Federal jurist will take on administration of Eastern District of California.
It's not a job for every federal judge.
For one, there is less time sitting on the bench, hearing cases and passing judgment. And there is more time behind a desk, crunching numbers and making administrative decisions.
But when the post of chief judge for the Eastern District of California came open, U.S. District Judge Anthony W. Ishii jumped at the offer.
"Even when I was on the state [Municipal Court] bench, I liked administration," said Ishii, 61. "If you didn't enjoy it, you wouldn't keep this position."
It's probably one of the main reasons Ishii recently was named to the job, an appointment that can last up to seven years. His predecessor, U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr., decided to step down after a little more than a year on the job because he liked trials more than administration.
"The administrative burden is absolutely crushing," said U.S. District Judge Oliver W. Wanger who, because of timing and the quirks of seniority, has never been in line for the job.
As chief judge, Ishii -- who was appointed to the federal bench in 1997 by President Bill Clinton -- oversees 20 district and magistrate judges and is responsible for the administration of district courthouses in Fresno and Sacramento, and magistrate courts in Bakersfield, Yosemite and Redding. The district stretches from south of Bakersfield to the Oregon border.
He deals with the clerk's office, pretrial services and probation departments in Fresno and Sacramento, and is the person ultimately responsible for their day-to-day operations.
He sits on committees, generates reports and travels at least once a month to Sacramento and occasionally to San Francisco, where the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sits.
There are administrative decisions on budgeting and tasks such as approving new computers, carpeting or juror chairs for courtrooms. The chief judge has to stay on top of new laws and constant rule changes.
The workdays are longer and his e-mail inbox is constantly overflowing. "That's why you really have to like administration," Ishii quipped.
Ishii said he always has wanted the post, and he got it because, next to Burrell, he is the most senior active judge in the Sacramento and Fresno courthouses.
Wanger has served longer than Ishii, but he is ineligible because he has taken "senior status," a move akin to retiring. Wanger, however, has maintained a full caseload.
Wanger and U.S. District Judge Lawrence O'Neill agreed to hear Ishii's trials to free him up for the chief judge's responsibilities. If they didn't do that, Ishii said, there is no way he could do the job.
Retired U.S. District Judge Robert Coyle, who sat in Fresno, previously held the post. It passed to William B. Shubb and then his Sacramento colleague, David Levi, in 2003.
Last year, Levi left the bench to take over as dean of the law school at Duke University in North Carolina. Burrell then took over for Levi.
Burrell -- who also sits in Sacramento -- said Friday that when he took the job, he planned on eventually relinquishing it to Ishii "because from our past conversations I knew he would appreciate the opportunity to serve our court as chief, and would enjoy the duties of the position."
It's a position Ishii already was familiar with, to a certain extent. Before joining the federal bench, he served 14 years at the Municipal Court -- which was formerly called the Justice Court -- in Selma.
There, he handled staffing and budgeting issues and also served a year as presiding judge of the Municipal Court.
Ishii is "an exceedingly collegial person who everybody likes" and is the perfect person for the job, Wanger said.
Already, Wanger said, he has seen an improved rapport between the Sacramento and Fresno courthouses, and he credited that to Ishii's "consensus-building nature."
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