Trial to determine if requiring women board members is legal
ABC News
When California's former Gov. Jerry Brown signed the nation’s first law requiring women on boards of publicly traded companies three years ago, he suggested it might not survive legal challenges
LOS ANGELES -- When then-California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the nation's first law requiring women on boards of publicly traded companies, he suggested it might not survive legal challenges.
Three years later, a judge will begin hearing evidence Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court that could undo the law credited with giving more women seats in boardrooms traditionally dominated by men. The California law has spurred other states to adopt or consider similar laws.
The conservative legal group Judicial Watch brought the lawsuit claiming it's illegal to use taxpayer funds to enforce a law that violates the equal protection clause of the California Constitution by mandating a gender-based quota.
“They are creating a classification that either prefers or discriminates against one class or in preference of another,” attorney Robert Patrick Sticht said. He said the state doesn't have a compelling government interest to create the mandate.
