Greg McConnell Discusses the Future and Implementation of the Equal Rights Amendment with Fast Company

Winston & Strawn Chief Pro Bono Officer Greg McConnell was quoted in a Fast Company article discussing the future of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA). In October 2024, the American Bar Association passed a resolution affirming the 28^thAmendment achieved every requirement for ratification under Article V of the Constitution and, prior to leaving office, President Joe Biden declared the ERA has become part of the Constitution. Despite some skepticism, advocates are moving forward with implementation and plaintiffs can cite the 28^thAmendment in discrimination cases.

While 28 states have their own ERAs with language that is more inclusive and expansive than the language in the 28th Amendment, several of the states without ERAs have completed reviews of their statutes to find potentially outdated or discriminatory language in anticipation of the 28^thAmendment’s enactment. The ERA-NC Alliance, with assistance from Winston, conducted a review of its state statutes and found more than 21,000 gender specific terms that needed further review, including the term “feme coverture,” which means a married woman has no independent legal rights and cannot enter contracts or own property without her husband’s permission. The Alliance brought the issue to the North Carolina General Statutes Commission and the Commission is seeing a technical correction.

“With or without the ERA, any state would want to make sure their statutes apply equally to men and women,” says Greg.

Read the full article.