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Gladys Hain
In 1954, Gladys Hain was the fifth woman to sign the Victorian Bar Roll. Gladys
had previously been a solicitor with Sir James McCay (his daughter Beatrix was the
second woman at the Victorian Bar), as well as a journalist with the Argus newspaper,
and a president of the Housewives’ Association of Victoria. During the 1920s, Gladys
campaigned for standardisation of divorce laws and was a legal advisor to women's
groups on subjects such as prostitution, and the adoption of children.
Gladys was known for her forthright opinions, and capacity to "get tough if they
asked for it". While she was federal president of the Federated Housewives' Association,
she campaigned for better conditions for housewives, lobbying producer and government
groups for better prices and quality of essential food items such as bread.