Marie (Witkin) Kargman

The daughter of Joseph and Clara (Zucker) Witkin, Marie (Witkin) Kargman was born in Chicago, Ill., on August 28, 1914. She graduated from Crane Junior College in Chicago (Adj. of Arts, 1932), DePaul University (J.D., 1936), and Radcliffe College (M.A., 1951). In 1935, she married Max R. Kargman; they had three children.

After serving as public defender in Boys' Court (1936) and practicing privately (1936-1945), MWK came to view law as, "in a very real sense, applied sociology." In the early 1950s she became a marriage and divorce counselor, and she has subsequently served as a consultant in family law, a court investigator, and a guardian ad litem, representing children in divorce proceedings. MWK lectured in sociology at the nursing schools of Children's Hospital (1961-1962) and New England Deaconess (1963), both in Boston, and at Boston University (1965-1968).

MWK originated and chaired a 1965 conference at Harvard Law School entitled "Are Marital Rights in Balance?" She has been active in the American Bar Association's Family Law Section, the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Boston Bar Association, the International Federation of Women Lawyers, and the National Association of Women Lawyers. In November 1967 she was appointed chair of the Governor's Advisory Council on Home and Family in Massachusetts. A frequent guest on radio and television programs, MWK lectures widely and is the author of How to Manage a Marriage (1985) and numerous articles on marriage and family law.

From the guide to the Papers, 1947-1993, (Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute)