Women of Legal Tech

March is Women's History Month, and the Harris County Law Library is celebrating. All month long, we are paying tribute to a woman of distinction, Camille Elizabeth Stanford Openshaw. View our digital exhibit to learn about the achievements of this remarkable woman. Reflect on Ms. Openshaw's contributions to the field of law and the role she played in paving the way for smart, ambitious women to excel as attorneys nearly 100 years later. Take a moment to consider the tremendous evolution in legal practice over the last century and the role of technology in shaping the profession as we know it today.

Women have continued to make great strides not only in the practice of law but also in developing their knowledge and skills in the area of legal tech. Bob Ambrogi declared 2017 the Year of Women in Legal Tech, and the role of women in the legal tech sector is only continuing to grow.

In an effort to "celebrate the women currently in the legal tech space, and to encourage more women to join the ranks," the ABA's Legal Technology Resource Center has recognized "Women of Legal Tech" annually since 2015. The nomination period for this year's honorees just closed on March 1st. The 2018 list of innovative, entrepreneurial, tech-savvy women will be announced later this month. Follow the LTRC on Twitter and Facebook, and the Law Technology Today blog to see the list of 2018 honorees as soon as they are announced.

Women's History Month: Camille E. S. Openshaw

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Harris County Law Library is paying tribute the life and accomplishments of a remarkable woman, Camille Elizabeth Stanford Openshaw.  At a time when women’s educational and career options were very limited, Ms. Openshaw excelled not only as an attorney but as a leader in the local legal community.

Just five years after graduating from South Texas College of Law in 1930, she was elected to the board of directors of the Lawyers Library Association, the first woman to hold the position. She later distinguished herself as a founding partner of the Houston law firm, McIntosh & Openshaw. But perhaps her most sensational claim to fame was her representation of former bank robber, kidnapper, murderer, and fugitive, Raymond Hamilton, whose exploits with the infamous Clyde Barrow Gang resulted in his ultimate execution. Despite Ms. Openshaw’s best efforts to spare his life with a last-minute plea to the State Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, Hamilton was put to death on May 10, 1935.

To learn more about Ms. Openshaw, please visit the Harris County Law Library’s downtown location, where an exhibit honoring her accomplishments will be on display throughout the month of March. An accompanying digital exhibit can be viewed on the library’s website.

Celebrating National African American History Month: Justice Thurgood Marshall

In 1925, the historian, Carter G. Woodson, called for a week-long celebration to recognize the contributions of African Americans in the development of our country. Negro History Week was celebrated for the first time in 1926 and expanded to a full month in 1976, the year of our nation's sesquicentennial. President Gerald R. Ford urged Americans to "seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history."

This year, the tradition continues. In the presidential proclamation issued by the White House on January 31, 2018, a special theme was designated commemorating the contributions of African Americans in Times of War.  To educate and inform the public about the significant contributions of African Americans in combat, the National Archives has assembled an extensive list of resources called Blacks in the Military.

We at the Harris County Law Library hope to do our part in honoring National African American History Month.  We'd like to call greater attention to the many notable African Americans who have played such crucial roles in shaping the law and achieving civil rights. With a special exhibit, we honor the first African American to rise to the bench of the U.S. Supreme Court and perhaps the most influential African American lawyer in U.S. history -- Justice Thurgood Marshall.   

An exhibit commemorating the extraordinary life of Justice Marshall will be on display in the Law Library lobby throughout the month, and a digital exhibit is available on the Law Library's website.

For additional digital resources celebrating African American history and the remarkable life of Justice Thurgood Marshall, please visit the following sites:

Biography.com -- Thurgood Marshall: A Justice for All (VIDEO)

Thurgood Marshall Center for Service and Heritage

Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture

Fighting Hate Crimes and Bias in Texas - a free CLE event

Register for this free CLE opportunity today at www.harriscountylawlibrary.org/tendollars

The fight against violence and bigotry is of perennial concern in American Jurisprudence. Ten Dollars to Hate by Patricia Bernstein brings the story of one such fight from the 1920s into our modern consciousness. The book tells the story of Texas prosecutor Dan Moody, whose efforts against the Ku Klux Klan led to the nation's first successful prosecution of the well-connected group for their violent assaults and criminal acts. Moody's lead was followed around the country, loosening the supremacist group's grip on American politics.

Ms. Bernstein will present her research alongside a panel of attorneys who fight hate and bias everyday at a free CLE event on September 8. The event is cosponsored by the Offices of Vince Ryan, Harris County Attorney, and Kim Ogg, Harris County District Attorney, and is accredited for both CLE (3.0 hours in Texas; 0.5 hour ethics) and TCOLE credit. Register today at www.harriscountylawlibrary.org/tendollars.

On this Day: Magna Carta and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

On June 15, 1215, the Magna Carta was signed at Runnymede meadow in Surrey, England. View our digital exhibit to learn more about this historic document and its role in shaping our democracy.

Many of the fundamental values we cherish, including liberty, equality, and freedom from tyranny, are direct descendants of the rights established by the Magna Carta more than 800 years ago. These ideals are embodied in our nation's founding documents and embraced by people around the world, even in countries whose governments deny any such protections to their citizens.  

Following World War II and the atrocities it spawned, an effort unfolded in the United Nations to codify the inalienable rights of people everywhere. The Human Rights Commission was established in 1946 as a standing body of the UN to draft the defining document. Two years later, on December 10, 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted. Nearly every country in the world accepted the 30 articles that comprise the UDHR and integrated them into their bodies of law. The UDHR, which some have described as the Magna Carta of the modern age, remains a powerful instrument today, and its impact continues to be felt all over the world.