He then studied at the University of Munich, before pursuing his legal education at Notre Dame Law School (Juris Doctor, 1966).

The New York Times obituary of June 29, 1997, states that Niemeyer's father: "wrote that fascism, communism and other such modern mass movements were the legacy of disoriented philosophers.

[5] On May 11, 1990, President George H. W. Bush nominated Niemeyer to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to fill the seat vacated by Judge Harrison Lee Winter.

Niemeyer's dissent states: "This unprecedented holding overrules custom, culture, and the very demands inherent in human nature for privacy and safety ... More particularly, it also misconstrues the clear language of Title IX and its regulations"; and "And finally, it reaches an unworkable and illogical result".

[8] The Majority rejected Niemeyer's assertions, concluding that "the record is devoid of any evidence tending to show that [the plaintiff's] use of the boys' restroom creates a safety issue.

"[8] On May 25, 2017, Niemeyer wrote a dissent when the en banc circuit upheld a lower court's injunction against the President's travel ban by a vote of 10–3 in International Refugee Assistance Project v.

In March 2018, Niemeyer wrote a dissent when the circuit denied en banc rehearing to a divided panel's conclusion that the Bladensburg Peace Cross memorial from World War I violated the Constitution's Establishment Clause.

In a 2–1 decision, the court ruled for Gavin Grimm, a transgender man who had sued the Gloucester County School Board in Virginia who had prohibited him from using the boys' bathroom.

[13][14] Niemeyer wrote in dissent “I readily accept the facts of Grimm’s sex status and gender identity and his felt need to be treated with dignity.

In this instance, the School Board offered its students male and female restrooms, legitimately separating them on the basis of sex.