By MATT CHANDLER
Buffalo Law Journal

As progress continues on the building of the new $123 million federal courthouse in downtown Buffalo, there will be a new man at the helm.

Chief Judge Hon. Richard Arcara recently appointed Michael Roemer as clerk of U.S. District Court in Buffalo and Rochester. He replaces Rodney Early, who will be stepping down in January after 32 years of federal service.

Roemer, a graduate of West Point Military Academy and Cornell Law School, comes to his new post after 14 years of service as the confidential law clerk to Arcara. The Batavia native, who was raised in Lewiston, left Western New York in 1992 to take a position as a litigator for the law firm of Jones Day, one of the largest firms in the country, in Cleveland, though he was soon lured back to Buffalo.

"I worked in the court for two years after law school, and the judge said if I ever wanted to come back permanently, let him know, so when we decided to start our family, I took the judge up on his offer," Roemer explained.

Returning to Buffalo in 2004, he accepted the position as clerk to Arcara. Leaving his post in Arcara's chambers after 14 years, he says, will be difficult.

"I'll miss the day-to-day interaction with the attorneys - I have great friendships with the attorneys here, and of course I will miss the people I work with. We have had the same group of people for 10 years so it is kind of like a family here," Roemer said. He'll also miss the hands-on law work, which he will be trading out for a more administrative slate of duties as clerk of the court.

"I was at the point where I wanted a new challenge and I wanted to advance my career, and this looked like a good opportunity to do that," Roemer said. "For this particular job, it is a little bit outside of my comfort zone, so to speak. I'm legal and this is some legal, but much more of an administrative and management type of job."

He takes over the position at a time when he'll serve as the court's point person for the construction of the new federal courthouse. While some might find that overwhelming, Roemer, who has been attending informational meetings regarding the construction, says he is up to the task.

"It is a huge challenge and it will be a focal point of my job for the next two years, but I think (the courthouse) will be a great addition to the downtown area and I think it is very important to this city."

As he says goodbye to his current post, he says there are several cases he has worked on through the years that stand out to him, most notably his involvement with the drawn-out legal battle waged by the Seneca Nation over ownership of Grand Island.

"To be able to come to a final resolution in that case after it had been going on for so long I thought was pretty significant," he said. "It involved a lot of not only research, but historical research, which I found really interesting."

Roemer said that as he prepares to take over at the end of January, he is "excited about the whole challenge," especially of managing operations in two cities.

"People forget that we have the Rochester court, and I view that as a challenge: to be able to serve both locations and both communities well," he said.

When he does find some free time outside of his new job, the married father of two says he has plenty to keep him busy. He and his wife Jean are raising two teenage daughters, and he is active in his church and in community organizations such as Lewiston Kiwanis.