Television judge Judy Sheindlin, known as Judge Judy, will see her salary placed under scrutiny in a trial scheduled for October 2017. The case involves a lawsuit by her talent agency, Rebel Entertainment Partners, against CBS television.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Yvette Palazuelos ruled on Wednesday that the multimillion-dollar lawsuit can proceed to trial. Rebel Entertainment claims that Judge Judy's $47 million salary has prevented the agency from receiving its share of profits from the show.
Rebel sued CBS in March, alleging the network has not paid the agency for six years because Judge Judy's high salary 'leaves nothing for any of the people that were supposed to receive profits from the show', according to Bryan Freedman, the agency's lawyer. The lawsuit states that the show has generated gross revenues of $1.7 billion since its launch in 1996.
Rebel claims it is entitled to 5% of the show's profits but has not been paid since 2010, when Sheindlin's salary doubled. The agency also says it is owed money from the spin-off show, Hot Bench. CBS has countered that the plaintiffs misrepresented their role in Judge Judy's success and are not entitled to the claimed money.
Sheindlin, who is not named in the lawsuit, previously issued a statement calling complaints about her salary 'hilarious' and denying that Rebel's president, Richard Lawrence, could claim credit for her success. The trial is set for 23 October 2017, barring a pre-trial resolution.
