List of first women lawyers and judges in Washington

This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in the U.S. state of Washington. 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
Christine Gregoire: First female Deputy Attorney General (1981) and Attorney General in Washington (1993)
Jenny Durkan: First lesbian female to serve as a U.S. Attorney in Washington (2009)

Lawyers
  • Mary Leonard (1885):[1] First female lawyer in Washington
  • Bella Weretnikow Rosenbaum (1901):[2][3][4] First Jewish American female lawyer in Washington
  • Dolores Sibonga (1973):[5] First Filipino American female lawyer in Washington
  • Holly Caudill (1995):[6][7][8] First female quadriplegic lawyer per available records in the U.S. and Washington
Justice of the Peace
  • Mildred Henthorn Hamill:[9][10] First female to serve as a Justice of the Peace in Washington (1911)
Judges
  • Reah Whitehead (1893):[11][12] First female judge in Washington (1914)
  • Norma S. Huggins:[13] First African American female judge in Washington
  • Carmen Otero:[14][15][16] First Latino American female judge in Washington (1980)
  • C. Kimi Kondo:[17] First Asian American female judge in Washington (c. 1991)
  • Mariane Spearman:[18][19] First Korean American (female) judge in Washington (1999)
  • Helen Whitener (1998):[20][21] First openly LGBT (African American) female judge in Washington (2015)
Municipal Court
  • Norma S. Huggins:[13] First African American female municipal court judge in Washington (1983)
Superior Court
  • Norma S. Huggins:[13] First African American female superior court judge in Washington (1988)
Supreme Court
District Court
  • Rosanna M. Peterson (1991):[28] First female appointed as a U.S. District Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington

Attorney General

Assistant Attorney General
  • June Fowles:[30] First female to serve as an Assistant Attorney General of Washington (1939)

Deputy Attorney General

United States Attorney
  • Jenny Durkan (1986):[31] First openly LGBT female appointed as a U.S. Attorney in Washington (2009)

Political Office
  • Reba Hurn (1910):[32][33][34] First female (a lawyer) elected to the Washington State Senate (1923-1930)
  • Jenny Durkan (1986):[31] First openly LGBT female (a lawyer) elected as the Mayor of Seattle, Washington (2017)
  • Laurie Jinkins (1990):[35] First openly LGBT female (a lawyer) elected as a Member of the Washington House of Representatives from the Twenty-Seventh District (2011)

Bar Association
  • Elizabeth “Betty” Bracelin:[36] First female to serve as the President of the Washington State Bar Association

Firsts in local history

Alphabetized by county name

Region

Benton County
  • Carolyn Brown:[39] First female to serve as a Judge of the Benton-Franklin Superior Court, Washington (1988)

Chelan County

Clallam County
  • Susan Owens:[41] First female judge in Clallam County, Washington
  • Lauren Erickson:[42] First female appointed as a Judge of the Clallam County Superior Court, Washington (2019)

Clark County

Cowlitz County

Douglas County

Franklin County

King County
  • Leila Robinson Sawtelle (1882):[45] First female lawyer in Seattle, Washington (King County, Washington, 1884)
  • Bella Weretnikow Rosenbaum (1901):[2][3][4] First Jewish American female lawyer in Seattle, Washington [King County, Washington]
  • Othilia Carroll Beals:[46] First female Justice of the Peace in Seattle, Washington [King County, Washington]
  • Eliza Forbes:[47] First female Justice of the Peace in King County, Washington
  • Carmen Otero:[14][15][16] First Latino American female judge in King County, Washington
  • C. Kimi Kondo:[17] First Asian American female to serve as a Judge of the Seattle Municipal Court in Washington (c. 1991)
  • Marcine Anderson:[48] First female (and Asian American) elected as a Judge of the Shoreline District Court (King County, Washington; 2010)
  • Betty Fletcher:[49] First female to serve as the President of the South King County Bar Association, Washington (1972)

Kittitas County

Lewish County

Mason County

Pierce County
  • Helen Whitener (1998):[20] First openly LGBT and African American female to serve as Judge of the Pierce County Superior Court, Washington (2015)
  • Diane Clarkson:[53] First African American female (and African American in general) to serve as the President of the Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association, Washington (2016)
  • Mary Robnett:[54] First female to serve as the Prosecuting Attorney for Pierce County, Washington (2019)

Snohomish County

Spokane County

Thurston County

Walla Walla County
  • Aurel M. Kelly (1949):[62] First female lawyer in Walla Walla, Washington [Walla Walla County, Washington]
  • Sandy Flores (2008):[63] First Latin American female lawyer in Walla Walla County, Washington

Whatcom County

See also

Other topics of interest

References
  1. VanBurkleo, Sandra F. (2015-11-30). Gender Remade: Citizenship, Suffrage, and Public Power in the New Northwest, 1879–1912. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781316473030.
  2. "First Jewish woman lawyer admitted to Washington state bar | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved 2018-02-12.
  3. Abrams, Jeanne E. (November 2007). Jewish Women Pioneering the Frontier Trail: A History in the American West. NYU Press. ISBN 9780814707203.
  4. America, History and Life. ABC-CLIO. 2005.
  5. Parker, Monica R. (2010-01-01). What it Takes: How Women of Color Can Thrive Within the Practice of Law. American Bar Association. p. 6. ISBN 9781590319925. first filipina to practice law in the united states.
  6. "Quadriplegic An Inspiration To All She Meets | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  7. "Obituaries". Los Angeles Times. 1999-05-28. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  8. "Obituaries in the News". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  9. "First Woman Judge in the Country". The Day Book. 1911-12-21. ISSN 2163-7121. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  10. "Hamill, Mildred Henthorn | Alaska History". www.alaskahistory.org. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  11. Washington State Bar News. Washington State Bar Association. 1995.
  12. Vile, John R. (2003). Great American Judges: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781576079898.
  13. "Equal Justice Newsletter: Volume 3, Number 1, March 2000". www.courts.wa.gov. Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  14. "State gets its first Latino federal judge". seattlepi.com. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  15. "King County Judge Otero To Retire | The Seattle Times". archive.seattletimes.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  16. "From Teacher To Judge To Time Off -- Otero Plans To Retire After Two Decades On King County Bench | The Seattle Times". archive.seattletimes.com. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  17. "Judge C. Kimi Kondo retirement". Northwest Asian Weekly. 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2019-01-22.
  18. Martin, Mart (2018-04-24). The Almanac Of Women And Minorities In American Politics 2002. Routledge. ISBN 9780429976483.
  19. "The Times recommends: Mariane Spearman for King County Superior Court position 53". The Seattle Times. 2016-10-05. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  20. "Judge Helen Whitener '98 named Woman of the Year : Seattle University School of Law : Seattle Washington". law.seattleu.edu. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
  21. Jenkins, Austin. "Gov. Jay Inslee Appoints First Black Female Justice To Serve On Washington Supreme Court". www.opb.org. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
  22. "Carolyn Dimmick: A judge for all seasons - Legacy Washington - WA Secretary of State". Retrieved 2018-02-02.
  23. "Business | Durham Resigning State Supreme Court | Seattle Times Newspaper". community.seattletimes.nwsource.com. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  24. Camden, Jim (May 21, 2014). "State Supreme Court Justice Mary Yu sworn in" (PDF). The Spokesman-Review.
  25. "Whatcom County's first Native American judge to be sworn in Friday". bellinghamherald. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  26. http://www.washingtontimes.com, The Washington Times. "Native American to be sworn in as Whatcom County judge". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  27. Shirley, Julie (January 6, 2020). "Montoya-Lewis sworn in as Washington's first Native American Supreme Court justice". Washington Post.
  28. Congress (2015-04-27). Congressional Record: Bound Volumes. INIAP Archivo Historico.
  29. "Washington's Attorneys General - Past and Present | Washington State". www.atg.wa.gov. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  30. Newell, Gordon R. (1975). Rogues, Buffoons & Statesmen. Hangman Press. ISBN 978-0-87564-106-5.
  31. "Jenny Durkan elected mayor of Seattle, first woman to hold the office since 1926". Q13 FOX News. 2017-11-09. Retrieved 2018-05-30.
  32. ""Reba" Hurn: Spokane's First Female Lawyer – Nostalgia Magazine". www.nostalgiamagazine.net. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  33. "Landmarks: Monument dedicated to Rebecca Hurn, Spokane's first female lawyer, state's first female senator". Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  34. Clift, Eleanor; Brazaitis, Tom (2016-05-06). Madam President, Revised Edition: Women Blazing the Leadership Trail. Routledge. ISBN 9781136705243.
  35. "Laurie Jinkins: breaking the lesbian barrier in the Washington state legislature - Shadowproof". Shadowproof. 2010-10-30. Retrieved 2018-06-08.
  36. "Celebrating Women's History Month in Washington". 2016-03-15. Retrieved 2019-01-03.
  37. The Daily Colonist (1979-05-12). University of Victoria. 1979.
  38. "Gov. Inslee appoints first female African American judge in Eastern Washington to Spokane County Superior Court | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2019-04-12.
  39. "Benton-County judge, Wenatchee lawyer pegged for Shea replacement". tri-cityherald. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  40. "Carol Wardell, Chelan PUD Attorney retiring, ready to 'take on new challenges' | Cashmere Valley Record". www.cashmerevalleyrecord.com. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  41. "PTHS students quiz Supreme Court justice". Port Townsend Leader. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  42. Gottlieb, Paul (2019-01-08). "Port Angeles attorney becomes Clallam Superior Court's first female judge". Peninsula Daily News. Retrieved 2019-01-09.
  43. "Johnson, Clark County's first woman judge, to retire". The Columbian. 2014-12-17. Retrieved 2018-12-24.
  44. Jenkins, Don. "Court swears in first female judge". Longview Daily News. Retrieved 2018-01-06.
  45. The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography: Being the History of the United States as Illustrated in the Lives of the Founders, Builders, and Defenders of the Republic, and of the Men and Women who are Doing the Work and Moulding the Thought of the Present Time. J. T. White Company. 1893. p. 293. Leila Robinson Sawtelle seattle washington lawyer.
  46. Ross, Deb. "Westhillsyde (Allen/Beals House) | Olympia Historical Society and Bigelow House Museum". Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  47. "Washington Association Meets in Houghton Church". mail.kccucc.org. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  48. "Marcine Anderson (King County, Washington)". info.kingcounty.gov. Retrieved 2018-12-10.
  49. "Mission & History". www.kcba.org. Retrieved 2019-01-06.
  50. Cribbs, Bill. "WASHINGTON - Kittitas County - Miscellaneous Obituaries". www.genealogybuff.com. Retrieved 2017-10-15.
  51. Johnson, Natalie (January 10, 2017). "O'Rourke Sworn in as First Female Judge in Lewis County". The Chronicle. Retrieved 2018-01-06.
  52. Gentzler, Sara (October 1, 2020). "Carol Fuller, first female superior court judge for Mason and Thurston counties, dies at 90". The Olympian.
  53. "Pierce County deputy prosecutor to lead local bar association, hopes to diversify group". thenewstribune. Retrieved 2019-01-07.
  54. "Mary Robnett, Pierce County's first woman prosecutor, sworn in to standing ovation". thenewstribune. Retrieved 2019-06-27.
  55. "Kathryn Trumbull, first woman on county Superior Court, dies | HeraldNet.com". HeraldNet.com. 2017-03-24. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  56. "Lawyer Kathleen Taft dies | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  57. Washington State Bar News. Washington State Bar Association. 1996.
  58. "Raising the bar | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2019-07-16.
  59. "First female judge in Spokane County Superior Court retiring this week". Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2018-01-04.
  60. Gillmore, Inez Haynes (1933). Angels and Amazons: A Hundred Years of American Women. Doubleday, Doran, Incorporated.
  61. Crooks, Jennifer (2019-05-19). "People in Public Service: Sally Eke". ThurstonTalk. Retrieved 2019-07-10.
  62. Washington State Bar News. Washington State Bar Association. 1988.
  63. "Sandy Flores '08 is first Latina lawyer sworn into the bar in Walla Walla". Whitman College. 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2017-10-15.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.