Brett Kavanaugh female law clerks say judge an advocate for women

Eighteen female former law clerks of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh told the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday that President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee is a strong supporter of women in the legal profession.

The women said Judge Kavanaugh achieved “rare gender parity” on the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, hiring 25 women and 23 men as law clerks.

“And he has sent 21 of those 25 women clerks — an impressive 84 percent — on to clerkships at the Supreme Court,” they wrote. “We are proud that so many of those hires have been talented women.”

A variety of women’s groups on the left are opposing the nomination, warning that Judge Kavanaugh is likely to provide the decisive vote to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 high court decision that legalized abortion. One feminist group is also demanding an investigation into whether Judge Kavanaugh knew anything about sexual harassment claims against another federal judge for whom he clerked in 1991.

Judge Kavanaugh’s former law clerks said they’re well aware “that women in the workplace still face challenges, inequality, and even harassment.” But they said the senators who examine the nominee on Judiciary Committee and the American public “should be aware of the important work Judge Kavanaugh has done to remedy those disparities.”

“In our view, the judge has been one of the strongest advocates in the federal judiciary for women lawyers,” they said, calling him a “dedicated mentor” to all his law clerks.

“It is not an exaggeration to say that we would not be the professors, prosecutors, public officials, and appellate advocates we are today without his enthusiastic encouragement and unwavering support,” they wrote.

The group said the if the nominee’s two young daughters choose to follow their father’s career in the law, “they will enter a legal profession that is fairer and more equal because of Judge Kavanaugh.”