NCJ Number
80781
Journal
Judicature Volume: 65 Issue: 6 Dated: (December/January 1982) Pages: complete issue
Editor(s)
S Carbon
Date Published
1982
Length
50 pages
Annotation
This series of articles presents an overall perspective of female judges in Federal and State judiciaries.
Abstract
The opening article briefly surveys the history of women on the State and Federal bench from the first appointment in 1870 to the present. The second focuses exclusively on State judges, examining personal and professional characteristics of women on the bench, their selection process, and their attitudes toward various selection systems. A 1980 survey found the typical woman State judge to be 48 years-old, white, a moderate to liberal Democrat with 6 years on the bench. She was likely to have had a private law school education. In most cases, the respondents tended to believe the selection system that put them on the bench produced the best judiciary. The third article deals exclusively with Federal women judges, examining their occupation at the time of appointment, previous judicial experience, and political party activity. These characteristics are contrasted with those of male Federal judges. Whereas male appointments from the previous four administrations were predominantly sitting judges at the time of their appointment, the female nominees of the Carter administration came equally from the judiciary, large law firms, and academia. While the women showed a low level of political party activism (measured by political and party offices held), their activities showed commitment to minority and women's rights. The concluding article examines the careers of two judges: Florence Allen, an unsuccessful candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court in the 1930's and Sandra O'Connor, a successful candidate for the U.S. Supreme Court in 1981.