Hot Bench

Three judges argue the merits of a case among themselves and render a verdict.

Three judges argue the merits of a case among themselves and render a verdict.

Three judges argue the merits of a case among themselves and render a verdict.

Three judges argue the merits of a case among themselves and render a verdict.

A reportedly distracted driver rear-ends a couple at high speed; the car holds sentimental value to them, so they ask for more money than it's worth.

A kitchen designer holds his client's drawers hostage so that she will help him hunt down payments he is owed by the previous homeowner.

Masked thieves, a run-over foot, security cam tampering: accusations fly in a dispute over a storage property; video evidence shows that the situation got nasty.

After being rear-ended on a freeway on-ramp, a woman put her car in "sport mode" and prepared to chase the other driver -- and is still gunning for them in court.

A young man owes his older sister for a car loan and doesn't seem to understand the concept of responsibility.

A woman thought she was being rescued when her boyfriend moved her out of a housing project to live with him, but, within three months, she was accusing him of conspiring with a raccoon to kill her cat.

A contractor did great work turning a garage into a little apartment, but it took him a year, rather than the 45-day window he promised; a man's recent knee surgery prevented him from test-driving or inspecting a used car before purchasing it.

A woman hires her neighbor as a handyman and gives him her credit card for supplies; he uses it to buy himself some new power tools.

A woman who paid cash after falling in love with a home on sight does not love the new scratches on the hardwood floor when she moves in.

A tough businesswoman lends $25,000 to a longtime friend because she believes in him then is disappointed when he fails to pay her back the interest.

A premium car's purchaser discovers later that the vehicle is a mechanical nightmare; according to a single mother's amateur detective work, she didn't cause the damage to the car she rear-ended.

A boat seller fails to tell the buyers about a lien holder.

A landlord still needs to collect the last month's rent from an ex-tenant whose boyfriend punched a hole in the door in a fit of anger.

A young delivery driver backs into a disabled woman's convertible, converting into a dinged-up eyesore; he tries to explain why it's her fault he didn't see her.

An uninsured 19-year-old navigates the aftermath of her first auto accident; acting on the advice of her attorney, a landlady decides not to return her tenant's security deposit.

Divorce, drug addiction, accusations of child abuse: no matter the outcome of their case, the plaintiff and the defendant may never be a family again.