Sheila Mary McClemans

Sheila Mary McClemans, (3 May 1909 – 10 June 1988) was an Australian servicewoman, lawyer, barrister and company director. She set up the first all female law firm in Western Australia and was the first female barrister to appear before the Supreme Court of Western Australia.

Early life Sheila McClemans was born to Ada Lucy Walker and William Joseph McClemans in Claremont, Western Australia on 3 May 1909. She attended the Perth Modern School.

Legal career McClemans was one of the first graduates of the law school at the University of Western Australia in 1930. When McClemans and her friend Molly Kingston were unable to find work in a law firm they set up the first all woman law firm in Western Australia. and the State Parole Board of Western Australia.

Awards McClemans was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1951, and a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1977. She was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977. Her portrait painted by Nora Heysen is in the collection of the Australian War Memorial, Canberra.

Personal life McClemans married Frank Morrison Kenworthy (1899–1976) in 1949. She died in Dalkeith, Western Australia, on 10 June 1988.