who is the first female canadian lawyer

Who is the first female Attorney General in Canada?

In 1988, she became the first female to hold the office of Canadian attorney general and proved instrumental in the movement to increase gun control in Canada. In 1993, Campbell was appointed minister of national defense and veterans’ affairs.

Who was the first black female lawyer in Canada?

When she was eighteen years old, Ms. King attended the University of Alberta obtaining a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1952 and Bachelor of Law degree in 1953. She commenced articles in Calgary with Edward J. McCormick, Q.C. She was the first black female lawyer to practice law in Canada after she was admitted to the Alberta Bar in 1954.

How many female lawyers are there in Canada?

In 2010 in Canada, "there were 22,261 practicing women lawyers and 37,617 practicing men lawyers." Canadian studies show that "50% of lawyers said they felt their firms were doing "poorly" or "very poorly" in their provision of flexible work arrangements."

Who was the first female lawyer in the UK?

Clara Brett Martin. Martin finally achieved her goal on 2 February 1897, becoming the first woman lawyer in the British Empire. She went on to earn Bachelor of Civil Law (1897) and LLB (1899) degrees and to establish a successful Toronto practice.

Who is the first female lawyer?

While women in Britain were campaigning for the right to vote, Cornelia Sorabji became the first woman to practise law in India. After she received a first class degree from Bombay University in 1888, British supporters helped to send her to Oxford University.

Who was the first woman called to the bar in Canada?

Again the Law Society was not compelled to take action, but eventually capitulated to political and public pressure, and Clara Brett Martin passed the final hurdle to full formal eligibility to practise law in 1897, the first woman in Ontario, Canada, and the British Empire to do so.

How many lawyers are female in Canada?

Nearly Half of Practicing Lawyers in Canada Are Women In 2018, there were 48,982 practicing women lawyers and 57,636 practicing men lawyers.

What percent of lawyers are female in Canada?

While women make up well over 40 per cent of practicing lawyers in Canada, according to data from Catalyst, a smaller percentage of women make partner compared to men.

Who was the first black female lawyer in Canada?

Violet Pauline King HenryViolet Pauline King Henry – First Black Canadian Woman Lawyer. Violet Pauline King Henry was a woman of many firsts. She was the first Black person to graduate law school in Alberta, the first Black person to be called to the bar in Alberta, and the first Black woman to serve as a lawyer in Canada.

Who was the first lawyer in Canada?

Clara Brett MartinClara Brett Martin (25 January 1874 – 30 October 1923) was a Canadian lawyer. She opened the way for women to become lawyers in Canada by being the first in the British Empire in 1897....Clara Brett MartinDied30 October 1923 (aged 49) Toronto, Ontario, CanadaOccupationLawyer2 more rows

Which country has the most female lawyers?

ItalyAs of 2020, Italy had the highest number of female lawyer members to the Bar association in all of Europe. The Mediterranean country counted over 120,000 of them. Italy, however, is also by far the country with the highest number of lawyer members of the Bar (247,000).

Is law male or female dominated?

Law is a male-dominated field As we've mentioned, women make up half of all law students. And many of these women go on to become associates at law firms. But looking the statistics in the report on women in the law, published by the American Bar Association, it becomes clear that men are still largely in charge.

Can a woman be a lawyer?

Women make up a third of all lawyers at law firms, according to 2013 National Association for Law Placement (NALP) figures; women of color make up just 6.5 percent of all lawyers, a number that's remained stable since 2009.

How many law students graduate each year in Canada?

Of the 44,000 new graduates each year, only 26,000 find work in the legal field, according to statistics published by the National Association for Law Placement (NALP).

How many lawyers are in Canada?

How Many Lawyers Are There In Canada? There are 130,000 lawyers in Canada. That is a lot of lawyers for the population of the country. Ontario has also added over 10,000 paralegals, who can do simple legal work (including some court work.)

How much do the top 10 percent of lawyers make?

Across all fields and locations, the median salary for lawyers in 2016 was $118,160, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics. The same year, the BLS reported that the bottom 10% of lawyers earned under $54,910, while the top 10% earned over $208,000.

Who was the first woman lawyer in Canada?

Eventually, after a last minute hissy fit over what women lawyers should wear in court, the society backed down and, on February 2, 1897, Clara Brett Martin became a fully fledged solicitor and barrister, and the first woman lawyer in Canada, indeed the first woman lawyer in the British Empire.

Who was the first woman lawyer in the British Empire?

A Modest pioneer, Clara Brett Martin, the daughter of a Mono Township pioneer family, became a pioneer of a different sort when she challenged the Law Society of Upper Canada to become the first woman lawyer in the British Empire. March 21, 2009 | Ken Weber | Heritage. At the Martin family homestead settled in 1832 near Blount in Mono Township, ...

What was the ad for Clara Brett Martin?

On February 3, 1897, the day following her call to the bar, a tiny ad appeared in the Toronto Telegram: “Miss Clara Brett Martin desires a position in a law firm where experience can be had in practical work, that being the object rather than salary.”

How did Clara Martin die?

In 1906 Clara established her own firm on Toronto’s Bay Street which she ran successfully until, sadly, she died of a heart attack on October 30, 1923, at age 49.

How long did it take Clara to become a lawyer?

Over the six years it took Clara to become a lawyer, such comments were continually dumped in her direction. None of them ever dealt with her gifted mind, her achievements or her determination. Even on the day she made history by being called to the bar, the Toronto Telegram simply noted that she “wore a black gown over a black dress … and bore her honours modestly.” Only the Montreal Witness that day paid tribute to her “strong sincerity, indomitable perseverance, and splendid brain.”

How old was Clara when she took on the hidebound law society?

After bringing some of the most powerful figures in Canada to her side in taking on the hidebound Law Society of Upper Canada – and she was still just nineteen – this must have been a low point for Clara. In a rare interview given years later she described enduring “annoyances too petty to be put on the record, but none the less real … the thousand ways that men can make a woman suffer who stands among them alone.”

What is Clara's queer duck?

“A queer duck” (often code for “feminist”), one of her fellow students called her; “a very odd sort of woman” was the phrase of another.

What was the first woman to become a lawyer in Canada?

At the end of the nineteenth century, Canadian women were barred from participation in, let alone any influence on or control over, the legal system–women could not become lawyers, magistrates, judges, jurors, voters or legislators. Clara Brett Martin (1874 – 1923) became the first female lawyer in the British Empire in 1897 after a lengthy debate in which the Law Society of Upper Canada tried to prevent her from joining the legal profession. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1891, Martin submitted a petition to the Law Society to become a member. Her petition was rejected by the Society after contentious debate, with the Society ruling that only men could be admitted to the practice of law, because the Society's statute stated that only a "person" could become a lawyer. At that time, women were not considered to be "persons" in Canada, from a legal perspective. W.D. Balfour sponsored a bill that provided that the word "person" in the Law Society's statute should be interpreted to include females as well as males. Martin's cause was also supported by prominent women of the day including Emily Stowe and Lady Aberdeen. With the support of the Premier, Oliver Mowat, legislation was passed on April 13, 1892, which permitted the admission of women as solicitors.

Who was the first woman judge in Canada?

Helen Kinnear QC (1894 – 1970) was a Canadian lawyer who was the first federally appointed woman judge in Canada. She was the first woman in the British Commonwealth to be created a King's Counsel and the first in the Commonwealth appointed to a county-court bench and the first female lawyer in Canada to appear as counsel before the Supreme Court in Canada in 1935. Marie-Claire Kirkland-Casgrain CM CQ (born 1924) is a Quebec lawyer, judge and politician who was the first woman elected to the Legislative Assembly of Quebec, the first woman appointed a Cabinet minister in Quebec, the first woman appointed acting premier, and the first woman judge to serve in the Quebec Provincial Court. Marlys Edwardh CM (born 1950) is a Canadian litigation and civil rights lawyer who was one of the first women to practice criminal law in Canada. Roberta Jamieson C.M. is a Canadian lawyer and First Nations activist who was the first Aboriginal woman ever to earn a law degree in Canada, the first non-Parliamentarian to be appointed an ex officio member of a House of Commons committee and the first woman appointed as Ontario Ombudsman. Delia Opekokew is a Cree woman from the Canoe Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan, who was the first First Nations lawyer admitted to the law societies in Ontario and in Saskatchewan as well as the first woman ever to run for the leadership of the Assembly of First Nations. Opekokew graduated from Osgoode Hall in 1977, and was admitted to the Bar of Ontario in 1979 and to the Bar of Saskatchewan in 1983.

Who are some of the most famous Canadian lawyers?

Some Canadian lawyers have become notable for their achievements in politics, including Kim Campbell, Mélanie Joly, Anne McLellan, Rachel Notley and Jody Wilson-Raybould .

Who is Rachel Notley?

Rachel Notley (born 1964) is a Canadian politician and the 17th and current Premier of Alberta, since 2015. Notley's career before politics focused on labour law, with a specialty in workers' compensation advocacy and workplace health and safety issues.

Who is Anne McLellan?

Anne McLellan PC OC AOE (born 1950) is a Canadian lawyer, academic and politician. She was a cabinet minister in the Liberal governments of Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin, serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Canada. On February 26, 2015, she was appointed chancellor of Dalhousie University effective May 25. She was a professor of law at the University of New Brunswick and the University of Alberta Faculty of Law where she served at various times as associate dean and dean. In 2009, McLellan was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada for her service as a politician and law professor, and for her contributions as a community volunteer.

Who is Jody Wilson?

Jody Wilson-Raybould was Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada.

Who was the first female prime minister of Canada?

Kim Campbell PC CC OBC QC (born 1947) is a Canadian politician, diplomat, lawyer and writer who served as the 19th Prime Minister of Canada, from June 25, 1993 to November 4, 1993. Campbell was the first, and to date, only female prime minister of Canada, She earned an LL.B. from the University of British Columbia in 1983.

Who was the first female lawyer in the British Virgin Islands?

Dancia Penn : First female lawyer in the British Virgin Islands. Dancia Penn : First female lawyer in the British Virgin Islands. She became the first British Virgin Islander female to be appointed Attorney General of the British Virgin Islands in 1992.

Who was the first female lawyer in Greenland?

Vera Leth: First Greenlandic female lawyer (1988). She is also the female to serve as the County Council Ombudsman for the Parliament of Greenland (1997).

Who is the first female president of the Mexican Bar Association?

Claudia Elena de Buen Unna: First female to serve as the Vice-President (2019) and President (2021) of the Mexican Bar Association, B.C. (Barra Mexicana, Colegio De Abogados, A.C.)

Who was the first female lawyer to perform a legal expedition in Greenland?

Agnete Weis Bentzon: First female lawyer to perform a legal expedition in Greenland (the result of which led to the creation of a criminal law system in Greenland). She served as a judge in Greenland from 1963-1964. Prior to the expedition, she had the distinction of being Denmark's first female professor of law.

Who was the first woman to serve as a Magistrate and President of Guatemala?

María Luisa Beltranena de Padilla: First female to serve as a Magistrate and the President (Post-Serranazo; 1993) of the Supreme Court of Guatemala

Who were the first female judges of the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic?

Ana Isabel Bonilla Hernandez and Katia Miguelina Jiménez Martínez: First females to serve as Judges of the Constitutional Court of the Dominican Republic (2011)

Who was the first female justice of the peace in the Dominican Republic?

Luisa Comarazamy de Los Santos: First female Justice of the Peace in the Dominican Republic (c. 1950s)

When did women win the vote in Canada?

Canada’s History decided to mark the centennial of the first women to win the vote in Canada — in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta in 1916 — by celebrating great women from Canada’s past.

Who was the secretary of state for Canada in 1965?

LaMarsh served as secretary of state from 1965 to 1968 where she oversaw the centennial year celebrations, brought in the new Broadcasting Act, which introduced many of the core features of today’s broadcasting policy, and established the Royal Commission on the Status of Women in Canada.

What is Margaret Laurence famous for?

One of the giants of Canadian literature. Born in Neepawa, Manitoba, Margaret Laurence graduated from United College (now the University of Winnipeg) and lived in Africa with her husband for a time. Her early novels were about her experience in Africa but the novel that made her famous — The Stone Angel — was set in a small Manitoba town very much like the one she grew up in. Her work resonated because it presented a female perspective on contemporary life at a time when women were breaking out of traditional roles. Laurence was also active in promoting world peace through Project Ploughshares and was a recipient of the Order of Canada.

What did Thérèse Casgrain do for women?

She helped to found the Provincial Franchise Committee for Women’s Suffrage in 1921 and later hosted a prominent radio program, called Fémina, for Radio-Canada. She became the first female leader of a political party in Canada — the left-leaning Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) — in the 1940s. In the early 1960s, she founded the Quebec branch of the Voice of Women to mobilize women against the Cold War nuclear threat. Later, she became the Quebec president of the Consumers Association of Canada. She did much to better the lives of Canadian women. Photo: Archives nationales du Québec

Who was Mary Shadd?

Mary Shadd Cary (1823–1893) First black woman newspaper editor in North America. Mary Ann Shadd was a tireless advocate for universal education, black emancipation, and women’s rights. Born in Delaware, Shadd moved to Windsor in Canada West (now Ontario) to teach in 1851. She soon founded the Provincial Freeman, which was dedicated to abolitionism, ...

Who is Gabrielle Roy?

A francophone writer who gifted to Canada some of the most memorable novels of the twentieth century. Gabrielle Roy chronicled hardship and hope, family and estrangement, and the difficulties of love. Born in St. Boniface, Manitoba, in 1909, Roy was the youngest of eleven children in a family without material wealth but replete with stories. Despite hard times, she saved enough to travel to Europe in 1937. There she began writing. She returned to Canada in 1939, and published her first novel — Bonheur d’occasion — in 1945. The novel won France’s Prix Fémina and its English translation, The Tin Flute, won Canada’s Governor General’s Award. She would go on to win two more Governor General’s Awards, as well as other literary prizes.

Who was David Thompson's wife?

Explorer David Thompson’s wife and interpreter. Charlotte Small was born at Île-à-la-Crosse, a fur trade post in what is now northern Saskatchewan. She was the daughter of a Cree woman and a white trader with the North West Company. Raised among her mother’s people, her knowledge of both English and Cree made her a valuable companion to Thompson. Married at age thirteen to twenty-nine-year-old Thompson, Small would go on to accompany the explorer as he mapped much of western Canada, covering as much as 20,000 kilometres. Thompson acknowledged that his “lovely wife,” with her knowledge of Cree, “gives me a great advantage.” Their strong and affectionate partnership lasted 58 years and they raised 13 children. Photo: As depicted on the cover of Woman of the Paddle Song written by Elizabeth Clutton-Brock.

Who was the first female prime minister of Canada?

Kim Campbell becomes Canada’s first female prime minister. In Ottawa, Kim Campbell is sworn in as Canada’s 19th prime minister, becoming the first woman to hold the country’s highest office. Born in Port Alberni, British Columbia, in 1947, Campbell studied law and political science before entering Canadian politics during the 1980s.

What was the Mann Act?

Congress passes Mann Act, aimed at curbing sex trafficking. Congress passes the Mann Act, which was ostensibly aimed at keeping young women from being lured into prostitution, but really offered a way to make a crime out of many kinds of consensual sexual activity.

When did Campbell become the Minister of Defense?

In 1993 , Campbell was appointed minister of national defense and veterans’ affairs. Two months later, Prime Minister Mulroney announced his resignation, and Campbell was encouraged to run for the Conservative Party leadership.

Who was the youngest premier of Quebec?

Robert Bourassa made headlines when, in 1970, he became the youngest premier of Quebec. After a crushing defeat 6 years later, following corruption scandals, he moved to Europe and the U.S., where he taught while in exile. In the mid-1980s, he reclaimed the Liberal Party leadership and became a premier again.

Who was the 8th prime minister of Canada?

Robert Borden was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. World War I started during his tenure, and he received much admiration for his leadership throughout the war. As the prime minister, he introduced women's suffrage for federal elections.

Who played Louise Arbour in Hunt for Justice?

Arbour's attempt to indict Bosnian Serb war criminals inspired a 2005 TV film titled Hunt for Justice, where Louise Arbour was played by Wendy Crewson.

Who was the first black woman to publish a newspaper?

The first North American Black woman to publish a newspaper, USA-born Mary Ann Shadd was the founder of the Canadian newspaper, The Provincial Freeman. Concurrently serving as its anonymous editor and contributor, she also became one of the first women to pursue journalism in Canada. She was also one of the first Black women to earn a degree in law.

Who is the mayor of Toronto?

Famous As: Mayor of Toronto. Birthdate: May 28, 1954. Sun Sign: Gemini. Birthplace: Toronto. John Tory is a Canadian politician who is serving as the current mayor of Toronto. Before establishing himself as a politician, Tory was a businessman, lawyer, and political strategist.

Who is Frank McKenna?

Frank McKenna is a Canadian businessman who is currently serving as the Toronto-Dominion Bank's Deputy Chairman. A former politician, McKenna served as the premier of New Brunswick between 1987 and 1997. An influential and authoritative leader, McKenna was expected to lead the federal Liberal Party in 2008 after the resignation of Stéphane Dion. However, he didn't contest for the position.

Who is Deborah Coyne?

Canadian constitutional-lawyer, professor, and author Deborah Coyne, niece of second Governor of Bank of Canada James Elliott Coyne, worked for some time in Prime Minister's Office of John Turner. Her professional endeavours also include working for Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. Her first child, daughter Sarah Elisabeth Coyne, was born through her relationship with former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

When did the first indigenous person graduate law school?

It wasn't until the 1950s that the first indigenous person graduated from law school. Today, indigenous people are among some of the most prominent and successful in the country. Here are five indigenous lawyers who are using their profession to help change Canada.

When did Katherine Hensel join the bar?

Katherine Hensel was called to the bar in 2003. Just a year later, the member of the Secwepemc nation began to serve as assistant commission counsel for the Ipperwash Inquiry. After working with a prominent litigation firm for several years, Hensel left to establish Hensel Barristers in 2011.

Who is Christa Big Canoe?

A member of the Georgina Island First Nation, an Anishinaabe community in Ontario, Christa Big Canoe is the legal advocacy director of Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto.

Who is Donald Worme?

A founding member of the Indigenous Bar Association of Canada, Donald Worme is a Cree lawyer based in Saskatoon. From the Kawacatoose First Nation, Worme first rose to prominence for his work in the Neil Stonechild inquiry in 2003, during which he represented Stonechild's family.

Overview

Life and career

Death and legacy

In popular culture

See also

External links

Clara Was Not Intimidated

Intelligent and Courageous Or Just ‘A Queer Duck’?

No Women Allowed

Power, Persistence, and The Pulling of Strings

Worth The Struggle?

• On February 3, 1897, the day following her call to the bar, a tiny ad appeared in the Toronto Telegram: “Miss Clara Brett Martin desires a position in a law firm where experience can be had in practical work, that being the object rather than salary.” There were no ads from graduating male students that day. Neither of the firms where she had artic...

See more on inthehills.ca