As it is evident from the historic election three days go, the United States is progressing. Regardless of one's political preference, there is no question that Barack Obama has shattered barriers, falsified stereotypes and provided hope to so many of those who did not experience the privilege of hope before.  Momentous events for African Americans and women in history have frequently gone hand in hand.  Women are frequently stereotyped, misunderstood, and under represented.  This especially holds true for women in the legal community.  

Women are now fortunate enough to have the opportunity to go to the top law schools, to work in large firms, and even to be elected to high public service positions.  While this is positive, it doesn't eliminate the fact that women are underestimated and stereotyped. Coming in January is a new magazine designed specifically for women in the legal community that hopes to banish some of these notions.  The publication is titled "Sue:  For Women in Litigation."

"Our belief is that there is a glass ceiling.  However, it's probably time for women to stop staring at the glass ceiling and start getting off the sticky floor," says the publications creator, Chere Estrin.  I'd agree with her.  All women can glimpse the possibilities, but to step off the floor and break the glass is not a particularly easy task.  The attention is almost always focused on familiar problems such as unequal pay, consideration for women with families, etc.  Estrin says, "While these are important issues, we found that most of those articles are primarily written about major firms.  Not every woman wants to be partner in a major firm and the majority of attorneys are not in major firms. Not every woman has little children. There are many more issues."

What are these issues?  They come from the foundations.  Estrin places an emphasis on the fundamentals such as establishing independence and strength.  She believes through information, women can learn how to hone their soft and hard skills, thereby empowering themselves as a whole to defy traditional stereotypes, "We feel that abolishing stereotypes and recognizing strengths is one avenue for success and equality."  We think she's right.   Additionally women should have a channel through which they can associate with other women who they can relate to, whom they can be inspired by--they should feel as if they are part of something.  They should not feel singled out in the legal world. The legal community has been dominated by men since the establishment of the United States and "Sue" will be a valuable asset in helping women in litigation to equalize that dominance and further develop their position in the legal community.

For a glimpse at Sue Magazine visit http://www.suemagazine.com/.  The magazine which will first be released in January will be published bi-monthly.

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