List of first women lawyers and judges in Maryland

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This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Maryland. 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 obtain a law degree or become a political figure.

Firsts in state history[]

Lawyers[]

Judicial Officers[]

State[]

Judges[]
  • Kathryn J. DuFour (1935):[10] First female judge in Maryland (1955)[11]
  • Mabel H. Hubbard (1975):[12] First African American female judge in Maryland (1985)
  • Audrey J.S. Carrion:[13][14][15] First Hispanic American (female) judge in Maryland (1995)
  • Martha F. Rasin:[14][16] First female to serve as a chief judge in Maryland (1996)[17]
  • Jeannie Hong (1993):[18] First Korean American female judge in Maryland (2002)
  • Bess B. Lavine:[14] First female to serve as a juvenile court judge in Maryland. She and her daughter Sherrie Krauser were the first mother and daughter to hold judgeships in Maryland.[14][19]
Circuit Court[]
  • Kathryn Lawlor Shook Dufour (1942):[20] First female appointed as a Judge of the Circuit Court in Maryland (1955)
Court of Special Appeals[]
  • Rita Charmatz Davidson (1963):[21][22] First female appointed as a Judge of the Maryland Special Court of Appeals (1972)
  • Michele D. Hotten:[23] First African American female to serve as a Judge of the Maryland Special Court of Appeals (2010)
Court of Appeals[]
  • Rita Charmatz Davidson (1963):[21][22] First female appointed as a Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals (1979)
  • Shirley M. Watts (1983):[24] First African-American female appointed as a Judge of the Maryland Court of Appeals (2013)

Federal[]

District Court[]
  • Shirley Brannock Jones (1946):[25] First female appointed as Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Maryland (1979)

Assistant Attorney General[]

United States Attorney[]

  • Catherine C. Blake:[27] First female to serve as a U.S. Attorney for Maryland (2009)

State's Attorney[]

  • Toni E. Clarke:[28] First African-American female to serve as a State’s Attorney in Maryland (1994-1995)

District Attorney[]

  • Susie Starp:[29] First female to serve as a District Attorney in Maryland (c. 1974)

Bar Association[]

  • Louise Michaux Gonzales:[30] First female to serve as President of the Maryland State Bar Association (1991)

Firsts in local history[]

Alphabetized by county name

Region[]

Anne Arundel County[]

  • Elizabeth Morris:[32] First African American female circuit judge in Anne Arundel County, Maryland (2018)
  • Anne Colt Leitess:[33] First female to serve as the State's Attorney for Anne Arundel County, Maryland (2018)

Baltimore, City of[]

  • Patricia C. Jessamy:[34] First female to serve as the State's Attorney for Baltimore, Maryland (1995)
  • Audrey J.S. Carrion:[13] First Hispanic American (female) to serve as a Judge of the Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Maryland (1995)

Baltimore County[]

  • Jeanette Rosner Wolman (1957):[35] First female lawyer admitted to the Bar Association of Baltimore City [Baltimore County, Maryland]
  • Wanda Keyes Heard (1982):[36][37] First female (and African American female) appointed as the Chief Judge of the Baltimore City Circuit Court (2017) [Baltimore City, Maryland]

Carroll County[]

  • JoAnn Ellinghaus-Jones (1981):[38] First female judge in Carroll County, Maryland
  • Maria Oesterreicher:[39] First female to become a Judge of the Circuit Court in Carroll County, Maryland (2018)

Cecil County[]

  • Bonnie G. Schneider (1988):[40] First female judge in Cecil County, Maryland

Charles County[]

  • Donine Carrington (1995):[37] First African American female appointed as a Judge of the Charles County Circuit Court (2017) [Charles County, Maryland]

Dorchester County[]

  • Betty Bright Nelson (c. 1950s):[41] First woman to practice law in Dorchester County, Maryland

Frederick County[]

  • Mary Ann Stepler (1974):[42] First female judge in Frederick County, Maryland

Harford County[]

  • Yolanda L. Curtin:[43] First Latino female appointed as a Judge of the Harford County Circuit Court, Maryland (2013)

Howard County[]

  • Diane O. Leasure and Donna Hill Staton:[44][45] First females to serve as a Judge of the Howard County Circuit Court in Maryland (1995). Staton is the first African American (female) judge appointed to the circuit court.
  • Alice Gail Pollard Clark:[46] First African American (female) to serve as district judge for Howard County, Maryland (1997)

Montgomery County[]

  • Vivian V. Simpson (c. 1930s):[47] First female lawyer in Montgomery County, Maryland
  • Irma S. Raker:[48] First African American female to serve as the Assistant State's Attorney of Montgomery County, Maryland
  • Marielsa A. Bernard (1981):[49] First Hispanic American female to serve as a district court judge (1998) and circuit court judge (2002) in Montgomery County, Maryland
  • Sharon V. Burrell (1984):[37] First African American female appointed as a Judge of the Montgomery County Circuit Court (c. 2008) [Montgomery County, Maryland]
  • Karla Smith (1995):[50] First African American female appointed as a Judge of the Montgomery County District Court (2012) [Montgomery County, Maryland]

Prince George's County[]

  • Toni E. Clarke:[28] First African-American female to serve as the State’s Attorney for Prince George's County, Maryland (1994-1995). She was the first African-American female (and African American in general) to serve as President of the Prince George’s County Bar Association.
  • Angela Alsobrooks:[51] First African American female elected to serve as the State's Attorney for Prince George's County, Maryland (2010)

Washington County[]

Wicomomo County[]

Worcester County[]

  • Peggy Kent (c. 1980):[52] First female judge in Worcester County (2018)
  • Kris Heiser:[53] First female to serve as the State's Attorney for Worcester County (2019)

See also[]

Other topics of interest[]

References[]

  1. ^ Thurlow, Katharine (June 1986). "Women in the Law" (PDF). Maryland Bar Journal. XIX: 5: 24–25.
  2. ^ "President's Message: Who is Etta Maddox? - Maryland State Bar Association". www.msba.org. Retrieved 2016-10-06.
  3. ^ Helmes, Winifred Gertrude (1977). Notable Maryland Women. Tidewater Publishers. ISBN 9780870332364.
  4. ^ a b Eyler, Deborah Sweet. "The Early Female Jewish Members of the Maryland Bar: 1920–1929". Maryland Law Review. 74: 545: 545–582.
  5. ^ a b Battaglia, Lynne A. ""WHERE IS JUSTICE?" AN EXPLORATION OF BEGINNINGS". University of Baltimore Law Forum. 41 (1).
  6. ^ "Women's Legal History | Biographical Search". Women's Legal History. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  7. ^ Smith, John Clay (1999). Emancipation: The Making of the Black Lawyer, 1844-1944. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812216851.
  8. ^ 01, Conference Room. "Juanita Jackson Mitchell, Maryland Women's Hall of Fame". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2017-09-18.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ "Juanita J. Mitchell, 79, Lawyer In Maryland Civil Rights Battles". The New York Times. 1992-07-09. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-09-18.
  10. ^ Calver, Mimi. "Minutes. Hall of Records Commission, 6/6/2001". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-10.
  11. ^ Upon her appointment as a Judge of the Montgomery County Circuit Court
  12. ^ 01, Conference Room. "Mabel Houze Hubbard, Maryland Women's Hall of Fame". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-20.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  13. ^ a b Freitag, Susan. "Women hold a quarter of Maryland judgeships In 1981, data show, they were 5% of bench". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  14. ^ a b c d "Judges among Maryland Women Recognized in History Project" (PDF). Justice Matters. June 2003.
  15. ^ a b "Wicomico County Bar Honors Judge Sally D. Adkins". Maryland State Bar Association – MSBA. 2018-12-03. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  16. ^ "Forum Faces: The Honorable Martha F. Rasin". University of Baltimore Law Forum. 1998.
  17. ^ Upon Rasin becoming a Chief Judge of a Maryland District Court in 1996
  18. ^ "Gay woman, Asian-American named city District Court judges". tribunedigital-baltimoresun. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  19. ^ Pressley, Sue Anne (August 3, 1989). "THEIR HONORS SHARE SPECIAL BOND ON P.G. BENCH". Washington Post.
  20. ^ "Pioneering Judge Kathryn DuFour Dies (washingtonpost.com)". www.washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  21. ^ a b "Rita Charmatz Davidson | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  22. ^ a b The Maryland Bar Journal. Maryland State Bar Association. 1986.
  23. ^ Bykowicz, Julie. "Md. gets 1st African-American woman appeals judge". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-01-15.
  24. ^ "Shirley M. Watts appointed to Court of Appeals". The Baltimore Times, Inc. – Positive Stories. Retrieved 2018-02-10.
  25. ^ a b The Maryland Bar Journal. Maryland State Bar Association. 1996.
  26. ^ "State Roundup, May 30, 2019". MarylandReporter.com. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
  27. ^ Myers, Marcia. "Baltimore judges named to U.S. District Court". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  28. ^ a b "Board of Trustees". The National Judicial College. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  29. ^ "More Women & Minorities Move Into Mainstream". Newspapers.com. November 7, 1974. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
  30. ^ Sun, Baltimore. "Louise Gonzales brings womens' perspective to state bar ** group". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-01-02.
  31. ^ Batesville, Inc. "Obituary for Alice C. Taylor at Brinsfield Funeral Home, P.A." www.brinsfieldfuneral.com. Retrieved 2019-07-09.
  32. ^ Felice, Selene San. "Anne Arundel County's first female African-American Circuit Court judge appointed as three vacancies filled". capitalgazette.com. Retrieved 2018-12-27.
  33. ^ Felice, Selene San. "Anne Colt Leitess, Anne Arundel's first female state's attorney, wins back the office". capitalgazette.com. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  34. ^ Apperson, Jay. "Baltimore's top prosecutor". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  35. ^ "Jeannette Rosner Wolman, MSA SC 3520-13569". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  36. ^ "Wanda K. Heard, Maryland Circuit Court Judge". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  37. ^ a b c Record, Special to The Daily (2018-09-20). "Female judges overcame challenges to break down barriers". Maryland Daily Record. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  38. ^ "First female judge named" (PDF).
  39. ^ Times, Carroll County. "Maria Oesterreicher becomes Carroll's first female Circuit Court judge". carrollcountytimes.com. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
  40. ^ Hamilton, Carl (August 8, 2008). "Schneider becomes county's first female judge". Cecil Daily.
  41. ^ "Betty Bright Nelson's Obituary on The Star Democrat". The Star Democrat. Retrieved 2018-01-20.
  42. ^ Gaines, Danielle E. (December 13, 2014). "County's first female judge remembered". The Frederick News-Post. Retrieved 2018-01-05.
  43. ^ kdavis@baltsun.com, KRISHANA DAVIS. "Yolanda L. Curtin sworn in as first Hispanic judge on Harford Circuit Court". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  44. ^ Craver, Alan J. "Lawyer Leasure sworn in as Circuit Court judge She is first woman to join bench at that level in county". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2019-02-28.
  45. ^ FRANCKE, CAITLIN (October 10, 1996). "Judicial campaign a study in strategy: 2 operate from bench, 2 take grass-roots tack". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  46. ^ a b Freitag, Susan. "Women hold a quarter of Maryland judgeships In 1981, data show, they were 5% of bench". baltimoresun.com. Retrieved 2020-03-08.
  47. ^ "Vivian V. Simpson (1903–1984)" (PDF). Montgomery County Commission for Women.
  48. ^ "Irma S. Raker, MSA SC 3520-11659". msa.maryland.gov. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  49. ^ "Marielsa A. Bernard" (PDF). Montgomery County Commission for Women.
  50. ^ "Karla Smith set to be sworn in as first black female Montgomery District Court judge". Washington Post. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  51. ^ Filipovic, Jill (2018-10-31). "Your State-by-State Guide to Women Running in the Midterms". Harper's BAZAAR. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  52. ^ "01/24/2018 | Kent Sworn In As First Female Judge In Worcester County History | News Ocean City MD". News Ocean City Maryland Coast Dispatch Newspaper. 2018-01-24. Retrieved 2018-02-08.
  53. ^ Hooper, Bethany (2019-01-08). "01/08/2019 | Heiser Sworn In As Worcester County's First Female State's Attorney | News Ocean City MD". News Ocean City Maryland Coast Dispatch Newspaper. Retrieved 2019-01-09.
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