Judge Judy in her signature robe and doily collar. Photo courtesy of Facebook.
Summary: Popular TV judge, Judge Judy, is being sued by her former talent agent for not paying commissions.
A Hollywood talent agency is suing the great Judge Judy. (And I mean that sincerely. Her show is amazingly entertaining.) According to Deadline, Rebel Entertainment Partners filed a suit on Monday alleging that the rich celebrity judge owes them millions in unpaid commissions. Over two decades ago, agent Richard Lawrence got her the deal, and she had been paying him and his company until 2010. After that she stopped, and Rebel wants a piece of her gavel.
In the lawsuit, Rebel says that the salary of Judge Judy, real name Judith Sheindlin, is to blame for its loss of contractually-obligated payments. Every year, she makes $47 million, and Rebel claims her high salary has put the CBS daytime court show in the red. The suit said that Sheindlin’s salary is “grossly inconsistent with customary practice in the television industry,” although I’m sure Rebel wouldn’t care if she had paid him his ten percent. The lawsuit claims Judge Judy has grossed a whopping $1.7 billion since it premiered in 1996.
Rebel is being represented by attorneys Bryan Freedman and Jordan Sussman. The company is seeking undisclosed damages.
Known for speaking her mind, the wildly popular Judge Judy fired back with a blistering statement.
“The fact that Richard Lawrence is complaining about my salary is actually hilarious. I met Mr. Lawrence for 2 hours some 21 years ago. Neither I nor anyone involved in the day-to-day production of my program has heard from him in 20 years. Not a card, not a gift, not a flower, not a congratulations. Yet he has somehow received over $17,000,000 from my program. My rudimentary math translates that into $8,500,000 an hour for Mr. Lawrence. Not a bad payday. Now complaining about not getting enough money, that’s real chutzpah!”
Attorney Freedman spoke with Deadline about Judge Judy’s salary and her alleged breach of contract.
“By using other people’s money to pay for Judge Judy’s exorbitant salary, CBS has acted in extreme bad faith and in a manner that is not in any way reasonable or consistent with industry practices,” Freedman. “Even Judge Judy would rule against CBS in this case.”
Wish she would. That’d make some great TV.
Source: Deadline
Gif courtesy of Tumblr.