Karen Schreier is a fourth generation South Dakotan. Karen received her Juris Doctor Degree from St. Louis University School of Law in 1981. After law school, she served as a law clerk to South Dakota Supreme Court Justice Francis Dunn for one year and was in private practice in Sioux Falls, South Dakota for 11 years with the law firm of Hagen, Wilka, Schreier & Archer. In 1993, she was appointed as U.S. Attorney for the District of South Dakota and served as chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, chair of the Juvenile Justice Subcommittee and member of the Tribal Relations Subcommittee. On June 30, 1999, Karen was confirmed as a federal district judge in South Dakota. She served as Chief Judge from January 2006 to December 2013. Karen currently serves as a member of the Judicial Conference Budget Committee and Judicial Security and Independence Task Force and previously served as a member and chair of the Administration of the Bankruptcy System committee. She is the President of the Federal Judges Association. Karen has served as President of the Eighth Circuit District Judges Association, as the Eighth Circuit Representative to the United States Judicial Conference, and on multiple planning committees for Eighth Circuit Judicial Conferences. She enjoys hiking, biking, and reading.