john_millerThe announcement today of the upcoming retirement of an Iowa appellate court judge means that Gov. Chet Culver will soon have opportunity to appoint another member of the state’s judiciary branch.

Judge John C. Miller, 66, plans to retire July 23. He was appointed to the Iowa Court of Appeals in 1999 by then-Gov. Tom Vilsack.

“It has been my privilege to serve the people of Iowa as a judge,” Judge Miller said in a prepared statement. “Our hard-working and dedicated judges and judicial branch employees have made what can be demanding and challenging work a pleasure. I will miss working with them on a daily basis, but look forward to having more time for family, friends, and other pursuits.”

The Culver administration has made several judicial appointments since taking office in 2007, and this will be his fourth to the nine-member Iowa Court of Appeals.

Most of Culver’s judicial appointees — all selected from three-person shortlists produced by the State Judicial Nomination Commission — have been perceived moderates, most with previous bench experience. Given past history, Iowans can look for Culver to possibly promote someone from the district court ranks.

Miller, who plans to remained involved with the judicial branch as a senior judge after retirement, has had a lengthy career. He worked for five years as a part-time judicial hospitalization referee while in private practice from 1975 to 1980 and spent more than 18 years as a district court judge, including 14 months as Chief Judge of the Eighth Judicial District, and nearly 10 years on the Iowa Court of Appeals. He attended undergraduate and law school at the University of Iowa, receiving his bachelor’s degree in 1969 and his law degree, with distinction, in 1975.

“I will apply to serve as a senior judge, and will be happy to continue working for the courts in any way that I can,” he said. “I hope to continue to contribute to the courts, and to maintain the relationships established over the years.”