Next 100 Years: Women In Law

Our latest monthly newsletter the "Women in Law Who" is out - make sure to read it, share with your friends and subscribe. Also - share your achievements and news so we can feature in our future editions! Link to it in comments below #womeninlaw #events #inspiration #celebration

Our patron, Lady Hale, joined a packed house in Belfast to celebrate the journey of #womeninlaw ❤️

✨Belfast✨ You were amazing! Thank you for the incredible celebration of #womeninlaw Thank you for making us feel so welcome Thank you to our special guests Lady Hale and Lady Chief Justice Siobhan Keegan for their thoughtful keynote addresses Thank you to Aoife O'Donoghue and Sophie Crumlin for joining the discussion chaired by Dana Denis-Smith Thank you to each and one of you for braving the cold weather and the fog And thank you to our generous supporters and hosts 🙏Queen's University Belfast 🙏Danske Bank 🙏 A&L Goodbody LLP Big thank you Jenny Moore, our champion and winner at our Inspirational Women in Law Awards 2021 for her incredible support and work to make this event happen #womeninlaw #first100years #celebrate #inform #inspire

Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill, the Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales, delivered the Mayflower 400 Lecture at the University of Plymouth on Thursday 28 November.   The lecture, entitled 'Enacting Just and Equal Laws – Enforcement and Fair Trial', can be read on the judicial website: https://lnkd.in/e89PHHSn

This week Dana Denis-Smith was in Belfast for A Celebration of Women in Law, a Next 100 Years: Women In Law event at Queen's University Belfast to mark the 10th anniversary of the First 100 Years project founded by Dana. Lady Hale, the Lady Chief Justice of Northern Ireland Dame Siobhan Keegan, Aoife O'Donoghue and Sophie Crumlin made up the panel chaired by Dana to discuss the progress of women in law and the ongoing challenges in the profession.

It's not often you get to work with some of the trailblazers across leadership from government, the judiciary, academia and the legal profession. This week was a pretty special one, and an absolute pleasure for me to organise. Excitement all round as we made every effort possible to make sure Baroness Lady Hale of Richmond and Dana Denis-Smith of Next 100 Years: Women In Law made it over to NI for our Celebration of Women in Law Event. Derry Airport saved us - no fog there it seemed!! Our guests from London joined our Lady Chief Justice, Dame Siobhan Keegan, Aoife O'Donoghue and Sophie Crumlin to help us both celebrate the past and to challenge in the interests of our future leaders. An enormous thanks goes to Queen's University Belfast (in particular Joanne Mallon Dr Portia Ellis-Woods and Adam McNee), A&L Goodbody LLP (in particular Emma Beattie & Ciaran O'Shiel) and Danske Bank UK (in particular Caroline van der Feltz FCIPD) who have supported this idea from its inception. Thanks to Dana Denis-Smith for her unstoppable vision - massively enjoying this journey we are on! #Pavetheway Queen's University Belfast A&L Goodbody LLP Danske Bank UK Next 100 Years: Women In Law CBI (Confederation of British Industry) Northern Ireland Office

“I became interested in reading for the Bar when I was 15…but then I got a bit of a setback I was at a careers lecture at school and there was a government careers officer there and at the end of his talk, I asked him what you have to do to become a barrister, and his answer went something like this - ‘Is your father a solicitor?’ ‘No.’ ‘Have you got perhaps an uncle who is a solicitor?’ ‘No.’ ‘Have you got any male relations in the law?’ ‘No.’ ‘I’d give it a miss if I were you, the law is a man’s world.’” - Dame Janet Smith, High Court judge, born this day in 1940.

🎂 Happy Birthday, Dame Janet Smith, born on this day, 29.11.1940 It was a privilege to capture her life story and work for our First 100 Years library of films - link to watch hers in the comments below. "I was at a careers lecture at school and there was a government careers officer there, and at the end of his talk, I asked him what you had to do to become a barrister. And his answer went something like this: - Is your father a solicitor? "No".  - Have you got perhaps an uncle who is a solicitor? "No". - Have you got any male relations in the law? "No"  I’d give it a miss if I were you. The law is a man’s world.  And the awful thing about that is that I didn’t feel any sense of outrage - it was 1956, and that was how things were and I took it. What in a way is more scandalous, I think, I mean, it’s scandalous enough that a government careers officer should say that, but what was also very disappointing is that nobody in school came to me afterwards and said: "oh Janet that was dreadful; if you really are interested in going to the Bar we’ll help you"... Nothing. So I dropped the whole idea until I was 28." 🌟 Dame Janet Smith worked as a barrister in Manchester for twenty years. 🌟 She was appointed to the High Court in 1992 and then chaired the Harold Shipman Inquiry in 2001-2. 🌟 In 2002, Dame Janet became the fourth woman appointed to the Court of Appeal. 🌟 In 2012, she chaired the Jimmy Saville Inquiry. #womeninlaw #first100years #legalcareers

🎈 Happy Birthday to Madeleine Heggs, born #otd 29 November 1929! 🎂 Madeleine defies age, arriving impeccably dressed, sharp as ever. Born to the chime of Bow Bells, Madeleine’s story is one of resilience and achievement. 🌟 From battling illness in her early years to being evacuated during WWII, Madeleine’s childhood was challenging but formative. Despite losing her father early, her mother’s determination ensured that she and her siblings received a solid education. 🎓 A trailblazer, Madeleine chose law over medicine, graduating as one of the few women in her field. She faced immense prejudice but broke barriers, qualifying as a solicitor in 1955 and becoming the first woman Social Security Commissioner in 1981. 👩⚖️ Her career spanned decades, from setting up her practice while raising three children to hearing high-profile cases. Madeleine’s dedication and pioneering spirit have paved the way for many women in law today. 🚀 Today, women make up over half of new solicitors, a testament to trailblazers like Madeleine. Her legacy is an inspiration, encouraging the next generation of women in law. Cheers to Madeleine Heggs, a true pioneer! 🥂✨ #Inspiration #WomenInLaw #Trailblazer #HappyBirthday #LegalPioneer #Empowerment #WomenWhoLead

📸📸📸 Have a look at another batch of photos from our 2024 Heilbron Lecture! Feel free to share these photos with your friends and colleagues, but please remember to credit Next 100 Years: Women In Law and our photographer for the event, Marcos Bevilacqua 😊 There are some great shots here of our engaging speakers and attentive listeners, so see if you can spot yourself... 👀 Photo descriptors: 1) Seema Misra accepting flowers from Saniyah Mazhar 2) Flora Page standing at her lecture listening to a question from the audience 3) Our front row of attendees listening to Flora's lecture 4) Flora Page's mother asking a question during the question period of the lecture 5) Another member of the audience asking a question 6) Flora Page listening to an audience member's question 7) Our guests clapping as Flora finishes her lecture #Heilbron #RoseHeilbron #First100Years #Next100Years #WomeninLaw