Lady Hale gives advice to young women everywhere: 'Don’t let the bastards grind you down!'

Lady Hale has reportedly said her first piece of advice to young women is “don’t let the bastards grind you down”.

The Supreme Court president is also said to have suggested single-sex schooling can allow girls to get on with their education without distractions from male students who are not interested in doing their work.

Speaking at the Association of State Girls’ Schools’ annual leadership conference in London, Lady Hale - who has become known for delivering the ruling that the decision to suspend Parliament was unlawful - drew on her own experiences, saying increasing gender balance in the legal profession is an example of how times can change.

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Justice of the Supreme Court, Baroness Hale of Richmond, one of five Supreme Court justices, gave her advice to young women. Picture: PAJustice of the Supreme Court, Baroness Hale of Richmond, one of five Supreme Court justices, gave her advice to young women. Picture: PA
Justice of the Supreme Court, Baroness Hale of Richmond, one of five Supreme Court justices, gave her advice to young women. Picture: PA
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The Times Educational Supplement (TES) reported that she told the conference: “The story of what’s happened to law and legal education, women and diversity in law, is a good model for all the other things you want to get your young women into - the STEM subjects and technology, computing.”

“I’m sure those are all the messages you want to give to your young women - and you can say, ‘Well, look how things have changed over Lady Hale’s lifetime and they can continue to change over your lifetime, and for heaven’s sake, don’t let anybody put you off.’”

Lady Hale went on to say: “I always say, ‘Don’t let the bastards grind you down.’ When young women ask me for advice, that’s number one!”