Woman Lawyer tells the story of Clara Foltz, the first woman lawyer in the West. Famous as a public intellectual, leader of the women's movement, and legal reformer, Foltz faced terrific prejudice and well-organized opposition as she tried cases in front of all-male juries, raised five children as a single mother, stumped for political candidates, and urged the creation of a public defender to balance the public prosecutor.

Woman Lawyer celebrates a great woman lost to history until now. It casts new light on the turbulent history and politics of California in a period of phenomenal growth and highlights the interconnection of movements for equal rights for women and constitutional rights for the criminally accused.