I think Bill Clinton, Obama and Bush each appointed about 300-400 federal judges. There are something like 900 total at any given time.
Under each, 2/9 of the Supreme Court also changed.
Is that normal, is the normal life expectancy for a judgeship about 25 years?
Why do we focus so much on 1 or 2 Supreme Court judges, don’t the lower court judged have far more influence overall?
Which courts aside from the Supreme are the most important? Which appeals courts matter most?
The Numbers:
327 by Bush
373 by Clinton
329 by Obama
The DC Circuit Court of Appeals is considered important by many, since it hears a lot of government-type cases. (and it’s in DC)
The other courts are important if you’re in their geographical area.
Believe me, lawyers do worry plenty about who gets appointed to the district and circuit courts they practice in.
1/3 turn over every 8 years seems like a reasonable estimate. Many judges don’t go away completely, but go on “Senior Status.”
It sounds reasonable: if you expect them to have a working life of 40 years or so and they need 15 years or so to acquire a sufficient reputation for them to be appointed.
The importance of the intermediate appellate courts is the breadth of their docket. The Supreme Court issues perhaps a hundred opinions each year, while each appellate court might issue 1000-5000 substantive rulings per year (the courts vary in size considerably). While only binding on a few states, one appellate court’s rulings can be influential on other courts, particularly if the court issuing the ruling has disproportionate experience in that area of law.