Judith B. Sheindlin – Judge Judy to millions – announced this morning that she is retiring “from in front of the camera” after 30 years of passing judgements that were often caustic, usually funny and always final.
Appearing on ABC’s Good Morning America today with her son Adam Levy, lawyer and now presiding judge of TV’s new Adam’s Law show, Sheindlin said she is stepping away from her own show to focus on behind-the-scenes work including her position as executive producer of her son’s program.
“I’m retiring from in front of the camera,” Sheindlin said. Asked by GMA hosts Lara Spencer and Sam Champion why now, Sheindlin said, “First of all, he was ready,” referring to her son.
“And, you know,” she continued, “I’ve aged pretty well over the years, reasonably – I look better than my grandmother did at my age, which didn’t take a lot – but it’s time for me to…take the message and put it in a little bit of a different form.”
Sheindlin emphasized that she wasn’t retiring completely and would remain active in an off-screen manner.
Levy’s program Adam’s Law was created by Sheindlin and premiered September 14 in national syndication through CBS Media Ventures.
Sheindlin’s original program, Judge Judy, premiered in 1996 and stopped filming new episodes in 2021 (though reruns remain in syndication and on streaming networks such as Pluto TV.) Her follow-up series, the Amazon Prime spinoff Judy Justice, is expected to air its final episode on October 22, according to The New York Times.
A 90-minute 30-year anniversary special, Judge Judy: Unfiltered, Unforgettable, will air on Tuesday, September 22 (8-9:30 p.m. ET/PT) on CBS and stream live on Paramount+ (Premium) and next day.
