Langley in 1932 Manche Irene Langley (August 19, 1883 - July 13, 1963) was the seventeenth woman in Oregon to practice law. Her career as a litigator lasted from 1909 to 1963; she participated in state and county politics while teaching law at Pacific University.

Early life and education

Langley was born in Furnas County, Nebraska on August 19, 1883. Her father was William Langley, a lawyer, and her mother was Amanda Scott Langley. In 1891, Langley's family moved to Washington County, Oregon. In 1898, she graduated from Forest Grove High School and went on to study at Tualatin Academy, the predecessor of

Pacific University Pacific University is a private university in Forest Grove, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Tualatin Academy, the original Forest Grove campus is west of Portland. Affiliated with the United Church of Christ, the school mainta ...

. Her brother

Lotus Langley Lotus L. Langley (September 15, 1875-1955) was a Democratic Party of Oregon, Democratic politician and lawyer in the U.S. state of Oregon in the early 20th century. He served one term as district attorney of Multnomah County, Oregon, Multnomah Coun ...

and her nephew William Langley both served as district attorney in Multnomah County. She studied at Pacific University from 1900 to 1903 where she earned certificates in proficiency in certain departments. Langley did not receive a formal degree, but did go on to study law with her father and passed the bar exam in 1909. She practiced law in Forest Grove, Oregon from 1909 to 1933. Langley also earned a bachelor's degree of law from Northwestern College of Law.

Government Work and Community Service

Langley was appointed

Democratic National Committee The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is the principal executive leadership board of the United States's Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party. According to the party charter, it has "general responsibility for the affairs of the ...

women of Oregon on June 5, 1932. She had also served as the secretary and chairman of the Washington County Democratic Central Committee prior to 1932. In 1926 she was the president of the Women Lawyers’ Association of Oregon and a member of the

League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters (LWV) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include Voter registration, registering voters, providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and adv ...

in 1925. The league founded the Northwest Institute of International Relations where she served as a moderator for several early sessions. Langley served on the State Board of the League from 1944 to 1948 and continued her service as a member of its Committee on International Relations in 1950. She was known for her volunteer work for the Oregon Prison Association and helped with parole cases from 1944 to 1950; she was elected as the vice president in 1949. Langley was a member of Phi Delta Delta, a legal fraternity for women, a member and president of Queen's Bench, American Association, Oregon State Association, and Multnomah Bar Association. Langley was appointed

Multnomah County Multnomah County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 815,428. Multnomah County is part of the Portland metropolitan area. The state's smallest and most populous county, it ...

deputy district attorney in the Women's Division in 1944; later, in 1961 she was appointed chief deputy of the Domestic Relations Department of the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office. She gave legal advice for real estate matters and with domestic relations. upLangley in 1959

Legacy

To honor Langley's legacy of helping women in the legal profession in Oregon, a scholarship fund was established in her name at

Lewis & Clark Law School The Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College (also known as Lewis & Clark Law School), is an American Bar Association#Accreditation of U.S. law schools since 1923, American Bar Association-approved private law school in the United ...

. Langley died in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Langley, Manche Irene 1883 births 1963 deaths Oregon lawyers People from Forest Grove, Oregon 20th-century women lawyers American female climbers