Law and Gender Commons^™

Ninth Circuit: The Gender Bias Task Force, Procter Hug Jr., Marilyn L. Huff, John C. Coughenour

University of Richmond Law Review

In 1990, the federal courts of the Ninth Circuit began to examine the effects of gender on the business of the courts. The pioneering FinalReport of the Ninth Circuit Gender Bias Task Force1 was issued in July 1993 and the Ninth Circuit has worked to implement the task force's recommendations for several years. To assist others setting forth on a similar journey, this article summarizes the circuit's experience in undertaking a study of this magnitude and duration.

D.C. Circuit: Study Of Gender, Race, And Ethnic Bias, John Garrett Penn, Matthew J. Devries

University of Richmond Law Review

The District of Columbia Circuit became the first federal circuit to establish a Task Force on race and gender bias. In 1992, the Task Force, which was comprised of judges from the D.C. Circuit, created two committees-the Special Committee on Gender and the Special Committee on Race and Ethnicity-to assist the Task Force in its research. The committees were comprised of academics, social science advisors of national recognition, and leading attorneys.

Fourth Circuit: The Judicial Council's Review On The Need For A Gender Bias Study, Samuel W. Phillips

University of Richmond Law Review

In 1993, the Women Judges Fund for Justice, the National Association of Women Judges, and the National Center for State Courts, sponsored a four-day conference (March 18-21) in Williamsburg, Virginia, entitled "Second National Conference on Gender Bias in the Courts: Focus on Follow-up." Then Chief Circuit Judge Sam J. Ervin, III, designated the Deputy Circuit Executive to attend the conference on behalf of the Fourth Circuit. The Deputy also attended, along with a Fourth Circuit U.S. Magistrate Judge (now a U.S. District Judge), the Federal Judicial Center Gender Bias Task Force Workshop in Washington, D.C. (August 5-6, 1993).

Striking The Rock: Confronting Gender Equality In South Africa, Penelope Andrews

Articles & Chapters

This Article analyzes the status of women's rights in the newly democratic South Africa. It examines rights guaranteed in the Constitution and conflicts between the principle of gender equality and the recognition of indigenous law and institutions. The Article focuses on the South African transition to democracy and theinfluence that feminist agitation at the international level has had on South African women's attempts at political organization. After dissecting the historical position of customary law in South Africa and questioning its place in the new democratic regime, the author argues that, although South African women have benefited from the global feminist …

Gender Bias In The American Bar Association Journal: Impact On The Legal Profession, Marilyn Berger, Kari A. Robinson

Faculty Articles

The ABA Journal presents women in the legal system in a similar fashion to the presentation of women in the journals of other professions. Women are portrayed in traditional sex roles, they are pictured passively and they are often shown negatively as victims. In the volumes the authors studied, they found that the numbers of images of attorneys, judges and professors were not proportionate to the number of men and women in the legal profession. Moreover, the ABA Journal predominantly displayed women as dependent on their male counterparts. The authors also found instances where the ABA Journal portrayed women as …

Not-So-Arbitrary Arbitration: Using Title Vii Disparate Impact Analysis To Invalidate Employment Contracts That Discriminate, Miriam A. Cherry

Faculty Publications

(Excerpt)

On May 20, 1996, three women filed a sexual harassment and discrimination lawsuit against the Wall Street investment firm Smith Barney. Later joined by twenty additional women, the plaintiffs alleged that Smith Barney failed to hire and promote women, created a hostile work environment, and discriminated on the basis of pregnancy and marital status. The lawsuit quickly gained widespread publicity, most notably for its accusation that the former manager of the Garden City, New York, branch had established a fraternity-like "boom-boom room" in the office basement where female employees were either excluded or harassed if allowed to enter. On …

Equal Rights Advocates: Addressing The Legal Issues Of Women Of Color, Judy Scales-Trent

Journal Articles

No abstract provided.

Foreword (Symposium: Finding A Path To Gender Equality: Legal And Policy Issues Raised By All-Female Public Education), Nadine Strossen

Articles & Chapters

No abstract provided.

Eighth Circuit: Gender Fairness Task Force, Lyle E. Strom

University of Richmond Law Review

In July of 1993, the Judicial Council of the Eighth Circuit adopted a resolution for the creation of a task force to study and report on the impact or effect of gender in the administration of justice in the Eighth Circuit. Chief Judge Richard Arnold appointed United States District Judge Diana Murphy of Minnesota to establish the Task Force. A task force of thirty members, consisting of circuit, district, magistrate and bankruptcy judges, employees of the courts, representatives from the offices of the United States Attorneys and Federal Public Defenders, attorneys who practice in federal court, and professors of law, …

Tenth Circuit: Gender Bias Study- Continuing Education And Training, David M. Ebel

University of Richmond Law Review

The Tenth Circuit Study of Gender Bias and Sexual Harassment was initiated in September 1995 with a study of the District of Wyoming. Prior to that time a number of federal courts and individual states had undertaken comprehensive studies of gender bias. Most of the existing literature was based upon quantitative data using survey research methodology calculated to obtain a number of confidential responses, which produced substantial valuable information.

Fifth Circuit: Study Of Gender Bias, Gregory A. Nussel

University of Richmond Law Review

In October 1993, in response to a recommendation in the

Report of the National Commission on Judicial Discipline and Removal, Chief Judge Henry A. Politz appointed a Special Committee of the Fifth Circuit Judicial Council to consider and recommend whether a study of gender bias in the Fifth Circuit should be made. The Special Committee, composed of two circuit judges, two district judges, and one magistrate judge, reported its findings to the Judicial Council during a biannual meeting in June 1994.

Eleventh Circuit: "Executive Summary" - Report Of The Eleventh Circuit Task Force On Gender Bias, Joseph W. Hatchett

University of Richmond Law Review

In 1993 the Eleventh Circuit Judicial Council's Task Force on Gender Bias was established. It was the Mandate of this Task Force to study the effects of gender in the Eleventh Circuit and the courts that comprise the Eleventh Circuit. The Task Force elected to employ survey methods to discover whether or not various members of the court family believed that gender bias existed, if so in what form, and whether or not such bias affects the judicial process.

Ruminations On In Re Kasinga: The Decision's Legacy, Karen Musalo

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

An End To Silence: Women Prisoners’ Handbook On Identifying And Addressing Sexual Misconduct, 2nd Ed., Brenda V. Smith, Marcia Greenberger, Nancy Duff Campbell, Deborah Brake, Joanna Grossman, Kathie Donnelly, Laura Cutiletta, Christina Davis, Marelisa Fabrega, Kristin Flynn, Kristin Holman, Jessica Jackson, Heather Lamberg, Kimberly Harris, Shauna Helton, Alvin Stith, Aurie Hall, Jonathan Smith, Andie Moss, Theresa Hunt Katsel, Drs. Elaine Carmen, Shelley Neiderbach

Research Reports & White Papers

The National Women’s Law Center is a non-profit organization that has been working since 1972 to advance and protect women’s legal rights. The Center focuses on major policy areas of importance to women and their families including education, employment, reproductive rights, health, family support and income security, with special attention given to the concerns of low-income women.

As a legal arm of the women’s movement, the Center has litigated ground-breaking cases and filed briefs in landmark Supreme Court decisions; advocated before state and federal policymakers to shape legislation and policies affecting women’s lives; and educated the public about issues important …

The Negative Effects Of Expert Testimony On The Battered Women's Syndrome, Pamela Posch

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

"Pro-Life" Absolutes, Feminist Challenges: The Fundamentalist Narrative Of Irish Abortion Law 1986-1992, Ruth Fletcher

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article asks how Irish abortion law developed to the point of stopping a young pregnant rape victim from travelling abroad to have an abortion in 1992 (Attorney General v. X.). The author argues that this case, which ultimately saw the Irish Supreme Court overturn that decision and recognize the young woman's right to abortion, was the last chapter of the fundamentalist narrative of Irish abortion law. The feminist critique of that law needs to consider its particular fundamentalist aspects in order to clarify the obstacles posed to the struggle for Irish women's reproductive freedom. The author argues that a …

Grounded Applications: Feminism And Law At The Millennium, Katharine B. Silbaugh

Faculty Scholarship

The conference topic is feminism in the twenty-first century, a dialogue between academics and practicing attorneys. The first order of business will be to resist the millennium invitation to come up with evermore novel, overarching formulations of the mission and means of feminism. At the end of the twentieth century we know quite a bit about the problems presented by feminists and the problems within feminism. We have had a long history of insightful intellectual discourse on questions of equality and on the meaning of gender. We also know that it takes time to absorb and apply broad insights in …

Marriage Contracts And The Family Economy, Katharine B. Silbaugh

Faculty Scholarship

One simplified view of contract law is that the state enforces private bargains without looking into the substance of those bargains. From this contractual perspective marriage might look like a contract to exchange services and goods: love, money, the ability to have and raise children, housework, sex, emotional support, physical care in times of sickness, entertainment and so forth. But when the parties to a marriage put these terms in writing, courts only enforce the provisions governing money. This contract/family law rule of selective enforcement disproportionately benefits those who bring more money to a marriage, who are more likely to …

Injured Women Before Common Law Courts, 1860-1930, Margo Schlanger

Articles

How did early American tort law treat women? How were they expected to behave, and how were others expected to behave towards them? What gender differences mattered, and how did courts deal with those differences? These are the issues this Article explores. My aim is to illuminate the common law of torts and its relation to and with ideas about gender difference, by focusing on three sets of cases involving injured women, spanning the time between approximately 1860 and 1930. My conclusions run counter to two approaches scholars have frequently taken in analyzing gender and the common law of torts. …

Prosecuting Teenage Parents Under Fornication Statutes: A Constitutionally Suspect Legal Solution To The Social Problem Of Teenage Pregnancy, Juhi Mehta

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that the constitutional right to privacy, as established by precedent, protects individuals' decisions regarding childbearing and sexual activity. It critiques the use of archaic fornication statutes to prosecute pregnant teenagers, asserting that such prosecutions impose an undue burden on constitutionally protected freedoms. The analysis emphasizes the need for policies addressing teen pregnancy that prioritize education, access to contraception, and legal reforms over punitive measures.

The Mandatory Arbitration Of A Woman's Title Vii Claim In The Securities Industry, Vincent J. Roldan

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

No abstract provided.

The Young Women's Leadership School: A Viable Alternative To Traditional Coeducational Public Schools, Erin A. Mcgrath

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The note argues that single-sex education is a beneficial and constitutional alternative to traditional coeducational programs, using the Young Women's Leadership School as a prime example. It contends that such schools address past discrimination and provide tailored educational environments that enhance academic performance and self-esteem, particularly for underprivileged girls. The analysis emphasizes that single-sex education can meet legal standards under Title IX and Equal Protection scrutiny, as demonstrated by the Leadership School's compliance with regulatory requirements and its focus on remedying historical inequities.

Corporate Democracy -- Not Such A Radical Idea, Carlin Meyer

Other Publications

No abstract provided.

Compensating Differentials For Gender-Specific Job Injury Risks, Joni Hersch

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

Women have largely been excluded from analyses of compensating differentials for job risk since they are predominantly employed in safer, white-collar occupations. New data reveal that their injury experience is considerable. One-third of the total injury and illness cases with days away from work accrue to female workers. Adjusted for employment, women are 71 percent as likely as men to experience an injury or illness. As one would predict on theoretical grounds, these risks generate compensating differentials. Based on gender-specific injury incidence rates for both industry and occupation, I find strong evidence of compensating wage differentials for the job risk …

Sex And The Social Order: The Selective Enforcement Of Colonial American Adultery Laws In The English Context, Carolyn B. Ramsey

Publications

No abstract provided.

Subtracting Sexism From The Classroom: Law And Policy In The Debate Over All-Female Math And Science Classes In Public Schools, Carolyn B. Ramsey

Publications

No abstract provided.

Re-Defining Reproductive Freedom, Timothy Zick

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Reconceiving The Family: Challenging The Paradigm Of The Exclusive Family, Alison Harvinson Young

American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law

No abstract provided.

The Problem That Has No Name, Omi Morgenstern Leissner

Cardozo Journal of Equal Rights & Social Justice

The article examines how naming practices, deeply rooted in patriarchal societies, influence women's identity, autonomy, and societal status. It argues that traditional naming conventions, such as women adopting their husbands' surnames, reflect broader power dynamics that marginalize women and erase their individuality. The analysis highlights the legal, cultural, and psychological implications of these practices and advocates for self-naming as a form of resistance and empowerment.

Toward A Reconstructive Feminism: Reconstructing The Relationship Of Market Work And Family Work, Joan C. Williams

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.