Legal News

Is the ?Sisterhood? Over for Women Lawyers?

By Ashby Jones

Being male (albeit a male with a sexually indeterminate first name) we’re not going to weigh in too deeply on this one. But here’s the provocative question laid out in a piece by Vivia Chen in next month’s American Lawyer: Are female bosses tougher for women to work for than are male bosses? And if so, why?

The article, called The End of the Sisterhood, establishes forthwith that the so-called “sisterhood” of female lawyers is, at least on its surface, alive and well. Writes Chen:

The sisterhood of lawyers has never been more potent. In conference rooms and swanky restaurants, women across the ranks–senior partners and associates, general counsel, and staff attorneys–are brainstorming about what it takes for women to succeed in a profession that’s still predominantly male. Over sushi, cosmos, and the occasional mani/pedi treatment, they are bonding, united in the mission for gender equality. The message is clear: Women are united, and they want their sisters to succeed.

However, continues Chen, below the surface lies a churn of competing desires and emotions.

Some members of the sorority tell another story: that women–particularly their immediate superiors–can be their worst tormentors. Fact is, despite the veneer of harmony and the decades of shared struggle, there’s tension on the women’s front. Talk to any group of women lawyers, and there will be plenty of war stories on the betrayals–real or perceived–that they have experienced at the hands of other women.

One of the nice things about Chen’s piece is its clarity: she makes no bones about what she thinks drives this: expectations. “Women expect other women to be more empathetic and nicer–or at least hope they’ll be,” she writes. “When their women bosses aren’t, some women feel betrayed. And that betrayal can feel especially sharp and personal coming from someone who shares XX chromosomes.”

At the same time, Chen acknowledges that there might be something sexist in the very identification of this oft-perceived phenomenon. “It’s a very dismissive notion,” says Lauren Rikleen, the author of “Ending the Gauntlet: Removing Barriers to Women’s Success in the Law.” Says Rikleen: “There’s no counterpart to the term ‘catfight’ when men compete against each other for client credit.”

LB Readers, especially women LB readers, we’d really love to hear from you on this one.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on April 30, 2009 (boomark / email).