Judge Judy

This article is about the television series and the "Judge Judy" persona. For the individual, see Judith Sheindlin.

Judge Judy
File:JudgeJudyshow sign.JPG
Starring	Judith Sheindlin Petri Hawkins-Byrd Jerry Bishop
Country of origin	United States
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Original release
Network	Syndicated
Release	September 16,1996 – present

Judge Judy is an American syndicated reality-based court show, featuring former family court judge, Judith Sheindlin, arbitrating over small claims cases. The show premièred on September 16 1996, and brought back the television courtroom genre after a few years of being off the air. Despite its long string of judicial challengers over the years, Judge Judy has brought in the highest ratings out of all the courtroom dramas. In addition, it's remained the most watched court show since its series premiere. As of 2007, Judith Sheindlin's top-rated courtroom series has been nominated ten times for Daytime Emmy Awards. On October 7, 2005, during its tenth season, Judge Judy was renewed through the 2009-2010 season (the show's fourteenth). Judge Judy's twelfth season premièred on Monday, September 10, 2007. The following day, the show's first DVD, entitled Justice Served, was released. The program earned Sheindlin a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, which she was awarded in February of 2006.

Court show background

Overview

Though the title of the court show is Judge Judy, it has also become a nickname for Judith Sheindlin, who has become better known as Judge Judy. The show was created when Judy Sheindlin's reputation for being one of the most outspoken family court judges in the country, became the topic of a Los Angeles Times article in February of 1993. The piece caught the attention of 60 Minutes, leading to a segment on the show, which brought her national recognition. This led to her being approached by producers to preside over her own courtroom drama. The title of her show was originally going to be "Hot Bench." Unhappy with that title however, Sheindlin convinced her television producers to change the title. Judy Sheindlin became the first television judge to have her name as part of the title of her court show. Judge Judy became the third show to be created in the court-themed genre, behind The People's Court and Divorce Court. Randy Douthit and Peter Brennan are the show's executive producers.

The Judge Judy show takes place in one of the smallest televised courtrooms. Litigants enter downstage of the courtroom by way of the swinging doors in the aisle. Currently, most of the colors in Judge Judy's courtroom are dark brown colors. The carpeting in her courtroom is red. Although there are microphones on each of the podiums, these microphones aren't used for anything. Sometimes, however, litigants lean forward towards the microphones, mistakenly believing that they have to speak into them in order to be heard. In addition to the microphones, there's a pitcher of water and a stack of cups on each of the podiums. In past episodes, there have been litigants who have drank excessive amounts of water and other litigants who have prepared themselves a cup of water at inopportune times. In one instance in fact, a witness rose without permission and tried helping herself to some water. Sheindlin instructed her to put the pitcher down and added, "We're not serving." Two flags are positioned approximately ten feet behind Judge Judy's courtroom chair. There is an American Flag on Sheindlin's right side and a New York State Flag on her left side. The reason for the New York State Flag is because New York is where Ms. Sheindlin was a family court judge for twenty-five years.

Before every commercial break, a preview of the upcoming moments of the case that is in session and often, the following case on the episode are shown. During this preview, a tune with a violin-like sound, accompanied with abrupt, booming noises is played, and has been used since the show's ninth season. Upon returning from the first two commercial breaks, Jerry Bishop's voice-over commentary is heard, stating: "Real cases! Real people! Judge Judy!", followed by a small recap of the case that is in session. Upon returning from the third and final commercial break, his voice-over is heard again, only providing the show's number and website for people to submit cases. There are usually two cases presented on each show, but less frequently there will be a single long case, three shorter ones, or even four shorter ones. After each case, the plaintiff and defendant express their feelings about the case to the camera. Just outside one of the courtroom doors is a very small area where these interviews take place.

Structure

Because the Judge Judy show wants to make sure they have a full audience, their audience members are all paid extras and tickets are not put together for the show. Agents, working for the show, book members of their union to be audience members for the court show (the point of joining these unions is being booked as audience members for any television shows that will provide payment for it). However, arrangements can sometimes be made with Sheindlin's production staff to allow fans of the show into the audience. Once all the cases are through, all of the audience members receive payment. The extras must be dressed formally and are instructed to laugh on cue. Extras are also instructed to appear as if they're having discussions with each other, before and after each case, so the bailiff may make such announcements as "Order! All rise." As far as the court cases are concerned however, what is seen on Judge Judy is neither staged or scripted. The plaintiffs have actually sued the defendants and that very case is heard and decided upon by Judith Sheindlin. The court show acquires cases by people submitting claims into them via their website or phone number. Producers of Judge Judy also research court files from all over the country to find cases that they think are appropriate and entertaining for the show.

People, who work for the show, call both parties and ask them questions about their case to make sure it's suitable for Judge Judy. If the parties agree to be on the show and sign a waiver, agreeing that arbitration in Sheindlin's court is final and cannot be pursued elsewhere (unless she dismisses the lawsuit without prejudice), their case will air on Judge Judy. The award limit on Judge Judy, as on most 'syndi-court' shows (and most small claims courts in U.S.), is $5,000. The award for each judgment is paid by the producers of the show, from a fund reserved for each case. About forty percent of the cases are money judgments, while sixty percent are dismissed.

Both the plaintiff and the defendant receive $100 for their appearance, as well as $35 a day, paid to them by the show. The litigant's stay lasts for the number of days that the show does taping for that week, which is two or three days. In addition, the travel and hotel expenses of the litigants and their witnesses are covered by the show. If there is an exchange of property, Ms. Sheindlin signs an order and a sheriff or marshal sees to it that that property is exchanged. There are no lawyers present and participants defend themselves on Judge Judy, as is standard in a small claims court. Sheindlin sees only a half-page complaint and a defense response prior to the taping of the cases, sometimes only moments before. Most of the cases, without any deleted footage to meet the time constraints of the show, usually last anywhere from twelve to thirty-five minutes.

Recordings and airings

Three days every other week (two weeks a month), Sheindlin and her producers tape the court show. They produce ten to twelve cases for each day they tape the show. A week's worth of episodes consists of approximately ten cases. Anywhere from thirty to thirty-six cases are filmed over the three days they tape per week. However, Sheindlin and her producers only tape five cases per day and two days per week from April to July. The show has fifty-two taping days a year. For each season, some 570 claims are brought to the set to be presided over by Judge Judy. This means approximately 6,270 claims have been brought to Judy Sheindlin's Hollywood set, as of the end of its eleventh season (2006-2007).

For the most part, cases are taped all throughout the year except for two breaks Sheindlin and all of the members of her show have for the year. One of the two breaks includes an extra week off in December, as the show is only taped one week out of that month because of the Christmas holiday. The other break is from mid-July (only taping one week in July) and all through August. According to members of the show, the reason for this break is because people are more interested in taking vacations than in filing lawsuits around that time.

Altogether, there are 260 new episodes per season of Judge Judy. As of the end of the eleventh season (2006-2007), the Judge Judy court show has had a total of 2,860 new episodes. It's not hard to believe, seeing as how there is at least one new episode for every weekday, with the exception of a few hiatuses during most of the summer and a couple of holidays. The cases are all pre-recorded for editing purposes and will usually air one or two months after being taped. While the cases taped in March end the seasons, the cases taped throughout April, May, June, and July start out each season in September and last through the beginning of November.

Throughout the very beginning of each season, two new Judge Judy episodes air per day. After two weeks, it shortens down to one new airing a day, followed by a repeat afterwards. There are also various other moments throughout the year where two new episodes are shown for two weeks or so. This includes January, when the show returns from its short winter hiatus. Unlike most television shows, Judge Judy does not air its season finale in April or May. Rather, it will air its last few new episodes sporadically over the summer months, with many repeats in between, and its season finale taking place some time in August.

Location

The Judge Judy set is directly beside the Judge Joe Brown set, in the same studios. Both of the judges work with Big Ticket Entertainment. Sheindlin and Judge Joe also alternate between the weeks that they work on their court shows, as Judge Joe Brown is filmed during the two weeks out of the month that Sheindlin is off.

Many people tend to believe that the taping of Judge Judy takes place in New York City. This misconception is mainly due to the show's various images of that area, shown upon returning from commercial breaks. This misconception also may be due to the words "State of New York", continually moving across the falu red letterboxes, during the previews just before commercial breaks and upon returning from commercial breaks (since the ninth season). Judith Sheindlin was also a judge for twenty-five years in New York City, working as a prosecutor and dealing with juvenile delinquents, before retiring to do the court show. However, cases are actually taped inside of The Tribune production studios, on Sunset Boulevard, in Los Angeles, California. Every other week, Sheindlin is flown out on her private jet to spend Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in Los Angeles, California, to tape her show. Owning three homes, Sheindlin is flown out to Hollywood from either her home in New York City, Greenwich, Connecticut, or Naples, Florida.

As of late August 2007, it has been reported that the historic, former Warner Brothers studio, on Sunset Boulevard has been put up for sale. It is the site currently owned by KTLA-TV, Tribune Entertainment, and Tribune Studios. The television shows currently filmed at this production facility are Hannah Montana, Judge Joe Brown, and Judge Judy. Because other studios and historic properties in the same neighborhood as the Tribune studios recently sold for millions, investors are racing to try to make just as much. No price has been set as of yet for the medium-sized property. After the sale, it is expected that KTLA will remain at the location as a tenant, but may only do so for an indefinite period of time. Once that time runs out, "Judge Judy," "Judge Joe Brown," and "Hannah Montana" will all be evicted from the property. However, the station is likely to go elsewhere to update its facilities in the future.

Alterations

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Older look

In the past, the Judge Judy court show has changed very little from season to season. The show's music and graphics are the only thing that has changed repeatedly over its past twelve years. The ninth season (2004-2005) is one of the few seasons in which the show made a major alteration; the Judge Judy intro had been changed drastically. Symphony No. 5 (Beethoven) became the show's theme music. For its scenes, Judge Judy is shown in a different courtroom from her own, approaching the camera, followed by folding her arms and smiling at the camera. This is followed by showing various scenes of her seemingly presiding over different cases.

In addition, there was another alteration made to the show's intro that season; each show begins with a short, often exaggerated preview of the case. This is followed by its theme music, with voice-over artist, Jerry Bishop, making the statements: You are about to enter the courtroom of Judge Judith Sheindlin. The people are real... the cases are real... the rulings are final. This is Judge Judy. However, the sentence, this is her courtroom, originally stated after the sentence, the rulings are final, was eliminated from the show's intro by the show's ninth season.

Before the ninth season, the show used an original tune for their theme music. Various different versions of this original tune were used, as the song was altered every few seasons. Used as the scenes for the theme song before the ninth season, was a computer animated approaching scene towards a courthouse, up until that scene entered into the courthouse. From there, several shots of Sheindlin presiding over different cases were displayed, moving from one side to the other. Those shots developed into the courthouse symbol that represents her program (this symbol is always displayed inside of the letter D, in Judy), by the end of the theme music. Before these scenes, there was a scene of the courthouse symbol that represents her program, over a green background. Shots of Sheindlin, presiding over different cases, flew into the scene and moved into each of the square-shaped designs of the courthouse, correspondingly.

The colors that represent the show have altered several times over the years. The first couple of seasons of Judge Judy were represented by the colors sea green and saffron. Blue and saffron represented the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh seasons. An array of many bright colors, along with blue and saffron represented the eighth season. Since the ninth season, the various graphics on the show have been falu red and saffron. As of the twelfth season, prussian blue has been added to the show's color scheme for the opening previews of each episode.

The only changes made to the Judge Judy set were all mostly made in the early seasons of the show, which includes: the wooding that takes up most of the courtroom was a much lighter shade of brown in the beginning of the series; the wall behind Judge Judy did not always have the shiny surface it has now, with the black and dark brown color mixture (it used to be plain brown); the fake window display along the sides of the courtroom has gone from displaying designs, to going plain and only showing whiteness, to displaying the current scene of fake buildings; the carpeting was light pink in the beginning of the series; there were two different podiums that were replaced by the two currently used podiums; altogether, Sheindlin has had four different chairs throughout the show's existence. She had three smaller chairs before she got her current chair. Her very first chair was persian indigo and her second chair was hunter green with diagonal square designs. Sheindlin's third chair was similar to her current chair, only with a lower back behind her shoulders. Though these chairs had low backs, they were all still executive chairs. They were replaced early on by the traditional, executive chair she has been sitting in for the majority of the show's existence. The chair is button-tufted, with a high back and thick padding. It is a burgundy leather chair.

Judge Judith Sheindlin

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Current look

Persona

Because of her straightforwardness of expression and impatience in making litigants get to the point, to keep them from wasting time on irrelevant and unimportant details, Judith Sheindlin is well-known as a no-nonsense jurist. Combining those qualities with her swift handling of many of the matters brought up throughout the course of each proceeding, Judge Judy is touted as, "A show where justice is dispensed at the speed of light."

Disbelieving many of the questionable affirmations of the parties that appear before her, lying is the main problem that the incredulous Judith Sheindlin has with both litigants and their witnesses. In fact, one of her most popular catchphrases is "Baloney!", and she is also convinced that "If something does not make sense, it's not true."

Much to the frustration of some litigants, Sheindlin is a very adamant judge. Once she makes decisions and reaches positions about the case and certain issues involved in the case, litigants are usually unable to persuade her to change her mind. Despite this, there are litigants who will not keep quiet even while it seems as if they're about to win the case. Because of this, they often reveal information that helps the opposing party's position. In these cases, Sheindlin is known to change her mind.

Of all her characteristics, Judge Judy is noted most for her courtroom toughness. One example of this is her invectiveness, as she puts the parties in their places, often accompanied with insults and humorous sassiness. This was once displayed after Sheindlin was interrupted by a litigant, to which she replied "Listen, sir! I'm the only macho one here." Many times, Sheindlin spends a good portion of the case giving certain litigants a hard time, by treating them with much loudness and very aggressive sternness. Judge Judy also tends to be highly irascible in her temperament towards the parties that appear before her, mostly displayed in her startling explosions at them. Known to behave in browbeating ways as well, Sheindlin makes such remarks as "Sir, you want to say something to me? You sure you want to say something to me?", and "You mess around with me young lady, I will wipe the floor with you. We follow each other?" In fact, the show's tagline is Justice with an Attitude. Sheindlin is often likened to three other celebrities notorious for being less than courteous towards their guests. They are Simon Cowell, Anne Robinson, and radio personality, Dr. Laura.

In contrast to her typically gruff and scathing nature towards adults and teens, Judge Judy is pleasant and cheery towards any children involved in the cases. There's even a small enclosed space, connected to the side of her bench, which Sheindlin uses as a special placement for younger children to talk to her in a friendly one-on-one fashion. Sheindlin also has Byrd escort children outside of her courtroom when she feels the court case brought before her, is inappropriate for children to be present for. As soon as these children have left, Sheindlin comes down on their parents for even bringing them to court and involving them in their legal disputes. This happens particularly when the mother and father of a child are suing each other, and have brought that child along as a witness. Judith Sheindlin is raspy-voiced with a New York accent. She's stated that her judicial philosophy is that people must to take responsibility for their own actions.

Expectations

Judge Judy has a fair amount of expectations out of litigants that enter her courtroom. One of her biggest expectations are that litigants hold complete eye contact with her. Another expectation is that they show up to her courtroom prepared. She likes it when they have all their necessary evidence and information with them. Sheindlin expects people to come to her courtroom dressed appropriately. This is mainly noted when women come into her courtroom revealing too much skin. She often tells them to put something warmer on, such as a sweater, over such clothing as tank tops. Judge Judy expects witnesses to keep quiet, and snaps at them if they try to involve themselves in the case when she has not directed them to. Sheindlin expects witnesses to speak while standing up. Sheindlin also expects the use of "Yes!" and No!, and not the usages "Mm-hm!", "Mm-mm!", or "Yea!" Sheindlin looks for her litigants to speak up and speak clearly when talking to her, as well.

Another expectation is that the claims brought before her are not nonsense claims. For example, one of Sheindlin's biggest pet peeves are when unmarried, former live-in couples expect her to go through long lists of belongings and property that they want returned or to be compensated for because the other took that property. Sheindlin never entertains such issues because the two were merely "playing house" by having a live-in relationship--and even if they were married, it be an issue for a divorce court to settle.

Trademarks and habits=

• A very common habit of Sheindlin's is eyeing litigants, just over the top of her slightly lowered reading glasses.
• A lot of times, Sheindlin will quickly come up with a detailed analogy, in an effort to help litigants understand the ridiculousness of their position. She makes up situations, with ludicrous occurences that she feels are no different from the stance the litigant is defending.
• No matter what, Sheindlin always has Byrd give a kleenex to any litigant who is crying.
• Sheindlin often asks older adults whether or not they are employed. If she finds out they are unemployed, she gets on their case about it. As for younger adults, Sheindlin expects them to be employed or at least involved in some type of college education to further themselves. Sheindlin becomes particularly annoyed by litigants who are on Workers' compensation who she feels should not be and gives these litigants a hard time for it.
• Unlike a lot of television judges, Sheindlin never uses a gavel.
• Unlike most of the television jurists, Judge Judy does not always respond kindly to feedback from the audience. Sometimes the audience's laughter or making of any sounds throughout the hearing will irritate Judy enough to order them all to be quiet.
• Sheindlin occasionally makes references to other TV personalities. For example, she has commented "You want a therapist? Go on Dr. Phil", "This is not Oprah", "Judge Hatchett is a terrific gal--great friend of mine--she likes to help people--I do not." She has also made several references to Jay Leno and the jaywalking segment from The Tonight Show. Sheindlin once even told a litigant that if she continued to do something wrong, that she would end up in jail right next to Paris Hilton, causing her entire courtroom audience to explode in laughter.

Petri Hawkins-Byrd

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Judge Judy on the bench, alongside Petri Hawkins

Like all court shows, Judge Judy has two stars. By Sheindlin's side is Petri Hawkins-Byrd (born November, 1957), the show's bailiff. On the show, Sheindlin usually refers to him as "Byrd", and sometimes "Officer Byrd".

Like Sheindlin, Byrd is a native of Brooklyn, New York. He attended John Jay College of Criminal Justice and received his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice in 1989. While attending college, Byrd worked as a court officer in the Brooklyn Family Court system. In 1986, he was transferred to the Manhattan Family Court system, where he worked on a rotating basis with all the judges, including Judge Judy. "I was never bored in her courtroom," muses Byrd. "Her get-to-the-point style did not always sit well with the litigants, and there were times she was definitely glad to have me around."

In 1990, Byrd relocated to San Mateo, California, and became a Special Deputy U.S. Marshal. In 1993, Byrd accepted an offer to work as a student counsellor at Monta Vista High School in Cupertino, CA. Because of his imitations of her, Byrd was one bailiff that had always stuck out to Judge Judy. When he found out she would be getting her own court show, Byrd sent Judge Judy a congratulatory letter that read, “If you ever need a bailiff, I still look good in uniform.” To his surprise, Sheindlin accepted.

His main role on Judge Judy is introducing the cases (swearing the litigants and revealing the case number to Judge Judy just before each session), sending things to Sheindlin that need to be given to her by the litigants, sending things to the litigants that need to be given to them by Sheindlin, and giving the parties permission to leave, followed by escorting them all out once the case is over. However, Hawkins is also helpful in many other ways. For example, whenever Judge Judy needs the Kelley Blue Book, Byrd always gets it for her and looks up the needed automobile value. Mr. Hawkins also provides Judge Judy information on subjects she does not know much about, such as math, the Internet, and sports.

Also aside from Byrd's major duties on the set of Judge Judy, Sheindlin sometimes involves him into the cases. One instance in which Sheindlin involves Hawkins, is when trying to strengthen her points against the litigants. For example, Sheindlin once pointed out how outrageous it was that one of her litigants could get arrested so many times at such a young age. The litigant disagreed with her, leading Sheindlin to ask Byrd if he had ever been arrested even once. Byrd, much older than the litigant, answered “No.” Many times, Sheindlin introduces Byrd into the case through her sassy wit directed at the litigants. For instance, she sometimes randomly includes Byrd's name into her comments, making such jokes as “Well, who do you think should be responsible for all this, Byrd?” She also makes wisecracks to Byrd about litigants who she believes have shown foolishness in some way. For the most part, Byrd responds with lukewarm reactions, such as a mere "ah", or shake of his head.

Other than the occasional laugh at the outrageousness of some of the litigants, Byrd is rather stoic. Sheindlin once commented, "Even Byrd cannot keep a straight face." Standing at 6 ft 4 inand weighing 240 pounds, he is always able to see to it that litigants obey Judge Judy when she is unable to control them by herself. He is the self-professed "world's richest baliff", but refuses to reveal his salary. Byrd and his family now reside in Elk Grove, California.

While Judge Judy hears cases, Byrd is often looking down at a clipboard. Though it might appear as if he's going over case files or court-related information, Byrd is actually occupying his time with crossword puzzles. When asked if he would want to come before Judge Judy in court, Byrd answered, "Hell, no." He added, laughing, "And I do not advise any of my friends to do so. Not if they want to maintain their love of the judicial system."

When a news program went behind the scenes of Judge Judy, it was revealed that the show originally wanted an actor to take on the role of Judge Judy's bailiff. However, Judge Judy rejected that suggestion, letting producers know that was not going to work. Almost certain the court show would not last more than six months, her producers just decided to give Sheindlin what she wanted and allowed Byrd to be her bailiff.

Reception

Ratings

Judge Judy went on the air in September 1996. By the end of October of that year, the show was only averaging a 1.5 rating, putting it in the mid-rank of the 159 syndicated shows on the air. At that time, it was never expected that her show's ratings would ever compete with highly successful daytime TV shows, such as Wheel of Fortune, The Oprah Winfrey Show, and The Rosie O'Donnell Show. According to Sheindlin's biography, producers of her show were disappointed that the show was barely on the radar screen. However, it did not take long for Judge Judy to pick up momentum, as the show rose to a 2.1 rating by the end of that first season. By the end of her second season (1997-1998), she had already risen into the 4 ranges, as stated in her biography video.

Judge Judy's ratings more than doubled to 5.6 for her third season (1998-1999), making her show an early success. This led to the creation of Judge Mills Lane (lasting four seasons) and Judge Joe Brown (into its tenth season as of 2007). In fact, it was due to her impressive ratings that year that The People's Court producers decided to replace Ed Koch with Judge Judy's husband, Jerry Sheindlin. However, he only lasted two years on The People's Court, from 1999 to 2001, before being replaced by Marilyn Milian.

During her fourth season (1999-2000), Judy's ratings exploded, peaking at a 9.3, just as Judge Mathis was created, and Divorce Court was revived; both court shows, having made it to their ninth seasons as of the 2007-2008 season. Because of Judge Judy's success, the court show aired at better time periods. At that point, Sheindlin's show was even surpassing the Oprah Winfrey Show (King World Productions which launched Oprah as a corporate sibling of Judge Judy's distributor, CBS Paramount Television). Not only was Judge Judy reported as the top-rated court show, but the top-rated daytime TV show at this point.

For the three years immediately following that however, the ratings for Judge Judy declined. This decline started in her fifth season (2000-2001) and lasted through her seventh season (2002-2003). Sheindlin finally reversed this downward turn when her ratings average increased to a 7.1 for her eighth season (2003-2004). Of the seven running court shows during 2004-2005, most of them earned a 3.63 rating. All of them, that is, except for Judge Judy, which pulled in a 7.8 rating for that season (the show's ninth). For her tenth season (2005-2006), Judge Judy averaged a 4.8 rating. Court show ratings for the 2006-2007 season: Judge Judy averaged 4.6 rating for her eleventh season; Judge Joe Brown averaged a 2.9 rating; The People’s Court averaged a 2.7; Judge Mathis averaged a 2.4; Divorce Court averaged a 2.0; Judge Alex averaged 1.9; Judge Hatchett averaged a 1.5; rookies--Cristina's Court averaged a 1.4, and Judge Maria Lopez came in last, averaging a 1.0 rating. Judge Judy producer Randy Douthit says that "they are guilty of cannibalizing each other. Most of these court shows are lucky to get above a 1 rating today."

As of the early stages of the show's twelfth season, the ratings for Judge Judy have been located in the four and five ranges. The court show averaged a 4.4 for its premiere week of September 10, 2007. It scored the same numbers for the following week of September 16. For both weeks of September 24 and September 30, Judge Judy averaged a 4.6 rating. The court show finished out the week of October 7 with a two percent increase in its ratings, averaging a 4.7. For the week of October 14, nearly every court show remained the same or fell in ratings except for Judge Judy, which rose two percent once again, averaging a 4.8. The following week of October 21 ended with yet another two percent gain for the court show, as Judge Judy averaged a 4.9 rating. The week of October 28 saw Judy's ratings up two percent more, at a season-high of 5.0. In the week of November 4, however, Sheindlin's ratings decreased six percent, averaging a 4.7. The Judge Judy court show is usually among the top ten syndicated daytime TV shows. As of the early stages of its twelfth season, the show's daytime television rankings has mostly been in fourth place, only behind The Oprah Winfrey Show, Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune.

Judge Judy is reportedly watched by ten million people daily. Judge Judy's daytime audience is composed of seventy-five percent women and twenty-five percent men. The success of the Judge Judy courtroom series has to do with teamwork on the part of Sheindlin and her producers. Judge Judy and producer, Randy Douthit, realize they have some disadvantages to their talk show competitors, who can spice up during sweeps. For instance, there can always be a visit from big-name guests, such as the cast of Dreamgirls, on The Oprah Winfrey Show. However, the courtroom shows do not have such options. Thusly, Sheindlin and Douthit will pick and choose between the types of cases. For example, they have chosen cases involving relationships that they thought would entertain more so than other types of cases.

Parodies

There have been several shows that have imitated or incorporated aspects of the Judge Judy court show. The Judge David Young series spoofs Judge Judy's "Justice with an Attitude" tagline as "Justice with a Snap". Judge Judy and Judge Sheindlin herself have been parodied on a number of different contemporary series. The Simpsons has a similar character known as "Judge Constance Harm", while That's So Raven has a character known as "Judge Foody". Both Sheindlin and Byrd are parodied on the Nickelodeon program, The Amanda Show, in a recurring sketch where Amanda Bynes plays "Judge Trudy" and hands out absurd rulings in favor of children over their parents. Saturday Night Live has also featured a recurring courtroom sketch called "Judge Judy", with Cheri Oteri playing the role of Judge Judy. (Sheindlin herself made an appearance in one of these courtroom skits.)

Criticisms

• One of Sheindlin's critics is Joseph Wapner, who was one of the first stars of the courtroom shows. He presided over The People's Court from 1981 to 1993. On November 26, 2002, Joseph Wapner criticized Judge Judy's courtroom behaviour, stating, "She is not portraying a judge as I view a judge should act. Judge Judy is discourteous, and she's abrasive. She's not slightly insulting. She's insulting in capital letters." Judge Judy replied through her publicist, stating, "I refuse to engage in similar mud slinging. I do not know where or by whom Judge Wapner was raised. But my parents taught me when you do not have something nice to say about someone, say nothing. Clearly, Judge Wapner was absent on the day that lesson was taught." Since then, Wapner has stated, "She is a disgrace to the profession. She does things I do not think a judge should do. She tells people to shut up. She's rude. She's arrogant. She demeans people. If she does this on purpose, then that's even worse. Judges need to observe certain standards of conduct. She just does not do it and I resent that. The public is apt to gain the impression that this is how actual judges conduct themselves. It says "judge" on the nameplate on the bench and she's wearing a robe."
• Some of the litigants that have appeared before Judge Judy have criticized her entire show as being deceptive, claiming the producers tell them what to say before entering, how they will be awarded the money they have sued for, regardless if they win or lose, and how Sheindlin lies when she yells "pay her", since no one actually pays anything. They have claimed that Sheindlin and her producers are only interested in ratings.
• While the cases on Judge Judy are actual small claims court cases the show is not a court of law, but rather an arbitration, and all parties must sign contracts agreeing to arbitration under Sheindlin. Even this status has been disputed: in Doo Wop Shoppe Ltd. v. Ralph Edwards, syndi-court justice was determined not to be an actual form of arbitration because a third party pays the cost of the judgment. This decision was subsequently overturned.

In practice, rulings on the show have been overturned. The American Bar Association notes that:

'B.M. v. D.L., the Family Court of Kings County, New York, overturned part of a Judge Judy decision. The parties had appeared in front of Judge Judy over a dispute involving personal property. However, Judge Judy made a decision involving child custody and visitation. The court overturned the custody and visitation part of her decision on two grounds. First, it was a matter that was not covered by the agreement to arbitrate. Second, as a matter of public policy, an arbitrator could not decide child custody and visitation rights. Considering that Judy had been a judge in New York’s family court, it is particularly ironic that she decided to overstep her arbitral authority on this particular issue.'

DVD

Altogether, there are nine cases on Judge Judy's Justice Served DVD. The DVD includes a couple cases from the middle seasons and none from the first five years of the court show. Most of the cases are from recent seasons of the court show, particular seasons eight and nine. The oldest cases on the DVD are two from the sixth season (2001-2002). The two cases from the sixth season involve a dispute over tupperware and another over the service of a limousine driving company. Sheindlin provides a brief commentary before each of the cases. The DVD does not show any cases in the format in which they appeared on television. Rather, it shows cases with its current theme song and format.

Broadcasters

Judge Judy is broadcast in many English-speaking countries.

• In the United States, Judge Judy typically airs twice each weekday in syndication. The show also is not aired on the same network for every U.S. state. For example, while the program is shown on FOX in Wisconsin, it is shown on KCBS in Los Angeles, California.
• In Canada, Judge Judy airs daily on the Global television network; occasionally, the judge even hears cases brought by Canadian litigants.
• In the UK, ITV2 airs three episodes twice a day during weekdays.
• In Australia, Judge Judy shows every weekday on Network Ten, and is one of the highest rated daytime programs on commercial television.
• It also airs every weekday in the Republic of Ireland, on TV3.
• In Sweden "Judys Domstol" (Judy's court) airs on Monday-Friday on TV4 Plus.
• It also airs on TV3 in New Zealand.

Additionally, the show has been airing in the Middle East on One TV, a satellite channel operating from Dubai, UAE.

External links

• JudgeJudy.com – the show's official homepage
• Syndi-Court Justice: Judge Judy and Exploitation of Arbitration – a critical essay on small-claims arbitration shows, at the website of the American Bar Association
• Kramer Vs. Judging Judy, criticism by Irwin Kramer, The Daily Record, November 10, 2003
• Template:Tv.com show
• Judge Judy at IMDb
• Petri Hawkins-Byrd at IMDb