It’s a Man’s World … Not!

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I was sitting in a Marin County courtroom the other day, waiting for the judge to take the bench and for my client’s case to be called. As I looked around, I was struck by the fact that of the court personnel and attorneys in the courtroom at that time, I was one of only two men present, the other being one of the two bailiffs.

Over the next few minutes, other attorneys and two probation officers arrived, and the defendants were allowed into the courtroom. By the time the judge took the bench, those present in the courtroom, other than the defendants, included 15 women and just 7 men.

The women included …

… the judge, the court reporter, both court clerks, one of the two probation officers, one of the two bailiffs, a district attorney’s investigator, and eight of the 13 attorneys present in court (all three prosecutors, all three public defenders and 2 private attorneys) …

… while the minority group included one bailiff, one probation officer and five private attorneys (myself included). Otherwise, the only men in the courtroom by the time I left were all of the defendants whose cases had been called!