Video Conference Resource Guide

In the near future, courts across Texas will begin using Zoom for hearings and other matters. Attorneys will likely want to incorporate more social distancing into their practice while maintaining client relationships using video conferencing as well. To help Harris County’s legal community get ready, the Law Library has assembled the Video Conference Resource Guide. Find links to a variety of video conferencing platforms and guides to help legal professionals incorporate these platforms into practice.

Need help finding more resources to support your legal research while you #StayHomeWorkSafe? Visit our Virtual Reference Desk!

COVID-19 Update

The Harris County Law Library would like to keep our followers up-to-date with changes that some of our community resource partners have made to their services in light of COVID-19 and to provide our readers with some new developments.

Houston Volunteer Lawyers (HVL)

The staff at HVL are currently working remotely to continue to provide services to the public. Although they are no longer accepting in-person visitors, their commitment to the public continues with virtual pro se assistance and clinics. Please see HVL’s website for more information regarding these programs.

Harris County District Clerk

Effective March 18, 2020, the Harris County District Clerk’s Office suspended in-person services. Most services can be accessed directly through the office’s website, including sending payments, accessing and purchasing records, and more. The public is still able to call and email the office as well. Note that pro se litigants will be able to use the 24-hour filing drop box at the top of the stairs at 201 Caroline to the left of the building or mail in their filings. Please see the Harris County District Clerk’s website for the latest COVID-19 updates and court information.

TexasLawHelp.org

TexasLawHelp, one of our primary go-to sites for legal information and forms, has created a webpage to provide the public with links to news and information about the coronavirus (COVID-19). There, users will find:

  • links to major agencies and websites with the latest health information;

  • city and county-specific resources;

  • information about court closures, postponements, and updated procedures due to COVID-19;

  • information about legal rights;

  • information regarding free school meals during COVID-19 closure;

  • resources for uninsured Texans needing help with COVID-19 testing or treatment; and,

  • information about the coronavirus and child visitation.

State Bar of Texas

The State Bar of Texas has posted its response to the coronavirus pandemic. Its website has some useful information and links regarding court closures. It also has the latest guidance on court procedure, including any emergency orders issued by the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals, including the March 17 order that clarified possession schedules in Suits Affecting the Parent-Child Relationship. There is also a link to the website of the Office of Court Administration for updated guidance on court procedures. For attorneys, there are links to free lawyer resources and webinars, and for the public, there are links to free legal resources.

 Harris County Attorney

Did you know that the Harris County Attorney has the authority to file civil lawsuits to stop price gouging? County residents who feel that they have been charged an exorbitant price for necessities, such as food, fuel, or medicine, and who have been unable to resolve the issue with the provider of those goods and services can contact the office of the Harris County Attorney for assistance at ConsumerHelp@cao.hctx.net.

Ready Harris

Ready Harris, a website designed to help the community stay informed and be prepared should a disaster or emergency strike, provides information on how to prepare for a disaster, provides access to real-time alerts, and connects users with tools to aid in planning, recovering, and staying safe. Aside from providing the latest information about coronavirus and any requirements, the website includes a list of Harris County services, facilities,and meetings that are closed or have restricted access.

Friday Firsts: Arabella "Belle" Mansfield - first woman admitted to the bar in the U.S.

This post was written by Jessica King, an extraordinary intern at the Harris County Law Library.

Arabella “Belle” Mansfield. Courtesy of Iowa Department of Human Rights.

In 1869, Arabella Mansfield became the first woman admitted to the Bar in the United States. Her achievement is an important first in the history of women in law, and she is often called the first woman lawyer in the United States.*

Early Life and Education

She was born in Iowa on August 23, 1946, and named Arabella Aurelia Babb, although for much of her life she was also known as “Belle.” When Arabella was six years old, her father died in an accident in the California Gold Rush, and she returned to Iowa with her mother and older brother, Washington Irving Babb.

Arabella later attended college at Iowa Wesleyan University. She graduated in 1866, the same year as her older brother Washington Irving Babb, whose studies had been interrupted by his enlistment during the Civil War. Arabella was the valedictorian and her brother was the salutatorian.

Page showing Arabella and her brother’s senior class listed in the Iowa Wesleyan Academic Catalog of 1865-66. Courtesy of Iowa Wesleyan University

 Her brother went into a career in law and became a partner in the new firm Ambler & Babb. Arabella read law as an apprentice in her brother’s office, and kept up her study after marrying John Mansfield, another Iowa Wesleyan graduate.

Passing the Bar

The law excluding Arabella Mansfield from admission to the bar was Iowa Code of 1851, Section 1610. Source: the Iowa Legislature Archives

Arabella Mansfield passed the bar on June 15, 1869. She had to argue her case to be admitted to the bar association, since the law on the books described “any white male citizen” as eligible to be a lawyer. Belle convinced a judge that there was nothing in that law forbidding a woman to be a lawyer. She won the right to be a woman lawyer. She also won the admiration of her bar examiners, quoted below:

 Your committee takes unusual pleasure in recommending the admission of Mrs. Mansfield, not only because she is the first lady who has applied for this authority in the state, but because in her examination she has given the very best rebuke possible to the imputation that ladies cannot qualify for the practice of law.

ABA Journal Gallery - 13 Pioneering Women in American Law

The next year, in March, 1870, the law was revised to remove the words “white male.”

Career and Legacy

Arabella Mansfield never practiced law, but enjoyed a successful career in academia, on the faculty of Iowa Wesleyan and DePauw University, as well as lecturing extensively. She was involved in many causes, including women’s suffrage. In her lifetime, she was recognized with honorary membership in the National League of Women Lawyers and honorary membership to the Delta Chi fraternity (for male law students) at DePauw. After her death in 1911, her legacy continues to inspire modern generations. The National Association of Women Lawyers named an award in her honor. She paved the way for many other women lawyers that followed.

Sources and Further Reading:

*Note: Margaret Brent, who appeared before the court in the American colonies during the 1600s, has also been called America’s first woman lawyer. Read more about Margaret Brent’s life and achievements on In Custodia Legis from the Law Library of Congress.