A man is murdered in a state senator's house, and Ellenor is called to defend the senator, who also happens to be a personal friend.

A sensational homicide case rocks Boston in the series' two-hour, sixth-season opener. The defendant is a charismatic state senator, who's charged with killing the man purported to be his wife's lover. Pretrial drama centers on the accounts of two key witnesses: the politician's intransigent spouse and his reticent teenage daughter. Later, courtroom skirmishes are interwoven with the sometimes contentious strategizing of prosecutor Helen Gamble and her associate, Alan Lowe; and squabbling on the defense team, led by Ellenor

Ellenor learns that Marsha Ellison is guilty of the crime for which her husband was convicted. Ellenor goes to Keith Ellison, who is now in prison, and urges him to come forward with the truth, though he refuses. Meanwhile, Eugene Young represents a man who is up for parole, Leonard Marshall (guest star Charles Dutton). Eugene insists that the best chance for parole is to confess to the crime and beg forgiveness. During the parole hearing, Leonard refuses to admit guilt, though the parole board still sets him free. Also in this episode, Rebecca assists a powerful attorney, John Mockler (guest star Ron Silver), who is famous for fighting death penalty cases. Rebecca discovers that Mockler picks only the cases that he feels are worthy. If he doesn't believe a client has a good chance of getting his penalty overturned, he will not fight for the case. Instead, he urges the doomed clients to find religion. Rebecca believes that every person, no matter what the case, should be defended to

Lindsay represents a young man, Martin Jenks, accused of murder. There is only one eyewitness in the case, but Lindsay doesn't believe that she can keep Jenks out of jail. She goes to A.D.A. Ron Lowe and offers a plea bargain, but the deal is rejected. After the eyewitness dies unexpectedly, Lowe then decides to accept the original plea bargain. Lindsay has difficulty convincing her client to plead guilty, but he reluctantly accepts the offer and gets the five-year sentence. When Lindsay discovers that Lowe tricked her, she goes back to the judge and argues that her client should be set free. In a closed-door meeting in the judge's chambers, the judge says that he cannot free Jenks. But the judge also chastises Ron Lowe and D.A. Kenneth Walsh for their unethical behavior. Meanwhile, Jimmy represents a seedy client, Sid Herman (Jeffrey Tambor), who is a bookie. Jimmy has incurred a serious gambling debt, and represents Sid in a hostile divorce as a way of paying off the debt. When Sid

Bobby represents a couple, the Baldwins, who are haunted by the kidnapping of their son 18 years earlier. The Baldwins believe that a man named John Pierce, who is serving a prison sentence for molesting children, is the guilty culprit. At the time of the disappearance, Pierce was a suspect, but the police did not have enough evidence to charge him with the kidnapping. The Baldwins believe their son was murdered, and they just want to know the location of the body. They persuade Bobby to bring a civil lawsuit against John Pierce for the ""wrongful death"" of their son. They believe that under the threat of a lawsuit, which could jeopardize his parole, Pierce will tell them the location of their son's body. Bobby moves forward with the case, though on the witness stand, Pierce insists that he did not kidnap the boy. At the end of the episode, Bobby is approached by a young man who believes that he is the boy who was kidnapped years ago. Meanwhile, Jimmy still owes money to his bookie,

Chad Baldwin, the boy who was kidnapped 18 years ago, shows up at Bobby's office, along with the woman who raised him, Allison Tucker. She claims that John Pierce ""left"" the boy with her, claiming that the child was his own son. Allison Tucker agrees to testify as part of the trial against John Pierce, and can provide crucial testimony to keep him behind bars. But she is worried that she could also be charged as an accessory to the crime, so she first cuts an immunity deal with the district attorney's office. After she testifies, however, unsettling news is uncovered. According to Allison Tucker's sister, Allison had a few miscarriages, and once threatened to ""go to a hospital and steal a baby."" Bobby believes that Allison Tucker is the real kidnapper, and that she brilliantly framed John Pierce. He shares this news with the Baldwins, who ask that Bobby not tell the district attorney the truth. They are desperate to restore their relationship with their estranged son, and are afr

Bobby, Eugene and Jimmy work with an insurance company to settle the claim of a 10-year-old accident victim. But when the case presents a dilemma of moral and ethical proportions, the tension that's been brewing between Jimmy and Eugene finally boils over.

After promising the mother of a murdered teen that he'll find the drive-by shooter responsible, A.D.A. Lowe adopts a ""whatever it takes"" attitude towards the prosecution of the young gang member he thinks did it — who is defended by Ellenor. Meanwhile, Lindsay is moved to help a mentally retarded man find the daughter he lost touch with years ago as a result of being wrongfully incarcerated for over a decade.

Bobby fears that his protective feelings for a vulnerable female client may threaten his objectivity in her case. Lucy goes above and beyond the call of duty to help an elderly rape victim get the only thing she wants from her attacker — an apology.

Rebecca faces what could be the greatest challenge of her career when she attempts to uncover why her doctor's husband, an Arab, was detained by federal agents without any explanation. After encountering a series of impenetrable legal roadblocks, she learns a difficult truth: ""Inter arma silent leges … in war law is silent."" Meanwhile, Eugene's court-appointed client forces him to use the race card.

A Reverend shares a secret with Jimmy and Lindsay that could drastically affect the ruling on their client, accused of murder, but only if he's willing to testify; and Ellenor's A.D.A. friend makes her an offer she must refuse, despite the consequences.

Bobby makes a judgement call based on a client's instructions, but it turns out he may have made the call too soon. Meanwhile, Lindsay begs Helen Gamble to order DNA tests on a client serving jail time for double rape — a sentence the client received 7 years ago with a fresh-out-of-law school Lindsay by his side.

Ellenor is ordered to appear as co-counsel for murderer Ray McMurphy, who insists on defending himself in his latest trial. The trial turns ugly for everyone involved, as McMurphy will do whatever it takes to keep himself from going back to prison. Meanwhile, the firm try to support Bobby as he comes out of hospital and he tries to come to terms with being victimised.

Helen and Bobby are shocked to learn that the FBI suspects a popular and highly respected judge (Bruce McGill) of accepting bribes. Convinced the judge is innocent, they're torn about whether or not to assist the U.S. Attorney in a ""sting"" operation — which could also effectively put their careers on the line.

The wife of a schizophrenic who thinks he's Superman seeks Jimmy's legal counsel after her husband accidentally causes harm to an innocent victim while under hospital care. As it seems impossible to prove what was actually going through the man's head when he caused the accident, the jury must sort through the legal finger-pointing to determine who — the defendant, his wife or the hospital — is ultimately at fault.

Eugene and Rebecca go head-to-head with Helen Gamble on a case involving a father accused of an unthinkable act of child abuse. Meanwhile, A.D.A. Mitchell Wheeler (Scott Cohen), who previously made an indecent and unethical proposal to Ellenor, returns, this time with a different kind offer for her.

Helen Gamble heads up the prosecution of an accused murderer with suspected ties to the mob, a case her boss, D.A. Walsh, has an inexplicably strong interest in. Meanwhile, Lindsay unintentionally helps a familiar client get arrested.

An arson case inflames Jimmy when he has to defend a respected Italian-American businessman who is an old friend. But his suspicious furniture-store fire killed a night watchman.

John Larroquette reprises his Emmy-winning role as the enigmatic and disturbed Joey Heric, who was acquitted---twice---of murdering two of his gay lovers, killings he actually committed.

A client who believes he's Hannibal Lecter admits to cannibalism but not murder in a trial that's especially hard on Lindsay, whom the defendant calls Clarice.

An accused rapist and his identical twin muddy a trial; the Hannibal Lecter copycat continues to terrify Lindsay during a commitment hearing.

Eugene takes charge at the scene, ordering Lindsay and Bobby to avoid talking with police. But the legal team's ensuing debate on how to proceed leads to questions about Lindsay's arguably tenuous state of mind, as well as the moments prior to the shooting, which Lindsay says she can't recall.

Lindsay stands trial for shooting Lawrence O'Malley, who became obsessed with her after her firm defended him in his murder trial.