National Association of Women Lawyers

Founded in 1899, the mission of the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) has been to advocate for the equality of women under the law and advance women in the legal profession. The group was originally called the "Women Lawyers' Club." In 1914, the group was renamed the "Women Lawyers Association." In 1923, the organization changed its name to the "National Association of Women Lawyers."

NAWL is a national voluntary legal professional organization that continues to promote the interests and progress of women lawyers and women’s legal rights. 

Contact Information:

Activities of NAWL

The initiatives and activities of NAWL include:

• National networking and leadership opportunities for women lawyers at all levels;
• National and regional year-round programming;
• The NAWL Challenge Club; and
• Publications of interest to women in law and opportunities for NAWL members to publish scholarly articles.

NAWL’s Individual Membership Types

For membership purposes, NAWL’s year runs from August 1 to July 31. The individual membership types in the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) include:

• Regular Member;
• Law Student & First-Year Associate;
• Junior Lawyer Member;
• Government or Non-Profit Attorney Member;
• Solo/Small Firm/Legal Department Attorney Member;
• Attorney with a NAWL Institutional Member;
• Attorney with a NAWL Sustaining Sponsor;
• Sustaining Member; and
• Lifetime Member.

Publications for Women Lawyers

NAWL's quarterly publication is called the Women Lawyers Journal (WLJ). The publication features articles relating to women in the law.

The National Directory of Women-Owned Law Firms and Women Lawyers® also published his directory each year to help in-house counsel with locating women lawyers and referring legal work.

Additional Resources

Directory of Associations for Women Lawyers - Visit the website of the American Bar Association to find the Commission on Women in the Profession's online directory of associations for women lawyers. The directory includes local, state, national and international organizations for female attorneys and information on various gender bias task forces and committees. Legal associations listed in the directory include the Association of Black Women Lawyers, National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, National Bar Association Women's Division, National Conference of Women's Bar Associations and the National Women's Law Center.

Ways to Connect with NAWL

NAWL on Facebook

NAWL on Twitter

NAWL on LinkedIn

This article was last updated on Friday, May 5, 2017.