A new No. 1 at the 9th Circuit

Today, Mary M. Schroeder completes her seven-year tenure as chief judge of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, and Alex Kozinski commences his term. The 9th Circuit, which is the biggest and busiest of the 12 regional circuit courts in the country, is also widely believed to be its most liberal -- so it is not insignificant that Schroeder's understated manner and liberal political views contrast with the flamboyant style and conservative perspectives of Kozinski.

The 9th Circuit, which hears federal appeals from California and eight other Western states, has more judges (28) than any other circuit court, receives the highest number of appeals (15,000 annually) and encompasses the largest territory (1.3 million square miles). It also may be the most controversial because of perennial conservative complaints that it is excessively liberal. Repeated efforts to split the court because of its size and controversial politics have proved unsuccessful.

The chief judge has overall responsibility for circuit operations -- basically ensuring the expeditious, inexpensive and fair disposition of appeals -- and is the court's public face. The chief judge also heads the Circuit Judicial Council, the court's policymaking arm; represents the 9th Circuit on the Judicial Conference, which makes policy for the entire federal judiciary; and represents the 9th Circuit in its dealings with Congress. The chief judge is the only one of the circuit's judges who always serves on the court's "en banc" panels that rehear many of the most controversial and important appeals.

Schroeder, 66, compiled a highly successful record in her tenure, most of which overlapped with President Bush's administration and a period when Republicans enjoyed majorities in both houses of Congress. She resisted all efforts (backed by the GOP) to split the 9th Circuit, but at the same time cooperated with the Republican Senate majority to ensure that 9th Circuit vacancies were filled. As Schroeder hands over the reins, 27 active judgeships are filled.

Kozinski, nearly a decade younger than Schroeder, enjoys a well-deserved reputation as an iconoclast or, some would say, eccentric. Born to Holocaust survivors in Bucharest, Romania, Kozinski came to the U.S. at age 12. He grew up in Los Angeles, attending Marshall High School and UCLA before clerking for then-9th Circuit Judge Anthony Kennedy and U.S. Chief Justice Warren Burger. In the early 1980s, President Reagan appointed Kozinski as chief judge of the new U.S. Claims Court, and in 1985, Reagan appointed him to the 9th Circuit, making him the nation's youngest appellate judge.