Gay Crosthwait Grunfeld

Grunfeld is passionate about defending those who might otherwise have no defense.

"We have such a disparity in our country between the role of women and their capacity and status. We have so few women in the boardrooms and in the partnership offices," Grunfeld said.

In a recent case, Grunfeld successfully argued on behalf of William Sassman, a prisoner in the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation who was attempting to participate in an out-of-custody release program for low-level offenders during the final two years of his prison sentence. Sassman v. Brown, 2:14-cv-01679-MCE-KJN (E.D. Cal., filed Sept. 2015).

The state argued it was providing gender-specific programming to women as under a California statue the program was only available to women. Grunfeld's victory led to the statute being struck down and Sassman being allowed to spend time with his children, opening the program to approximately 5,000 male prisoners in California.

"Sassman was really about stereotypes about men and women and this view that women are supposed to take care of the children and stay home," Grunfeld said.

Grunfeld is fighting outside the court for women's rights, serving on the board of Equal Rights Advocates, a San Francisco nonprofit that aims to protect and expand economic and educational opportunities for women and girls.

"I am passionate about pushing the women's agenda forward by changing both our national and our local and our state politics," Grunfeld said. "I will be fighting hard for the 2018 elections."

— Chase DiFeliciantonio