Can California legally require women on corporate boards?

By BRIAN MELLEY
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — California’s first-in-the-nation law requiring women on corporate boards is being challenged in court this week on constitutional grounds. A trial begins Wednesday in a lawsuit filed by the conservative group Judicial Watch. The lawsuit claims that the law violates the equal protection clause of the California Constitution by mandating a gender-based quota. The law requires publicly traded companies headquartered in California to have at least one woman on their boards of directors. Larger boards must have up to three women board members by January. More women have been named to corporate boards in California since the law passed three years ago.