MAUREEN FITZPATRICK NAMED EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF "HOT BENCH"

FitzPatrick Joins Randy Douthit to Lead New Syndicated Court Show Debuting in Fall 2014

LOS ANGELES - February 24, 2014 - Maureen FitzPatrick has been named Executive Producer of the new syndicated court show HOT BENCH, it was announced today by Judge Judy Sheindlin, who created the show.

FitzPatrick joins Randy Douthit, who had previously been announced as Executive Producer.

"I am thrilled that HOT BENCH will now have the extraordinary talent of Maureen FitzPatrick," Sheindlin said. "One only needs to read her resume and meet her for an hour to know that she is the real deal."

"We've worked with Maureen on this exciting new show since the beginning, and we could not be happier to have her join the HOT BENCH team," Douthit said.

FitzPatrick will transition into the new role from her current job as Executive Vice President of Programming and Development at CBS Television Distribution, where she developed new first-run syndicated programming and oversaw current shows, including ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT, JUDGE JUDY and THE ARSENIO HALL SHOW.

A daytime television veteran, FitzPatrick joined CTD in 2012 with a substantial resume as an Executive Producer, Programming Consultant and Producer with overall deals at multiple studios, including Sony, Buena Vista and Fox TV Studios. Her credits consist of numerous daytime talk shows, including Executive Producer of "Living it Up! With Ali & Jack," "Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus" and "Donny and Marie," as well as serving as a consulting producer on "Ellen." She also has producing credits on numerous conflict talk shows including "Jenny Jones," "Danny Bonaduce" and "Jerry Springer," as well as various game shows including "The Newlywed Game," "The Dating Game" and "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" In addition, she has served as executive producer of GSN's game show "Pyramid."

Previously, she spent six years at FremantleMedia North America in several roles. She served as Senior Vice President of Comedy Development, developing, selling and producing scripted live-action and animated adult comedies for numerous cable networks, and she served as Senior Vice President of Digital Content. FitzPatrick holds a bachelor's degree in Broadcast Communications and Political Science at Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wis.

HOT BENCH, created by Sheindlin, who headlines the #1 show in syndication JUDGE JUDY, will premiere on stations across the country in Fall 2014. HOT BENCH adds a new dimension to the court genre, with a panel of three judges -- Judge Patricia DiMango and attorneys Tanya Acker and Larry Bakman -- hearing court cases, arguing the merits of the case amongst themselves and rendering a verdict. The half-hour strip will be produced and distributed by CBS Television Distribution.

CBS Television Distribution is the preeminent company in television syndication. CTD produces or distributes 11 first-run series and holds the largest distributed television library at 70,000 hours strong. Among CTD's critically-acclaimed programs are the #1 syndicated series Judge Judy; talk leader Dr. Phil; the #1 and #2 rated game shows Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!; the Emmy Award-winning talk shows Rachael Ray and The Doctors; the #1 and #2 newsmagazines Entertainment Tonight and Inside Edition, along with The Insider; the late-night talk show The Arsenio Hall Show; the freshman talk show The Test; and popular off-network product, including the CSI and Star Trek franchises, Everybody Loves Raymond, Frasier, NCIS, Criminal Minds, NCIS: Los Angeles, The Good Wife, Blue Bloods, Hawaii Five-0, Hot in Cleveland and Undercover Boss. In addition, CTD handles the domestic television distribution of CBS News, CBS Films and Showtime. CTD is a unit of CBS Corp.