How Many Kids Does Judge Judy Have? 5 Children

The Short Answer: Five Children

Judge Judy has five children: a blended family built across two marriages. With her first husband, Ronald Levy (married 1964, divorced 1976), she had two children: Jamie Hartwright (nee Levy), born in 1966, and Adam Levy, born in 1968. When she married Jerry Sheindlin in 1977, she gained three stepchildren from his previous marriage: Gregory Sheindlin (born 1964), Jonathan Sheindlin (born 1967), and Nicole Sheindlin (born 1968).

Sheindlin has described the household bluntly: five kids, all educated, most through graduate school. Three of the five followed her into the law: Adam Levy served as a district attorney in Putnam County, New York (and in 2026 headlines as the host of the new syndicated series Adam's Law), while Gregory and Nicole are also lawyers. Nicole co-founded Her Honor Mentoring with her mother, pairing high school girls with professional women.

And then there are the 13 grandchildren, the pride of Judy's life off the bench. She's told interviewers she spoils them without apology, a softness that would surprise anyone who only knows the gavel.

Jamie and Adam: The Children From Her First Marriage

Judy married Ronald Levy, a juvenile court prosecutor, in 1964 at age 22. Their two children arrived quickly: Jamie in 1966 and Adam in 1968. The marriage lasted 12 years, ending in divorce in 1976.

Jamie Hartwright (nee Levy), now in her late fifties, has stayed largely out of the public eye, though she's appeared at family events like Judy's Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony. Adam Levy, born 1968, took after his mother most visibly: a career prosecutor who became district attorney of Putnam County, New York, he's now following her onto television as the host of Adam's Law, the syndicated courtroom series announced for 2026 and produced by Sheindlin's own Queen Bee Productions.

Judy has said that raising Jamie and Adam as a working mother in the 1960s and 70s, while building her legal career from corporate lawyer to family court prosecutor to judge, taught her the time-management ruthlessness that later defined her television persona. There were no excuses in that household, for the kids or for her.

Gregory, Jonathan, and Nicole: The Sheindlin Blended Family

A year after her divorce, Judy married Jerry Sheindlin, a fellow New York judge who later presided over The People's Court. Jerry brought three children from his marriage to Suzanne Rosenthal: Gregory (born 1964), Jonathan (born 1967), and Nicole (born 1968). Overnight, Judy went from mother of two to matriarch of five.

The blended family worked. Judy has said with characteristic bluntness that the five kids were all educated and launched, and the Sheindlin household became the template for the big, loud, argumentative family she clearly relishes. Gregory Sheindlin and Nicole Sheindlin both became lawyers; Nicole's Her Honor Mentoring program, co-founded with Judy, is one of the family's proudest joint ventures.

Judy and Jerry's own marriage had a dramatic chapter: they divorced in 1990 after Judy's father died and the stress fractured them, then remarried in 1991 and have been together ever since, more than three decades into the second go-round. Through it all, the five kids remained the constant.

13 Grandchildren: The Soft Side of the Gavel

If you want to see Judge Judy go soft, ask about the grandchildren. She has 13 of them, most now grown, and she's described them as the great joy of her later years: old enough for real conversations about politics, economics, stocks and bonds, young enough to still want grandma's spoiling.

She told Entertainment Tonight years ago, I spoil them, admitting that she and Jerry don't even realize they're doing it. The grandchildren have appeared at family milestones, from Daytime Emmy Awards to the Hollywood Walk of Fame star ceremony, a sprawling clan that is the living proof of the blended family Judy and Jerry built.

It's a striking contrast with the television persona: the woman who eviscerated litigants for irresponsibility is, at home, the grandmother who can't say no. Judy herself seems to relish the contradiction.

Who Is Judge Judy? A Quick Biography

Judith Susan Sheindlin (nee Blum) was born October 21, 1942, in Brooklyn, New York, to dentist Murray Blum and Ethel Blum. After passing the New York bar in 1965, she worked briefly as a corporate lawyer for a cosmetics firm, then became a prosecutor in New York's family courts, earning a reputation as a tough, brilliant advocate for children.

In 1982 she was appointed a Manhattan Family Court judge, where her no-nonsense style caught the attention of 60 Minutes and eventually television producers. Judge Judy premiered in 1996 and ran for 25 seasons until 2021, becoming the highest-rated courtroom show in daytime history and making Sheindlin one of television's highest-paid stars. She holds the Guinness World Record as the longest-serving television arbitrator and received a Lifetime Achievement Emmy in 2019.

Since 2021 she's starred in Judy Justice on Amazon Freevee, alongside her granddaughter Sarah Rose as law clerk, keeping the family business literally in the family.

Judge Judy in 2026

As of October 2026, Judith Sheindlin is 83 and still working, still married to Jerry, still presiding over Judy Justice, and still the matriarch of five children and 13 grandchildren. Her son Adam's new series Adam's Law extends the family's television dynasty into a second generation.

The family story is, in the end, the real production: two marriages, five kids, thirteen grandkids, multiple lawyers, one mentoring program, and a marriage that survived a divorce and came back stronger. The gavel made her famous; the family made her who she is.

Ask her about the kids and the grandkids, and the toughest judge on television turns into exactly what she is: a proud, spoiling grandmother of 13.

Judge Judy's Kids: Quick Facts

How many kids does Judge Judy have? Five. What are their names? Jamie Hartwright and Adam Levy (with first husband Ronald Levy); stepchildren Gregory, Jonathan, and Nicole Sheindlin (Jerry's children). How many grandchildren? 13. Who is her husband? Jerry Sheindlin, married 1977, divorced 1990, remarried 1991. How old is Judge Judy? 83, born October 21, 1942, in Brooklyn. What show is she on now? Judy Justice (since 2021), after 25 seasons of Judge Judy (1996-2021).

The Five Children and Thirteen Grandchildren

Judith Sheindlin's five children span two marriages. With her first husband, Ronald Levy (married 1964, divorced 1976), she had Jamie (born 1966) and Adam Levy (born 1968), who became a district attorney and later a TV legal analyst. With her second husband, Jerry Sheindlin (married 1977, divorced 1990, remarried 1991), she gained three stepchildren: Gregory, Jonathan, and Nicole Sheindlin, whom she raised as her own.

The 13 grandchildren are the joy of her life: she's spoken about them constantly, describing a grandmother who is considerably softer than the TV judge. Several grandchildren have appeared with her at events, and the family gathers regularly at her homes.

Born October 21, 1942, in Brooklyn, New York, Sheindlin was a Manhattan Family Court judge before Judge Judy premiered in 1996 and ran for 25 seasons. Now 83, she presides over Judy Justice (Amazon Freevee, since 2021) and remains TV's highest-paid personality. Five kids, thirteen grandkids, and a gavel that never really rests.

Judy Justice and the $47 Million Woman

Judge Judy ran for 25 seasons (1996-2021), making Judith Sheindlin daytime TV's undisputed queen. At her peak, she earned $47 million a year, the highest-paid personality in television, and her no-nonsense adjudication of small-claims disputes became a cultural institution.

Before TV, she was a real Manhattan Family Court judge, known for her sharp tongue and swifter rulings. A 1993 60 Minutes profile made her famous; the show followed three years later. Her catchphrases (Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining) entered the lexicon.

In 2021, she launched Judy Justice on Amazon Freevee, with granddaughter Sarah Rose as law clerk, bringing the family into the courtroom. Now 83, with five children and 13 grandchildren, Sheindlin remains formidable: the gavel never really rests, and neither does she.

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