- Judy Sheindlin, a.k.a. Judge Judy, has been a fixture of courtroom television for decades.
- From the 1960s to the 1990s, Sheindlin served as a judge in the New York court system.
- Now, she produces and appears on several Amazon Prime Video series, including Judy Justice and Justice on Trial.
For decades, Judy Sheindlin, a.k.a. Judge Judy, has served up swift justice with a sharp tongue and zero patience for tomfoolery. Whether she’s rolling her eyes, pounding her gavel, or delivering a ruling in under 20 minutes, Judge Judy always makes for great TV.
Though Judge Judy, which Sheindlin presided over for 25 years, has wrapped up its run, the icon isn’t done holding court just yet.
With new projects onscreen and a career that keeps growing, interest in her offscreen credentials is picking up. Here’s everything you need to know, including whether Judge Judy was ever a real judge.
Is Judge Judy a real judge?
Getty
Yes, Judge Sheindlin was a real judge before gaining fame on TV. According to Biography.com, she began her legal journey after earning a bachelor’s degree from American University in Washington, D.C.
Judge Sheindlin was then accepted to law school, where she was the only woman in a class of 126. She completed her legal education at New York Law School and earned her law degree in 1965.
That same year, Judge Sheindlin passed the New York bar exam and started working as a corporate attorney for a cosmetics company. However, she left to focus on raising her kids, Jamie and Adam, after roughly two years.
In 1972, Judge Sheindlin returned to the legal field as an assistant prosecutor in New York’s family court system. Her tough but fair approach caught the attention of Ed Koch, New York City’s mayor at the time, who appointed her as a criminal court judge in 1982. She was later promoted to supervising judge of Manhattan’s family court in 1986.
Her career eventually attracted media attention. In 1993, she was profiled in the Los Angeles Times. “That lady is a monster,” one unfortunate soul said of Sheindlin.
A segment on CBS’s 60 Minutes soon followed, ushering her into the national spotlight.
In 1996, she retired from the bench after handling more than 20,000 cases.
When did Judge Judy make her TV debut?
Paramount TV/Courtesy Everett
Shortly after the 60 Minutes special, Judge Sheindlin accepted an offer to star in a reality courtroom series on CBS. The show, titled Judge Judy, premiered on Sept. 16, 1996 and quickly became a cultural phenomenon.
A pioneer in the realm of courtroom TV, it played for 25 seasons and aired its final episode on July 23, 2021. Throughout its run, the show earned three Daytime Emmy Awards.
At her peak, Sheindlin made $47 million a year as the host of Judge Judy, a figure that made her the highest-paid host on TV. In 2018, Forbes reported that Judge Sheindlin sold the rights to her show’s 5,200-episode library, as well as all future episodes, for an estimated $100 million.
Over the years, Judge Judy‘s massive success earned the Brooklyn native numerous honors. She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2006, was inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame in 2012, and collected several honors recognizing her influence in media and law.
In 2015, Guinness World Records named her the longest-serving judge in television history and credited Judge Judy as the longest-running courtroom series to date.
Where is Judge Judy now?
Courtesy of Prime
Since Judge Judy wrapped in 2021, Judge Sheindlin has worked to expand her TV empire.
On Nov. 1, 2021, a spinoff series called Judy Justice debuted on Amazon Freevee, marking the first time a traditional courtroom show debuted exclusively on a streaming platform. The series has run for three seasons, with its most recent season concluding on Oct. 24, 2024.
The show’s inaugural season earned her another Daytime Emmy, making her the only TV arbitrator in history to win Emmys for two different court shows.
In June 2023, Judge Sheindlin expanded her influence behind the scenes by creating Tribunal Justice, a fresh take on the courtroom genre. The series features three accomplished judges — Tanya Acker, Patricia DiMango, and Adam Levy — who each bring their own legal expertise and personalities to the bench. Together, they hear real cases, deliberate as a panel, and issue majority-based rulings.
Tribunal Justice has aired two seasons so far, with the second season concluding on May 15, 2025.
Michael Becker/Prime
Now, Judge Sheindlin is putting her new show, Justice on Trial, into the world. The eight-episode docuseries, which hit Amazon Prime Video on Monday, July 21, deviates from her past shows by diving into some of the most complex and controversial legal decisions in American history.
Blending dramatized reenactments, analysis of original court documents, and archival footage, the show works to dissect landmark cases that have shaped U.S. law and society. Each episode aims to challenging legal and moral questions about free speech, educational authority, criminal evidence, and more.
Judge Sheindlin appears on Justice on Trial with her three Tribunal Justice judges. Joining them are seasoned attorneys Daniel Mentzer and Larry Bakman, who provide real-world trial insight as they reexamine how each case unfolded.
“The daily lives of 340 million Americans are impacted by the verdicts in the eight landmark cases that the series explores. Did the courts get it right? You decide,” Prime Video said in a press release.
“Judges do not make law. They interpret the law. Judges are people. Sometimes they get it wrong. Then what happens? When and how long will it take to get it right? I’ve put justice on trial,” Judge Sheindlin added. “I couldn’t be more proud of this series. Everybody who watches it will come away a little smarter. Mission accomplished.”
Sign up for Entertainment Weekly‘s free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.