LORDSHIP or LADYSHIP: Case for Gender Neutrality

Summary: This post is about adopting a gender neutral form of address in higher courts - explained by an anecdote from autobiography of John Paul Stevens J.

  

I joined the Bar about fifty years ago. Among the first lessons that I received was – to be courteous. My colleagues were ‘my Learned Friend’ or ‘my Learned Senior’ or just ‘my Friend’. Magistrate and Judges in the district courts were to be addressed as ‘your Honour’. There was never any difficulty. These are gender neutral words that could be used for anyone. 

After two years stint in the district courts, I joined the Allahabad High Court. I was told to refer the judges as ‘your Lordship’ a polite way of saying ‘you’ and use ‘my Lord’ so as to draw attention of the judge towards yourself or what you were about to say. We were to begin submissions by saying ‘May it please your Lordship’. For lady judges, one was supposed to use ‘Ladyship’ or ‘Lady’ at proper place. However, I never got opportunity to use it, as there were no lady judges. In later year, there was one, but she sat in Lucknow bench. I never got an opportunity to address a lady judge. 

As a judge, we referred to each other as ‘Brothers’ or ‘Sisters’ – very commonly used words and there was no difficulty.  But it all changed with my  second stint as a lawyer in the Supreme Court. I get confused, when addressing a bench consisting of judges of different sexes. It irritates me, when I hear lawyers use the word ‘Brother’ or ‘Sister’ for their colleagues. instead of the gender neutral word ‘Friend’. There is no reason to copy the judges or step backwards. 

Cricketing world has changed to ‘Batter’ from ‘Batsman’. Chairman have become chairperson. Film world has dropped the word ‘actress’. So why can't we? This reminds me how the change took place in US Supreme Court. But before I tell you about the same, a few words about John Paul Stevens J. (April 20, 1920 – July 16, 2019).

John Paul Stevens J.

Stevens J.  was an associate justice of US Supreme Court from 1975 to 2010. He graduated from Northwestern University School of Law, served in the United States Navy during World War II.  After clerking for Justice Wiley Blount Rutledge, he started his law practice in Chicago. In 1970, he was appointed  to the US Court of Appeals. Five years later, he was  nominated to the US Supreme Court. He was  a registered Republican and was identified as a conservative but at the time of his retirement joined liberal side of the Court. 

He has written three books: 

1. Five Chiefs: A Supreme Court Memoir, which detailed his legal career during  tenure of five chief justices of US Supreme Court. The first one - the Vinson court, during his clerkship; the second one as a private lawyer during the Earl Warren era; and remaining three, while serving as an associate judge with the Burger, Rehnquist, and Roberts Courts;
2. The Making of a Justice: Reflections on My First 94 Years is his autobiography.  He grew up in Chicago, worked as a naval traffic analyst at Pearl Harbor during World War II, his early days in private practice then lastly as judge of the US Supreme Court at a time that saw radical changes in American life; 
3. Six Amendments: How and Why We Should Change the Constitution, where he proposed six amendments to the US Constitution to address problems in American life.

I have read his first two books. He writes well – clear and easy to read. His books are informative and incisive - worth your time and money. 

Sandra Day O’Connor was the first lady judge  in the US Supreme Court. She served there from 1981 to 2006. Till 1970s, the judges in US Supreme Court were referred to as ‘Mr. Justice’ and this was also affixed before their names outside their chambers. But it all changed with an experience of Stevens J. in a moot court competition, as narrated in his  autobiography (page 170).

Moot Court Competition - Madam Justice

In 1979, Stevens J. was one of the three judges in a moot court competition. One of the other judge was lady Cornelia Kennedy, who, at that time, was the chief judge of a US District Court. All participants in the competition were women. During arguments, they addressed Judge Kennedy  as ‘Madam Justice’. She was unhappy  with this address and remarked,

“Why do you address me as ‘Madam Justice’? The word ‘Justice’ is not sexist term.”

After returning to work, the incident was narrated by Stevens J. in the court and in anticipation of appointment of a lady judge, the practice was changed – from ‘Mr. Justice’ to simply ‘Justice’. Shouldn’t we do the same.

My Suggestions

I find ‘your Honour’ or ‘May it please the court’ to be equally respectable and gender neutral. Perhaps the words ’Court’  or 'Judge' or ‘Justice’ are equally good. There is no harm in adopting it or some other gender neutral word for every court. But it has to come from the highest court. 

Some years ago, a junior was scolded; perhaps, with an unfavourable order for addressing a Chief Justice of India as ‘your Honour’.  Fali Nariman in his memoirs 'Before Memory Fades: An Autobiography' narrates an incident (point-17 page 103) and says,

"high [supreme] court judge must always be addressed as 'Your Lordship' (believe me the judges simply love it)"

Lawyers have to get orders for their clients.  They can ill afford to hurt judges’ vanity.  

#JohnPaulStevens #TheMakingOfAJustice #Lordship #Ladyship  #GenderNeutrality