Judge Joe Brown has not sat on a government bench for more than two decades, yet questions about his law license keep circulating online. The short answer, based on public court records, is that the Tennessee Supreme Court transferred his license to disability inactive status on June 24, 2016. That order followed a contempt incident in a Memphis courtroom and an ethics complaint that grew out of it, and it is not the same thing as disbarment.
This article lays out the sequence using the Tennessee Court of Appeals opinion, the Supreme Court’s order, the Board of Professional Responsibility’s notice and contemporaneous reporting. Where a detail rests on news accounts rather than a court record, the text says so.
One caution up front. The most recent official record reviewed for this article is from 2016, and a license status can change by a later court order. The Board’s online attorney directory is the place to confirm where things stand today.
Timeline at a Glance
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| September 1998 | The syndicated series Judge Joe Brown premieres |
| 2000 | Brown leaves the Shelby County Criminal Court bench, according to the Associated Press |
| 2013 | The television series ends |
| March 24, 2014 | Brown is held in contempt in Shelby County Juvenile Court in Memphis |
| August 7, 2014 | Brown loses the race for Shelby County district attorney general |
| March 23, 2015 | Tennessee Court of Appeals affirms the contempt finding |
| August 14, 2015 | Tennessee Supreme Court declines to hear his appeal |
| August 27 to September 1, 2015 | Brown serves the five-day jail sentence |
| June 24, 2016 | Tennessee Supreme Court transfers his law license to disability inactive status |
| October 5, 2023 | Brown finishes seventh in the Memphis mayoral race |
Who Is Judge Joe Brown, and Was He a Real Judge?
Joseph Blakeney Brown Jr. practiced law in Memphis and served as a Shelby County Criminal Court judge before becoming a television personality. He drew national attention in 1998 when he was removed from the court proceedings tied to the James Earl Ray case, according to a New York Times report from that year. The Associated Press later reported that he stepped down from the Criminal Court bench in 2000 to concentrate on his show.
The program itself was never a government court. Like most programs in the genre, it used an arbitration-based format in which both sides agree in advance to have a private arbiter decide the dispute. That distinction matters here because the 2014 incident involved Brown in a different role, as a practicing attorney appearing before a real court.
What Happened in the Memphis Juvenile Court on March 24, 2014?
Brown went to Shelby County Juvenile Court to represent a woman in a child-support matter. According to the ABA Journal’s summary of the later appellate opinion, the hearing had already been continued for a month because the opposing party had not been notified. Brown stepped in for the woman, who had been representing herself, and argued that the case should be decided that day.
When the magistrate, Harold Horne, indicated the continuance would stand, Brown threatened to file a habeas corpus petition and challenged the magistrate’s authority to hear the case. Horne warned that Brown was close to being held in contempt. The appeals court later described Brown’s tone as condescending, and the magistrate found him in contempt.
How Did a One-Day Sentence Become Five Days?
Brown offered to pay the court $10, apparently arguing that was the most it could impose. Horne instead sentenced him to 24 hours in the county jail. As Brown kept arguing, the magistrate added time in steps, asking at points whether Brown wished to continue.
Brown called the court “a circus” and received a third day, according to the ABA Journal. The sentence ended at five days, and bailiffs removed him from the courtroom. Early Associated Press coverage referred to five counts of contempt, while the ABA Journal’s account of the appellate opinion describes a sentence that grew in stages from one day to five.
Brown spent only hours in custody that day. The ABA Journal reported, citing the Commercial Appeal, that he was released on his own recognizance after his lawyers filed a petition in Shelby County Criminal Court.
Did Joe Brown Appeal the Contempt Finding?
Yes. His appeal went to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, which decided the case (No. W2014-00825-COA-R3-JV) on March 23, 2015. Brown argued that he had been zealously representing a pro bono client or, at worst, had committed indirect contempt. The court rejected that view, holding that the magistrate had authority to punish willful misbehavior in the courtroom summarily as direct criminal contempt, and that such conduct is treated more seriously when committed by an attorney.
Brown also argued that the audio recording of the hearing had been edited. The Shelby County Juvenile Court clerk said only the first few seconds had been cut, to remove the name of Brown’s client, according to Associated Press reporting. The Tennessee Supreme Court denied permission to appeal in a one-sentence ruling on August 14, 2015.
When Did Joe Brown Serve the Jail Sentence?
Brown surrendered to Shelby County authorities on Thursday, August 27, 2015, and was released on the morning of Tuesday, September 1, 2015, the Associated Press reported. Jail officials housed him in a single-person cell for his own protection, according to the ABA Journal. Several 2016 reports described the jail term as having happened in September, but the dates above come from the 2015 coverage of his surrender and release.
What Does Disability Inactive Status Mean for His Law License?
The contempt incident prompted a disciplinary matter, listed in the Supreme Court’s order as a Petition for Discipline, Docket No. 2015-2496-9-WM. On June 24, 2016, the court granted a petition from the Board of Professional Responsibility to move Brown’s license (BPR #5211) to a different status. The court said it acted after reviewing documentation from his medical care provider, and it concluded that he was currently incapacitated from continuing the practice of law.
The order places the license in “disability inactive status for an indefinite period of time.”
The same order suspended the disciplinary proceeding indefinitely, until Brown is removed from disability inactive status. It also states that Brown may petition for reinstatement under Rule 9, section 27.7 of the court’s rules. The Board’s public notice said he cannot practice law in this status and may return only after the Supreme Court reinstates him on clear and convincing evidence that the disability has been removed and that he is fit to practice.
The order does not describe the disability, and under Rule 9, section 32.4, other documents in such proceedings are confidential. A statement from Brown’s production company, Celebritunity, quoted by the Associated Press, attributed the situation to complications of type II diabetes, the effects of prescribed medication, hypertension and stress. That is the company’s characterization, not a finding in the court’s order.
Was Judge Joe Brown Disbarred or Suspended?
Not according to the order reviewed for this article. Disbarment is a disciplinary sanction that ends a lawyer’s right to practice. Disability inactive status is a change in standing tied to a lawyer’s capacity to practice, and it comes with a defined route back through a reinstatement petition.
The order did not impose a disciplinary sanction. It paused the ethics case. Headlines in 2016 used words such as “banned” and “suspended,” but the Board and the court used the more specific term.
Can Judge Joe Brown Practice Law Today?
The most recent official record verified for this article is the June 24, 2016 order. A return to active status would require a later Supreme Court order and would appear in the Board’s records. Readers who need the current status should search the attorney directory on the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility website rather than rely on older news coverage.
Separately, Brown has not presided over a government court since leaving the Criminal Court bench. His television work, as noted above, was arbitration for a broadcast program.
What Has Brown Done in Public Life Since the Show Ended?
In 2014, while the contempt appeal was pending, Brown ran as a Democrat for Shelby County district attorney general against Republican incumbent Amy Weirich. He was unopposed in the primary. Weirich won the August 7 general election, leading roughly 65 percent to 35 percent with 96 percent of precincts reporting, according to the Associated Press.
In 2023, Brown ran in Memphis’s nonpartisan mayoral race, which drew 17 candidates. Shelby County Election Commission results for October 5, 2023 show Brown with 1,030 of 88,337 votes, about 1.2 percent and seventh place. Paul Young won with 24,420 votes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Judge Joe Brown disbarred?
The 2016 Tennessee Supreme Court order does not disbar him. It transferred his license to disability inactive status and suspended the pending disciplinary case.
Why was Judge Joe Brown arrested in 2014?
He was held in contempt on March 24, 2014, after arguing with Magistrate Harold Horne during a child-support hearing in Shelby County Juvenile Court. The magistrate raised the jail sentence in steps to five days, and the Tennessee Court of Appeals later upheld the finding.
How long was Judge Joe Brown in jail?
The sentence was five days. He surrendered on August 27, 2015, and was released on September 1, 2015, after state courts declined to overturn the contempt finding.
Is Judge Joe Brown a real judge?
He was a real Shelby County Criminal Court judge before television. His television program operated as arbitration, and he has not held a government judgeship since leaving the bench.
Was Judge Joe Brown arrested again in 2023?
The sources reviewed for this article document one arrest, on March 24, 2014. Websites that claim a later arrest did not cite court or jail records.
Did Judge Joe Brown run for office?
Yes. He lost the 2014 race for Shelby County district attorney general and finished seventh in the 2023 Memphis mayoral election.
Related Reading on JusticeFaces
Brown is one of several former judges who moved to courtroom television. Readers interested in others can explore the profiles of Judge Mathis, Judge Glenda Hatchett and Judge Mablean Ephriam.