Reina Emily Lawrence (born New York, 1860/1,[1] died Essex, 24 February 1940[2]) was an American British lawyer and politician from Hampstead, who was the first female councillor in London, elected in December 1907, and one of the first women in the United Kingdom to be awarded a law degree.
[12][13] Despite support from the Hampstead Non-Political and Progressive Association, Lawrence lost the subsequent election in October 1909 by six votes.
[2] Two years after her death in 1940, it was noted that her "balanced counsel during her long life of useful work steered many Hampstead charitable bodies.
"[19] Lawrence's election as a councillor was commemorated in 2008 by an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons, sponsored by Lynne Featherstone and signed by 33 MPs.
[20] Lawrence was featured in an exhibition at Holborn library in Camden from December 2007 to January 2008, alongside Mary Wollstonecraft and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson.