List of female justice ministers
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2017) |
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Incumbent female justice ministers of various countries
- Top row, from left to right:
- Leena Meri, Minister of Justice of Finland
- Elisabeth Margue, Minister of Justice of Luxembourg
- Andreja Katič, Minister of Justice of Slovenia
- Middle row, from left to right:
- Bottom row, from left to right:
Worldwide, 263 women[citation needed] have overseen a ministry of justice or analogous government agency[a] responsible for executing a country's legal system.[b] Of that number, 142 women have been in charge of ministries of justice or analogous agencies in Europe, 39 have been in North America, 27 women have been in Africa, 26 women have been in Asia, 18 women have been in South America, and 11 women have been in Oceania.
Adriana Olguín became the first female justice minister worldwide upon becoming Chile's minister of justice and human rights on 29 July 1952. Five years later, Ho Jong-suk became the first female justice minister in Asia, serving in this role in North Korea. In 1960, Stella Soulioti became the first female European justice minister as Minister of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus. North America would see the first woman serve in such a role when Yolanda Myers de Vásquez assumed charge of El Salvador's Public Ministry in 1967. Twenty-nine years later, Hawa Sisay-Sabally became Minister of Justice of The Gambia, the first such minister in Africa. Finally, Hilda Lini became the first minister of justice in Oceania in 1996 upon becoming Minister of Justice of Vanuatu.
Norway is the country with the most female justice ministers, with 15 ministers of justice and public security. In contrast, various countries, such as Lebanon and Samoa, have only had one female justice minister or equivalent political officeholder.
The totals for this list include only female justice ministers or equivalents of sovereign states. Acting justice ministers, as well as administrators of justice of dependent territories and subnational entities, are excluded from this article.
African ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in Africa. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawa Sisay-Sabally | 
|
 Gambia
|
Minister for Justice | April 1996 | 31 July 1998 | 2 years, 121 days |
| Fatou Bensouda | 
|
Gambia
|
Minister for Justice | 31 July 1998 | March 2000 | 1 year, 214 days |
| Januaria Moreira |
|
 Cape Verde
|
Minister of Justice and Labor | 1999 | 2001 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Antonieta Rosa Gomes |
|
 Guinea-Bissau
|
Minister of Justice | 19 February 2000 | 19 March 2001 | 1 year, 28 days |
| Cristina Fontes Lima |
|
Cape Verde
|
Minister of Justice and Labor | 2001 | 2006 | 5 years, 0 days |
| Alda Alves Melo dos Santos |
|
 São Tomé and Príncipe
|
Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Human Rights | 2002 | 2002 | 364 days |
| Hyacinthe Wodobodé |
|
 Central African Republic
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 12 December 2003 | 2 September 2004 | 265 days |
| Brigitte Mabandla |
|
 South Africa
|
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development | 29 April 2004 | 25 September 2008 | 1 year, 149 days |
| Martha Karua | .jpg)
|
 Kenya
|
Minister of Justice | 2005 | 6 April 2009 | 4 years, 95 days |
| Mary Nagu | 
|
 Tanzania
|
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs | 2006 | 2008 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Carmelita Pires |
|
Guinea-Bissau
|
Minister of Justice | 13 April 2007 | 2 January 2009 | 1 year, 264 days |
| 3 July 2014 | 13 October 2017 | 3 years, 102 days | ||||
| Marie Saine-Firdaus |
|
Gambia
|
Minister for Justice | 14 September 2007 | 19 March 2010 | 2 years, 186 days |
| Marisa Helena Morias |
|
Cape Verde
|
Minister of Justice and Labor | 2008 | 2011 | 3 years, 0 days |
| Betty Mould-Iddrisu |
|
 Ghana
|
Attorney General | 7 January 2009 | 3 January 2011 | 1 year, 361 days |
| Edite Tenjua |
|
São Tomé and Príncipe
|
Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Human Rights | 2012 | 2014 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong | 
|
Ghana
|
Attorney General | 14 February 2013 | 7 January 2017 | 3 years, 328 days |
| Amie Joof |
|
Gambia
|
Minister for Justice | 25 May 2013 | 27 August 2013 | 94 days |
| Mama Fatima Singhateh | 
|
Gambia
|
Minister for Justice | 27 August 2013 | 27 August 2014 | 1 year, 0 days |
| 12 January 2015 | 17 January 2017 | 2 years, 5 days | ||||
| Ilza Amado Vaz |
|
São Tomé and Príncipe
|
Minister of Justice, Public Administration and Human Rights | 2014 | 2018 | 4 years, 0 days |
| Asha-Rose Migiro | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Tanzania
|
Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs | 20 January 2014 | 5 November 2015 | 1 year, 289 days |
| Janine Lélis | .jpg)
|
Cape Verde
|
Minister of Justice and Labor | 22 May 2016 | 20 May 2021 | 4 years, 363 days |
| Gloria Akuffo |
|
Ghana
|
Attorney General | 21 January 2017 | 6 January 2021 | 3 years, 351 days |
| Priscilla Schwartz |
|
 Sierra Leone
|
Attorney General and Minister of Justice | 11 June 2018 | 7 July 2020 | 2 years, 26 days |
| Jeanine Nibizi |
|
 Burundi
|
Minister of Justice | 28 June 2020 | 7 September 2022 | 2 years, 72 days |
| Leïla Jaffel |
|
 Tunisia
|
Minister of Justice | 11 October 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 147 days |
Asian ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in Asia. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ho Jong-suk | 
|
 North Korea
|
Minister of Justice | 1957 | 1957 | 2 months[1] |
| Ritsuko Nagao |
|
 Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 11 January 1996 | 7 November 1996 | 301 days |
| Yeh Chin-fong |
|
 Taiwan
|
Minister of Justice | 1 February 1999 | 20 May 2000 | 1 year, 109 days |
| Mayumi Moriyama | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 16 April 2001 | 19 November 2003 | 2 years, 217 days |
| Ana Pessoa Pinto | 
|
 East Timor
|
Minister of Justice | 20 May 2002 | 2003 | 226 days |
| Merceditas Gutierrez |
|
 Philippines
|
Secretary of Justice | 27 November 2002 | 15 January 2003 | 49 days |
| 24 December 2003 | 31 August 2004 | 251 days | ||||
| Kang Kum-sil | 
|
 South Korea
|
Minister of Justice | 27 February 2003 | 29 July 2004 | 1 year, 153 days |
| Chieko Nōno | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 22 September 2004 | 31 October 2005 | 1 year, 39 days |
| Wu Aiying | 
|
 China
|
Minister of Justice | 1 July 2005 | 24 February 2017 | 11 years, 238 days |
| Tzipi Livni | 
|
 Israel
|
Minister of Justice | 29 November 2006 | 7 February 2007 | 70 days |
| 18 March 2013 | 4 December 2014 | 1 year, 261 days | ||||
| Lucia Freitas Lobato |
|
East Timor
|
Minister of Justice | 8 May 2007 | 8 August 2012 | 5 years, 92 days |
| Agnes Devanadera |  |
Philippines
|
Secretary of Justice | 3 September 2007 | 15 November 2007 | 73 days |
| 12 January 2010 | 8 March 2010 | 55 days | ||||
| Wang Ching-feng | 
|
Taiwan
|
Minister of Justice | 20 May 2008 | 12 March 2010 | 1 year, 296 days |
| Keiko Chiba | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 16 September 2009 | 17 September 2010 | 1 year, 1 day |
| Leila de Lima | .jpg)
|
Philippines
|
Secretary of Justice | 30 June 2010 | 12 October 2015 | 5 years, 104 days |
| Luo Ying-shay | 
|
Taiwan
|
Minister of Justice | 30 September 2013 | 20 May 2016 | 2 years, 233 days |
| Midori Matsushima | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 3 September 2014 | 20 October 2014 | 47 days |
| Yōko Kamikawa | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 20 October 2014 | 7 October 2015 | 352 days |
| 3 August 2017 | 2 October 2018 | 1 year, 60 days | ||||
| 16 September 2020 | 4 October 2021 | 1 year, 18 days | ||||
| Ayelet Shaked | 
|
Israel
|
Minister of Justice | 14 May 2015 | 2 June 2019 | 4 years, 19 days |
| Thalatha Atukorale | 
|
 Sri Lanka
|
Minister of Justice | 25 August 2017 | 4 August 2020 | 2 years, 345 days |
| Masako Mori | 
|
Japan
|
Minister of Justice | 31 October 2019 | 16 September 2020 | 321 days |
| Choo Mi-ae | 
|
South Korea
|
Minister of Justice | 2 January 2020 | 27 January 2021 | 1 year, 25 days |
| Marie-Claude Najm |
|
 Lebanon
|
Minister of Justice | 21 January 2020 | 10 September 2021 | 1 year, 232 days |
| Shiva Maya Tumbahamphe |
|
 Nepal
|
Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs | 17 February 2020 | 25 December 2020 | 312 days |
| He Rong | 
|
China
|
Minister of Justice | 24 February 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 11 days |
| Harini Amarasuriya |
|
Sri Lanka
|
Minister of Justice | 24 September 2024 | 18 November 2024 | 55 days |
European ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in Europe. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stella Soulioti |
|
 Cyprus
|
Minister of Justice and Public Order | 1960 | 1970 | 10 years, 0 days |
| Elisabeth Schweigaard Selmer | 
|
 Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 12 October 1965 | 3 October 1970 | 4 years, 356 days |
| Svetla Daskalova |
|
 Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 12 March 1966 | 8 February 1990 | 23 years, 333 days |
| Auður Auðuns |
|
 Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 10 October 1970 | 14 July 1971 | 277 days |
| Inger Louise Valle |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 16 October 1973 | 8 October 1979 | 5 years, 355 days |
| Nathalie Lind |
|
 Denmark
|
Minister of Justice | 19 December 1973 | 13 February 1975 | 1 year, 56 days |
| 30 August 1978 | 26 October 1979 | 1 year, 57 days | ||||
| Inkeri Anttila | 
|
 Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 13 June 1975 | 30 November 1975 | 170 days |
| Colette Flesch | 
|
 Luxembourg
|
Minister of Justice | 22 November 1980 | 20 July 1984 | 3 years, 241 days |
| Mona Røkke |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 14 October 1981 | 3 October 1985 | 3 years, 354 days |
| Elisabeth Kopp | 
|
 Switzerland
|
Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police | 2 October 1984 | 12 January 1988 | 4 years, 102 days |
| Wenche Frogn Sellæg | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 4 October 1985 | 9 May 1986 | 217 days |
| Helen Bøsterud | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 9 May 1986 | 16 October 1989 | 3 years, 160 days |
| Anna-Greta Leijon | 
|
 Sweden
|
Minister for Justice | 19 October 1987 | 7 June 1988 | 232 days |
| Laila Freivalds | 
|
Sweden
|
Minister for Justice | 4 October 1988 | 4 October 1991 | 3 years, 0 days |
| 7 October 1994 | 21 September 2000 | 5 years, 350 days | ||||
| Else Bugge Fougner |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 16 October 1989 | 3 November 1990 | 1 year, 18 days |
| Tarja Halonen | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 1 March 1990 | 26 April 1991 | 1 year, 56 days |
| Kari Gjesteby |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 3 November 1990 | 3 September 1992 | 1 year, 305 days |
| Hannele Pokka | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 26 April 1991 | 30 April 1994 | 3 years, 4 days |
| Gun Hellsvik |
|
Sweden
|
Minister for Justice | 4 October 1991 | 7 October 1994 | 3 years, 3 days |
| Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger | _(cropped).jpg)
|
 Germany
|
Federal Minister of Justice | 18 May 1992 | 17 January 1996 | 3 years, 244 days |
| 28 October 2009 | 17 December 2013 | 4 years, 50 days | ||||
| Grete Faremo | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 4 September 1992 | 25 October 1996 | 4 years, 51 days |
| 11 November 2011 | 16 October 2013 | 1 year, 339 days | ||||
| Anna Benaki-Psarouda |
|
 Greece
|
Minister of Justice, Transparency and Human Rights | 3 December 1992 | 13 September 1993 | 284 days |
| Máire Geoghegan-Quinn | .jpg)
|
 Ireland
|
Minister for Justice | 4 January 1993 | 15 December 1994 | 1 year, 345 days |
| Pia Gjellerup |
|
Denmark
|
Minister of Justice | 25 January 1993 | 29 March 1993 | 63 days |
| Anneli Jäätteenmäki | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 1 May 1994 | 13 April 1995 | 347 days |
| Winnie Sorgdrager | .jpg)
|
 Netherlands
|
Minister of Justice and Security | 22 August 1994 | 3 August 1998 | 3 years, 346 days |
| Nora Owen |
|
Ireland
|
Minister for Justice | 15 December 1994 | 26 June 1997 | 2 years, 193 days |
| Margarita Mariscal de Gante | _Miguel_%C3%81ngel_Rodr%C3%ADguez_durante_la_rueda_de_prensa_posterior_al_Consejo_de_Ministros_junto_a_la_ministra_de_Justicia._Pool_Moncloa._23_de_agosto_de_1996_(cropped).jpeg)
|
 Spain
|
Minister of Justice | 6 May 1996 | 28 April 2000 | 3 years, 358 days |
| Anne Holt | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 25 October 1996 | 4 February 1997 | 102 days |
| Vlasta Parkanová | 
|
 Czech Republic
|
Minister of Justice | 7 January 1997 | 22 July 1998 | 1 year, 196 days |
| Gerd-Liv Valla | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 4 February 1997 | 17 October 1997 | 255 days |
| Élisabeth Guigou | 
|
 France
|
Minister of Justice | 4 June 1997 | 18 October 2000 | 3 years, 136 days |
| Suzanna Stanik |
|
 Ukraine
|
Minister of Justice | 21 August 1997 | 7 May 2002 | 4 years, 259 days |
| Aud Inger Aure |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 17 October 1997 | 15 March 1999 | 1 year, 149 days |
| Hanna Suchocka | 
|
 Poland
|
Minister of Justice | 31 October 1997 | 8 June 2000 | 2 years, 280 days |
| Herta Däubler-Gmelin | 
|
Germany
|
Federal Minister of Justice | 27 October 1998 | 22 October 2002 | 3 years, 360 days |
| Ingrīda Labucka |
|
 Latvia
|
Minister of Justice | 26 November 1998 | 16 July 1999 | 232 days |
| 5 May 2000 | 7 November 2002 | 2 years, 186 days | ||||
| Sólveig Pétursdóttir | 
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 28 May 1999 | 23 May 2003 | 3 years, 360 days |
| Hanne Harlem |
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and the Police[c] | 17 March 2000 | 19 October 2001 | 1 year, 216 days |
| Marylise Lebranchu | .jpg)
|
France
|
Minister of Justice | 18 October 2000 | 6 May 2002 | 1 year, 200 days |
| Rodica Stănoiu |
|
 Romania
|
Minister of Justice | 28 December 2000 | 10 March 2004 | 3 years, 73 days |
| Ingrid Antičević-Marinović | 
|
 Croatia
|
Minister of Justice | 28 September 2001 | 23 December 2003 | 2 years, 86 days |
| Barbara Piwnik | 
|
Poland
|
Minister of Justice | 19 October 2001 | 6 July 2002 | 260 days |
| Lene Espersen | .jpg)
|
Denmark
|
Minister of Justice | 27 November 2001 | 10 September 2008 | 6 years, 288 days |
| Celeste Cardona |
|
 Portugal
|
Minister of Justice | 6 April 2002 | 17 July 2004 | 3 years, 102 days |
| Brigitte Zypries | .jpg)
|
Germany
|
Federal Minister of Justice | 22 October 2002 | 27 October 2009 | 7 years, 5 days |
| Karin Gastinger |
|
 Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 28 February 2003 | 11 January 2007 | 3 years, 317 days |
| Laurette Onkelinx | 
|
 Belgium
|
Minister of Justice | 11 July 2003 | 21 December 2007 | 4 years, 163 days |
| Vesna Škare-Ožbolt | 
|
Croatia
|
Minister of Justice | 23 December 2003 | 10 February 2006 | 2 years, 49 days |
| Vineta Muižniece | 
|
Latvia
|
Minister of Justice | 9 March 2004 | 2 December 2004 | 268 days |
| Monica Macovei | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Romania
|
Minister of Justice | 29 December 2004 | 5 April 2007 | 2 years, 97 days |
| Victoria Iftodi |
|
 Moldova
|
Minister of Justice | 8 July 2004 | 20 September 2006 | 2 years, 74 days |
| Solvita Āboltiņa | 
|
Latvia
|
Minister of Justice | 2 December 2004 | 7 November 2006 | 1 year, 340 days |
| Leena Luhtanen | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 23 September 2005 | 19 April 2007 | 1 year, 208 days |
| Lucia Žitňanská | 
|
 Slovakia
|
Minister of Justice | 8 February 2006 | 4 July 2006 | 55 days |
| 8 July 2010 | 4 April 2012 | 1 year, 271 days | ||||
| 23 March 2016 | 22 March 2018 | 1 year, 364 days | ||||
| Ana Lovrin |
|
Croatia
|
Minister of Justice | 10 February 2006 | 10 October 2008 | 2 years, 243 days |
| Beatrice Ask | 
|
Sweden
|
Minister for Justice | 6 October 2006 | 3 October 2014 | 7 years, 362 days |
| Maria Berger | 
|
Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 11 January 2007 | 2 December 2008 | 1 year, 326 days |
| Tuija Brax | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 19 April 2007 | 22 June 2011 | 4 years, 64 days |
| Rachida Dati | 
|
France
|
Minister of Justice | 18 May 2007 | 23 June 2009 | 2 years, 36 days |
| Miglena Tacheva |
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 19 July 2007 | 27 July 2009 | 2 years, 8 days |
| Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf | 
|
Switzerland
|
Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police | 1 January 2008 | 31 December 2010 | 2 years, 364 days |
| Snežana Malović | 
|
 Serbia
|
Minister of Justice | 7 July 2008 | 27 July 2012 | 4 years, 20 days |
| Claudia Bandion-Ortner | .jpg)
|
Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 15 January 2009 | 21 April 2011 | 2 years, 96 days |
| Ragna Árnadóttir | 
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 1 February 2009 | 2 September 2010 | 1 year, 213 days |
| Aurelia Frick | .jpg)
|
 Liechtenstein
|
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Justice and Culture | 25 March 2009 | 2 July 2019 | 10 years, 99 days |
| Daniela Kovářová | 
|
Czech Republic
|
Minister of Justice | 8 May 2009 | 13 July 2010 | 1 year, 66 days |
| Michèle Alliot-Marie | _(cropped).jpg)
|
France
|
Minister of Justice | 23 June 2009 | 13 November 2010 | 1 year, 143 days |
| Margarita Popova | 
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 27 July 2009 | 29 November 2011 | 2 years, 125 days |
| Simonetta Sommaruga | 
|
Switzerland
|
Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police | 1 January 2010 | 31 December 2018 | 8 years, 364 days |
| Beatrix Karl | 
|
Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 21 April 2011 | 16 December 2013 | 2 years, 239 days |
| Paula Teixeira da Cruz | .png)
|
Portugal
|
Minister of Justice | 21 June 2011 | 30 October 2015 | 4 years, 131 days |
| Anna-Maja Henriksson | 
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 22 June 2011 | 29 May 2015 | 3 years, 341 days |
| 6 June 2019 | 20 June 2023 | 4 years, 14 days | ||||
| Paola Severino | 
|
 Italy
|
Minister of Justice | 16 November 2011 | 28 April 2013 | 1 year, 163 days |
| Diana Kovatcheva |
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 30 November 2011 | 21 February 2013 | 1 year, 83 days |
| Annemie Turtelboom | .jpg)
|
Belgium
|
Minister of Justice | 6 December 2011 | 25 July 2014 | 2 years, 231 days |
| Christiane Taubira | _(cropped).jpg)
|
France
|
Minister of Justice | 16 May 2012 | 27 January 2016 | 3 years, 256 days |
| Mona Pivniceru |
|
Romania
|
Minister of Justice | 23 August 2012 | 28 March 2013 | 217 days |
| Tea Tsulukiani | _(cropped).jpg)
|
 Georgia
|
Minister of Justice | 25 October 2012 | 1 October 2020 | 7 years, 342 days |
| Anna Maria Cancellieri | 
|
Italy
|
Minister of Justice | 28 April 2013 | 22 February 2014 | 300 days |
| Octavie Modert | 
|
Luxembourg
|
Minister of Justice | 30 April 2013 | 4 December 2013 | 218 days |
| Olena Lukash | 
|
Ukraine
|
Minister of Justice | 4 July 2013 | 27 February 2014 | 238 days |
| Marie Benešová |
|
Czech Republic
|
Minister of Justice | 10 July 2013 | 29 January 2014 | 203 days |
| Karen Hækkerup | 
|
Denmark
|
Minister of Justice | 12 December 2013 | 10 October 2014 | 302 days |
| Baiba Broka | 
|
Latvia
|
Minister of Justice | 22 January 2014 | 6 August 2014 | 196 days |
| Helena Válková |
|
Czech Republic
|
Minister of Justice | 29 January 2014 | 1 March 2015 | 1 year, 31 days |
| Frances Fitzgerald | .png)
|
Ireland
|
Minister for Justice | 8 May 2014 | 14 June 2017 | 3 years, 37 days |
| Maggie De Block | 
|
Belgium
|
Minister of Justice | 25 July 2014 | 11 October 2014 | 78 days |
| Mette Frederiksen | 
|
Denmark
|
Minister of Justice | 10 October 2014 | 28 June 2015 | 261 days |
| Ekaterina Zakharieva | 
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 3 January 2015 | 27 January 2017 | 2 years, 24 days |
| Arpine Hovhannisyan | .png)
|
 Armenia
|
Minister of Justice | 4 September 2015 | 11 May 2017 | 1 year, 249 days |
| Raluca Prună |
|
Romania
|
Minister of Justice | 17 November 2015 | 4 January 2017 | 1 year, 48 days |
| Francisca Van Dunem | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Portugal
|
Minister of Justice | 26 November 2015 | 30 March 2022 | 6 years, 124 days |
| Liz Truss | 
|
 United Kingdom
|
Secretary of State for Justice | 14 July 2016 | 11 June 2017 | 332 days |
| Nela Kuburović | 
|
Serbia
|
Minister of Justice | 11 August 2016 | 28 October 2020 | 4 years, 78 days |
| Milda Vainiutė | .jpg)
|
 Lithuania
|
Minister of Justice | 13 December 2016 | 6 March 2018 | 1 year, 83 days |
| Sigríður Á. Andersen | _Sigr%C3%AD%C3%B0ur_%C3%81._Andersen_(35711122216)_(cropped).jpg)
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 11 January 2017 | 14 March 2019 | 2 years, 62 days |
| Mariya Pavlova |
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 27 January 2017 | 4 May 2017 | 97 days |
| 9 April 2024 | 16 January 2025 | 282 days | ||||
| Tsetska Tsacheva | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Bulgaria
|
Minister of Justice | 4 May 2017 | 5 April 2019 | 1 year, 336 days |
| Nicole Belloubet | .jpg)
|
France
|
Minister of Justice | 21 June 2017 | 6 July 2020 | 3 years, 15 days |
| Etilda Gjonaj | .jpg)
|
 Albania
|
Minister of Justice | 11 September 2017 | 18 September 2021 | 4 years, 7 days |
| Sylvi Listhaug | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and Public Security | 17 January 2018 | 20 March 2018 | 62 days |
| Katarina Barley | .jpg)
|
Germany
|
Federal Minister of Justice | 14 March 2018 | 27 June 2019 | 1 year, 105 days |
| Dolores Delgado | .jpeg)
|
Spain
|
Minister of Justice | 7 June 2018 | 13 January 2020 | 1 year, 220 days |
| Taťána Malá |
|
Czech Republic
|
Minister of Justice | 28 June 2018 | 10 July 2018 | 12 days |
| Andreja Katič | _(cropped).jpg)
|
 Slovenia
|
Minister of Justice | 13 September 2018 | 13 March 2020 | 1 year, 182 days |
| 5 March 2024 | Incumbent | 1 year, 2 days | ||||
| Karin Keller-Sutter | .jpg)
|
Switzerland
|
Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police | 1 January 2019 | 31 December 2022 | 3 years, 364 days |
| Christine Lambrecht | 
|
Germany
|
Federal Minister of Justice | 27 June 2019 | 8 December 2021 | 2 years, 164 days |
| Judit Varga | 
|
 Hungary
|
Minister of Justice | 12 July 2019 | 31 July 2023 | 4 years, 19 days |
| Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir |
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 6 September 2019 | 28 November 2021 | 2 years, 83 days |
| Alma Zadić | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 7 January 2020 | Incumbent | 5 years, 59 days |
| Monica Mæland | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and Public Security | 24 January 2020 | 14 October 2021 | 1 year, 263 days |
| Albulena Haxhiu | 
|
 Kosovo
|
Minister of Justice | 3 February 2020 | 3 June 2020 | 121 days |
| 22 March 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 350 days | ||||
| Lilijana Kozlovič |
|
Slovenia
|
Minister of Justice | 13 March 2020 | 27 May 2021 | 1 year, 75 days |
| Mária Kolíková |
|
Slovakia
|
Minister of Justice | 21 March 2020 | 13 September 2022 | 2 years, 176 days |
| Helen McEntee | 
|
Ireland
|
Minister for Justice | 27 June 2020 | 27 April 2021 | 304 days |
| 1 November 2021 | 25 November 2022 | 1 year, 24 days | ||||
| 1 June 2023 | 23 January 2025 | 1 year, 236 days | ||||
| Maja Popović | 
|
Serbia
|
Minister of Justice | 28 October 2020 | Incumbent | 4 years, 130 days |
| Ewelina Dobrowolska | 
|
Lithuania
|
Minister of Justice | 7 December 2020 | 12 December 2024 | 4 years, 5 days |
| Maris Lauri | 
|
 Estonia
|
Minister of Justice | 26 January 2021 | 18 July 2022 | 1 year, 173 days |
| Marta Cartabia | .jpg)
|
Italy
|
Minister of Justice | 13 February 2021 | 22 October 2022 | 1 year, 251 days |
| Graziella Marok-Wachter |
|
Liechtenstein
|
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Justice and Culture | 25 March 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 347 days |
| Heather Humphreys | 
|
Ireland
|
Minister for Justice | 27 April 2021 | 1 November 2021 | 188 days |
| 26 November 2022 | 17 December 2022 | 21 days | ||||
| Pilar Llop | .jpg)
|
Spain
|
Minister of Justice | 12 July 2021 | 21 November 2023 | 2 years, 132 days |
| Emilie Mehl | 
|
Norway
|
Minister of Justice and Public Security | 14 October 2021 | Incumbent | 3 years, 144 days |
| Dilan Yeşilgöz | 
|
Netherlands
|
Minister of Justice and Security | 10 January 2022 | 1 July 2024 | 2 years, 173 days |
| Catarina Sarmento e Castro | .png)
|
Portugal
|
Minister of Justice | 30 March 2022 | 2 April 2024 | −2 years, 3 days |
| Dominika Švarc Pipan | .jpg)
|
Slovenia
|
Minister of Justice | 1 June 2022 | 16 February 2024 | 1 year, 260 days |
| Lea Danilson-Järg | 
|
Estonia
|
Minister of Justice | 18 July 2022 | 17 April 2023 | 273 days |
| Inese Lībiņa-Egnere | .jpg)
|
Latvia
|
Minister of Justice | 14 December 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 83 days |
| Élisabeth Baume-Schneider | .jpg)
|
Switzerland
|
Head of the Federal Department of Justice and Police | 1 January 2023 | 31 December 2023 | 364 days |
| Ester Molné Soldevila |
|
 Andorra
|
Minister of Social Affairs, Justice and Interior | 17 May 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 294 days |
| Alina Gorghiu | 
|
Romania
|
Minister of Justice | 15 June 2023 | 23 December 2024 | 1 year, 181 days |
| Guðrún Hafsteinsdóttir |
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 19 June 2023 | 21 December 2024 | 1 year, 185 days |
| Leena Meri | .jpg)
|
Finland
|
Minister of Justice | 20 June 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 260 days |
| Elisabeth Margue | .jpg)
|
Luxembourg
|
Minister of Justice | 17 November 2023 | Incumbent | 1 year, 110 days |
| Rita Júdice |
|
Portugal
|
Minister of Justice | 2 April 2024 | Incumbent | 339 days |
| Shabana Mahmood | 
|
United Kingdom
|
Secretary of State for Justice | 5 July 2024 | Incumbent | 245 days |
| Liisa Pakosta | 
|
Estonia
|
Minister of Justice | 23 July 2024 | Incumbent | 227 days |
| Þorbjörg Sigríður Gunnlaugsdóttir | 
|
Iceland
|
Minister of Interior | 21 December 2024 | Incumbent | 76 days |
| Annelies Verlinden | 
|
Belgium
|
Minister of Justice | 3 February 2025 | Incumbent | 32 days |
| Anna Sporrer | 
|
Austria
|
Minister of Justice | 3 March 2025 | Incumbent | 4 days |
North American ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in North America. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yolanda Myers de Vásquez |
|
 El Salvador
|
Attorney General | 1967 | 1972 | 5 years, 0 days |
| Elizabeth Odio Benito | _(cropped).jpg)
|
 Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 1978 | 8 May 1982 | 4 years, 0 days |
| 8 May 1990 | 8 May 1994 | 4 years, 0 days | ||||
| Dina Castro de Callejas |
|
El Salvador
|
Attorney General | 1982 | 1984 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Pura Luz Núñez Pérez |
|
 Dominican Republic
|
Attorney General | 1986 | 1987 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Semiramis Olivo de Pichardo |
|
Dominican Republic
|
Attorney General | 1988 | 1990 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Rhina de Rey Prendes |
|
El Salvador
|
Attorney General | 1989 | 1990 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Maruja Chacón Pacheco |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 1989 | 8 May 1990 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Kim Campbell | 
|
 Canada
|
Minister of Justice and Attorney General | 23 February 1990 | 3 January 1993 | 2 years, 315 days |
| Celin Discua |
|
 Honduras
|
Minister of Human Rights, Justice, Governance and Decentralization | 1993 | 1994 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Janet Reno | 
|
 United States
|
Attorney General | 11 March 1993 | 20 January 2001 | 7 years, 315 days |
| Janet Bostwick |
|
 Bahamas
|
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs | 1995 | 1997 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Maureen Clarke |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 19 June 1995 | 3 July 1996 | 1 year, 14 days |
| Anne McLellan | 
|
Canada
|
Minister of Justice and Attorney General | 11 June 1997 | 14 January 2002 | 4 years, 217 days |
| Mónica Nágel Berger |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 1998 | 8 May 2002 | 4 years, 0 days |
| Mia Mottley | 
|
 Barbados
|
Attorney General | 2001 | 2003 | 2 years, 0 days |
| Vera Sofia Rubi |
|
Honduras
|
Minister of Human Rights, Justice, Governance and Decentralization | 2001 | 27 January 2002 | 1 year, 26 days |
| Patricia Vega |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 25 November 2002 | 8 May 2006 | 3 years, 164 days |
| Allyson Maynard Gibson | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Bahamas
|
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs | 2006 | 2007 | 1 year, 0 days |
| 10 May 2012 | 24 May 2017 | 5 years, 14 days | ||||
| Laura Chinchilla | .jpg)
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 2006 | 8 October 2008 | 2 years, 153 days |
| Claire Hepburn |
|
Bahamas
|
Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs | 2007 | 2008 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Dorothy Lightbourne |
|
 Jamaica
|
Minister of Justice | 11 September 2007 | 23 October 2011 | 4 years, 42 days |
| Viviana Martín Salazar |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 October 2008 | 28 July 2009 | 293 days |
| Claudia Paz y Paz | 
|
 Guatemala
|
Attorney General | 9 December 2010 | 17 May 2014 | 3 years, 159 days |
| Marisela Morales | .jpg)
|
 Mexico
|
Attorney General | 1 April 2011 | 30 November 2011 | 243 days |
| Ana Pineda |
|
Honduras
|
Minister of Human Rights, Justice, Governance and Decentralization | 2012 | 27 January 2014 | 2 years, 26 days |
| Ana Isabel Garita Vílchez |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 27 June 2013 | 8 May 2014 | 315 days |
| Cristina Ramírez Chavarría |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 2014 | 7 July 2015 | 1 year, 60 days |
| Thelma Aldana | 
|
Guatemala
|
Attorney General | 17 May 2014 | 16 May 2018 | 3 years, 364 days |
| Loretta Lynch | 
|
United States
|
Attorney General | 27 April 2015 | 20 January 2017 | 1 year, 268 days |
| Cecilia Sánchez Romero |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 7 July 2015 | 1 January 2018 | 2 years, 178 days |
| Jody Wilson-Raybould | 
|
Canada
|
Minister of Justice and Attorney General | 4 November 2015 | 12 February 2019 | 3 years, 100 days |
| Marlene Malahoo Forte | 
|
Jamaica
|
Minister of Justice | 7 March 2016 | 10 January 2022 | 5 years, 309 days |
| Karla Cuevas |
|
Honduras
|
Minister of Human Rights, Justice, Governance and Decentralization | 16 January 2018 | 22 January 2021 | 3 years, 6 days |
| Marcia González Aguiluz |
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 8 May 2018 | 7 February 2020 | 1 year, 275 days |
| María Consuelo Porras | .jpg)
|
Guatemala
|
Attorney General | 17 May 2018 | Incumbent | 6 years, 294 days |
| Fiorella Salazar Rojas | 
|
Costa Rica
|
Minister of Justice and Peace | 14 February 2020 | Incumbent | 5 years, 21 days |
| Dia Forrester |
|
 Grenada
|
Attorney General | 1 January 2021 | 1 July 2022 | 1 year, 181 days |
| Claudette Joseph |
|
Grenada
|
Attorney General | 1 July 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 249 days |
| Pam Bondi | .jpg)
|
United States
|
Attorney General | 5 February 2025 | Incumbent | 30 days |
Oceanian ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in Oceania. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hilda Lini |
|
 Vanuatu
|
Minister of Justice | October 1996 | November 1996 | 1 year, 31 days |
| Amanda Vanstone | 
|
 Australia
|
Attorney General of Australia | 9 October 1997 | 30 January 2001 | 3 years, 113 days |
| Isabelle Donald |
|
Vanuatu
|
Minister of Justice | 2006 | 2007 | 1 year, 0 days |
| Annette King | 
|
 New Zealand
|
Minister of Justice | 31 October 2007 | 19 November 2008 | 1 year, 19 days |
| Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa | .jpg)
|
 Samoa
|
Minister of Justice and Courts Administration | 18 March 2011 | 19 March 2016 | 5 years, 1 day |
| Judith Collins | 
|
New Zealand
|
Minister of Justice | 12 December 2011 | 30 August 2014 | 2 years, 261 days |
| Nicola Roxon | 
|
Australia
|
Attorney General of Australia | 14 December 2011 | 2 February 2013 | 1 year, 50 days |
| Amy Adams | .jpg)
|
New Zealand
|
Minister of Justice | 30 August 2014 | 26 October 2017 | 3 years, 57 days |
| Michaelia Cash | 
|
Australia
|
Attorney General of Australia | 30 March 2021 | 23 May 2022 | 1 year, 54 days |
| Kiri Allan | .jpg)
|
New Zealand
|
Minister of Justice | 14 June 2022 | 24 July 2023 | 1 year, 40 days |
| Ginny Andersen | 
|
New Zealand
|
Minister of Justice | 24 July 2023 | 27 November 2023 | 126 days |
South American ministers
[edit]The following list includes all women who have served as national justice ministers or analogous governmental officials in South America. Politicians are listed based on the starting dates of their tenures.
- denotes an incumbent justice minister or equivalent officeholder
| Name | Image | Country | Title | Mandate start | Mandate end | Term length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adriana Olguín | 
|
 Chile
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 29 July 1952 | 3 November 1952 | 97 days |
| Mónica Madariaga | 
|
Chile
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 20 April 1977 | 14 February 1983 | 5 years, 300 days |
| Mónica de Greiff |
|
 Colombia
|
Minister of Justice and Law | 16 July 1989 | 7 August 1990 | 1 year, 22 days |
| Alma Beatriz Rengifo López |
|
Colombia
|
Minister of Justice and Law | 21 April 1997 | 7 August 1998 | 1 year, 108 days |
| Soledad Alvear | 
|
Chile
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 11 March 2000 | 1 October 2004 | 4 years, 204 days |
| Johana Pesántez | .jpg)
|
 Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 13 May 2011 | 18 June 2013 | 2 years, 36 days |
| Ruth Stella Correa Palacio |
|
Colombia
|
Minister of Justice and Law | 12 July 2012 | 13 September 2013 | 1 year, 63 days |
| Patricia Pérez Goldberg | .jpg)
|
Chile
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 17 December 2012 | 11 March 2014 | 1 year, 84 days |
| Sheila Abed |
|
 Paraguay
|
Minister of Justice | 15 August 2013 | 15 August 2018 | 5 years, 0 days |
| Ledy Zúñiga Rocha |
|
Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 19 November 2013 | 24 May 2017 | 3 years, 186 days |
| Virginia Velasco Condori |
|
 Bolivia
|
Minister of Justice and Institutional Transparency | 22 January 2015 | 23 January 2017 | 2 years, 1 day |
| Rosana Alvarado | _(cropped).jpg)
|
Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 24 May 2017 | 23 August 2018 | 1 year, 91 days |
| Gloria María Borrero | 
|
Colombia
|
Minister of Justice and Law | 7 August 2018 | 16 May 2019 | 282 days |
| Margarita Cabello Blanco |
|
Colombia
|
Minister of Justice and Law | 11 June 2019 | 17 August 2020 | 1 year, 72 days |
| Cecilia Chacón Castillo | .jpg)
|
Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 3 July 2019 | 24 May 2021 | 1 year, 325 days |
| Marcela Losardo | 
|
 Argentina
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 10 December 2019 | 29 March 2021 | 1 year, 109 days |
| Bernarda Ordóñez Moscoso | .jpg)
|
Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 24 May 2021 | 5 May 2022 | 346 days |
| Marcela Ríos | 
|
Chile
|
Minister of Justice and Human Rights | 11 March 2022 | 7 January 2023 | 302 days |
| Paola Flores Jaramillo | 
|
Ecuador
|
Minister of Justice, Human Rights and Cults | 5 May 2022 | Incumbent | 2 years, 306 days |
See also
[edit]
Additional lists of female ministers
- List of female defence ministers
- List of female finance ministers
- List of female foreign ministers
- List of female interior ministers
Footnotes
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ Specific names for the governmental agency in charge of administration of justice vary by country. For example, this body is called the Department of Justice in the United States. Likewise, this agency is called the Office of the Attorney General in Myanmar.
- ^ Not all countries have a ministry of justice, as is the case with Monaco.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l From 2012 onwards, this position has been known as Minister of Justice and Public Security.
Citations
[edit]- ^ Park, Kyung Ae (1994). "Women and Revolution in South and North Korea". In Tétreault, Mary Ann (ed.). Women and Revolution in Africa, Asia, and the New World. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press. Table 7.7. ISBN 978-1-57003-016-1.