Judge Judy Sheindlin has dropped a $22 million countersuit against talent agent Richard Lawrence and his Rebel Entertainment Partners — so she can keep her network CBS out of the long-running legal battle.
Sheindlin told us in a statement of the move on Friday: “We decline to file an amended complaint as Mr. Lawrence has insisted that I join Big Ticket (CBS) as a defendant. The court has declined to rule that CBS is not a necessary party. Mr. Lawrence is the culprit in this fiasco of a packaging deal which has netted him $22 million. CBS inherited this deal. I have been in business with CBS for 20 years. I’m not suing them when they are not the wrongdoer. Sometimes justice gets lost in the weeds of legalese gobbledygook. This is one of those times. Sad.”
Rebel’s power lawyer, Bryan Freedman, told us:
The court granted my Client’s demurrer to throw the case out because her lawsuit was not only improper but legal garbage. Now Judge Judy wants credit for dismissing an improper lawsuit that the court already said had no merit? Seems to me that she’s going to the hardware store for milk!
Bryan Freedman of Freedman + Taitelman, LLP
Rebel filed a $5 million suit in August against Sheindlin and CBS, alleging it was still owed over the show’s library rights sale.
