Bitter Empire

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What Women Wear to Court

  /   /   Lawyer, Not an Elle /   15 Comments

There is a double standard in appropriate court room attire for male and female attorneys. Men wear suit jackets and ties to court every time. I’ve seen 6’3” men borrow the suit jackets of their 5’9” coworkers to go to court when they’ve misplaced their own, men ridiculed or reprimanded for choosing a bowtie over the traditional, and male attorneys who won’t even enter the courtroom if they feel less than professionally dressed. On the other hand, I’ve seen women in dresses I’d wear to the beach, bedazzled jean jackets, make up I’d only wear on Halloween, and shoes only a “dancer” should wear to work. So, I’m going to discuss and occasionally proffer advice on what I see as problematic in women’s court attire, from head to toe.

First Up: Makeup

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  • Honus

    I had the best sex 3 years ago with a woman after losing a motion in court against her. Who knew that she would be writhing in my hotel on top of me only 2 hours and 3 beers after the judge denied my motion to dismiss. I can’t remember what she wore in court because she wore nothing but a smile 30 seconds after we got to my room. I never came across her again in court (too bad) tho I know she is still in the city maybe celebrating a win on some other dude’s pipe.

  • Sean Duesler

    I’m still looking for the male equviolent of the female “sweater set”….

    • Sean Duesler

      *equivalent (sry)….

  • Jeff F

    Nice to read this from a woman’s perspective. As a guy, if I say something it’s politically incorrect. Not that all the guys dress well (for goodness sake button the top button, pull your tie up and polish your shoes, gentlemen. Might want to consider replacing the frayed collar/cuffs shirt too.) but women get away with looking far too casual.

  • mneiai

    Coming from an industry (defense/politics) where professional attire was required and anyone in such casual clothing as sundresses and jean jackets was considered entirely inappropriate and suffered because of it, I don’t think this is the fault of the female lawyers–somewhere down the line, people in charge (men, considering) allowed them, maybe even encouraged them, to dress differently. It probably created a culture where females feel that it is now acceptable and in order to change this you can’t just slut- and body-shame women, there needs to be a dress code created and/or enforced that requires relatively equal levels of formality from everyone. And it should certainly include men in ridiculously tiny borrowed jackets and the like, because that doesn’t look professional, either.

  • Oh my Jove, I never thought that fashion is considered even while dressing up for visiting court room in the normal days. Well, I am now aware that it is necessary to be well dressed in your daily routine, whether you are going to office or any other place.

  • Every professional place has a dressing rules which should be followed by all men and women. It is very important to take the professionalism seriously.

  • Hal

    Get Miley Cyrus to twerk for this website.

  • aisehino

    How do these people not get thrown out? One of my professors loves telling all these stories of women being ignored by the bench because they didn’t wear stockings or showed some cleavage.

  • Kate

    I cilcked this link to read something substantive or possibly witty about women’s attire in the courtroom. I understand that this Website is called “Bitter Empire,” so I didn’t expect flowers and rainbows. Instead, though, I found a seven-page rant that sounds like it was written by a middle school boy.

    – “No one likes muffin tops—especially in court.”

    – “Don’t wear heels if you can’t walk in them. Nothing looks dumber than you and your gummy ankles.”

    – “Drowning in your shirts or turning fabric into sausage casing is not flattering.”

    Really?

    Is the point of your article to just say out loud all of the nasty comments that you say to yourself while you judge other women in court? I agree that all lawyers — regardless of gender — should dress appropriately for court. The body shaming of women in this article is simply uncalled for and way over the top. Believe it or not, even women with “gummy ankles” can be competent advocates.

    I think this author should pay more attention to her own client and her own job in the courtroom than she does to the occasional woman wearing an item of clothing that she deems offensive. Frankly, it’s infuriating to hear other women talk like this about each other. It’s a hard enough profession for women as it is. We should be propping each other up, and not tearing each other down.

  • I’m looking forward to your article on what men should wear to court.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-challenges-single-dads-face_us_5848873fe4b013b566b2ba90

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  • Sarah Taylor

    Due to the lack of common sense, I found this article to be humorous & poignant. The author was simply referring to garments & footwear he has been forced to observe in the courtroom setting.
    Dressing professionally for ladies is not that difficult. Even fashion magazines show you how to turn a business appropriate outfit into an after 5 ensemble by changing shoes, losing the jacket, etc.
    I found this helpful.

  • We share some similar perspectives and insights in our post: http://www.minicklaw.com/what-to-wear-to-court/.

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