List of first women lawyers and judges in Montana

This is a list of the first women lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Montana. It includes the year in which the women were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are women who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in Montana's history

Ella Knowles Haskell: First female lawyer in Montana (1888)

Susan P. Watters: First female judge of the U.S. District Court in Montana (2014)

Law School

• First female law graduate: Edna Rankin McKinnon (1919) ^[1]

Lawyers

• First female: Ella Knowles Haskell (1888) ^{[2] [3] [4]}
• First Native American (Crow Nation) female: Mary Frances Garrigus (c. 1918) ^[5]

Law Clerk

• First female to clerk for a Supreme Court of Montana justice: Betty Ann Sias (1945) ^[6]

Federal judges

• First female (federal magistrate): Carolyn Ostby (1981) in 2002 ^[7]
• First female (U.S. District Court of Montana): Susan P. Watters (1988) in 2014 ^[7]

State judges

• First female (Chief Justice; Montana Supreme Court): Karla M. Gray (1976) in 2000 ^[7]
• First female (Montana Supreme Court): Diane Barz (1968) in 1989 ^[7]
• First Native American (Navajo) female elected (justice court): Joey Jayne ^{[8] [9]}
• First female (youngest): Shannen Rossmiller in 2000 ^{[10] [11] [12]}

Montana Judicial Court

• Karen Townsend: ^{[13] [14]} First female elected as a Judge of the Fourth Judicial District (2011) Missoula and Mineral Counties, Montana
• First female (Twelfth Judicial District): Kaydee Snipes Ruiz (2011) in 2019 ^[15]
• First female (Thirteenth Judicial District): Diane Barz (1968) in 1978 ^[7]
• First female (Twentieth Judicial District): Deborah “Kim” Christopher in 2000 ^[16]

Assistant Attorney General

• First female: Ella Knowles Haskell (1888) in 1893 ^{[2] [3] [4]}

United States Attorney

• First female: Doris Swords Poppler (1948) in 1990 ^{[17] [18]}

County Attorney

• First female: Emily E. Sloan (1919) in 1924 ^[19]

State Bar of Montana

• First female admitted: Edna Rankin McKinnon (1919) ^[1]
• First female president: Sherry Scheel Matteucci ^[20]

Firsts in local history

• Kitty Curtis: ^[21] First female judge in Flathead County, Montana (1994)
• Holly Brown: ^[22] First female district court judge in Gallatin County, Montana
• Colleen Herrington: ^[23] First female chief judge (2023) in Gallatin County, Montana
• Deborah Kim Christopher: ^[24] First female to serve as the Lake County Attorney, Montana (1991). In 2000, she became the first female judge of the Twentieth Judicial District. ^[25]
• Jennifer Boatwright-Lint: ^[26] First female to serve as a district court judge in Ravalli County, Montana (2018)

See also

• List of first women lawyers and judges in the United States
• Timeline of women lawyers in the United States
• Women in law

Other topics of interest

• List of first minority male lawyers and judges in the United States
• List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Montana

References

1. Capace, Nancy (January 1, 2000). Encyclopedia of Montana. Somerset Publishers, Inc. ISBN   978-0-403-09604-6.
2. Wishart, David J. (2004). Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN   0803247877.
3. Godey's Magazine. Godey Company. 1896.
4. Wishart, David J. (2004). Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. U of Nebraska Press. ISBN   9780803247871.
5. "Mary Frances Garrigus '18". Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law. August 6, 2015. Retrieved October 8, 2016.
6. "Betty Ann Sias '45". Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law. August 6, 2015. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
7. "Women and the Bench". Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law. September 12, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
8. "6 Questions With Joey Jayne, Montana's First Native Woman Justice Court Judge - Indian Country Media Network". indiancountrymedianetwork.com. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
9. "Char-Koosta News - Joey Jayne is the new Justice of Peace". www.charkoosta.com. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
10. "Terrorist Hunter". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
11. "Conrad woman details her cyber war on terrorism". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
12. "Case 16: Pipelines and the terrorist hunter" (PDF).
13. Missoulian, BETSY COHEN of the. "Townsend sworn in as Missoula's first elected female District Court judge". missoulian.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
14. Larson, Seaborn. "Four move forward in appointment process to replace Judge Townsend". missoulian.com. Retrieved July 22, 2019.
15. "Snipes Ruiz: 'I'm ready' to start as state judge". Havre Daily News. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
16. Kimbel-Sannit, Arren (March 29, 2024). "District court judge resigning during judicial standards complaint". Montana Free Press. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
17. "Doris Swords Poppler '48". Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law. August 6, 2015. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
18. Johnson, Clair. "Billings attorney and former Supreme Court justice Diane Barz dies". The Billings Gazette. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
19. "Emily E. Sloan '19". Montana's Early Women Lawyers: Trail-blazing, Big Sky Sisters-in-Law. August 6, 2015. Retrieved October 16, 2017.
20. Howard, Tom (November 8, 1992). "Unequal justice? Female lawyers find bias in courtrooms". Billings Gazette. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
21. DAVIS, JESSE (December 2012). "Judge closes 18-year career on bench". www.dailyinterlake.com. Retrieved December 31, 2018.
22. Monares, Freddy (May 22, 2020). "County's first female district judge announces retirement". Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
23. "'They value me less': Bozeman's first female chief judge says her salary is lower than male predecessor". KBZK News. April 13, 2023. Retrieved August 15, 2024.
24. "Judge Deborah Christopher announces reelection bid". Char-Koosta News. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
25. "District judge announces retirement". Sanders County Ledger. Retrieved December 17, 2024.
26. Maki, Kevin (September 24, 2018). "Ravalli Co.'s first female District Court Judge takes oath". KECI. Retrieved January 2, 2019.