A&E is taking viewers inside civil trials with their Court Night LIVE series premiering on Wednesday, August 10, 2022 at 9pm ET/PT. The new series is hosted by Emmy-winning journalist and attorney Vinnie Politan (Court TV’s lead anchor) and Emmy Award winner Judge Greg Mathis, with Judge Vonda Evans providing analysis.
“Court Night LIVE will combine the inherent drama of live civil court proceedings with context and expert legal analysis, elevating the traditional court shows that have been a staple of the television landscape for decades,” said Elaine Frontain Bryant, Executive Vice President and Head of Programming for A&E. “Court Night LIVE gives viewers a chance to experience public trials live in the virtual courtroom gallery on air.”
According to A&E, the series will feature “civil cases from across the country litigated live from pop-up courtrooms in Philadelphia, Tampa, and Chicago in front of a gallery of community members. During each broadcast, viewers will have the chance to have their voices heard voting on the verdicts in select cases in real time via text message. Politan, Mathis, and Evans will provide context and bring their legal perspectives to viewers so that they can better understand how the wheels of justice turn.
As civil court cases became backed up over the last few years, pending cases have jumped over 30% with some people waiting over a year to get to trial. On top of that, many Americans have been stuck at home with their family and neighbors, racking up more and more grievances that make it harder than ever to sort through them. It’s time to take the court to the people and bring closure to those who are eager to get to their cases heard. Judges working from Philadelphia, Tampa, and Chicago will hear the cases and, sometimes, let viewers weigh in on the outcome.”
The reality series is executive produced by Big Fish Entertainment’s Dan Cesareo, Lucilla D’Agostino and John Zito, as well as A&E’s Elaine Frontain Bryant, Shelly Tatro, and Sean Gottlieb. Big Fish Entertainment produced the series for A&E.
