Ask anyone to describe Judge Janice Rogers Brown of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit's writing style and you'll likely hear the word “fiery.” But the flame is set to extinguish, at least at the D.C. Circuit, come August.

Brown, a George W. Bush appointee who has served on the court since 2005, will step down from the court Aug. 31. Brown will not take senior status, according to a Monday press release, but will retire altogether. Though conservative, Brown's voice is unique among the 11 active judges on the bench at the E. Barrett Prettyman Courthouse.

“She's very much a Renaissance woman. She is always reading and thinking and challenging herself, and she's been doing it her whole life,” said Brigham Young University Law professor Aaron Nielson, a former clerk to Brown. “That's going to be the real loss on the court, because you can't replicate that.”