Order in the court! One of daytime TV’s favorite judges, Judge Mablean Ephriam will preside over your next courtroom drama.

Ephriam became popular via Divorce Court and is the first Black woman to have a nationally-televised court show. Now the host of Justice with Judge Mablean, will be the subject of her daughter and Emmy-winning producer Taj Paxton’s next project. The series, co-produced by Don Handfield, is described as a “family drama series” inspired by Ephriam’s life as the owner of her private family law practice. In a statement reported by Deadline, Paxton said her “whole journey has been building up to tell this story and all its elements: chaos, coming of age, tumult, empowerment, triumph and above all else, love.”

Ephriam’s career included accolades such as becoming a Los Angeles prosecuting attorney and serving as lead attorney in the city’s initial Domestic Violence Unit. But when she opened up her own practice, she didn’t have enough money for employees, so her young children had to pitch in. This led to Paxton becoming her mother’s legal secretary at just 10 years old and her older brothers serving subpoenas and filing documents. Her mother’s life as a private lawyer, as well as her mother’s early career as a correctional officer to pay for her law school degree, will be the basis of the main character’s storyline. The show will also focus on how the main character meets a man who knows the streets and whose independent streak often gets him in trouble with authorities.

Ephriam released a statement about the upcoming series according to Deadline, saying that even though the series will be based on her story, “my failures and victories echo the lives of many Black women, in particular, and women in general, as they deal with juggling career, motherhood and marriage.”

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Photo credit: Entertainment Studios

Judge Mablean

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