Sister in Law: Fighting for Justice in a System Designed by Men

“Harriet Wistrich has long offered a voice to the voiceless – those ordinary men, and especially women, who have been silenced, ignored, overlooked and talked down to. Her career is a testimony to her values, dedication, hard work and insight and as I read Sister in Law I realised that if I was ever in trouble I would want Harriet fighting in my corner.” – Emeritus Professor David Wilson

“Justice needs both warriors and champions and in Harriet Wistrich, she found both. Sister in Law is compelling, inspiring, horrifying and humbling in equal measure. Everybody should read it to begin to appreciate the inequalities within our legal system.” – Dame Professor Sue Black

“Harriet is a heroine. Here is her story: 30 years of feminist and human rights activism, legal creativity, and tenacity. With great clarity and humanity she describes watershed cases – from women locked up for killing their violent abusers, to undercover ‘spy cops’, the family of Jean Charles de Menezes, murdered by the police, and the bleak legacy of prostitution – all of them exemplars in the art of making a difference. – Beatrix Campbell, author of Secrets and Silence

“Every feminist should know Harriet Wistrich’s name. She is an unsung heroine. There is no one better to learn from if you want to Get Shit Done”. – Helen Lewis

“This is a brilliant and important book. Harriet is a trailblazer and has done so much to get justice for so many women.” – Victoria Derbyshire

“Harriet’s innovative, intense and courageous commitment to safeguarding basic rights, compellingly set out in every chapter, is exactly the sort of engagement that was sorely lacking in the Post Office debacle in order to prevent the wrongful convictions in the first place.” – Michael Mansfield KC

Excellent … tackles the need to remodel the legal system to offer better justice to women. — Amelia Gentleman ― Guardian

Sister in Law is compelling, shocking and inspiring in equal measure..this accessible book is a must for anyone interested in justice, society and using the law to achieve change. — Catherine Baksi ― The Times Published On: 2024-08-01

Wistrich not only illustrates the ways in which the law fails women but the gruelling nature of litigation: it is slow, infernally complicated, and forces individuals to relive their worst experiences. Yet through these enraging and astonishing stories, Wistrich also shows us the best of humanity … Empathetic, dogged, canny, always up for the fight. Her book might be short on introspection but her remarkable legal career speaks volumes about the person she is. — Fiona Sturges ― Guardian Published On: 2024-07-17

Highly accessible and beautifully written…Wistrich’s strong sense of fairness and justice runs through every word … She is a hero, an inspiration. Every aspiring lawyer, and anyone interested in justice, should read this book, get angry and join the fight. — Cris McCurley ― Legal Action Group Published On: 2024-04-01

This is a brilliant and important book. Harriet is a trailblazer and has done so much to get justice for so many women. — Victoria Derbyshire Published On: 2024-01-15

A shocking, sobering and galvanising account of her astonishing legal career fighting for women in a legal system that is all too often stacked against them — Caroline Criado Perez ― Invisible Women substack Published On: 2024-04-29

Harriet Wistrich has long offered a voice to the voiceless – those ordinary men, and especially women, who have been silenced, ignored, overlooked and talked down to. Her career is a testimony to her values, dedication, hard work and insight and as I read Sister in Law I realised that if I was ever in trouble I would want Harriet fighting in my corner. — Emeritus Professor David Wilson Published On: 2023-12-22

Justice needs both warriors and champions and in Harriet Wistrich, she found both. Sister in Law is compelling, inspiring, horrifying and humbling in equal measure. Everybody should read it to begin to appreciate the inequalities within our legal system. — Dame Professor Sue Black Published On: 2024-01-01

Harriet Wistrich is a heroine. Here is her story: 30 years of feminist and human rights activism, legal creativity, and tenacity. With great clarity and humanity she describes watershed cases – from women locked up for killing their violent abusers, to undercover ‘spy cops’, the family of Jean Charles de Menezes, murdered by the police, and the bleak legacy of prostitution – all of them exemplars in the art of making a difference. — Beatrix Campbell, author of Secrets and Silence Published On: 2024-01-03

Every feminist should know Harriet Wistrich’s name. She is an unsung heroine. There is no one better to learn from if you want to Get Shit Done. — Helen Lewis Published On: 2024-01-11

Harriet Wistrich is the founder and director of the Centre for Women’s Justice and a solicitor of over 25 years’ experience. She has worked for many years with civil liberties firm Birnberg Peirce, acting in many high-profile cases around violence against women, including on behalf of women who challenged the police and parole board in the John Worboys case, women deceived in relationships by undercover police officers and women appealing murder convictions for killing abusive partners. She is also a founder member of the campaign group Justice for Women. Among other accolades, she was named Liberty Human Rights Lawyer of the Year 2014, Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year 2018 for public law and Law Society Gazette personality of the year 2019, and awarded an honorary doctorate of laws by Kent University in 2022.