Real Property Law

Cal. Real. Prop. Journal 2021, VOL. 39, NO. 4

One Woman’s Perspective on Increasing the Percentage of Women of Color Equity Law Partners*

Maria Antonieta Sager, Esq.

Maria Antonieta Sager, a partner with Boxer & Gerson, is fluent in Spanish and conversational in Italian. She is also the Immediate Past Chair of the California Workers’ Compensation Section Executive Committee; a frequent speaker on the Spanish radio program of "Informacion es Poder" ("Information is Power") on KIQI AM1010 where she discusses workers’ compensation law; and serves as a pro tem judge at the Oakland Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board.

I was compelled to write this article after reading that only 2% of equity law partners at large law firms are women of color in the June 22, 2020 American Bar Association (ABA) Journal article titled Majority of Minority Female Lawyers Consider Leaving Law; ABA Study Explains Why. My hope is my personal and positive story will help increase this number

I often tell students I mentor from Centro Legal de la Raza’s Youth Law Academy where I serve on their Advisory Committee in Oakland, California I know how lucky I am to be where I am today. I am a multi-ethnic female lawyer, as my father is Italian and my mother Salvadoran. I am also someone who overcame immigrating to the United States at age four, poverty, and being raised primarily by a single mother who did not know how to read, write, or speak English. I share these vulnerabilities to help students see that if I could beat the odds, so can they.

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