Top 20 Best Judge Judy Moments

This is one of the more audacious scams ever brought before Judge Judy’s court. Defendant Kelli Filkins is being sued for defrauding an eBay customer. Filkins’ ad was incredibly misleading. She was ostensibly selling two cell phones, but the plaintiff tells the judge she was sent a photo of two phones in the mail instead of the phones themselves. Once the judge finally susses out what happened here, she takes great pleasure in skewering Filkins for her ridiculous hustle. She takes the unrepentant defendant to task for everything from being a thief to setting a bad example for her children.

Wendy Moore, the plaintiff in this case, is the definition of heartless. She is suing the grieving defendant for damages to her car. These were damages sustained in the accident that killed the defendant’s daughter, a teenager whom the plaintiff’s son let drive the car. The judge listens to all the facts before unloading on Moore for her callousness and negligence. Moore is still unwilling to see how her own behavior led to the deadly accident, and Judge Judy does her best to illuminate the plaintiff. It doesn’t work, which just makes the judge ever angrier. By the end, the audience is applauding the verbal smackdown.

The best thing about a litigant who doesn’t behave themselves in Judge Judy’s courtroom is knowing they’re just asking to be told off. Witness Karla Sanchez Lopez sure has a lot to say about a dog attack she didn’t even see. She clearly has her whole speech all planned out, too. But when she is asked some simple probing questions, she becomes smug and borderline belligerent. Instead of answering, Sanchez Lopez starts trying to double-talk the judge. That’s never a smart idea. By the end, the witness is sputtering out, only managing schoolyard insults and childish comebacks.

Mia Lord is a spirited senior citizen who cites Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi as her heroes. She’s been staging a protest of her own against the loud noises coming from a neighbor’s home. Unfortunately, her form of protest is a barrage of loud and high-pitched sounds that another set of neighbors are now suing her over. Lord is the star of this episode, seeing it as a chance to call national attention to her plight. This case was early in the judge’s tenure. She has a lot more patience for Lord than she would have later on in the series, and it’s funny to watch how charmed she is by the woman.

We love Judge Sheindlin because she gets to say all the things we might like to. In this case, she finds out that the defendant, Cathleen Kreftmeyer, decided to tell her 6-year-old daughter that her father might not be her biological father. Kreftmeyer doesn’t seem to register that this was stupid, cruel, and terrible parenting on her part. In fact, she doesn’t really seem all that fazed by the judge’s disgust with her. Her dead-eyed stare as Sheindlin tells what a moron she is just makes it all the sweeter to watch her get what’s coming to her.

There’s a list of things we never thought we’d hear on “Judge Judy,” and this case includes about five of them. After hosting an adult toy party, the defendant didn’t return several items she hadn’t paid for. The plaintiff is suing for their return or the value of the items. She even suggests that one of these items that was returned had been used and not cleaned. Judge Judy can’t even get too exasperated with this case. The plaintiff here is incredibly put-together, professional, and respectful. This just makes her matter-of-factly listing out the various adult novelty toys all the funnier.

You wouldn’t think Judge Judy would be good with kids. In this case from the show’s series premiere, she is surprisingly gentle with a child named Adam. The boy was bitten by the defendant’s dog, and he’s still clearly nervous and distressed by the event. The judge puts him at ease by testing him. Does he know the difference between the truth and a lie? When the judge asks some flattering and leading questions about herself, he picks up what she’s putting down. It’s a perfect encapsulation of what makes her so compelling to watch.

The defendant can’t believe what he’s hearing. For the entire case, Reginald Burkett’s mouth hangs open in silent, offended protest. How dare anyone suggest he caused this car accident? He tries to sell a story about the plaintiff’s car magically sliding sideways into him. Clearly, Judge Judy isn’t buying his version of events. In fact, she’s so sick of him by the end that she can’t even pretend to be nice. Even if his story made any sense to her, she’s so over his overdramatic reactions that she can’t help but mock him right to his face.

If you’re the type who loves smoking that Mary Jane, a courtroom is probably a pretty scary environment to be in while you’re high. However, it seems like that didn’t stop this guy from doing just that during his appearance on “Judge Judy.” Accused of causing damage to a woman’s car, he responds to Judge Judy’s interrogations rather nonchalantly, even saying he didn’t understand her questions and that she was “speaking too fast.” He’d be charged $642 by the end of the hearing, but his smiling and constant laughter shows he might have burned one beforehand. There’s always a place and a time to light some trees up, but this is certainly not one of them.

You can’t handle the tooth! What starts out as a seemingly innocuous case between two dental workers turns into one of the best whodunits in “Judge Judy” history. The plaintiff, Kenyatta Owens, attempts to sue the defendant, Angel McDaniel, after the latter reported inappropriate pictures of the plaintiff that had been posted online. The case takes a dark turn when it is revealed that McDaniel suffered injuries after an alleged altercation with Owens. But just when things appear to be going the defendant’s way, the case ends in a twist as Judge Judy realizes that McDaniels is lying. Remember, the case isn’t over until the final drop of the gavel.

As a member of Judge Judy’s studio audience, certain things are expected of you. You’ll have to laugh, sneer, and occasionally even gasp. However, this paid extra took things a little too far. Moments after cracking one of her signature jokes, Judge Judy found herself locked in an epic stare down with an audience member. This bozo was apparently laughing a little too hard and it quickly drew the ire of TV’s most recognizable judge. The look on the man’s face is priceless, as he does his best impression of a deer in headlights. Just because you’re an extra doesn’t mean you’re safe from Judy’s justice.

Not only did John Lydon, aka Johnny Rotten, punk legend and former front man of The Sex Pistols, appear on a 90’s episode of “Judge Judy,” he won! How and why Lydon ended up on the show is a mystery, but that didn’t stop him from stating his case in an orderly and professional way. The case involved one of Lydon’s former drummers suing him for breach of contract and assault and battery, charges that were ultimately dismissed. In the end Lydon can’t help but crack a joke at the plaintiff’s expense after Judge Judy rules in his favor.

Can’t we all just get along? These two siblings can’t seem to keep their emotions in check after Judge Judy hands down her verdict. As they begin to exit the courtroom, the sister starts hurling insults at her brother, laying down a number of hilarious quips in her thick southern drawl. The sister is a hot mess, prattling on about “Tom’s tractor” before threatening to “bust” her brother. The sister is ultimately escorted out of the room, leaving her brother and the rest of the courtroom in utter disbelief.

Okay, this one is just weird. When defendant Dr. Noel Howell is asked to present his case, he appears to be an intelligent, well-spoken individual. However, when Judge Judy asks him to give her an example of the plaintiff’s drunken behavior things get a little…strange. The defendant’s impression is straight up insane, and begs the question: has this guy ever seen a drunk person before? Howell’s bizarre impression was so crazy, we’re amazed Judge Judy didn’t immediately rule in favor of the plaintiff!

Two sisters are in court over car damages. But this isn’t any old case about a car accident. The defendant, Carol Dettenheim, borrowed her sister’s car without asking, and then had the misfortune to hit a deer. Instead of paying for the damage, she decided to take lemons and make lemonade. More accurately, she made venison out of dead deer. Plaintiff Eve Dettenheim refused a portion of her sister’s venison stew. She was not interested in this peace offering, what she called “rigor mortis stew.” Carol’s more offended by that comment than the fact that she’s being sued. It remains one of the most hilarious things ever said on the show.

This is a perfect example of why you should never try to defend yourself in court. Defendant Ashley Hunter is accused of pushing her friend into a pool, ruining her cell phone in the process. When asked to recount what happened from her perspective, she wastes no time, accidentally admitting her own guilt in the process. As if that weren’t bad enough, she then goes on to answer Judge Judy’s rhetorical question about rocket science, proving that she’s not the brightest bulb in the tanning bed. It’s girls like this that give blondes a bad name.

The court finds the defendant…cringe-worthy. In the span of only a couple of minutes, this defendant claims to be the father to 10 children, of which he is uncertain how many mothers there are. He then goes on to make a horribly misguided joke, implying that one of the mothers is Judge Judy’s daughter. Finally, he tries to beat Judge Judy at her own game, quipping, “this might be your show but it’s my episode.” Talk about bold. In the end it’s Judge Judy who gets the last laugh, as she scolds the man like he’s a misbehaving schoolboy.

Karina Roy deserves a special Emmy Award for this performance. She narrates the vicious Tupperware attack she suffered at the hands of a former roommate with so much enthusiasm that you almost forget we’re talking about lightweight plastic containers. Roy, otherwise known as “the Tupperware Lady,” wins little favor with the judge. Either Sheindlin really did have more patience back then, or she just knows great TV when she sees it. Regardless, we’re eternally grateful that she lets Roy go until she tires herself out. The fact that she wins the case is kind of a miracle.

If you’re looking for your feel good moment of the week, this is it. This episode focuses on the quarrel between two people claiming ownership over a lost dog. The defendant claims to have purchased the dog from a woman on the street, while the plaintiff maintains that the dog was his, and that it had simply run away a few days earlier. However, when Judge Judy demands that the dog be brought into the courtroom, it quickly becomes apparent who the real owner is. While Judge Judy is known for handing out justice, it is rarely this satisfying…or adorable!

Quick! What is the defendant’s job during a court case? If you answered: to plead their innocence, congratulations, you’re already smarter than this guy. After a teenage girl claims that the defendants stole her wallet, Judge Judy asks her to list what was inside the wallet at the time of the theft. When she mentions that the wallet contained an earpiece one of the defendants is quick to point out that there was no earpiece in the wallet, thus proving that he stole it! This has got to be the easiest verdict Judge Judy has ever delivered!

Did your favorite moment make the list? Let us know in the comments.