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List of first women lawyers and judges in Connecticut

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This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Connecticut. 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 graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in Connecticut's history

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Mary Hall: First female lawyer in Connecticut (1882)
Deirdre M. Daly: First female U.S. Attorney in Connecticut (2014)

Lawyers

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  • First female: Mary Hall (1882)[1][2]
  • First females to serve as municipal court prosecutors: Shirley R. Bysiewicz and Lillian Malley Vernon c. 1951[3][4]
  • First African American female: Bessye Anita Warren Bennett (1974)[5]
  • First Latino American (female) prosecutor: Rosita "Bae" Cremer (1978)[6]
  • First Asian Pacific Islander female: Elizabeth Yen (1980)[6]
  • First DACA-recipient (female): Denia Perez in 2018[7]

State judges

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Federal judges

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  • First female (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit): Susan L. Carney (1977):[19]
  • First female (U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut): Ellen Bree Burns (1947) in 1978[12]
  • First female (U.S. Magistrate Judge for the District of Connecticut): Joan G. Margolis in 1985[20]
  • First female (Chief Judge; U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut): Ellen Bree Burns (1947) in 1988[12]
  • First South Asian (female) (U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut): Sarala Nagala in 2021[21]
  • First Latino American female (U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut): Maria Eugenia Garcia in 2022[22]

Attorney General of Connecticut

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Assistant Attorney General

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United States Attorney

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Assistant United States Attorney

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  • First African American female: Cheryl Brown Wattley in 1978[6]
  • First Latino American female: Carmen E. Espinosa in 1980[6][15][16]
  • First Pacific Islander (female): Carolyn Ikari in 1995[6]
  • First South Asian (female): Krishna Patel in 1999[6]

State's Attorney

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  • First African American (female): Gail Petteway Hardy in 2007[6]

Assistant State's Attorney

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  • First female: Anne C. Dranginis (1972) in 1977[27][28]
  • First African American (female) to serve as a Supervisory Assistant State's Attorney: Juliett L. Crawford in 1988[6]

Public Defenders

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  • First female: Ellen B. Lubell around 1977[29][30]
  • First African American (female) to serve as the Chief Public Defender: TaShun Bowden-Lewis in 2022[31]

Assistant Public Defender

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  • First Latino American (female) to act as a Supervisory Assistant Public Defender: Grace Cavero Feliú in 1998[6]

Connecticut Bar Association

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  • First female (president): Marilyn Seichter from 1989-1990[32]
  • First female (executive director): Alice A. Bruno in 2012[33]
  • First Hispanic American (female) (president): Maggie I. Castinado in 2023[34]

Firsts in local history

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  • Vivien Hall Root:[35] First female lawyer in Fairfield County, Connecticut (c. 1905)
  • Dianne Andersen (c. 1950s):[36] First female lawyer in Danbury, Connecticut [Fairfield County, Connecticut]
  • Dianne Yamen:[37] First female probate judge in Danbury, Connecticut (1990) [Fairfield County, Connecticut]
  • Mary Hall (1882):[1][2] First female lawyer in Hartford County, Connecticut
  • Catherine Kligerman:[38] First female to serve as the President of the Hartford County Bar Association, Connecticut (1990)
  • Eboni S. Nelson:[39] First African American (female) to serve as the Dean of the University of Connecticut School of Law (2020)
  • Susan C. O'Neill:[40] First female lawyer in Waterbury, New Haven County, Connecticut
  • Ellen B. Lubell:[29][30] First female to serve as a Public Defender for the New Haven Judicial District (c. 1977) [New Haven County, Connecticut]

See also

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Other topics of interest

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Mary Hall, the First Woman Admitted to Practice Law in Connecticut | Connecticut State Library". ctstatelibrary.org. Retrieved 2018-02-07.
  2. ^ a b "Mary Hall, the First Woman Admitted to Practice Law in Connecticut – Connecticut State Library". ctstatelibrary.org. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  3. ^ Connecticut Bar Journal. Connecticut Bar Association. 1976.
  4. ^ "LILLIAN MALLEY VERNON, 88; RETIRED TAX ATTORNEY". Hartford Courant. 1999-03-26. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  5. ^ Normen, Elizabeth J. (2014-01-27). African American Connecticut Explored. Wesleyan University Press. ISBN 9780819574008.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Historical Context: Pre-1900 to Present". Connecticut Bar Foundation.
  7. ^ "This Young Attorney Is the First DACA Recipient Admitted to Practice Law in Connecticut". LAW.COM. Retrieved 2022-10-26.
  8. ^ Independent Woman. National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs. 1921.
  9. ^ Clarke, Ida Clyde Gallagher (1924). Women of Today. Women of Today Press.
  10. ^ Courant, Hartford. "JOANNE KULAWIZ; ONE OF FIRST FEMALE JUDGES". courant.com. Retrieved 2019-01-11.
  11. ^ a b "Selected Highlights of Women's History United States & Connecticut 1773 to 2015" (PDF). The Permanent Commission on the Status of Women. March 2015.
  12. ^ a b c "Nearing retirement, state's first female judge looks back". NewsTimes. Retrieved 2018-01-09.
  13. ^ a b "Ellen Ash Peters (LL.B. 1954) | Yale Law Women". yalelawwomen.org. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  14. ^ "Connecticut's first female African-American judge suspended for late decisions". New Pittsburgh Courier. 2013-06-20. Retrieved 2018-02-01.
  15. ^ a b c d "Justice Carmen E. Espinosa - Biography". www.jud.ct.gov. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  16. ^ a b c d Hawkins, Carol Hooks (2008-11-18). American Women Leaders: 1,560 Current Biographies. McFarland. ISBN 9780786452750.
  17. ^ a b c June 28, Robert Storace |; PM, 2018 at 05:22. "A Woman of Many 'Firsts': Nina Elgo Takes On New Role as Connecticut Appellate Court Judge". Connecticut Law Tribune. Retrieved 2019-01-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ "The Honorable Maria A. Kahn Receives 2017 Ladder Award" (PDF). Connecticut Bar Association. Summer 2017.
  19. ^ "Senate Confirms Susan Carney - NWLC". NWLC. 2011-05-18. Retrieved 2018-01-09.
  20. ^ "New Haven U.S. Magistrate Judge To Retire". New Haven, CT Patch. 2018-04-26. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  21. ^ Hulse, Carl (2021-06-15). "A leading voting rights expert is among Biden's new round of judicial nominees". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-03-29.
  22. ^ LA PRIMERA MUJER HISPANA COMO JUEZA MAGISTRADA DEL DISTRITO DE CONNECTICUT, retrieved 2022-08-19
  23. ^ "The Biographies of the Attorneys General of Connecticut". CT.gov - Connecticut's Official State Website. Retrieved 2018-11-19.
  24. ^ Storace, Robert. "Former US Attorney Nora Dannehy Returns to Office to Serve as Counsel". outline.com. Retrieved 2019-06-28.
  25. ^ "Fairfielder Deirdre Daly sworn in as first woman to be U.S. attorney in state". Fairfield Citizen. 2014-05-28. Retrieved 2018-12-21.
  26. ^ "U.S. Senate Confirms Vanessa Avery As CT's 1st Black U.S. Attorney". New Haven, CT Patch. 2022-04-27. Retrieved 2022-07-29.
  27. ^ American, Republican. "Dranginis recalls her days in Litchfield court | Archives". Retrieved 2018-12-26.
  28. ^ "Anne Dranginis". www.evergreeneditions.com. Retrieved 2018-12-26.
  29. ^ a b Illson, Murray (1977-08-14). "A Pioneer Public Defender". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  30. ^ a b Courant, ANNE M. HAMILTON, Special to The. "Tony DeMayo: A Champion For Those Who Needed One". courant.com. Retrieved 2019-03-25.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ Edison, Jaden (2023-07-26). "CT's chief public defender speaks out about turmoil in her agency". CT Mirror. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  32. ^ NEYER, CONSTANCE. "MARILYN SEICHTER DIES; 1ST WOMAN TO HEAD STATE'S BAR". courant.com. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  33. ^ GRIFFIN, ALAINE. "First Woman Named To Head State Bar Association". courant.com. Retrieved 2018-12-22.
  34. ^ "Passing the gavel: Maggie Castinado, JD '98, elected first Hispanic president of the Connecticut Bar Association". www.qu.edu. 2023-11-10. Retrieved 2024-02-10.
  35. ^ Connecticut Bar Journal. Connecticut Bar Association. 1975.
  36. ^ "Prominent Danbury lawyer Dianne Andersen remembered". NewsTimes. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  37. ^ Perrefort, Dirk; Writer, Staff (2011-01-04). "Danbury Probate Judge Dianne Yamin sworn in Monday by Gov. Rell". NewsTimes. Retrieved 2018-12-21.
  38. ^ "Hartford County Bar Association: Presidents" (PDF). Hartford County Bar Association.
  39. ^ "State NAACP Honors UConn Law Dean Eboni S. Nelson". UConn Today. 2021-10-20. Retrieved 2022-03-15.
  40. ^ "Briefly". infoweb.newsbank.com. April 17, 2013. Retrieved 2024-04-12.
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