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Sister in Law

Fighting for Justice in a System Designed by Men

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Sister in Law

Written by: Harriet Wistrich
Narrated by: Catherine Bailey
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2025 WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION

Discover the essential, must-read book about how the UK legal system is failing women, as told by one of Britain’s foremost lawyers.

For more than quarter of a century, Harriet Wistrich has fought the corner of people from all walks of life let down by our justice system.

She has been at the forefront of some historic and ground-breaking legal victories, from helping the victims of taxi driver and serial rapist John Worboys, to representing a pioneering group of the women caught up in the ‘spy cops’ scandal – women deceived into forming long-term relationships with men later revealed to be undercover police officers.

Litigation can be a long and rocky path of pitfalls and dead ends and there are defeats as well as gains, hours of painstaking work as well as courtroom drama.

It takes collaboration, extraordinary tenacity and huge compassion, but Harriet Wistrich is proof that it is possible to demand better justice and to bring about important change.

Exploring landmark cases, Sister in Law covers the shocking true stories demonstrating that, terrifyingly often, the law is not-fit-for-purpose for half the population and shines a feminist light on the landscape of arcane laws and systems skewed towards men.

'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

'Compelling, inspiring, horrifying and humbling in equal measure. Everybody should read it.' - Professor Dame Sue Black, author of All That Remains

‘Every feminist should know Harriet Wistrich’s name. There is no one better to learn from if you want to Get Shit Done.’ - Helen Lewis, author of Difficult Women

'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

©2024 Harriet Wistrich (P)2024 Penguin Audio

 Gender Issues Law Racism & Discrimination Social Sciences Women Women's Studies

Critic Reviews

Excellent ... tackles the need to remodel the legal system to offer better justice to women. (Amelia Gentleman)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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 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)
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)
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