5.9 /10 2 Votes
Genre Court show Country of origin United States Network Broadcast syndication | 4.7/10 IMDb Directed by Karen J. Beck Opening theme Michael Egizi Original language(s) English | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Program creators Judy Sheindlin, Randy Douthit Cast Patricia DiMango, Tanya Acker, Larry Bakman Profiles | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hot Bench is a nontraditional panel-based court show that made its debut in first-run syndication on September 15, 2014. The series is produced by Judge Judy's Judith Sheindlin, who also created the program and concept with executive producer Randy Douthit for CBS Television Distribution.
On December 11, 2014, Hot Bench was renewed for a second season. The show airs in the UK on TruTV (UK and Ireland). The show has been renewed through 2017.
Format
The series features a panel of three judges, Larry Bakman, Tanya Acker, and Patricia DiMango, who preside over small-claims cases, and then argue the merits of the case amongst themselves in the chamber room before rendering a verdict (under the format, only a majority – two of the three panel members – need to agree on the verdict). Of the three, DiMango is the only one who has served on the bench, as she was on the Brooklyn, New York Supreme Court prior to accepting this job, while Acker and Bakman were attorneys before being selected to join the program. The panel acts as an arbitral tribunal, and as with most televised court shows, the cases are a form of binding arbitration in which the litigants forgo their actual lawsuit in favor of appearing on the program.
In October 2016, Larry Bakman announced that he was leaving Hot Bench to focus on his law practice. His replacement is Michael Corriero, a former New York State Court judge. Bakman's final episodes aired October 28, 2016, and Corriero's first episode was scheduled to air November 1, 2016, with series creator Judge Judy Sheindlin and her husband, former The People's Court judge Jerry Sheindlin, serving as guest judges on the October 31, 2016, broadcasts.
The concept was inspired by Sheindlin's vacation to Ireland, where that country uses a judicial system which occasionally uses panels of three judges to handle one case: "When my husband Jerry and I were in Ireland recently, we visited the courts and watched a three-judge bench, which I found both fascinating and compelling." She added, "I immediately thought what a terrific and unique idea for a television program that brings the court genre to the next level. We have assembled three individuals with extremely varied backgrounds to serve as the judges. They are smart and talented, with terrific instincts and great chemistry, and are sure to create a 'hot bench'."
The bailiff is Sonia Montejano, who was also the bailiff for Judge Joe Brown from 2006 to its end in 2013.