America’s Early Female Lawyers

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Margaret Brent arrived in the Maryland colony in 1638 and conducted business that would now unmistakably be considered legal work, according to the Maryland State Archives. She appeared frequently in court, pursuing debts and managing her own affairs.

Ann Marwood Durant frequently performed legal work and was the first woman known to have acted as an attorney in a North Carolina court. In 1673, she represented Andrew Ball in his successful effort to recover wages owed to him for work aboard the vessel Two Brothers, according to the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Iowa admitted Arabella Mansfield to its bar in June 1869, and she has since been generally recognized as the first woman formally admitted to a state bar in the United States.

Lemma Barkeloo passed the Missouri bar examination and was admitted in 1870. She practiced law briefly before dying of typhoid fever later that year at age 22.

Phoebe Couzins was admitted to the law department at Washington University in St. Louis in 1869. She graduated in 1871 and was subsequently admitted to the bar in Missouri and several other states.

August 1869 — Myra Bradwell passed the examination required for admission to the Illinois bar.

Sept. 21, 1869 — Bradwell petitioned the Illinois Supreme Court for a license to practice law.

Oct. 6, 1869 — The Illinois Supreme Court’s reporter notified Bradwell that her application had been rejected. In response, she submitted two briefs arguing her case.

Jan. 28, 1870 — The Illinois Supreme Court formally rejected her petition.

Jan. 10, 1872 — Bradwell filed a writ of error with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review of the Illinois decision.

April 1873 — The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the Illinois Supreme Court’s decision refusing to admit her to practice law. The court held that the right to practice law in a state court was not a privilege or immunity of U.S. citizenship protected by the Fourteenth Amendment.

March 29, 1890 — The Illinois Supreme Court reversed course and admitted Bradwell to practice nunc pro tunc, retroactive to the date of her original application.

1892 — Bradwell was admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court.

1894 — Bradwell died of cancer, having never practiced law in either state or federal court.