Abstract:
The presentation explores the career paths of Estonia’s first female lawyers in the first half of the twentieth century, a period shaped by rapid political change and legal reform. Transitions from imperial rule to independence in 1918, followed by economic crisis and occupation, reshaped legal education and professional opportunities. While women achieved equality at universities following independence, professional advancement remained limited. Between the two world wars, women constituted just 9% of law graduates, and only a fraction secured positions matching their qualifications. Prejudices, economic instability during the 1930s, and competition with male colleagues restricted access to prestigious legal careers. No woman was appointed a judge before the Second World War, while limited numbers entered the bar or notarial profession. The presentation highlights the gap between educational access and professional recognition, revealing how early female lawyers navigated roles as critics, colleagues, and competitors within a transforming legal order.
Bio:
PhD Merike Ristikivi is an Associate Professor of Legal History at the Faculty of Law, University of Tartu. Her research focuses on Roman law, contemporary legal history, legal language, and judicial reforms. Her scholarly interests also include legal education and the intersection of law and gender, on which she has published extensively. She has led several research projects on the recent history of Estonian law and institutional reforms, funded by the Estonian Ministry of Justice and the Estonian Academy of Sciences. She is the Director of the PhD program in Law at the University of Tartu, and Vice President of the European Society for Comparative Legal History (ESCLH).
Time: 15:00-16:30, Tuesday 27.1.2026
Location: Porthania, P673, University of Helsinki (Yliopistonkatu 3)
Online attendance:
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