Subseries A. Pleadings and trial transcripts, 1986-2009 (#140.1-175.2, 448.1-453.1, E.2-E.44)
Scope and Contents
Subseries A, Pleadings and trial transcripts, 1986-2009 (#140.1-175.2, 448.1-453.1, E.2-E.44), contains briefs, motions, court orders, and all other documents filed with the court. Two slightly different sets of numbered pleadings for the District Court are represented here: #140.2-144.3, 145.2-146.2, and 166.1-166.2 bear Roman numerals and are bound in folders bearing the name of Sachnoff & Weaver, a Chicago law firm that did pro-bono work on the case; #181.6-181.7 begin at Volume 27 and belonged to lawyer Fay Clayton and her associates. There is some overlap of documents between Volumes XVI and XVII and Volumes 27-29, but the numbering schema is different for each set. Documents not bound together are listed after the volume of pleadings under which they would fall chronologically. Appellate Court pleadings for the first appeal (91-2408) have similar double pleadings as those of the District Court: two volumes of pleadings from the offices of Sachnoff and Weaver hold significant overlap with the two volumes of pleadings from Fay Clayton's office. Again, documents are numbered in different schema, and each set contains documents not in the other. Pleadings are organized with District Court records filed chronologically, followed by Appeals Court and Supreme Court pleadings. Trial materials, notably electronic transcripts of the District Court trial and various other pretrial and post-trial hearings, are listed where chronologically appropriate. This subseries is open to research without written permission.
Dates
- Creation: 1970-2011
Language of Materials
Materials in English.
Access Restrictions:
Access. Written permission of the National Organization for Women is required for materials less than 20 years old, with the exception of publications, mailings, press releases, clippings, publicity, awards, and other documents made generally available to the public and to wider NOW membership, which are open. Records of the NOW political action committees and the NOW Foundation are closed pending negotiations. Additionally, the following materials are closed as per the agreement between NOW and the Schlesinger Library:
- Board minutes and related materials: closed 20 years
- Court cases, excluding public documents (briefs, findings, opinions, etc.): closed 20 years
- Donation records: closed 50 years
- Any records where access to which is deemed by library staff to constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy: closed until the likely death of the individual concerned
- Financial records: closed 50 years
- Grievances filed against NOW, NOW chapters, or individuals: closed 50 years
- Membership records that disclose individual names: closed 50 years
As of December 2015, access to materials that are more than 20 years old no longer require written permission of the National Organization for Women.
Extent
202.45 linear feet ((438 file boxes, 5 half file boxes, 10 folio boxes, 5 card file boxes) plus 2 folio+ folders, 2 oversize folders, 1 supersize folder, 43 photograph folders, 484 slides, 140 objects, electronic records)Creator
- From the Collection: National Organization for Women (Organization)
Repository Details
Part of the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute Repository
The preeminent research library on the history of women in the United States, the Schlesinger Library documents women's lives from the past and present for the future. In addition to its traditional strengths in the history of feminisms, women’s health, and women’s activism, the Schlesinger collections document the intersectional workings of race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and class in American history.