Interview with Rosemary Guiliano
IntervieweeInterview with
Rosemary Guiliano
American, born 1953
InterviewerInterviewed by
Maureen Dennis
American
Date2016 November 29
DimensionsDuration: 9 Minutes, 7 Seconds
ClassificationsGraphics
Credit LineGift of the Connecticut Bar Foundation
DescriptionOral history interview with Rosemary Guiliano who was interviewed by Judge Maureen Dennis on November 29, 2016 for the Connecticut Bar Foundation's History of Connecticut Women in the Legal Profession Project.
Topics Discussed:
- Early Life: Rosemary Elizabeth Giuliano was born on October 13, 1953, in Waterbury, Connecticut.
- High School: Rosemary Giuliano attended Notre Dame Academy in Waterbury. She was involved in various student activities.
- First job: Her first job at age 15 was at the Watertown Drive-In food concession. She later got a job at the Heminway Box Shop in downtown Waterbury.
- College : She initially attended Skidmore College for two years, where she began as a psychology major. She transferred to Smith College to improve her chances of getting into a better law school. At Skidmore, she designed her own one-month study abroad program in England and also traveled to the Netherlands, Germany, and France.
- Law School: Rosemary Giuliano attended the University of Connecticut School of Law from 1975 to 1978. The only female professor she recalled was Wendy Susco, who taught Family Law. She was involved in the Student Bar Association and served as its president in her third year, later learning she was the first woman president of the SBA.
- March: During her SBA presidency she organized a march on the State Capitol to persuade the Legislature to move the law school to the Hartford Seminary campus, which was ultimately successful.
- Early Legal Career: During law school, she interned as a legislative aide to State Rep. John Berman. She then secured a summer position with Attorney Leonard Casella in Naugatuck, Connecticut, a solo practitioner engaged in general practice. After graduation, she accepted a position with Leonard Casella, concentrating on a wide range of areas.
- First Memorable Cases : "Shea versus Jones," a construction defect case. Had one criminal case involving her client, Mr. Bellemare, who had complained about roaming dogs.
- Involvement in Bar Associations: She became involved with the Connecticut Bar Association as a law student. She became Chair of the Young Lawyers Section of the CBA after starting practice. She also joined the Board of Directors of the Alumni Association for a few years in the mid-1980s and the Board of the UConn Law School Foundation in the late 1990s, serving as president of the Board from 2010-2012.
- Opening Own Practice: Rosemary Giuliano practiced with Leonard Casella for ten years, becoming a partner after four years. After ten years, she opened her own solo law practice, seeking more independence. Her practice became more specialized, focusing on family law, while also handling some plaintiff's personal injury cases, residential real estate closings, and drafting simple wills.
- Perception as a Woman Attorney.
Topics Discussed:
- Early Life: Rosemary Elizabeth Giuliano was born on October 13, 1953, in Waterbury, Connecticut.
- High School: Rosemary Giuliano attended Notre Dame Academy in Waterbury. She was involved in various student activities.
- First job: Her first job at age 15 was at the Watertown Drive-In food concession. She later got a job at the Heminway Box Shop in downtown Waterbury.
- College : She initially attended Skidmore College for two years, where she began as a psychology major. She transferred to Smith College to improve her chances of getting into a better law school. At Skidmore, she designed her own one-month study abroad program in England and also traveled to the Netherlands, Germany, and France.
- Law School: Rosemary Giuliano attended the University of Connecticut School of Law from 1975 to 1978. The only female professor she recalled was Wendy Susco, who taught Family Law. She was involved in the Student Bar Association and served as its president in her third year, later learning she was the first woman president of the SBA.
- March: During her SBA presidency she organized a march on the State Capitol to persuade the Legislature to move the law school to the Hartford Seminary campus, which was ultimately successful.
- Early Legal Career: During law school, she interned as a legislative aide to State Rep. John Berman. She then secured a summer position with Attorney Leonard Casella in Naugatuck, Connecticut, a solo practitioner engaged in general practice. After graduation, she accepted a position with Leonard Casella, concentrating on a wide range of areas.
- First Memorable Cases : "Shea versus Jones," a construction defect case. Had one criminal case involving her client, Mr. Bellemare, who had complained about roaming dogs.
- Involvement in Bar Associations: She became involved with the Connecticut Bar Association as a law student. She became Chair of the Young Lawyers Section of the CBA after starting practice. She also joined the Board of Directors of the Alumni Association for a few years in the mid-1980s and the Board of the UConn Law School Foundation in the late 1990s, serving as president of the Board from 2010-2012.
- Opening Own Practice: Rosemary Giuliano practiced with Leonard Casella for ten years, becoming a partner after four years. After ten years, she opened her own solo law practice, seeking more independence. Her practice became more specialized, focusing on family law, while also handling some plaintiff's personal injury cases, residential real estate closings, and drafting simple wills.
- Perception as a Woman Attorney.
Object number2024.38.46a-b
NotesProject Overview: At the turn of the 20th century, other than Mary Hall, women lawyers were virtually unknown in Connecticut. By contrast, at the turn of the 21st century, law schools were enrolling roughly the same number of women as men. Since their earliest time at the bar, women have become leaders in all areas of the profession at a pace out of all proportion to their brief history and number. In 1999, the Fellows of the Connecticut Bar Foundation initiated the Oral History of Connecticut Women in the Legal Profession Project. Within the framework of this dynamic project, the Fellows have been creating a permanent video, audio, and photographic historical record of milestone achievements of women as they have become more visible and achieved prominence in the field of law. In 2019, a leadership donation of $20,000 from the law firm of Carmody Torrance Sandak & Hennessey enabled the project to significantly broaden its scope and plan for the future.
Through its first two phases, the project worked with award-winning documentarian Karyl Evans and attorney/photographer Isabel Chenoweth to produce fifty-eight oral history interviews with outstanding female attorneys and 118 portraits of women in the Connecticut judiciary.
The oral history interviews have collected the stories of women whose ingenuity, perseverance, and intelligence dismantled barriers that historically prevented women from pursuing careers in the law. Connecticut has benefited from the efforts of these “pioneers” as they enriched the legal profession by joining the ranks of their male peers and paved the way for more women to join the profession. (Source: Connecticut Bar Foundation)
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