Is it really such a landmark for diversity for a second female solicitor to be appointed to the High Court bench?
Is it a landmark for diversity that there are now two female High Court judges who ‘trained’ as solicitors? Your article (news, 18 September) tells us that the first female High Court judge actually retrained as a barrister so that really cancels out her ‘solicitor’ status.
We are told that Clare Moulder went to top independent school Cheltenham Ladies College and Clare College, Cambridge. She then worked at Linklaters.
It is a sad indictment of the composition of our judiciary that there are no non-public school/non-Oxbridge educated/non-ex magic circle firm female solicitor High Court judges.
If the Law Society considers it ‘significant’ that a woman with Clare Moulder’s education and work experience has been appointed we have a long way to go before there really is diversity on the senior bench.
Katie Steiner, University of Sheffield, Howells Solicitors, Sheffield
