Who was the first woman to graduate law school in us?
Asked by: Wendell Kreiger | Last update: November 18, 2025Score: 4.6/5 (48 votes)
Ada Kepley Encouraged by her husband to study law and join him in his practice, Kepley attended Northwestern University's Pritzker School of Law, graduating with honors in 1870, making her the first woman to graduate from law school in the U.S.
Who was the first female lawyer in the United States?
19th century. 1869 – Arabella Mansfield became the first female lawyer in the United States when she was admitted to the Iowa bar.
Who was the first woman to pass the bar exam?
On June 15, 1869, in the town of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, Arabella “Belle” Mansfield took the bar examination for the state of Iowa and became the first woman admitted to the bar in the United States.
When did the first woman graduate from Yale Law School?
Alice Rufie Jordan Blake received a bachelor's in law in 1886 from Yale Law School, becoming the university's first female graduate.
What first lady was an attorney?
First Lady Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is a lawyer, writer, and the wife of the 44th and current President, Barack Obama.
10 Signs You Should Become A Lawyer
Who was the first woman to graduate law school?
1870 – Ada Kepley became the first woman to graduate from law school in the United States; she graduated from Chicago University Law School, predecessor to Union College of Law, later known as Northwestern University School of Law.
Does Michelle Obama have a law degree?
Raised on the South Side of Chicago, Obama is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. In her early legal career, she worked at the law firm Sidley Austin where she met her future husband. She subsequently worked in nonprofits and as the associate dean of Student Services at the University of Chicago.
Who was the first woman at Harvard Law?
Quick side note - women have been at HLS for less than seventy years, so - more to come. In 1947, Soia Mentschikoff became the first woman to teach at HLS.
Who was the first woman to graduate college in America?
The first woman to get her diploma was Catherine Elizabeth Benson Brewer, who received hers July 16th 1840 at the Georgia Female College, now known as Wesleyan College.
What is the oldest law school graduate?
John VanBuskirk was the oldest law school graduate in 2018, completing his degree at the University of North Texas Dallas College of Law at the age of 71.
Who was the first Black woman to become a lawyer?
Charlotte E. Ray graduated from Howard Law School on February 27, 1872, becoming not only the first female African-American lawyer in the United States but also the first practicing female lawyer in Washington, D.C.
Who is the youngest person to pass the bar exam in USA?
ROB SCHMITZ, HOST: So what were you doing when you were 17 years and eight months old? Well, Sophia Park was taking the California State Bar exam and breaking a record for the youngest person ever to pass the exam in the state.
Who has the hardest bar exam?
Is The California Bar Exam Hard? Yes, the California bar exam is widely considered to be the most difficult of all state bar exams in the US. The California bar exam has a pass rate of 34%.
Who is the greatest female lawyer of all time?
- Ruth Bader Ginsberg. A list of the top lawyers would not be complete without Ruth Bader Ginsberg. ...
- Janet Reno. Janet Reno was an American lawyer that embodied the American work ethic and dream. ...
- Sandra Day O'Connor. ...
- Gloria Allred. ...
- Kamala Harris. ...
- Sonia Sotomayor.
Who is the youngest female lawyer?
Aishwarya Bhati is the youngest female Advocate in India designated as a Senior Advocate in the Supreme Court. She is the Additional Solicitor General of India and is a prominent lawyer in pushing through reforms in law on abortion and making it possible for women to be inducted in permanent commission in the army.
Who was the first black woman Harvard law?
Lila Fenwick '53, who dedicated her career to human rights advocacy, overcame formidable barriers to become the first Black woman to graduate from Harvard Law School in 1956 — only six years after the school began admitting women.
Who was the first woman to become a doctor?
Elizabeth Blackwell (1821–1910) was the first woman to earn a medical degree in the United States. In 1857, with her sister, Emily Blackwell, MD; and Marie Zakrzewska, MD, she opened the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. She also published Pioneer Work in Opening the Medical Profession to Women in 1895.
Who is the first lady graduate?
India's first female graduate
Ganguly started her education at Bang Mahila Vidyalaya and then received BA from the University of Calcutta in 1883 being the first woman to graduate in India (Rao, Karmin & Motiwala, 2007).
Who was the first woman to get a law degree in the United States?
Ada Kepley
Encouraged by her husband to study law and join him in his practice, Kepley attended Northwestern University's Pritzker School of Law, graduating with honors in 1870, making her the first woman to graduate from law school in the U.S.
Who was the homeless girl who graduated from Harvard?
Elizabeth Murray (born September 23, 1980) is an American memoirist and inspirational speaker who is notable for having been accepted by Harvard University despite being homeless in her high school years. Her life story was chronicled in Lifetime's television film Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story (2003).
Did Ruth Bader Ginsburg attend Harvard?
She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She met her husband Martin “Marty” Ginsburg (Harvard Law School Class of 1958), while both were students at Cornell, and they were married in 1954. In the fall of 1956, she enrolled at Harvard Law School as one of only a handful of women in a class of more than 500 students.
What was Barack Obama's degree in?
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, Obama graduated from Columbia University in 1983 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and later worked as a community organizer in Chicago. In 1988, Obama enrolled in Harvard Law School, where he was the first black president of the Harvard Law Review.
Which president had a law degree?
Other US lawyer-presidents include Franklin Roosevelt, James Madison, John Quincy Adams, Woodrow Wilson and Bill Clinton. Barack Obama follows in the footsteps of Rutherford B. Hayes, the 19th president, as the second Harvard law graduate to make his way to the Oval Office.
What major law did Obama pass?
Obama signed many landmark bills into law during his first two years in office. The main reforms include: the Affordable Care Act, sometimes referred to as "the ACA" or "Obamacare", the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, and the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010.