Final answer:
After her years as a prosecutor, Sonia Sotomayor served as a judge on the U.S. District Court, followed by the U.S. Court of Appeals, before being nominated to the Supreme Court.
Step-by-step explanation:
A few years after her role as a prosecutor, Sonia Sotomayor worked as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Her appointment to the bench was in 1992 following a nomination by President George H.W. Bush. Sotomayor held this position until 1998, when she was elevated to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit by President Bill Clinton. Her notable transition signifies a career path from prosecution to judicial responsibilities at a higher level of the legal system. This progression reflects the importance of diverse experience within the judiciary and highlights Sotomayor's significant rise in the American legal hierarchy leading up to her eventual nomination and confirmation as a Supreme Court Justice by President Barack Obama in 2009.