The first female judge of the Southern District Missouri Court of Appeals is retiring on Oct. 8.
Judge Nancy Steffen Rahmeyer has served since 2001. She was appointed by Gov. Bob Holden, a Democrat.
“She's been a wonderful colleague and just a great asset on the court,” said Southern District Court of Appeals Judge Gary Lynch. “She has a good head on her shoulders and she will be missed.”
Rahmeyer leaves behind the second woman who joined the Southern District in 2012, Judge Mary Sheffield, who will remain on the court.
After graduating from the University of Arkansas School of Law, Rahmeyer clerked for the U.S. District Court in Springfield from 1987–1989. The Iowa-native also served as a municipal judge in Springfield.
She was chief judge of the Southern District Missouri Court of Appeals from July 2002 to June 2004 and July 2017 to June 2019, according to media reports.
Rahmeyer is one of three judges facing a state constitutional provision, requiring the judiciary to retire on their 70th birthday or lose their pension.
“That's a great incentive to retire before you reach 70 years old,” Lynch told the St. Louis Record. "She is encouraged to retire by the constitution."
The Southern District is made up of seven judges. Judge Lynch will reach the mandatory retirement age in July 2022 while Judge William Francis Jr. will reach mandatory retirement by Dec. 2022.
“Three of our judges are required to retire and we're all baby boomers,” Lynch said. “It is what it is. There are plenty of good heads out there that can take my place. So, I'm not worried about our court or the judiciary. I am worried about the larger bar and the pressures on the lawyers on it.”
During an annual meeting of judges and lawyers last month, Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul C. Wilson urged lawyers to play an active role in recruiting the next generation of attorneys in order to enhance the credibility of the legal profession with diversity and size.
“The bar is kind of gray-headed a little bit and as we retire, the question is who replaces that generation,” Lynch added. “We've got an older bar that's going to be retiring or is retiring and so the numbers may well be going down and Judge Wilson may be trying to avoid that by saying, we need to expand the bar and that expansion needs to be diverse.”