![]() She taught the same course at Yale before being considered for the Stanford Law faculty. They said: ‘What is this? You got us here and nobody pays any attention to us and there are no women professors!’” Babcock recalled. … They were really different from my generation – all we tried to do was not be noticed and to assimilate. “There was this surge of people, of women, in law school. While running Legal Services, Babcock was invited to teach a new class at Georgetown Law called Women and the Law – one of the first legal courses focused on women’s issues in the country. Wald worked with Babcock in 1971 during a sabbatical from Stanford Law, describing the experience as “an amazing education.” Coming to Stanford Law It was filled with former Supreme Court clerks,” said Michael Wald, the Jackson Eli Reynolds Professor of Law, Emeritus, at Stanford. “Because of her leadership, a position at PDS became one of the most sought-after jobs in the country. Social workers worked with attorneys on sentencing, especially in juvenile court. She established policies, including having every client represented by an individual attorney rather than the office as a whole, allowing attorneys to take cases only if they had adequate time to provide complete representation. Then it turned into a huge prestigious job that made my career, but at the time it felt somewhat like a sacrifice, but one that I had to do – so I did.”īabcock was credited with creating an agency that strove to give the same level of service to indigent defendants as that provided by private law firms. In the end, I just decided I would go for it, and I applied to be the director. There were a lot of people who wanted the job, but couldn’t afford to take it. So they had a lot of difficulty finding applicants. “Back then the director’s salary was set at $16,000,” she said. But Babcock wanted to do legal aid work, so she joined the Legal Aid Agency in 1966.īabcock recalled her experiences there in a 2016 interview with Stanford Lawyer after publication of her memoir, Fish Raincoats: A Woman Lawyer’s Life. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit and then became an associate at the criminal defense firm Williams & Connolly. After graduating from Yale Law School, she clerked for Judge Henry Edgerton of the U.S. “She was a model of personal warmth and grace, a fantastic storyteller, a true friend and mentor to hundreds of our students.” Public defenders officeīabcock was a new attorney when she joined the pilot project that became the Public Defender Service. “As dean, I get to talk to our alums frequently, and I can’t tell you how many mention Barbara as one of the most influential people in their lives,” Martinez said. Lang Professor of Law and dean of Stanford Law School. “Barbara was not simply someone who left an enormously significant public mark, she was someone who was beloved by our students in a way most of us could only dream of,” said Jenny Martinez, the Richard E. The success of the initiative gained national recognition and led to her recruitment to Stanford.Īt Stanford, Babcock was an award-winning teacher and legal trailblazer who inspired the hundreds of students she taught. In 1968, she was appointed the first director of D.C.’s newly named Public Defender Service. ![]() In 1966, she joined a pilot project established by the District of Columbia to deliver legal defense services to the poor. That was, however, not Babcock’s only professional first. Sweitzer Professor of Law, Emeritus, was at her side.īabcock joined the Stanford Law School in 1972. Her husband of 41 years, Thomas Grey, the Nelson Bowman Sweitzer and Marie B. (Image credit: Rod Searcey)īabcock had waged a long battle with cancer. Barbara Babcock was an award-winning teacher and legal trailblazer who inspired the hundreds of students she taught. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |