Judge Judy Sheindlin is finally hanging up her robe. The 83-year-old television powerhouse behind 30 years of daytime television drama is retiring from on-camera work once Judy Justice wraps up its run in October.
Sheindlin isn’t stepping away because she lost her trademark bite. She simply wants a break from the daily routine. “I have a lot of other things of interest,” Sheindlin shared. “I don’t want to do hair and makeup anymore, but I still want my message to get out there.”
She won’t be abandoning the screen completely. Instead, she is stepping into the producer’s chair to launch Adam’s Law, a syndicated courtroom show starring her 58-year-old son, attorney Adam Levy. The series makes its debut on Sept. 14, landing almost 30 years after Judge Judy first hit the airwaves in 1996.
A Family Business Built on Sharp Wit
Levy will preside over small-claims cases, inheriting the same sharp, no-nonsense energy that turned his mother into a household name.
“There aren’t a lot of people who can carry a half hour on their own unscripted,” Sheindlin said of her son. “He has what it takes.”
His path to daytime TV was paved by decades of actual legal work. After graduating from Hofstra Law School, Levy served two terms as the district attorney in Putnam County, New York, followed by years in private practice. He eventually transitioned to the screen in 2023, joining the Prime Video panel series Tribunal Justice.
After three seasons on that set, Sheindlin decided he was fully equipped to run his own courtroom. “Maybe eight years ago he wasn’t ready,” she admitted. “He’s ready now.”
Strict Lessons from Childhood
Levy learned how to handle intense pressure early on. Growing up in New York City, he quickly realized his mother wasn’t offering free handouts. When he asked for extra money, Sheindlin told him to go earn it himself. So, as a fourth grader, he started a neighborhood laundry business, charging 50 cents per load.
That tough love didn’t stop in elementary school. After earning his law degree, Levy wanted to take a gap year to work as a ski instructor. Sheindlin wasn’t having it. When a representative from the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office called their home to offer him a job, Sheindlin bypassed her son entirely.
“She said, ‘Hi, this is Adam Levy’s mom. And yes, he’s going to take that job,’” Levy remembered.
A Unwavering Voice for Marriage Equality
Beyond her signature courtroom quips, Sheindlin cemented her status as a outspoken ally to the LGBTQ+ community early on. Long before same-sex marriage became federal law, she used her national platform to champion equal rights with simple, common-sense logic.
During a memorable appearance on Larry King Live, she dismantled arguments against marriage equality directly: “Why the state should be interested in proscribing the word marriage from two people who love each other, who are responsible, tax-paying, productive people who have created a family… I don’t understand.”
She routinely argued that the government had far bigger issues to handle than blocking loving couples from tying the knot. Pointing to her decades on the bench, she praised same-sex couples as wonderful parents and frequently officiated weddings for gay friends and family. “To me if you are a good citizen, you pay your taxes, you work, you should have all the rights and responsibilities of everybody else,” she insisted.
As she prepares to spend more time taking afternoon naps and hanging out with family in Connecticut, that fearless commitment to fairness remains an essential part of her legacy.
