-minute lunch break so everyone could eat (and I could pump).  The witness grumbled, and the older, male opposing counsel said, “Don’t blame me.  It’s not my ‘pump truck.’”  It was a clear shot across the bow and I did not immediately know how to react.

I got my lunch break, but as I stomped off to pump, I had the realization that it should not feel embarrassing or unprofessional to ask for reasonable accommodations in order to pump.  As I sit here and type this today, I am preparing for my first jury trial after returning from maternity leave after having my second kid.  And rather than crossing my fingers and hoping for the best, I have already reached out to the court and requested short breaks so I can pump.  The court not only happily agreed to the breaks, but has located a room that I can use for the duration of the trial.

My advice to my fellow nursing mamas is to just come out and request what you need.  It sounds like common sense, but I was so concerned that judges, opposing counsel, or clients would think it was somehow unprofessional or that it would be an inconvenience to others.  However, secretly shuffling off to try to find an empty room at a courthouse in the middle of a trial or pumping in a germy bathroom at a law firm during a deposition are not adequate solutions.

You might encounter some people who react poorly, but that is their problem, not yours.  Overwhelmingly, I have found that most attorneys are happy to find a room for you to pump in during a deposition, and courts are happy to work in breaks during trial.  And if someone calls you a “pump truck,” it is perfectly professional to tell them exactly what you think about that opinion.


Elizabeth Harris is an attorney at Crady Jewett McCulley & Houren LLP in Houston, Texas.  She maintains an active commercial litigation practice.  When she is not in court, Elizabeth can be found chasing her four-year-old daughter and almost one-year-old son around the greater Houston area.  You can connect with her on LinkedIn here.