Paving the path forward for women in the law
This year, I was invited to speak at the University of Ottawa’s Pre-Law Society’s International Women’s Day (IWD) Panel, an event I once helped plan. Speaking alongside other female law students inspired me to share some reflections for this month’s celebration of women around the world.
I want to first share an experience I had attending the launch of a political candidate’s campaign (who will be referred to as “Candidate X”) a while back. I brought along two of my roommates and we noticed immediately upon entering the event that we were among the few women in attendance. We didn’t think much of it though, and went to look for a place to stand while awaiting Candidate X’s opening remarks.
As we stood there, an older man approached me. He didn’t say “hi” or introduce himself. He simply said, “You know Candidate X is married, right?” I was unsure of what to say and ended up nodding my head. He then said, “You should be careful because we don’t want to deal with a scandal.” I was taken aback. Instead of responding, I ushered my friends, who hadn’t heard the stranger’s remarks, to leave. For the rest of the event, I was self-conscious about how people were perceiving my presence at the launch. I mean, why else would a young woman attend a campaign party if not to seduce the candidate into a political scandal?
These subtle, degrading comments are not unique to politics. I was told multiple times before applying to law school that if I wanted to have a family, I should avoid pursuing a career in law. Fortunately, I didn’t heed that advice.
There are three problematic assumptions underlying the “if you want a family” statement. First, it rests on the idea that all women want to become mothers and care for a family. This is not true for all women and it is wrong to assume that someone has certain priorities based solely on their gender. Second, it reinforces the notion that women, as nurturers, are unable to function in a highly competitive and demanding profession. Nobody should be discouraged from following a certain career path based on preconceived notions regarding traditional, and in many cases, outdated gendered stereotypes. Thirdly, these statements reinforce the myth that it is a mother alone who is responsible for rearing a child. Gender roles have changed over the recent generations. If both parents are present, they are both equally responsible for raising a family so that the burden does not lie just with the matriarch. The onus is also on employers to create programs to aid women rather than punish them for personal matters. It is time to stop pushing the narrative that being a woman in law means sacrificing one’s personal wishes.
Two years ago, I attended another IWD event that brought in women from different backgrounds and legal fields to talk about their careers. None of the panelists mentioned having to give up a hypothetical future family. Nor did they advise us to change ourselves to fit into the “ideal” mold of what a lawyer should look like. Before that event, I had never spoken with a female lawyer (or really any lawyer for that matter). Since then, I’ve met so many talented women pursuing a legal career, each in their own way and with their own individual aspirations.
With that being said, I know I am not an outlier and that the incidents I have faced need to be placed relative to what others have dealt with. Many women face these kinds of situations which may be twofold as these occurrences intersect with other aspects of their lived experiences including race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, etc.
I remain optimistic about the trajectory of the legal industry’s treatment of women. I recently heard of a firm that implemented equitable policies to ensure that a woman who enters an associate position at the same time as her male counterpart but has to take time off for maternity leave, will be promoted upon return if during her leave, her counterpart has advanced. Further, many workplaces offer paternity leave so as not to allocate the burden of caring for a newborn solely on mothers. Policies like these demonstrate a step forward in promoting equity within the legal practice.
Throughout my time at law school and beyond, I have met so many passionate and ambitious women who I am confident will change the culture and attitude surrounding women in the workplace, whether within the legal profession or any other industry. There are also many allies of varying genders who want to see positive changes and are supportive of those who are attempting to implement them. So, on this reflection of International Women’s Day, I look back at the women who paved the way for the women of today to cement this path.
