TV has always loved lawyers. From Perry Mason to Leland McKenzie, Jack McCoy to Patty Hewes, lawyers have been among the most durable and popular characters on the small screen.
But what law shows do lawyers consider the best of all time?
We put that question to a jury of 12 experts—nine lawyers, two scholars and a TV critic—who write or teach about the nexus of law and pop culture. They were asked to pick their favorites among the scores of legal-minded shows that have come and gone over the years. We stayed away from those daytime judge shows and reality television, sticking to shows with actual scripts—though with some episodes of Law & Order it might be hard to tell the difference.
So the verdict is in, and here are the panel’s choices for the greatest legal shows in TV history.
When people have asked about the ways my career as an actor became associated with Lincoln—theater, TV, documentaries, readings and such—I’d say, “If you’re going to get stuck in a role, you could do worse than be typecast as Abraham Lincoln.” That also goes for Jack McCoy.
Playing a hard-driven, unscrupulous defense attorney-turned-prosecutor in Shark was a real eye-opener for me as an actor and, more importantly, as a citizen. Not only were many members of our writing staff attorneys themselves, but our technical advisers included Robert Shapiro and Ira Reiner. Rikki Klieman was a prosecutor in real life, and an occasional cast member as well.
ED BARK is an award-winning TV critic who blogs about all things television from his website, UncleBarky.com. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Bark is former president of the Television Critics Association and a former board member of the George Foster Peabody Awards. CHRISTINE A. CORCOS is an associate…
