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 From Women and the Criminal Justice System, Katherine Van Wormer and Clemens Bartollas, 2000:
Shortly after the 1977 article on Flora Stuart was published, this young public defender was catapulted to
early prominence with a case that was any feminist's dream: a young woman charges with manslaughter for
performing an abortion on herself with a knitting needle.
"Miss Flora," as the judge called her, argued for her beautiful young client, the defendant, before a packed
courtroom. Reporters from Time magazine and Newsweek were among those in attendance. Following a not-guilty
verdict came guest appearances for the lawyer and client on Good Morning America and the Phil Donahue Show.
Today, Flora Stuart concentrates on personal injury cases; she has recently settled dozens of silicone breast
implant lawsuits. She has what must be one of the few mother-daughter law
firms in the country. In her words:
A second glance at the major law firms would immediately reveal the fact that the lead partners are mostly male.
Women who join the firms now rarely move to the top. Finding a mother and daughter as a legal team is still rare,
but it is not unusual to find a father and son duo practicing law together. Some attorneys (particularly from the
earlier generation) still find it difficult to accept a female attorney as their full equal. Time will eventually
melt away these extreme prejudices against our gender, but the battle is far from being won.
Twenty-two years after I started my journey down the legal road, my daughter now practices law by my side. It is a
different world from when I began. (Stuart, 1998, p.1)
The contrast between the professional challenges that mother and daughter have known symbolizes the differences in
the world a woman lawyer faces in the 1970s and the world of today. Unlike her mother, Natalie Stuart attended a law
school in which almost half the students were female and was taught by female as well as male professors. On graduation,
a place in an established law firm was ready for her. In her hometown, her mother had already blazed the trail. Not only
is there no shock on people's faces today as the younger Stuart begins her opening statement before the "ladies and
gentlemen of the jury," but the judge is likely to be a female, as is the opposing counsel. Not all women admittedly,
have such a clear trail to follow, and for everyone with family obligations, the 60- to 70-hour weeks can be strenuous.
The grind, coupled with the relentless competition, starts with legal education.
See Also Bowling Green's Only Woman Trial Lawyer: "I Wanted to Change Things"
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