by Rachel Peck, Fellow,
Womenstake, National Women's Law Center

Lately our attention has been focused on the difference a third woman will make on the Supreme Court. But in the midst of our excitement about the benefits of more female representation on our nation’s highest court, we should not forget about the need for more female representation on all levels of our court system.

This past weekend the National Law Journal had a profile of Judge Diana Murphy, the only woman who has ever served on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals. Or to put it in starker terms ? of the fifty-seven people who have ever served as a judge in this court’s history, Judge Murphy is the lone female to have ever been appointed! As Judge Murphy has said of her status as the sole woman, “[y]ou get tired of being the only one.”

While the Eighth Circuit is particularly egregious in its lack of female judges, other circuits have not done much better. In total women make up only 29% of all Circuit Court Judges. Judge Murphy explains that having more women and minorities would “bring added depth and a broader perspective” to the court. This is one of the reasons we must strive to increase diversity on all of our courts from the Supreme Court on down.