I LOVE JUDY

For the last few months I’ve been hooked on Judge Judy’s court show.

"Real people, real cases, the verdict is final!"

Before I’d become a fan, I thought the show was a parody or gossipy. I guess I wasn’t sure - so I assumed. The show is about real people going to small claims court. Most of the cases deal with unpaid rent, or loans not paid back.

The plaintiff is interesting because sometimes it is a mom suing a son, or a daughter suing a father. It makes me wonder about their family dynamics that they could actually sue each other.

The defense is more interesting because usually they are in denial about fulfilling their agreement to pay back the other person. Often the defendant is being sued for non-payback of bail - to get them out of jail. So, the plaintiff was kind enough to lend them $1,000 for bail and the defendant says "I didn’t ask for it, it was a gift." Right. You’d rather be in jail?

Now the most interesting thing. Nearly everyone on the show (except Judy) cannot answer the question without going off on a tangent. So, Judy will ask, "Tell me what month did he give you the loan" and they’ll answer, "Ok, so, like, we met five years ago..." Judy says, "what month?!" And this goes on for most of the show.

I’ve noticed this in real life. People don’t answer the question. People want to give information that doesn’t even pertain to the topic. I guess people like to talk about themselves.

The show has made me more direct in conversation. Just shut up and answer the question.

Other answers from Judy:
"Don't say basically. Basically is a filler word".
"Hurry up and answer, we're having sushi for lunch"
"If it doesn't make sense it's probably not true".
"You ate the steak, you pay for it".

Judge Judy - real people, real cases!