This article has been written by Charishma V during her internship
INTRODUCTION:
The ultimate objective in life is happiness. The happiness emerges only when you pursue a career of your passion. In the male’s denomination society a woman choosing legal field with love, passion, dedication and interest never have regrets for the profession they have taken up to with stand in the society as equal to men in all sense. Family, children and their society. The women are the powerful element grew already with due dignity and loyalty. There may be less number of women in the legal profession compare with men, but present/current situation even the entire Law Schools is filled with 65% girl and only 35% of boys studying. Imagine the future women legal rally booming out at larger never ever. One of the controversies which were subjected is the position of women in the society. Through theoretically women are given high position in the society, practically they were not treated the same if we look at the actual situation happening. Before women were not allowed to work outside, later women started showing up in some professions and they gradually started entering the legal profession which were initially meant for only men. In this article, I will be talking about how women entered the legal profession along with their struggles and the role played by them in that particular field.
STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES:
• The entry of women in legal profession
• The need of women in legal field
• Achieved women personalities and their contribution
METHODOLOGY:
The information is gathered are from primary and secondary source of data.
As of primary source, a survey was taken from women legal professionals aging from 30-50 years. These sources were compiled and made as a summary.
BACKGROUND STUDY:
If we date back few centuries, women were treated as slaves, they were not allowed to step out of their houses, they were not given the right to take up education, they weren’t allowed to take part in social movements’ etc. But after independence, the Indian constitution guaranteed right to equality and right against discrimination on grounds of gender. They were given minimum education so that they can make decisions on their own and after that women started showing up. Going further, women not only took up minimum education, also they started excelling in many fields and one among them is the legal field. At that time legal profession was not a thing for women. Men have traditionally dominated in that field. Only after lot of struggles women were allowed to take part in the legal field
REVIEW OF LITERATURE:
Buckee, in her unpublished thesis titled “An examination of the event and structure of the legal ready to enter. These struggles prevailed till the twentieth century and after that the policies of globalization gave better opportunities for women in the twenty first century. However, the invasion of modernity, put an end to the medical male chauvinism. Women played a better role thereafter in the legal field
Profession at Allahabad, 1866-1935, submitted to the London University, has made a study of the bar within the United Provinces of India, during a social and historical context. Though her thesis mainly focuses on caste composition, it gives some information about women within the bar also .
Paul (1991), on the opposite hand, confines his study to the bar in South India, but parallels are often drawn from his work to review women within the legal profession in Uttar Pradesh.
EMERGENCE OF WOMEN IN LEGAL PROFESSION:
The impact of feminism in profession, began with journalism, medicine etc. The professions which were dominated by men like law, business etc… were influenced by females in the later years. Nowadays in almost every classes or castes, are under a pressure of economic necessity which lead them to make their earnings for their family. Most women professional face problems in their work place like working under men, late working hours, travelling long distances etc. However, the emergence of women in legal profession was a remarkable one recently in the past 100 years. The influx of women has been expected to change the nature, administration of legislation and even the way of law practiced. Though the entry of women in legal profession was much familiar as that of medical profession, where the medical women professionals argued that the need of privacy for women patients were much needed in the treatments and thus women needs a better position to serve them. But in legal profession, it was under the control of men’s dominion, which was reluctant to allow women inside.
THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN MAKING OF LAW FOR SOCIETY:
Every legislation ever existing is made for a purpose. The time when laws were made, only males were working on it initially. They make laws only on their point of view. They may or may not think from the women’s point of view. When a society is made up of men and women, why not the law makers or the law professionals should be both men and women? Hence the need for women in legal field was necessary here.
ANALYSIS FROM THE DATA COLLECTED THROUGH SURVEY:
The survey was made with women lawyers ranging from 30-50 years. The below listed are some of the summary of their opinions.
Women in legal profession serves as an awareness to society: In our society, if a man is educated, it is for him himself. If we talk about women, it is for her family or society or nation. The legalities, legal concepts, acts etc. is basically a lack in our society. On coping with this, women is felt as best than men on giving any information or awareness to people. Hence as a role of women in legal field, the spread of awareness is more likely to be seen than men.
A better place in society: Women has the capacity to handle anything that comes her way and she puts herself in ‘n’ number of roles both within the house and outside. So when we say law is to protect the society as a whole then women has to be involved in law because just like men women is a part of the society. So if the society’s law and order are formed and protected by male, female and also transgender people, the land will be a much better place for all of us.
ACHIEVED WOMEN IN LEGAL FIELD AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION:
• Starting with the induction of Cornelia Sorabji into the supreme court of Allahabad in 1921 to practice as an Advocate, the bar had thrown open its doors to the feminine population of India. Formally, after the passing of the Legal Practitioners’ (Women) Act, XXIII of 1923 abolishing the bar on women from practising Law, Indian women were granted the right to need up the bar and practice as Advocates within the Courts of Law. Cornelia Sorabji had pioneered the fight for justice for the ‘’pardanashin’’ women of her times, who on account of their ignorance and lack of formal education might be easily deceived by the legal men or their touts.
• Within the early 20th century, two important cases involving women, willing to enter bar, challenged that they were too “persons” under Legal Practitioners Act. In Bebb vs Law Society and Bradwell vs Illinois the judges determined that ladies weren’t ‘persons’ for the aim of entering the bar , albeit the relevant legislation under scrutiny would use a gender-neutral ‘person’ instead of a gender specific ‘he’ or ‘him’.
• Regina Guha’s case was the first ‘persons’ case’ in India. During this case, a five judge bench unanimously came to a conclusion that only men are allowed to require part within the bar. The Legal Practitioners (Women) Act was finally passed in 1923, which removed the disqualifications on basis of gender for ladies participating as legal practitioner.
CONCLUSION:
There are difficulties, we may come across dissatisfied people across various Legal Profession, and they have always some positive perspective about their career in Legal field. After struggling with family for calculation, another hurdles before society women fight for equal rights as men. Legal profession is a million dollar question, but our women started breathing out all these obstacles and laying their root in very stronger manner. Thus the opportunities are certainly created by themselves in all times. All successful women by chance also created their own destiny. For which one need to choose right path at right time “Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall”. Women in legal field is not a brad terminology and could not be confined with the number other distraction in the all aspects. But women have already hoisted their flag from Lower Courts to Supreme Courts.
