Entering the Arena

The Spectacular History of Women at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York

Lisa Zornberg

Pages: 272

Illustrations: 83 b/w illustrations

Fordham University Press

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(Pre-order)

Hardback

ISBN: 9781531513023

Published: 04 November 2025

$34.95

Description

This book tells the spectacular history of women lawyers at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY). SDNY is a storied institution, the oldest federal prosecutor’s office in the United States and its most renowned—and a critical player in New York City’s high-stakes legal arena. But its history has been only sparsely written, and this is the first book to share the riveting account of how of SDNY’s doors came to open to women lawyers. Remarkably, SDNY hired women lawyers far earlier than the Wall Street firms and other elite legal institutions. This book explores why that was. It begins in 1906 starts with Henry Stimson’s hiring of Mary Grace Quackenbos, the very first woman to hold an Assistant title anywhere in the Department of Justice. It continues with the SDNY women lawyers who intrepidly entered the arena throughout the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and World War II, and who overcame the strict social conformities of the 1950s, when women who entered the law were social “deviants.” It tells the previously untold full story of how women challenged the SDNY blockade—erected in 1959 and lasting through 1960s—to women serving as criminal prosecutors. And it culminates in the 1970s—when that blockade came down and the door to women’s entry was irrevocably blown of the hinges. Those SDNY women of the 70s went on to transform the bench and bar. Throughout, this book dissects and examines the close connection between SDNY’s hiring of women and its legacy of nonpartisan leadership, which is what drove SDNY’s emergence as an important American institution in the twentieth century and beyond.

Praise

Entering the Arena is a lively and illuminating history of women prosecutors in the fabled Southern District of New York. Starting in the earliest days of the 20th century and running up to the modern era, former SDNY Criminal Division Chief Lisa Zornberg presents compelling mini-biographies of the extraordinary women, who against all odds, made a major impact in what was until relatively recently a “man’s world". Zornberg writes with charm, humor, sympathy and admiration for the colleagues who preceded and succeeded her. Lawyers and non-lawyers will appreciate this inspiring and spirited account.---Elkan Abramowitz, founding partner of Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello PC

This terrific book tells the story of the women lawyers who served the public interest as assistant United States attorneys, with ethics and integrity, in the Southern District of New York, an office established by President Washington in 1789.The story, as told by the author, a former assistant in that office, is an amazing, touching, and inspiring one.---John D. Feerick, Sidney C. Norris Chair of Law in Public Service, Fordham University School of Law

A wonderful read! Combining elegant writing with a zest for the remarkable and unexpected details, Zornberg recounts the storied history and fierce independence of the SDNY’s brave and brilliant first women AUSAs.---Nicole Gueron, Founding Partner of Clarick Gueron Reisbaum

Entering the Arena: The Spectacular History of Women at SDNY is a gem. It is a fascinating, never before told history of the incredible women of the most powerful prosecutor’s office in the country told in an engaging, quick-witted story telling style. It depicts the importance of reaching for dreams even when they seem impossible, being relentless in pursuit of them, and the tangible impact large social movements can have. Most importantly, this book comes at a crucial moment with a message everyone needs to hear: a strong democracy requires strong institutions and strong institutions come from strong leadership. Lisa takes us on a journey that crystalizes this through compelling stories about an institution that has endured and thrived since 1789, the SDNY.---Mimi Rocah, former Westchester District Attorney

Author(s)

Lisa Zornberg is a partner at the law firm of Morvillo Abramowitz Grand Iason & Anello PC in New York City. She formerly served as Chief of the Criminal Division for the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, and as Chief Counsel to the mayor of New York City.