Judge Judy & Spouse Bought a Massive Home after Money Stopped Being a ‘Stressor’ for Their Family of 20 — Inside

Judge Judy Sheindlin, famous for her show "Judge Judy," married her current husband, Jerry Sheindlin, twice. When her show first aired, she thought it would earn enough money for a beachfront apartment, but now she lives in a $9 million home. Here is a look inside her state-of-the-art "birdhouse."

The American TV personality and producer Judge Judy met her husband, Jerry Shiendlin, at a bar in 1976 in what seemed like a confrontational situation. Jerry, who was then a defense lawyer, was speaking to the New York Post about his recent murder case, which he had just finished trying when Judy walked in.

The latter came into the bar, pointing a finger into Jerry's face, and asked who he was talking to. Jerry replied that she should take her finger out of his face, and this was how these two found love in the most unlikely places and situations.

They became inseparable after this chance meeting. At the time, Judy was divorced with two children, while Jerry had been separated from his wife for about four years. Jerry and his ex-wife also share three children.

After a year of dating, Judy told Jerry, who had not divorced his wife yet, to file for divorce or she was gone. In her words, she said:

"After we were together for about a year, I said, 'I want to see your divorce in the newspaper or don't bother calling again.'"

Judy was previously married to Ronald Levy for 12 years, and they had two children. The judge said getting married to Levy felt like the right thing to do at that phase of her life, as most people her age were tying the knot then. Levy was a young, loving partner, and he seemed just perfect for her. The right time, the right guy, so why not?

Judy married Levy, and all seemed to be going well. Soon after, she started having children, and the sole responsibility of catering to them fell on her. It seemed the proper thing to do was shelve her career until further notice, cater to the children, and support her husband.

Levy was a fellow prosecutor, and Judy revealed the crack in their relationship was that he did not take her career seriously. She believed he "objectified" her career and did not think much of it. Eventually, they got divorced in 1976 after 13 years of wedlock.

Getting Married and Divorced Again

Following Judy's marriage to Jerry, the TV personality lost her father in 1990. Judy was devastated and told her husband to take care of her during this grieving period.

Jerry, a retired Supreme Court justice, needed Judy to be explicit and asked what she meant by taking care of her and how she wanted him to care for her. She made it clear that she did not want to know how he would pull it off, but he must, and she threatened him with divorce papers.

Jerry pulled the trump card and surprised her when he filed for divorce the next day, and that was the end of their first marriage. Describing what she felt after the divorce, Judy said:

"I missed Jerry. I like to have someone to fuss over. I like to be mated. It's natural for me. I learned the hard way that sometimes what you think makes you happy won't."

The couple soon became lovelorn when they realized they could not live apart from one another and had made a big mistake. This was one of the longest they had ever been apart, and it stung like a bee to be away from someone you love so much and their pride being in the way.

After a year, Jerry called to reconnect and tried to patch things up over dinner with Judy, who was being cooperative. They agreed that they had made a mistake the past year and tried to give love another try and chance.

One day, Jerry picked her up from work and proposed that they marry as he was not comfortable being with her and not married to her. In no less than 24 hours, with all protocols waived and few close people around, they got married again.

Judy imagined a very simple life for her and her husband. When her show, "Judge Judy," aired in 1996, she thought it would run for about three to four years and earn her enough money to buy an apartment by the beach in Florida, where they would retire.

Most of the couple's children were educated and had gone to graduate school. Judy and her husband also ensured that they did not have debts to worry about, giving them a clean slate to start their lives.

Judge Judy Is a Family Woman

Apart from her career as a TV personality, Judy had her hands full as a family woman. Between herself and Jerry, they have five children. Two are from her previous marriage, and three are her stepchildren.

Jamie, born in 1966, and her brother Adam in 1968, are Judy's children from her first husband, Levy. Nicole, Gregory, and Jonathan are her stepchildren from Jerry's former marriage. Judy must be a proud mom as three of her children followed her career path in law.

Adam is a lawyer and was a district attorney in Putnam County. Nicole and Gregory are also lawyers based in different states. Jonathan branched out into the sciences and is an ophthalmologist who works outside the Bronx.

Once, Judy commented that she had awards everywhere in the house except the bedroom because she felt that it was a place where no one should be awarded anything.

Jerry joked that she gave him an award in the bedroom the night before. This shows that the couple is comfortable with one another and will not pass over a good laugh. They are a joyful couple and take life in their strides. They like to joke about a lot of things, including themselves.

The financial situation that Judy worried about is no longer an issue. The 81-year-old said, "Money is no longer a factor. It's nice not to have that as a stressor." Instead of owning her imagined beachfront apartment, she now owns five houses, a private jet, and a condo.

But Judy is more grateful for the fortune she has built because she gets to give her children a comfortable life. Her success has given her the dream of taking care of her family.

Judge Judy’s Court (Home)

Judy and her husband purchased a home in Newport, Rhode Island. The house cost $9 million and is ranked as one of the highest prices for a home in the US. Its asking price was estimated at $10.9 million.

With the state-of-the-art amenities, the couple would have an excellent time nesting in their new home, called "Bird House" by its original owner Dorrance Hamilton, for the love of birds. Hamilton also reportedly built the house because she wanted to plant her roots in a house with no stairs.

Now Judy and her family get to enjoy the artistically detailed home. In fact, Judy and her family said they were “looking forward to falling in love with Newport."

Originally built in 2012, the house is a 9,719 square-foot building that sits majestically on 3.67 acres of land. The house boasts six bedrooms, six full and two half bathrooms.

It caters to cold, hard days with its floor-to-ceiling stone fireplace, geothermal heating, cooling system, and heated floors.

It also has elevators, panoramic coastline views from the bedroom, lush gardens, a lake and tall trees, and a breathtaking interior — all that reminds you of home.

The strict hard-faced judge in court is a different personality when in the company of her grandkids. Judy is blessed with 13 grandkids from her five children.

She claims she tries not to spoil them, but it's unintentional or unconscious when she does. But, lucky for her and Jerry, the children help keep a balance.

For the love of children, she wrote a book, "Win or Lose By How You Choose," to help children and parents cope with all that family and raising children entails.

The accomplished Judge Judy has made a name for herself in the annals of history and is also a proud mother and grandmother, and we are in awe at such a turn of events in her love story.