Though it is unconfirmed, it is believed that Hot Bench pays out the verdict costs to the winning litigants as part of production costs.
Hot Bench is one of the most popular and original court shows to have come out in recent history, as it premiered in 2014.
It is premised on a three-judge panel that listens to real-life small claims cases before they deliberate to give their final verdict on the issue.
One of the reasons that it has been touted as advantageous is because of the compensation of the winning litigants.
This is as it is believed that the defendant is not responsible for paying for the costs as the show has allocated funds to pay the winning litigants in their cases.
When is Hot Bench returning with new episodes?
Hot Bench concluded its eighth season in September 2022 with a total of 155 new episodes released. However, the court show is set to return on Monday, 31 October 2022, with new episodes and new judges on the panel.
After the release of its season nine trailer, it confirmed that judges Patricia DiMango and Tanya Acker will not be returning to Hot Bench this season.
Instead, two new judges will join Michael Corriero in the new season, including Judge Yodit Tewolde and Judge Rachel Juarez.
Who pays Hot Bench verdicts?
The details of the behind-the-scenes logistics of Hot Bench is one matter that has been kept under wraps.
But most have assumed that based on the fact that Hot Bench is produced by judge and reality star, Judy Sheindlin, the same practices are used on Hot Bench as her number one syndicated court show.
Moreover, the small print that appears during the end credits of Hot Bench also alludes to who is responsible for paying for the verdicts that were decided upon.
This is as the small print states, “Monetary awards are paid from a fund maintained by the producer”.
As such, it is believed that when the plaintiff is awarded compensation by the judges on Hot Bench, they are not paid by the defendant but from the special fund that is held by the producer.
The advantage of this is that if, for instance, the allocated fund is $5 000, once the plaintiff has been paid their award verdict pay out, the rest of the allocated funds are reportedly split between the two parties equally.
Hence, it is advantageous for the defendants to appear on a court show like Hot Bench as they get to avoid actually paying the hefty amount awarded to the plaintiff.
Moreover, they, too, are compensated for appearing on the show. It is estimated that for their appearance, both parties get anywhere around $250.
Who pays for Hot Bench litigants’ travel fees?
Should you be selected as a suitable small claims case for Hot Bench, both parties are allegedly contacted and asked if they would be interested in appearing on the show.
If both parties are agreeable to appearing, they are flown to the shooting location of the court show. Travel costs for both parties are reportedly covered by production costs of the court show.
This is inclusive of travelling costs to arrive on location and to be flown or driven back, depending on the location of the litigants in question.
Who pays for Hot Bench litigants accommodation fees?
Similarly to being flown in at the cost of the show, it is also reported that accommodation costs are covered by the production budget. Therefore, litigants who appear on Hot Bench are not responsible for paying for their own accommodation.
While it is confirmed that most litigants get the first day of accommodation free to do as they please, as they usually shoot a day after their arrival, it is unclear whether litigants get to stay on the day they have completed shooting or if they are flown/driven back to their hometowns or homes, on the same day after they have shot their episode.
Who pays the Hot Bench judges?
The judges on Hot Bench are paid by the production company that produces the court show. In this case, Hot Bench is co-produced by Big Ticket Pictures and Queen Bee Productions.
But the funds to pay the judges is provided by the studio or the channel which has commissioned the court show. In this instance, this is CBS.
A clarification is required seeing as in 2014, Rebel Entertainment, the production company behind Judge Judy, sued CBS Corp for assumed unpaid costs, but the production company still paid out Sheindlin’s $47 million salary at the time.
