World Bulletin/News Desk

Passing the bar and becoming a lawyer is hard in any country. However, to be a covered woman and become a lawyer used to be impossible in Turkey.

But recently the first woman to buck this trend, Esra Soylu, 23, has taken her bar exam and passed in the Turkish province of Elazig. Afterward Soylu became a certified lawyer. Now Soylu is awaiting her first trial next week.

Soylu explained that after the Turkish military led February 28, 1997 Coup D’état women wearing the head scarf were not able to be sworn in as lawyers. Now Soylu is waiting to see how the rest of the legal community receives her.