Foot Soldiers of the Law

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A key step in women's progress toward top legal posts is attaining partnership in the large, traditional law firms that dominate lucrative corporate practice and carry considerable prestige within the profession. Susan Getzendanner, 42, a former partner in the Chicago firm of Mayer, Brown & Platt, who last December became the first woman U.S. district court judge in Illinois, notes that some major law firms are currently hiring 40% to 50% women. But, she cautions, "their clients haven't changed. The business world is still male-dominated. It will be very interesting to see when women in law firms become the client controllers."

Women lawyers and judges greeted the O'Connor nomination last week with a mixture of enthusiasm and skepticism. "If she is superior, she will help the next generation of women," says Banks, "but she will be judged more harshly than men." As Hufstedler sees it, having a woman on the highest court has "significant symbolic importance." But she too is wary: "There can be such a thing as a token woman on the Supreme Court to avoid addressing women's issues." For most observers, the real test is whether Ronald Reagan is about to depart from his early appointments pattern by naming women to a number of other important posts. On that point, the jury is awaiting the evidence.