She was the first woman to assume the role, and served until the next government led by Kurz was sworn in, following the legislative election which took place on 29 September 2019.

In 1987, she spent a few months working in the Department of Criminal Law in the Ministry of Justice, then returned to her position in the prosecution service.

[2] In 1990, she was appointed advocate general of the Procurator's Office, the section of the prosecution service attached directly to the Supreme Court.

[4] The same year, Bierlein became a member of the board of examiners for judges and prosecutors at the Vienna Higher Regional Court, a position she would hold until 2010.

Bierlein had prosecuted crime with great fervor but had not distinguished herself as a legal scholar; she is in fact considered indifferent as a theorist to this day.

[4][6] Opposition politicians such as Josef Cap accused the government of passing over multiple more competent candidates in favor of a partisan pick.

[11] On the initiative of the Freedom Party, the right-of-center first Kurz government moved to turn her interim position into a permanent one.

[14] Bierlein's previous role as vice president passed on to Supreme Court justice Christoph Grabenwarter.

Wolfgang Brandstetter, who had formerly been vice chancellor and minister of justice on a People's Party ticket, was appointed to fill the vacancy of the Court.

During her time as a prosecutor, she was noted for her hardline tough-on-crime stance, although her years on the bench have earned her a reputation for civility and for working well with ideological opponents.

[4] In response to doubts about her ability to remain above the fray as a Constitutional Court justice, she claimed to be as committed to impartiality as any other professional judge and also pointed out that she had never actually joined any party.