Judge Judy is not backing down.
The legendary TV judge is taking her defamation battle to a higher court after a major setback in her lawsuit against the parent company behind the National Enquirer and In Touch.
Judy Sheindlin first sued in 2024 after claiming the publications falsely dragged her into the Menendez brothers saga by suggesting she tried to help convicted killers Erik and Lyle Menendez get a new trial.
Now, after a federal judge tossed the case, Sheindlin is fighting to bring it back.
According to new court documents, Sheindlin has formally appealed the dismissal of her lawsuit against Accelerate360 and A360 Media. The case is now headed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
The filing, submitted on May 12, 2026, asks the appeals court to review the final judgment entered on April 20, along with the judge’s order granting summary judgment in favor of the tabloid publisher.
Sheindlin’s legal team is also asking the higher court to review all appealable orders, rulings, decisions and findings tied to the case.
The legal war began after the National Enquirer and In Touch published articles claiming Sheindlin had appeared in a documentary about the infamous Menendez brothers and allegedly pushed for them to receive a new trial.
Sheindlin has fiercely denied it.
In her lawsuit, the no-nonsense courtroom star said the reports falsely attributed statements to her and wrongly suggested she had inserted herself into one of America’s most notorious murder cases.
According to Sheindlin, the articles claimed she urged defense attorney Leslie Abramson to seek a new judge for Erik and Lyle Menendez.
But Sheindlin said that never happened.
She maintained she did not appear in the documentary, did not make the statements attributed to her and had no involvement in any effort to secure a new trial for the brothers.
The Menendez brothers were convicted of murdering their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez, inside the family’s Beverly Hills mansion in 1989. Their case has remained one of the most talked-about true crime sagas in America for decades.
Sheindlin argued the stories damaged her reputation and falsely painted her as someone willing to intervene on behalf of two convicted killers.
She also claimed the publications failed to properly correct the record even after being told they had made a mistake.
The court, however, sided with the publisher.
In its ruling, the judge found that the publications appeared to have confused Sheindlin with another woman named Judi Zamos, who did appear in a Menendez documentary.
The court called the mix-up a “genuine” but “stupid” mistake. Still, the judge ruled Sheindlin had not met the tough legal standard required to prove actual malice.
Because Sheindlin is a public figure, she had to show more than bad reporting or carelessness. Under defamation law, she needed to prove the publishers either knew the information was false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth.
The court found she had not cleared that high bar.
But Judge Judy is now asking the appellate court to take another look.
Her attorneys, John K. Shubin and Eric M. George, are continuing to represent her as she tries to revive the lawsuit.
The appeal sets up a new chapter in the high-profile legal showdown and could determine whether Sheindlin gets another chance to pursue her defamation claims.
The case also comes as interest in the Menendez brothers continues to explode, with documentaries, streaming specials and renewed public debate keeping the decades-old murders in the spotlight.
For now, Sheindlin is making one thing clear: she is not ready to let the tabloid fight go.
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