Document Not Available

Interview with Judge Joan Margolis

IntervieweeInterview with Joan Glazer Margolis American

InterviewerInterviewed by William H. Narwold American

Date2016 December 14

DimensionsDuration: 9 Minutes

ClassificationsGraphics

Credit LineGift of the Connecticut Bar Foundation

DescriptionOral history interview with Judge Joan Margolis who was interviewed by Bill Narwold on December 14, 2016 for the Connecticut Bar Foundation's History of Connecticut Women in the Legal Profession Project.

Topics Discussed:

- Grandparents' Background: Judge Margolis's four grandparents immigrated from Russia in 1905, fleeing pogroms and facing poverty. Her father was a Yale University graduate and U.S. Army veteran. Her paternal grandfather died at 36 in an industrial accident, leaving her grandmother to raise four children. Her maternal grandfather lost his business during the Great Depression, leading to her mother and a sibling living with neighbors.

- Childhood and High School: Judge Margolis grew up in Westville, New Haven. Her father was a CPA. She graduated as valedictorian from Richard C. Lee High School in 1971. Her high school experience was marked by the New Haven race riots that occurred near the school. The school had a diverse student body and she learned to navigate racial tensions. Her mother served as president of the New Haven PTA Association. During the Vietnam War, many Yale, Trinity, and Wesleyan graduates taught at the school to receive draft deferments. Judge Margolis was also politically involved in the 1960s and 1670s, participating in protests on the New Haven Green, influenced by events like the Black Panther trial and the Vietnam War.

- Her Husband: In the summer of 1970, she met her husband, Stuart, while volunteering for Joseph Lieberman.

- College: She applied to four colleges and chose Brandeis. Stuart initially attended Carleton College in Minnesota but transferred to Brandeis.

- Law School: Her father suggested law school, and she decided to pursue it. Judge Margolis and Stuart both entered UConn Law School in 1975. They financed their education using wedding gift money. During a summer working at a Milford, Connecticut law firm, she befriended a female attorney named Sonja Goldstein, who later became her neighbor. She served as a Notes and Comments editor for the Connecticut Law Review.

- Clerkship: Upon graduating and passing the bar exam in 1978, she completed a two-year clerkship for Judge Ellen Bree Burns.

- Becoming a Federal Judicial Officer : She was motivated to become a judicial officer by the concept of justice. She was appointed seven years after law school during the new Bail Reform Act. Her office locations were various: Hartford, New Haven, and Bridgeport.

- Enjoyment of Work: Judge Margolis most enjoys settlement conferences, particularly complex and challenging cases.

- Notable Cases: She settled a significant case involving HIV positive inmates, resulting in a consent decree that became a national model for correctional facilities and in which she remains involved. Another notable case involved settling a dispute with the City of Hartford's Police Department regarding weapon discharge incidents.

- Connecticut Law Review Alumni Award: Judge Margolis received the Connecticut Law Review Alumni Award.

- Changes in Legal Practice and Judging: She notes that technology has dramatically changed the legal profession. Judging has also changed with technology, as information is now primarily digital, and filings can be made 24/7.

- Naturalization Ceremonies: Judge Margolis enjoys conducting naturalization ceremonies.

- Personal Interests: She enjoys "extraordinary" TV shows on streaming services and is a "binge-watcher." She is religious and attends synagogue often.

Object number2024.38.53a-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)

Subject Terms