Legally Blonde was a pretty influential movie . Like, not only did it completely jumpstart Reese Witherspoon’s career , but it inspired generations of young women and girls to pursue careers in law and other male-dominated industries.
Including Kathleen Martinez, who is the real-life Elle Woods we’ve been waiting for all these decades later.
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The lawyer is also a TikToker ( @attorneymartinez ) with nearly half a million followers.
And her story is kind of amazing.
Martinez shared that she had difficulty early on in her career because of her gender. In one TikTok, she wrote, “My boss fired me from my first lawyer job for not ‘fitting in’ with the conservative culture and refusing to make him coffee.”
So when she decided to start her own firm, Martinez was able to do things her own way.
“So I started my own firm, where we wear whatever we want and ran my old boss out of business,” the captions in her TikTok continued.
“Best part? He recently applied for a job at my firm. I told him we need some help making the girls coffee.”
I kind of want to be Martinez when I grow up, and I’m already grown.
Martinez shows us that you can be a powerhouse lawyer while being as feminine as you want.
In her TikToks, she shows the kinds of outfits she wears to court, including pink suits (which look amazing, by the way). Despite being laughed at by the opposing counsel in the courtroom, she still keeps her cool and lawyers on.
And she carries that pink theme through her whole firm.
In another TikTok, Martinez shows off the pink, Legally Blonde themed party she threw for her firm in Dallas. It literally looks like something out of a little girl’s dream.
While she’s one well-dressed lawyer, she also tackles serious issues.
Martinez’s law firm specializes in immigration law , and she works with immigrants in order to help them through the path to U.S. citizenship. Many of the paralegals with whom she works are immigrants themselves, or are the children of immigrants.
Not only does she stand up for the rights of undocumented immigrants, but she does so for women, too.
While speaking to BuzzFeed , Martinez said, “I didn’t expect to make such a big impact on other women. We have had thousands of female lawyers and legal professionals apply to work at our firm.”
“They have also suffered from gender discrimination in the work place and want to embrace their femininity while practicing law.”
She had a special message to any woman practicing law, saying, “If your employer cannot understand that women can be both smart and feminine, they are not worth your time or hard work.”
“Like many women before me, I had to start my own firm to do so, but I don’t regret it in the least.”
And when speaking on her immigrant clients, she had nothing but niceties to say:
“I have found immigrants in particular to be kind, humble, and extremely appreciative. They work hard to earn their right to citizenship, and I feel privileged to be a part of that.”
I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling pretty inspired myself right about now.
From the fashion to the way she stands up for people’s rights, Martinez has definitely taken that Elle Woods aesthetic and made it into something amazing.
