Everything about Cornelia Sorabji

Indian women have broken many stereotypes over the decades to make a place for themselves and fellow Indian women. The field of law, certainly, is not oblivious to the boundless efforts put in by women to mark their space. Women lawyers such as Menaka Guruswamy, Vrinda Grover, Indira Jaising, Karuna Nundy, Meenakshi Lekhi and Flavia Agnes are just a few of the powerful women who have made a bold statement with their fearless career graphs. But do you know about that one woman who made all this possible? We bet not. The lady behind the fruitful existence of women in the field of law was none other than the great Cornelia Sorabji.

We’ll take you through a virtual journey of Cornelia’s life and career to throw light on her achievements and being successful in changing the law of India.

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Cornelia Sorabji was born to a Parsi family

Cornelia was born on 15th November 1866 in Devlali to a Parsi parents Reverend Sorabji Kersedji and Francina Ford. She was named in honour of her adoptive grandmother, Lady Cornelia Maria Darling Ford. Her father was a Christian missionary while her mother, who had been adopted by a British couple, aided in the establishment of various school for girls in Pune. Cornelia was one of the 9 kids in the family, although 2 of the brothers passed away in infancy.

Cornelia Sorabji Who was India's first female lawyer
Subodh Kant Sahai/Twitter

Efforts of Cornelia Sorabji parents

Her mother, Francina was in an influential social position and therefore, was consulted by many women in the matters of property and inheritance. Francina also had a huge hand in the decisions made by Cornelia later in her education and career.

Her father believed that it was his efforts which resulted in convincing the Bombay University to admit women for their degree programs as he tirelessly made attempts to get his oldest daughters admitted to the Bombay University, however, they were futile.

Cornelia Sorabji mother Francina Sorabji
Cornelia Sorabji mother Francina Sorabji wikipedia

Education and denial

Cornelia received the education through home schooling and mission schools. After completing her schooling, she joined the Deccan College and is believed to have completed the degree by topping the Presidency.

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Despite scoring the highest, she was denied the scholarship for further studies in England for the simple reason of being a woman. Post that, she took started teaching temporarily as an English Professor in a men’s college in Gujarat.

Cornelia became the the first female graduate from Bombay University.

cornelia sorabji the first female advocate from India
SINDH-The Land of Legend/Facebook

Her fight to get higher studies

In the year 1888, Cornelia wrote to the National Indian Association to help her in completing her education. Noted personalities Mary Hobhouse, Adelaide Manning, Florence Nightingale, Sir William Wedderburn and others contributed funds for this purpose and Cornelia reached England for her higher studies in 1889.

Being a female she was not allowed to take law studies. “You can only read English Literature”, she was told. It was the intervention of academic and philosopher Benjamin Jowett that changed things for Cornelia. Benjamin devised a special Law course for her to read.

In the year 1892, she became the first ever woman to take the Bachelor of Civil Laws exam at Somerville College, Oxford. It was Benjamin among the English petitioners who helped her receive permission by Congregational Decree to take the Bachelor of Civil Laws exam at Somerville.

It is a postgraduate degree, undertaken by barristers and undergraduates in London with minimum five years of training, and Cornelia was trying to crack it in two years. Despite passing the exam she was not allowed to collect her degree for the next 30 years as such rules were there for women.

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Cornelia Sorabji at Oxford
Cornelia Sorabji at Oxford . ourmigrationstory

Not just that, in 1890 she became the first woman to be admitted as a reader to the Codrington Library of All Souls College, Oxford.

Sorabji started working at solicitors firm called Lee & Pemberton in London. Lord Hobhouse who was an aristocrat got her special permissions to read in the Library in Lincoln’s Inn. Until then, women were not allowed to read at that library. While practicing at the solicitors’ office Sorabji cleared her Bachelors of Law in the same year.

Returned to India with the hope of uplifting women

When Cornelia reached India after completing her Bachelor’s of Law at Oxford in 1894, she faced a tough time. According to orders passed by the then Chief Justice of Bombay, legal practitioners were forbidden from employing a woman. Her hope of working as a solicitor were thrashed.

At that time the British Raj was determined to not let a woman lawyer practice in the Bombay presidency. Maharajas welcomed her and offered Cornelia the opportunity to become lawyer for the royals, but they gave her only non-serious cases.

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There was a case in which she had to fight for an elephant who stole bananas from a tree. The Maharaja himself was the judge and culprit. The case was just fought for sheer pleasure and watching a woman lawyer put up the fight.

Cornelia Sorabji husband
Cornelia Sorabji’s bust in Lincoln’s Inn. loksatta

Became a legal advisor to the British Government on the state of secluded women

She took up the social and advisory work for the ‘purdahnashins’, who were the women that were forbidden to connect with the outside male world. After marriage they were barred to speak to any other male other than her husband. And if they were widowed, they cannot speak to male at all. These women knew nothing about law and their education also stopped once they got married. Many of these women owned property, but in case of disputes over the property they never got legal help because all the lawyers were men.

Although Cornelia was given special permission to enter pleas on their behalf, she was unable to defend them in court since as a woman she did not hold any professional standing in the Indian legal system.

In order to open more doors for herself, she appeared for the LLB examination Of Bombay University in 1897 along with the Pleader’s examination of the Allahabad High Court in 1899. Despite her success Sorabji was not recognised as a barrister because of the law which prevented women from practicing.

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Cornelia Sorabji
Sarnámihuis/Facebook

Taking matters into her own hands

In the year 1902, Cornelia petitioned the India Office (a British government department established in London) to provide for a legal advisor to represent women and minors in provincial courts.

In 1904, she was successfully appointed as the Lady Assistant to the Court of Wards of Bengal and subsequently, in 1907 she was busy working in the provinces of Bengal, Bihar, Orrisa and Assam.

From thereon, it is believed that she helped over 600 women and orphan to fight legal battles in a span of 20 years, sometimes charging them nothing at all

Cornelia also managed to pen down two autobiographies amidst fighting legal battles of women and orphans along with several books and stories.

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India's First Woman Lawyer, Cornelia Sorabji
Cornelia Sorabji’s bust in Lincoln’s Inn. First 100 Years/Twitter

Finally she won the battle in 1924, when the legal profession was opened to women in India

In the year 1924, the legal profession was opened to women in India as well allowing Cornelia starting her practice in Kolkata.

Cornelia was also involved social reforms and was associated with the Bengal branch of the National Council for Women in India, the Federation of University Women and the Bengal League of Social Service for Women.

Cornelia Sorabji retired from the high court in 1929, and got settled in London. She took her last breath on 6th July 1954 at the age of 87 in London.

Cornelia Sorabji Facts
Cornelia Sorabji’s bust in Lincoln’s Inn. wikipedia

Honors and appreciations

As an appreciation to her services to the Indian nation, she was honoured with the Kaisar-I-Hind Gold Medal in the year 1909.

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In the year 2012, a bust of her was unveiled at Lincoln’s Inn in London.

Google also honoured her with a Google Doodle on her 151st birthday on 15th November 2017.

cornelia sorabjis Google Doodle
NDTV

The anti-national turn

Although she initially supported the campaign for Indian independence, it is believed that by the late 1920s, Cornelia started carrying an anti-nationalist attitude as she believed that the British rule in India is necessary to counter Hindu dominance as she was totally against various Hindu laws like Sati and child marriage. She was in support of empire and was actively promoting to preserve the rule of British Raj. She even condemned Mahatma Gandhi’s campaign of civil disobedience.

Cornelia Sorabji biography
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