Judge David Tatel of the DC Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has announced he is stepping down from full-time service on the bench. He will take senior status, meaning a reduced caseload.

He joins Merrick Garland—Biden’s nominee for Attorney General—in planning to leave the bench. That powerful court is considered something of a professional stepping-stone to the Supreme Court. Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Thomas and Kavanaugh—along with the late Justices Scalia and Ginsburg—served on that appeals court, which hears many important cases dealing with congressional laws and executive acti