‘Judge Judy’: Justice Judith Sheindlin on Her Typical Work Day and the Impact Her Show Has Had on Society

Judge Judy has been a fixture in American television for so long, it’s difficult to remember a time when the courtroom program hasn’t been part of everyday programming.

Its star, Judge Judith Sheindlin, talked in 2009 about what she feels the program’s impact on society has been, as well as what a normal work day was like on the set.

A day in the life of ‘Judge Judy’

In a conversation with Television Academy Foundation in 2009, Sheindlin discussed what a typical work day was like on the set of the wildly popular and often-memed courtroom program.

“We work,” she corrected herself, “I work, 52 days a year. I fly out to California every other Monday and I work Tuesday and Wednesday, or Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. They’re [the clerks] busy all the time, doing what they do expertly, which is preparing the cases and getting me the complaint, the answer, and the counter-suit.”

“I get those cases and I read them over…We come, we do the cases, we start at 9:15 in the morning and we usually finish by 3:15 in the afternoon and we’ve done a week’s worth of cases in that day. And that’s it. It’s a good job.”

What Sheindlin views as the impact of ‘Judge Judy’ on society

Asked about what she thinks her program’s influence on American society at large has been, Sheindlin, much as she is on her program, was direct and ready with an answer.

“I think that I’ve inspired some young women,” she said, “a lot of young women, not only in what I say, but seeing how I walk on the earth, to say, ‘You know, I could do that. I con’t have to be somebody’s doormat, all I have to do is prepare myself, I can go in and ask for that raise, I can try going back to college, I don’t have to accept this man’s abuse, there are alternatives for me.'”

“You have one life to live,” she continued. “You’re supposed to live it to the best of your ability…All those lessons, the little lessons that you learn if you open up…I think people have learned a lot. Independence, sometimes responsibility, sometimes to take a chance on a second career, I think there are lots of good lessons.”

‘Judge Judy’ is done as of next year

This fall, according to The Hollywood Reporter, is the show’s final season, calling it quits at the end of the season in 2021.

The 77-year-old magistrate explained in March 2020 that while Judge Judy would be going away, it will be replaced by a new show, Judy Justice.

“Judge Judy, you’ll be able to see next year,” she said, “— a full year, all new shows. … The following couple of years, you should be able to catch all the reruns that CBS has sold to the stations that are currently carrying Judge Judy, and Judy Justice will be going elsewhere. Isn’t that fun?”

As long as Judge Judith Sheindlin is involved, it will definitely be fun to watch her rule over her courtroom.