Judge N. Randy Smith of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has announced that he will be taking senior status next year, opening up another spot to fill for President Donald Trump on the nation's largest federal appellate court.

Smith, a President George W. Bush appointee, announced his intention to go senior on Aug. 11, 2018, but indicated that he intends to take cases as a senior judge. “I look forward to continuing service to our country,” wrote Smith in a Dec. 1 letter to Trump. “However, at that time, I wish to provide another opportunity for an Idaho lawyer to serve here.”

Smith, a native of southeastern Idaho, previously served as a state judge for the Sixth District in Pocatello, Idaho, where he keeps his Ninth Circuit chambers. He was nominated to two different vacancies on the Ninth Circuit by Bush before eventually being confirmed in 2007.