The Study of Gender in the Courts: Keeping Bias at Bay

Abstract

I am pleased to introduce the following two companion papers on gender in the United States Eighth Circuit courts. They emerge from a partnership of social scientists and legal professionals, spurred by a national movement to understand influences of gender on the judicial system. These studies reflect a majority of voices in the Eighth Circuit bench and bar– women and men who work in and preside over the federal courts of seven states. This project yielded a wealth of data, the analysis of which reveals ways both subtle and overt by which gender bias threatens fairness in the courts. Underscoring the importance of this and similar projects, Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor once stated, “by acknowledging and not trivializing the effects of gender bias on reasonable women and men, courts can work toward ensuring that neither men nor women will have to run a gauntlet of abuse in return for the privilege of being allowed to work and make a living” (as quoted in the Final Report of the Eighth Circuit Gender Fairness Task Force [ECGFTF] 1997, 8).