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groups have been discussing the barriers facing women attorneys. But recently, these groups have turned an eye toward the judiciary and, unsurprisingly, noted near- parallel fi ndings about the obstacles facing female judges, most notably work-life balance, the demands of raising a family, and unfair perceptions of women in leadership roles. Perhaps most troubling is that gains have been slow and inconsistent at best. Since 2007, the number of women in the federal judi- ciary has remained at about 500.2


t In eight states, women’s


share of federal judgeships is at 10 percent or less, and, to date, no state has achieved equal representation of women judges. T e title of a May report by the National Women’s Law Center, “Women in the Federal Judiciary: Still a Long Way to Go,” is a sobering reminder of the gender inequality still burdening the bench. President Barak Obama has made several key appoint-


DIVERSITY & THE BAR® JULY/AUGUST 2011


he numbers don’t lie. T ey just don’t add up. For several years women have accounted for about half of all law school students, yet a snapshot of the federal judiciary reveals a troubling and widely known trend: Women are grossly under- represented on the bench,


making up just 22 percent of all federal judgeships.1 For years, professional organizations and advocacy


ments in an attempt to balance the scales. In addition to naming Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to the U.S. Supreme Court, he has selected women to fi ll 39 of 86 open district and circuit judge positions, more than double the number of women appointed by George W. Bush.3


While it


certainly helps to have those in leadership positions advo- cate for diversity within the judiciary, three women jurists who share their paths to the bench off er insight into the challenges and opportunities facing their female peers.


BEYOND THE METRICS President Obama has been lauded for appointing women in appreciable numbers to the federal courts but women jurists, such as Martha Vázquez, chief judge of the U.S. District Court District of New Mexico, say increasing the number of women appointed to federal judgeships is a good fi rst step, but it’s only just the beginning. “Diversity is critical—diversity in ethnicity, diversity


in age, diversity in socioeconomic background,” Vázquez says. “For so many years, judges were so similar. T ey all came from a certain academic background; they all came from a certain socioeconomic background. Diversity among the bench is key for the same reasons we believe diversity on our juries is important. Our legal system should be representative.” Before she became a judge in 1993, Vázquez worked as a


trial lawyer for 15 years, both for the state of New Mexico, where she served as assistant public defender, and in private practice. She was inspired to pursue a judicial post after her


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