Patricia DiMango from Hot Bench is a real judge, outside of her work as a judge on various courtroom television programs, who has built her career for over 30 years.
There are many different reasons why courtroom television programs continue to be some of the most popular shows amongst all kinds of viewers.
Judge Patricia DiMango is most well-known for her role on courtroom shows like Hot Bench and Tribunal, but she spent many years building her career even before she was one these shows and is a retired judge in real life.
Why are courtroom shows so popular?
Courtroom television shows have only increased in popularity since the 1980s. Although these shows are quite serious, because of their court setting and judges and bailiffs that are present for the cases, they still have the same sense of over-the-top drama that daytime reality television is known for.
However, since these shows usually condense all of the court proceedings into a single segment on a single episode, viewers can enjoy watching real people defend their real claims during a short span of time.
This helps to keeps the tension and anticipation for the outcomes of the hearings high and also means that viewers can fall in and out of watching whenever they have time, without feeling like they have missed important plot points.
Hot Bench: Is Patricia DiMango a real judge?
Hot Bench is one of the top courtroom television shows in the United States and Patricia DiMango is one of only three judges who starred on the first eight seasons of the show and helped to build its success.
Although DiMango left Hot Bench in its ninth season to work on another court show on Amazon Freevee, called Tribunal, she is most well-known for her contributions on Hot Bench.
While the drama on any reality television program can be fun to watch, it can make it difficult to determine which elements on this kind of show are real and which ones are not.
Fortunately, one fact that Hot Bench and all of the other shows that Patricia DiMango has appeared on that is true, is the fact that she is a real judge.
Judge Patricia DiMango’s television career began in 2014, when Hot Bench started airing, but before this she had already been a practicing judge since the 90s.
Judge Patricia spent over 30 years building her career from the ground up and this has made her tough, but fair.
Most people who have been in her courtroom before or during the show can attest to the fact that her hot temper is balanced by her gentle heart.
What did Judge Patricia DiMango do on Hot Bench?
Judge Patricia DiMango was one of the three judges on the panel of Hot Bench, together with Judges Michael Corriero and Tanya Acker.
These three judges presided over small claims cases, from the first season in 2014 until the eighth season which ended in September 2022.
Judges Patricia DiMango and Tanya Acker left the show at the end of this eighth season, and the show has since replaced them with two new judges.
The unique three-judge format of Hot Bench is part of what made the show so successful, since it gave viewers the chance to see how judges make their rulings.
Taking into cognisance the many arguments, versions of events, pieces of evidence and indeed the law into account, in order arrive at their final verdict. Which is what made Judge DiMango such an integral part of each episode.
What has Judge Patricia DiMango’s career been like?
Even though starring in Hot Bench is what has made Judge Patricia DiMango a household name, she has a noteworthy legal career even before the show started airing.
Judge DiMango started her career in law as a prosecutor in 1980 and was then appointed as a Judge of the Criminal Courts for the City of New York.
To top off her achievements, she was later elected to the New York State Supreme Court bench in the 2nd and 11th Judicial Districts.
What does Judge Patricia DiMango expect from defendants who enter her courtroom?
Since Judge DiMango has had such a successful and varied career in different facets of law, and is known for her short temper and strict, but fair judgement, it is worthwhile to know what she thinks that defendants should do before they enter her courtroom.
Some of the advice that she has given in the past includes the fact that you should:
- be well-versed on the facts of your case and
- be truthful and forthright in your answers in order to get the best results possible.
