It seems that certain professions have a “uniform” that
comes to mind when you think of the apparel people in that field wear. Doctors
and nurses wear scrubs, pharmacists wear lab coats, construction workers wear
bright vests, etc., but what do lawyers wear? Or maybe the right question is
what should lawyers wear at a
formal event like a trial or a meeting with a client? I investigated the do’s
and don’ts of lawyers’ outfits, and came to this conclusion:
Dos for formal wear-
- Men should always wear a suit (Hill para. 12)
- Suits must be tailored and fit well (Hill para. 12)
- Men should be clean-shaven (Hill para. 13)
- Women may wear a suit, dress, or skirt (Hill para. 14)
- Women should wear flats (Hill para. 15)
- Women should wear pantyhose if wearing a skirt (Hill para. 16)
Don’ts for formal wear-
- Men cannot wear a dark suit and dark shirt together (Hill para. 12)
- Women should not wear their hair in a ponytail (Hill para. 16)
- Bra straps should never be showing (Hill para. 14)
- Women should not wear a lot of jewelry (Hill para. 16)
- Women should not wear a lot of make-up (Hill para. 16)
- Women should not wear revealing clothes (Hill para. 16)
- Women should not wear tight-fitting clothes (Hill para. 16)
While most of these guidelines for
lawyers’ clothes in formal events do not surprise me very much, I was
interested to notice that there are many more rules regarding what women should
wear than for men. The rules for what male lawyers should wear seem
pretty standard for a lot of jobs, wear a suit that fits you and don’t have a
long beard on your face, but the rules for women are much more strict about
what one should wear.
One thing that actually upset me when reading the clothing tip for lawyers was the reasons behind some of the rules for women. Female lawyers were advised not to wear too much make-up because their looks could be threatening to jury members or the judge and that could cause a woman to lose the case (Hill para. 15). This rule makes women seem catty and competitive with each other about their looks, which is a negative stereotype about women. Another guideline not listed in the blog post, but in the article was if a woman’s engagement ring is too big, she should take it off because it could spark jealousy from other women (Hill para. 16). A lot of the rules for women are based on not making other women jealous about their looks, jewelry, etc. which is not a good basis for clothes guidelines. While I think everyone should look professional for their job, the rules for female lawyers are outrageous and in my opinion, sexist.
One thing that actually upset me when reading the clothing tip for lawyers was the reasons behind some of the rules for women. Female lawyers were advised not to wear too much make-up because their looks could be threatening to jury members or the judge and that could cause a woman to lose the case (Hill para. 15). This rule makes women seem catty and competitive with each other about their looks, which is a negative stereotype about women. Another guideline not listed in the blog post, but in the article was if a woman’s engagement ring is too big, she should take it off because it could spark jealousy from other women (Hill para. 16). A lot of the rules for women are based on not making other women jealous about their looks, jewelry, etc. which is not a good basis for clothes guidelines. While I think everyone should look professional for their job, the rules for female lawyers are outrageous and in my opinion, sexist.
Hill,
Kashmir. "Fashion Dos and Don'ts From the Windy City." Above the
Law. Breaking Media INC., 12 Apr. 2010. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.
The
Good Wife Courtroom. Digital image. The Huffington Post. The Huffington
Post,
27 Sept. 2013. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.
I think this is very interesting because it is an unspoken thing that people wear suits and specific attire to courtrooms. I think society has just continued with the tradition rather than questioning it, which is what you did and I really liked it. Good post.
ReplyDeleteThank you, and I agree with your comment. Society has enforced the norms of business attire, and no one stops to wonder why people wear what they wear.
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