Judge Tanya Acker

Tanya Acker serves as one of three judges on CBS Television Distribution’s syndicated court show HOT BENCH, created by Judge Judy Sheindlin. The program returned for its fifth season September 10, 2018. During the 2017-2018 season, HOT BENCH was the #3 first-run program in daytime television, delivering 3.2 million daily viewers.

Acker is an experienced civil litigator who has represented a wide array of clients, from major automobile manufacturers in high stakes product liability litigation to media companies in hotly contested trade secret disputes.

She is also an experienced television commentator, having been a featured guest on “Good Morning America,” “Entertainment Tonight,” “Wendy Williams,” “The Talk, ” “Inside Edition,” “The O’Reilly Factor,” “Larry King Live,” “The Insider,” “CNN Reports,” “Anderson Cooper 360,” “Extra,” “Your World With Neil Cavuto,” “CNBC Reports,” Great Britain’s “GMTV,” Sky News, and various other broadcasts. Acker also guest co-hosted CNBC’s “Power Lunch,” contributes to the Huffington Post and has served as a Temporary Judge in the Los Angeles County Superior Court Temporary Judge Program.

Acker graduated from Yale Law School in 1995. While at Yale, she represented low-income women in family law cases and served as a teaching assistant in Constitutional Law and Civil Procedure courses. During law school, she worked at the Office of White House Counsel, the Civil Rights Division in the United States Department of Justice and the private law firms Irell & Manella, O’Melveny & Myers and Williams & Connolly. At Williams & Connolly, she assisted President Clinton’s personal lawyers with press interviews, worked on the preparation of Congressional testimony for pending product liability legislation and researched First Amendment issues.

After graduating from Yale, Acker served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Dorothy Wright Nelson on the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Her duties during that appointment included advising and making recommendations to Ninth Circuit judges about rulings on a broad variety of cases and preparing Judge Nelson for oral arguments on matters before the Court.

After her clerkship, the Office of the Solicitor General in the U.S. Department of Justice awarded Acker a Bristow Fellowship. While working as a Bristow Fellow, Acker drafted Supreme Court briefs on cases including Clinton v. Jones, where she assisted the Solicitor General in preparing for oral argument before the High Court.

In private practice, Acker’s legal work spanned a broad variety of matters from civil litigation involving public and private entities, to various constitutional cases, to providing business counseling and advice. She also maintained a commitment to pro bono work, receiving the ACLU’s First Amendment Award for her successful representation of the homeless in a case against the City of Santa Barbara. Acker later worked in entertainment industry outreach for the Kerry/Edwards presidential campaign in California and as Deputy Campaign Manager for the Los Angeles mayoral campaign of City Councilman Bernard C. Parks. After that, she worked as the General Counsel of a company that manufactured emissions control products.

Acker has been a featured speaker at conferences hosted by the University of Southern California and Harvard Law School, has moderated political forums hosted by Common Cause and was the keynote speaker at a meeting of the Los Angeles Chapter of the English Speaking Union where she spoke about historical trends in American international engagement.

Acker received her B.A. degree at Howard University in 1992, where she graduated summa cum laude and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She was awarded a Luard Scholarship for study at St. Anne’s College at Oxford University and served there as the co-editor-in-chief of the Oxford University Women’s Magazine. At Yale Law School, she was awarded an Earl Warren Scholarship by the NAACP and a Coker Fellowship by the Yale faculty.

Acker serves on the boards of Public Counsel, the nation’s largest provider of free legal services; the Western Justice Center, which promotes alternative dispute resolution; the Western Los Angeles County Council of the Boy Scouts of America (the WLACC does not discriminate on any basis); the Pacific Battleship Center, which operates the Battleship USS Iowa Museum; and Rainbow Services, which provides shelter services to victims of domestic violence.

HOT BENCH is created by Judge Judy Sheindlin and executive produced by David Theodosopoulos. Amy Freisleben, Belinda Jackson and James Glover are co-executive producers. Patricia DiMango, Tanya Acker and Michael Corriero comprise the three-judge panel. HOT BENCH is produced by Big Ticket Pictures and Queen Bee Productions. It is distributed by CBS Television Distribution.

Judge Patricia DiMango

Justice Patricia M. DiMango serves as one of three judges on CBS Television Distribution’s syndicated court show HOT BENCH, created by Judge Judy Sheindlin. The program returned for its fifth season September 10, 2018. During the 2017-2018 season, HOT BENCH was the #3 first-run program in daytime television, delivering 3.2 million daily viewers.

Justice DiMango was first appointed to serve as a judge in the criminal courts for the city of New York by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. She became the first Italian-American woman ever appointed to that position.  Thereafter, she was elected to the New York State Supreme Court bench in the 2nd and 11th Judicial Districts and, again, was the first Italian-American woman elected to that position. Soon after, she was elevated to the position of First Deputy Administrative Judge for criminal matters, 2nd Judicial District.

Justice DiMango’s reputation was that of a stern but fair judge combined with a balance of street smarts and legal knowledge.  These qualities assisted her in handling a large volume of serious felony cases from arraignment through trial.  She was also known for her efficiency in closing a vast number of cases in a fair and timely fashion.  Her judicial acumens came to the attention of the Chief Judge of the State of New York and he selected her to spearhead his initiative to reduce the backlog of felony matters in the Bronx.  Hence, Justice DiMango was named Supervising Justice of the Bronx Felony Project from January 2013-Januarary 2014. 

In the course of her judicial career she also gained public recognition for handling high-profile trials, particularly those involving murders of young children, other crimes against children and hate crime murders. Ultimately, these assignments resulted in Justice DiMango’s appointment as the Administrative Judge of the New York State Supreme Court Criminal Term in Brooklyn, Kings County. After a special assignment in the Bronx, she was brought back to Brooklyn where she was elevated to the position of Administrative Judge for Criminal Matters Kings County Supreme Court.

Justice DiMango received her law degree from St. John’s University where she graduated in the top 10 percent of her class and received awards and scholarships in recognition for her other academic achievements. In addition to her Juris Doctorate, Justice DiMango holds a Master’s Degree from Columbia University in Developmental Psychology and a Bachelor’s Degree cum laude from Brooklyn College in both Psychology and Education. In 2012, she received the Alumna of the Year Award from Brooklyn College and was also the recipient of the prestigious Rapallo Award. In 2013, she was the recipient of the Distinguished Judiciary Award from the Catholic Lawyers Guild and was named “Woman of the Year” by the New York State Supreme Court Officers Association. In 2014, she was named “Woman of the Year” by The New York State Court Officers Association. Additionally, she served as Master of Ceremonies for the NY State Broadcasters Association Awards. In 2015, Justice DiMango was the Grand Marshal of the Brooklyn Columbus Day Parade. She was also recognized as being the “Woman Of The Year” for the Home Reporter and Brooklyn Spectator’s “Kings of Kings” event. Justice DiMango was also the honored celebrity speaker at The Greater New York Dental Association National Convention. In 2016, she was named “Woman of The Year” by the Italian Charities of America.

Justice DiMango has appeared on numerous television programs including “Wendy Williams,” “Rachael Ray” and “Steve Harvey” and can be heard on many talk radio shows. She has also been featured giving legal insight on stories on “Entertainment Tonight,” Fox News, “Inside Edition” and “The Insider,” among others.

While pursuing her master’s degree, Justice DiMango was a school teacher for the New York City Public Schools, focusing on special education of children with emotional and intellectual deficiencies.

Upon her graduation from law school, she served 5 1/2 years as an Assistant District Attorney in the Kings County District Attorney’s Office. During her tenure there, she was given the extra responsibility of being cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. She later worked as a law clerk in both Kings and Queens Counties to Supreme Court Justices Steven Fisher, Reinaldo Rivera and Luigi Marano. During this time, Justice DiMango volunteered as a Small Claims Court Arbitrator.

Justice DiMango returned to her passion for education and became an Adjunct Associate Professor of Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure and Forensic Psychology at St. John’s University for approximately 10 years. For the past five years, she has been an Adjunct Associate Professor at New York City Technical College.

More than a dozen of Justice DiMango’s court decisions have been published along with her contributions to numerous bar association journals.

Justice DiMango was the chairperson on the Board of Directors of the Law and Paralegal Studies Department at New York City Technical College, the chairperson on the Assigned Counsel Advisory Committee for the 2nd, 11th and 13th Judicial Districts. She is currently on the Board of Directors for The Cathedral Club of Brooklyn.

HOT BENCH is created by Judge Judy Sheindlin and executive produced by David Theodosopoulos. Amy Freisleben, Belinda Jackson and James Glover are co-executive producers. Patricia DiMango, Tanya Acker and Michael Corriero comprise the three-judge panel. HOT BENCH is produced by Big Ticket Pictures and Queen Bee Productions. It is distributed by CBS Television Distribution.

Judge Michael Corriero

Judge Michael Corriero serves as one of three judges on CBS Television Distribution’s syndicated court show HOT BENCH, created by Judge Judy Sheindlin. The program returned for its fifth season September 10, 2018. During the 2017-2018 season, HOT BENCH was the #3 first-run program in daytime television, delivering 3.2 million daily viewers.

Prior to joining HOT BENCH, Judge Corriero served as a prosecutor in the office of Manhattan District Attorney Frank Hogan, a criminal defense attorney and a judge for 28 years in the criminal courts of New York State. For 16 years, he presided over Manhattan’s Youth Part, a special court he created in the Supreme Court of New York State designed to focus attention and scarce resources on young offenders prosecuted as adults pursuant to New York State's Juvenile Offender Law. Under Judge Corriero's leadership, the Youth Part became a model for mobilization and coordination of treatment and social services for children prosecuted in adult courts. He retired from the bench in 2008 to become the Executive Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City.

In 2010, after leaving Big Brothers Big Sisters, he established the New York Center for Juvenile Justice. The Center promoted a comprehensive model of justice for minors that treats children as children and responds to their misconduct with strategies designed to improve their chances of becoming constructive members of society. An important element of the Center’s advocacy resulted in the enactment of Raise the Age legislation by New York State in 2017.

In 2012, Judge Corriero founded, along with the New York Foundling, one of New York’s oldest and respected social service agencies run by the Sisters of Charity, the Families Rising Project - an alternative-to-incarceration program that works not only with a young offender but with his/her entire family.

Judge Corriero is an alumnus of St. John’s University School of Law and St. John’s University. He was a member of the Law Review and served as an associate editor. He graduated from St. John’s University College with a Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in social science.

He is the author of a book titled, “Judging Children as Children: A Proposal for a Juvenile Justice System,” which is a blueprint for juvenile justice reform. He is regarded nationally and internationally as an expert in juvenile justice. He has traveled extensively, lecturing and advising legal institutions in numerous countries, including Israel, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Kazakhstan and Peru.

Judge Corriero is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including: The New York Foundling’s Lifetime Achievement Award (2015); Advocate of the Decade (2014) presented by Families on the Move of New York City, Inc.; The Eleanor Roosevelt Award (2011), presented by Citizens Committee for Children; Asian Pacific American Advocates (OCA – New York) Community Service Award (2011); Excellence in Juvenile Justice, Juvenile Detention Association of New York State (2007); Frank S. Hogan Associates Recognition Award (2007); Excellence in Children’s Advocacy, presented by 100 Women Against Child Abuse (2006); The Citizens’ Committee for Children’s Annual Founders’ Award (2004); The Howard A. Levine Award for Outstanding Work in the area of children and the law (New York State Bar Association 1999); The Livingston Hall Juvenile Justice Award (American Bar Association 1997); Outstanding Service on Behalf of Youth Award (ELEM 1996, 2007); The Conrad B. Mattox, Jr. Commonwealth Debate Winner (University of Richmond 1996); The Charles A. Rapallo Award (Colombian Lawyers Association 1994); and he participated as a Polsky Judicial Fellow at the Aspen Institute’s Justice and Society Seminar (2003).

Judge Corriero served at the request of the former Chief Judge of New York State, Judith Kaye, on the New York State Permanent Commission on Justice for Children. He also served on Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Committee on the Judiciary. He has previously served on the New York State Probation Commission Task Force and Governor Patterson’s Task Force on Transforming Juvenile Justice.

Judge Corriero has served as Chairperson of the Committee on Juvenile Justice of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. He was Co-chair of the American Bar Association’s Juvenile Justice Committee. He is member of the New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Children and the Law. He served as a trustee of Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City; a member of the Advisory Committee of Citizens’ Committee for Children; a member of the Professional Committee of ELEM (Youth at Risk in Israel); and a board member of Transfiguration Grammar School Education Association.

HOT BENCH is created by Judge Judy Sheindlin and executive produced by David Theodosopoulos. Amy Freisleben, Belinda Jackson and James Glover are co-executive producers. Patricia DiMango, Tanya Acker and Michael Corriero comprise the three-judge panel. HOT BENCH is produced by Big Ticket Pictures and Queen Bee Productions. It is distributed by CBS Television Distribution.