Bradwell v. Illinois

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Bradwell v. State of Illinois, 83 U.S. (16 Wall.) 130 (1873), was a United States Supreme Court case which ruled that women were not granted the right to practice a profession under the United States Constitution.

The case was brought to the court by Myra Bradwell , who sought to be admitted to the bar to practice law in Illinois . The Court ruled that the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment did not include the right to practice a profession as a woman. This court case was a Fourteenth Amendment challenge to sex discrimination in the United States, and it no longer reflects current legal standards as current Title VII Laws restrict employment discrimination based on gender .

Contents

• 1 Background of the case

• 2 Decision

  • 2.1 Majority

  • 2.2 Concurrence

  • 2.3 Dissent

• 3 Aftermath

• 4 See also

• 5 References

• 6 Further reading

• 7 External links

Background of the case

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Myra Bradwell began informally practicing law in 1852 as an apprenticeship to her attorney, husband, James Bradwell . At the age of thirty-eight, in 1869, she met the Illinois bar requirements, but despite fulfilling the Illinois statute requirements of good standing character and sufficient training, she was denied the right to practice law due to her gender.

After bringing suit, she received a ruling from the Illinois Supreme Court that her rejection was a result of her "marital disability". Her ability to practice law was restricted due to the fact that she was a married woman. The Illinois Supreme Court cited the legal doctrine of feme covert , a common law principle, which granted a woman's legal standing to her husband upon marriage. This meant that Myra Bradwell did not have a legal existence apart from her husband.

Bradwell appealed to the United States Supreme Court, arguing that the Privileges and Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protected her right to pursue a lawful profession like any other citizen, regardless of her sex or marital status. Bradwell argued that as a citizen of the United States, she was entitled to the rights and privileges afforded to citizens, including the right to practice law. Lastly, Bradwell argued that the Illinois Court decision based on feme covert was outdated and that her marital status did not correlate with her ability to practice law.

Decision

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Majority

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In an 8-1 decision, the United States Supreme Court upheld the Illinois ruling, denying Bradwell the right to practice law. The majority opinion, written by Justice Samuel Freeman Miller , stated that the right to practice law was not protected by the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, as it was not considered a fundamental right of U.S. citizenship. The court emphasized that the power to regulate professions, including setting qualifications for the legal profession, fell under the jurisdiction of individual states.

The Court first rejected Bradwell's claim that her rights were violated under Article IV, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution , which guarantees citizens of each state the "privileges and immunities" of citizens in other states. Since Bradwell was a resident and citizen of Illinois, the Court concluded that this provision did not apply to her case. As Justice Miller stated, "The protection designed by that clause, as has been repeatedly held, has no application to a citizen of the state whose laws are complained of"(Page 83 U.S. 138). The clause was designed to protect citizens when they traveled to other states, not to protect citizens from discriminatory laws within their own state.

Photo of Myra Bradwell c. 1870

The Court also dismissed Bradwell's argument that the Fourteenth Amendment's Privileges and Immunities Clause had been violated. The justices held that the right to practice law was not among the rights associated with U.S. citizenship . As Justice Miller wrote, “The right to admission to practice in the courts of a state is not one of [the privileges and immunities of U.S. citizenship]... this his right in no sense depends on the citizenship of the United States”(Page 83 U.S. 139). Furthermore, the Court emphasized that the power of a state to prescribe qualifications for admission to the bar was unaffected by the Fourteenth Amendment. The ability to set criteria for those wishing to enter the legal profession was squarely within state authority, and the federal government had no basis for interfering in this matter. The Court pointed to the recently decided _Slaughter-House Cases _ to support its position, which clarified the limited scope of federal authority over state-regulated privileges. According to this precedent, the right to regulate professional admissions fell within the state's jurisdiction, and states could determine qualifications without federal intervention.

Concurrence

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Associate Justice Joseph P. Bradley concurred with the Court's decision, basing his decision on the natural differences between men and women. He argued that it was not a fundamental right or privilege for women to be admitted to every profession, particularly those requiring special qualifications and responsibilities such as the practice of law . Justice Bradley's decision was based on the perception of traditional gender roles , yet he also relied on the precedent of the limited scope federal authority had over state-regulated privileges.

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