Rose Bird Memorial Award

CWL established the Rose Bird Memorial Award in 2000 in honor of former California Supreme Court Chief Justice Rose Bird, who, among her many accomplishments, was one of the pioneers who founded CWL in 1974. Justice Bird was also a teacher, the first woman to serve in the California cabinet (she was Secretary of Agriculture), and the first woman to preside as Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court. She was widely admired for refusing to compromise her judicial independence in the face of political pressure.

As a Supreme Court justice, Bird's staunch opposition to the death penalty and support of tenants, labor and consumers were attacked by conservative critics. Unfazed, Justice Bird stood strong for her convictions and continued to champion the underdog. After a campaign led by prosecutors and funded by businesses and insurance interests, voters in 1986 refused to confirm her for a second term, and also unseated two other liberal justices in a cataclysm widely viewed as a serious setback for judicial independence. After this ouster, Bird volunteered for the East Palo Alto Community Law Project. She died on December 4, 1999 after a long battle with breast cancer.

Judge Brenda Harbin-Forte and LaDoris Cordell.

Criteria for the Award

Nominees for the Rose Bird Memorial Award are evaluated for excellence as a jurist and longstanding and/or groundbreaking public service and inspiration to women lawyers in California.

How to Submit a Nomination

The Rose Bird Memorial Award is presented annually at CWL's Northern California Judicial Reception. Please submit nominations in writing, describing the nominee and the ways in which she meets the above criteria, to CWL, along with a resume and any letters of recommendation, 650 Howe Avenue, Suite 555, Sacramento, CA 95825, phone 916/646-3114, email:info@cwl.org. Please contact the CWL office or any Board member with any questions or comments.

Past Recipients

2007 - Judge Brenda Harbin-Forte has been a tireless advocate for the advancement of women and minorities in the legal profession, and for the fair treatment of less fortunate litigants (including abused teenage girls in the juvenile justice system). Judge Harbin-Forte was the first African American woman to serve as a Dean of the California Judicial College (a.k.a "judges school"). Judge Harbin-Forte presides over a unique, innovative and extremely rewarding program, the Alameda County Adoption Day, which places children, some of whom were considered "hard to place," with living families.

2006 - Retired Judge Judith Ford, the first African American woman appointed to the Alameda County Superior Court, was a mentor to many female judges who followed her and is nationally known for her service and leadership in advancing the use of technology in the courts. In endorsing her nomination, Chief Justice Ronald George wrote that Judge Ford's "knowledge, experience and skillful leadership were essential in placing California in the forefront of learning how best to use and adapt technology in order to enhance court services." The National Center for State Courts recognized her service and leadership in advancing the use of technology in the courts with the State Courts' Distinguished Service Award in 2003.

2005 - Judge Alice Lytle, retired from the Sacramento Superior Court, is a pioneer and role model known for her wisdom and perseverance in solving problems in the courthouse and in the community. Her vison and efforts established La Casita, believed to be the first courthouse children's Waiting Room in the nation, and created the SacraMentor Program to assist juvenile delinquents. Judge Lytle also led Sacramento Superior Court's Self-Represented Litigants Team and was a member of the Judicial Council's Self-Represented Litigants Task Force. In addition, she established the Healthy Teen Mothers Program and served as a mentor to pregnant teens while working with the Birthing Project, an outreach for first-time expectant mothers.

2004 - Judge LaDoris Cordell, retired from the Santa Clara County Superior Court and currently Vice Provost of Stanford University, instituted a range of innovative programs while on the bench, including programs to settle complex family, probate, criminal, dependency and delinquency cases. As Supervising Judge of the Family Court, she created the first Visitation Project in which senior citizens monitor visits between children and non-custodial parents. She also reduced the wait for a trial date from several months to eight weeks, and increased the settlement rate from 70% to 96%. As Supervising Judge of the Probate Court, she created the Guardianship Review and Evaluation Assessment Team, permitting citizen volunteers to monitor children in court-ordered guardianships. She also pioneered minority recruitment efforts at Stanford, and was the first person to open a law office in the predominantly African American and Mexican American community of East Palo Alto.

2003 - Chief Judge Marilyn Hall Patel of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California was selected as the 2003 recipient of the Rose Bird Memorial Award. Judge Patel's groundbreaking decisions include those in which she denounced the World War II internment of Japanese-Americans and in which she presided in the class action brought by female and minority employees against the San Francisco firefighters, challenging hiring and promotional practices. She also developed and taught the first program for judges on gender bias and equality. Prior to becoming a judge, she was counsel for the National Organization for Women, and co-founded an organization advocating alternative dispute resolution to solve problems of discrimination in the workplace.

2002 - Judge Jacqueline Taber, retired from the Alameda County Superior Court, was a trail blazer and role model for an entire generation of women. A 1947 graduate of Boalt Hall, she was appointed in 1965 to the Oakland-Piedmont Municipal Court as only the second woman on the Alameda County bench. In 1978, she was elected to the Superior Court, where she served with distinction until her retirement in 1999. She is described by the Alameda County Public Defender as "a warm, gracious and brilliant presence in our courts" who "made a place in our system not only for herself, but for countless other women who were guided by her example."

2001 - California Supreme Court Associate Justice Joyce Luther Kennard was selected as the first recipient of the Rose Bird Memorial Award. Like Justice Bird, whom Justice Kennard knew, Justice Kennard is known for her independent thought, her incisive legal analysis, and her commitment to the cause of justice. She is also highly regarded for her community outreach and mentoring work.