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- Divorce Court is an American court show that revolves around settling the disputes of couples going through divorces. The show has had four separate runs, all in first-run syndication. Since the debut of the original series in 1957, it is one of the longest-running syndicated television programs of all time. Divorce Court also holds the record for the longest-running court show of all time, leading the second-place show The People's Court by two years. Due to the recasting of the judge role, however, Divorce Court does not boast the longest individual series run or longest arbitrator in the court show genre; those records are held by Judge Judy and The People's Court. The first two runs of Divorce Court, the original version that aired for five seasons from 1957 to 1962 and the first revival that ran for two seasons from 1967 to 1969, featured Voltaire Perkins as the jurist. The second revival ran for nine seasons from 1984 to 1993, with retired Supreme Court of California judge William B. Keene as the presiding jurist. The current incarnation of Divorce Court premiered on August 30, 1999, and has transitioned between multiple judges: former Los Angeles prosecuting attorney, Mablean Ephriam (1999–2006); former Cleveland Heights municipal court judge, Lynn Toler (2006–2020); and former New York City prosecutor, Faith Jenkins (2020–2022). On January 10, 2022, it was announced that former New York City Prosecutor, District Attorney, and former View Co-host Star Jones would replace Jenkins as the court show's next and sixth arbitrator, beginning with the show's 40th season on September 19, 2022. She began presiding on August 22, 2022. The first Black person to preside over a court show and first female to preside over arbitration-based reality court shows, Jones presided over Jones & Jury during the 1994-95 television season. (en)
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