Students Visit Court of Appeals in San Francisco

(L-R) Ninth Circuit Judges M. Margaret McKeown,
Consuelo M. Callahan and Sandra S. Ikuta

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit welcomed a legal research and writing class of 15 students and their professor from San Francisco State University on March 13, 2013.  The students were joined by a group of law students, who are spending the semester working as volunteer externs for Chief District Judge Morrison C. England, Jr., and District Judge John A. Mendez of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.

 
The group toured the James R. Browning U.S. Courthouse and observed oral arguments in three appeals involving civil rights action, the Social Security Act, and a criminal conviction.  Following the oral arguments, the students spoke with some of the attorneys, who told them about the work of federal prosecutors and defense attorneys.  The students also met with some court staff, who work for the Ninth Circuit judges, and learned about the career paths taken by the judges' law clerks. 

The day ended with the students meeting Ninth Circuit Judges M. Margaret McKeown, Consuelo M. Callahan and Sandra S. Ikuta, who answered questions posed by the students regarding the federal court system and their roles as judges.