Women in Law: Navigating the Tensions of Gender Bias and Intersectionality at the Cape and Johannesburg Societies of Advocates (the Bar)

Abstract

In recent years gender transformation of the judiciary has come into greater focus. While great gains have been made in terms of race, transformation in terms of gender has noticeably lagged behind. In this context researchers and students like myself have asked the question why. My research sought to uncover some answers by focusing on a particular segment of the profession, Advocates (also known as the Bar). The Bar constitutes a particular locus of study precisely because it has traditionally been considered a pool from which to select judges. In this context the following research questions emerge: firstly, what are some of the aspects of the organisation of the Bar, both social and structural, that impact women; and secondly, how do those aspects impact women? Taking the view that the substance of knowledge and insight sought is to be found with the very women we are concerned with, I investigated this by eliciting the experiences of women via interviews and a survey which...