Mary Murphy Schroeder at a glance
- Current role
- U.S. Circuit Judge
- Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Jurisdiction
- National federal courts · Federal
- Judicial service
- Senior
Mary Murphy Schroeder
U.S. Circuit Judge · U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Available research
Biography
Professional career
- Trial attorney, U.S. Department of Justice Civil Division (1965–1969)
- Law clerk to Justice Jesse A. Udall, Arizona Supreme Court (1969–1970)
- Private practice in Phoenix, Arizona (1971–1975)
- She was elected to the American Law Institute in 1974 and served on its Council from 1993, contributing to major restatements including Agency, Consumer Contracts, and Government Ethics.
- Professional Career: Visiting instructor, Arizona State University Law School, 1975-1976, 1978
- Professional Career: Lecturer, Duke University, 1995
- Professional Career: Member, Judicial Conference of the United States, 2001-2007
- Professional Career: Private practice, Phoenix, Arizona, 1971-1975
- Lecturer, Duke University, 1995-present
- Visiting instructor, Arizona State University Law School, 1978-present
- Judge, Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One, 1975-1979
- Visiting instructor, Arizona State University Law School, 1975-1976
- Practitioner, 1974-1974
- Private practice, Phoenix, AZ, 1971-1975
- Law clerk, Hon. Jesse A. Udall, Arizona Supreme Court, 1969-1970
- Trial attorney, Civil Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 1965-1969
Judicial service
- Judge, Court of Appeals of Arizona, 1975-1979
- Judge, Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 1979-2011
- Professional Career: Judge, Arizona Court of Appeals, Division One, 1975-1979
- United States federal judge
- Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Professional Career: "Judge Mary M. Schroeder: Twenty Years." Arizona State Law Journal 31 (Fall 1999): 705-35.
- Schroeder has authored and participated in numerous opinions covering environmental law, intellectual property, civil rights, and criminal procedure. Recent cases include United States v. Holmes (Dec. 2025) and Oregon Right to Life v. Stolfi (Oct. 2025).
- Senior status assumed December 31, 2011, but remains active in hearing cases
- Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit from 2000 to 2007 — the first woman to hold that role
- Appointed by President Jimmy Carter on May 3, 1979, to the Ninth Circuit
- Confirmed by the Senate on September 25, 1979; commissioned September 26, 1979
Education
- Swarthmore College · B.A., 1962
- University of Chicago Law School · J.D., 1965
Personal record
Born December 4, 1940 · Boulder, CO
Courtroom rules and guidance
Appellate Oral Argument
In federal courts of appeals, oral argument is allowed unless a three-judge panel unanimously finds one of Rule 34's specified grounds for dispensing with it; the clerk provides the date, time, place, and time allocation.
Oral argument must be allowed in every case unless a panel of three judges who have examined the briefs and record unanimously agrees that oral argument is unnecessaryFederal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument ↗
Sources
Federal Judicial Center biography
Identity source · HTML · checked July 25, 2026
https://www.fjc.gov/node/1387476CourtListener judicial biographical directory
Identity source · HTML · checked August 2, 2026
https://www.courtlistener.com/person/2871/mary-murphy-schroeder/Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 34, Oral Argument
Judge research source · HTML · checked July 26, 2026
https://www.uscourts.gov/forms-rules/current-rules-practice-procedure/federal-rules-appellate-procedure