The Practice (1997–2004): Season 8, Episode 18 - The Case Against Alan Shore - full transcript
BERLUTI: Previously
on The Practice.
FRUTT: Are you trying
to get disbarred?
As self-destructive as--
All right, all right,
on that note.
We've decided to let you go.
Go where?
YOUNG: Here's a check
representing two weeks'
severance pay.
I've generated fees
in excess of $6 million.
You've handed me a check
for $15,000.
YOUNG: Alan Shore seemed
to know this was coming.
Did you tell him?
Yes.
YOUNG: Your employment here
is terminated.
Wherever you take
your business,
I would urge you again
not to take it to Alan Shore.
It is our belief
that he is unstable.
FRUTT: I can't bear the idea
of going back to work
with you not being there.
SHORE: I need to be able
to bring Tara back.
My presence is so powerful,
I don't even have to talk.
Sometimes I'm better
when I don't talk.
This was my thinking.
I'm Denny Crane, damn it.
You hired him.
Why didn't you stop me?
You need to argue this motion.
GLEASON: I'm scheduling
an evidentiary hearing
for next week.
We'll take off our gloves
and have at it.
(clears throat)
What's up?
This is Noah Burke.
He'll be representing us
in our labor dispute.
FRUTT: Wow.
So, we are going outside.
Yes.
Just a thought, but shouldn't I
have been included
in that decision?
Well, that's the very issue
we need to talk about.
BURKE: Look, Ms. Frutt, I can
walk you through the legals,
but cutting to the chase,
this thing is close.
I mean, Mr. Shore's
estoppel claims are colorable.
I mean,
we have an associate here
whose financial contributions
grossly exceed
those of the partners.
He's hired an extremely deep
and talented firm.
I mean, we're in--we're in
for a fight here,
a difficult fight.
So, all this really
is to preface one question,
which is,
"Where do you stand?"
Can I get you a cup of coffee?
Okay, look
(clears throat)
the guts of our case
will be that Alan Shore
is a bad guy.
Now, you will need
to testify.
You will need to get
in the witness chair
and not only support the idea
that he's a bad guy
but actually sell it.
I mean, see,
this man has a personal
animosity towards Mr. Shore.
I mean, his bias
will be exposed and lanced
like a giant boil.
This man looks like
he hates everybody,
and his emotions will make him
anything but impartial.
The only objective
and fair-minded voice we have--
if we're to have one is you.
All right, once again,
it's you.
So as I told Mr. Young
and Mr. Berluti,
you will have to win
this case for us.
You will have to take
Alan Shore down.
So let me put to you
the great interrogatory
once posed
by the leader
of the free world--
are you with us,
or are you against us?
(music playing)
BILLINGS: Whether or not
we go forward all depends.
Of course
we're going forward.
Not so fast.
Then slow down.
I canceled your 10:00.
I had to tell the beast,
and she's in a mood, so...
Tell her
she looks beautiful
and the meeting
will be rescheduled.
Well, she won't believe
she's beautiful
unless you tell her.
Then tell her I said so.
Goodbye.
Who's the beast?
Sara Lipp,
wicked senior partner
of the east.
Denny Crane.
Yes, I know
you're Denny Crane.
Why do you always
tell me your name?
Is it so you won't forget?
Well, let me tell you
something, soldier.
I've learned from experience
that people can't believe
they're actually in the room
with Denny Crane.
They think
it can't be true,
so I let them know
it is true.
I look them in the eye--
"Denny Crane."
Gives them something
to tell their grandkids.
Denny Crane.
You know, I wanted him
because he knows the judge.
I'm having deep concerns now
that the judge knows him.
Okay, first of all,
he did win the motion last week.
Second, I'll first-chair.
He'll be second.
But he talks aloud.
I'll rein him in.
He's an asset.
We want him at our table.
Trust me.
Denny Crane.
STRINGER: Tara, hey.
What's new?
Don't even ask.
You doing okay?
Yeah.
FRUTT: Tara,
thanks for coming in.
Let's go in my office.
Listen,
Eugene, Jimmy, and I,
we realize
that we put you
in an impossible situation,
asking you to protect
a firm confidence
to the detriment
of a friend.
And we appreciate
that maybe,
we were unfair.
Anyway, we're offering you
your job back.
We consider you
an extremely valued member
of this practice,
and we hope
that you will consider
rejoining us.
You're offering me
my job back?
Yes.
And you're actually sorry
for putting me
in a difficult situation?
Yes.
Is Eugene sorry?
Yes.
Well, could Eugene
apologize in person?
That would help me decide.
He's obviously
under a lot of stress, Tara.
Let's not make--
WILSON: Ellenor,
I have a great respect for you.
And my hope is,
at the conclusion
of all this ugliness,
there will be no erosion
of that respect.
But this isn't about you
being sorry.
This isn't about you valuing me
as a member of your firm.
This is about you getting me
on your side,
securing my testimony
to favor you.
Look, Tara,
you know I care about him.
And, believe it or not,
I also care about you.
You are a young law student
with your entire future
ahead of you.
You need to consider carefully
which side you'd rather be
associated with here.
I have considered that
very carefully.
I'll be testifying
in support of Alan.
I can't underline
enough my reservations
about him being here.
And I can't underline enough
his presence has currency.
I don't like it
when people talk about me
like I'm not in the room.
Last time I checked,
I was in the room.
SHORE: You know, I'm having
a sudden burst of insecurity.
I could use some reassurance.
Could you just say
those two little words
I so long to hear?
Denny Crane.
Thank you.
BURKE: Sorry we're late.
Let's get started.
Um, I'd like to preface
my remarks by saying--
CRANE: Hold on.
Hold on just a minute.
You're not late.
You derive some sort of power
keeping everybody waiting.
We agreed to meet at 2:00.
No, you turn up at 10 past.
Our plan all along was to start
the meeting at a quarter past,
so we're just gonna stand around
for five minutes,
you little gerbil. Why don't you
gnaw on a stick of celery?
Denny Crane.
Look, we are here to take one
last stab at settling this.
We are not waiting
five minutes.
We are not waiting two.
Let's start over.
Please.
I think we can all assume,
should this go to trial,
you'll be vicious,
we'll be vicious,
it'll get publicly nasty,
and everybody will bleed.
The reason for this meeting
is to avoid all the bloodshed.
Obviously, we have a number.
You have a number, I suspect.
Should I give you ours?
Please.
$750,000.
And before you reject it,
that's three times the salary
of the next-ranking associate,
and it's probably $750,000
more than you'd get
if we proceed to court,
given Mr. Shore's conduct.
And what, if I were you,
I'd be most concerned with--
You're not me, Mr. Burke.
Let's not ever make
that mistake.
BURKE: If certain things
in this trial become public,
Mr. Shore may be unemployable
in perpetuity
and perhaps even disbarred.
Denny Crane.
Let me respond by just--
May I, Matthew?
Let's not compare my salary
with that of
the highest-ranking associate.
The whole point here
is I don't compare
with the rank associates
at Young, Frutt, and Berluti.
I, in fact,
out-earn and out-produce
the rank partners--
You're being contentious.
Denny Crane.
(chuckles) Okay,
uh, why don't you
just tell us your number?
$1.9 million.
What?
BILLINGS: Should Mr. Shore
be declared
a de facto partner,
his share this year alone
will be over a million.
And that doesn't even account
for the revenues
generated in the future
by clients he brought in.
Which he then stole.
Denny Crane.
BILLINGS: And what that really
doesn't account for--
you guys were close
to going under.
Not true.
You know what?
You can read the books
just like I can.
If the jury finds
that Alan saved this firm
and we have to allow
for the possibility
of that finding.
We could get five million,
maybe six.
Alan Shore was fired from
his last firm for embezzling.
We hired him out of charity
more than anything else.
SHORE: We seem to be
moving further apart now.
May I finish, please?
SHORE: You may,
but that last remark just pushed
our demand up to 2.5.
Alan--
You know what?
In the absence
of any contract,
I think the only fair thing
is to agree.
I have no right to work
at your firm.
I should walk away,
and I will.
I just want the money
I brought in, $9 million.
Take out overhead,
give me the rest.
$8.9 million,
we can all shake hands.
I think we're going to trial.
Let's be fair, Mr. Shore.
You were fired
from your previous firm
for embezzling.
And I deserved it.
I did not deserve to be fired
from this firm.
Because?
Because I saved them
from going bankrupt,
because I won my cases,
because I look good doing it.
BILLINGS: Did you
ever break any laws?
Break any laws?
Yes.
Did you extort lawyers?
Did you illegally
download records?
Were you privy to deals,
buying off witnesses?
Did you suborn perjury?
Ah, that.
Perhaps.
BILLINGS: Perhaps?
Look, they knew my character
when they hired me.
I never did anything--
hello, Judge.
I never did anything ever
that wasn't in my character.
BILLINGS: Well, Alan, come on.
You could have risked
disbarment with all this.
That would run to
the reputation of the firm.
I was called
before the bar already.
Eugene Young
stood up unsolicited,
called me a just
and honorable man.
But when it was time to split up
all the millions of dollars
I generated,
I was suddenly unworthy.
BILLINGS: Thank you, sir.
This feels dramatic.
You left out the part
where you impersonated
an airline official
from the opposing side
and then settled a case
under that false identity.
Using money
out of my own pocket
to spare the firm
a malpractice suit.
You left out the part
where you hired a lawyer
who believed
God talked to her.
It was never established
he didn't.
YOUNG: You left out the part
that you constantly defied
the partners.
Only when they were wrong,
which, granted,
was most of the time.
Is it just me,
or are all his questions
in statement form?
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you hid a murder weapon
from the police.
SHORE:
Oh, if I were to mention that,
the police would demand
to know where I hid it.
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you took a hooker
to a client's wedding.
The invitation said,
"Significant other."
I thought it would last.
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you secretly installed
video cameras
in a woman's hotel room
and taped her having sex.
SHORE:
For blackmail purposes only.
Okay, that was a lie.
I watch for my own pleasure.
This is all one big source
of amusement for you,
isn't it, Alan?
I'll tell you this, Eugene.
If you take life too seriously,
it ceases to be funny.
I tried to impart that
and other
little wisdoms to you,
which you never took,
but you always
took the money.
BILLINGS: Alan, I don't know
what you're doing.
You say you want to settle,
but I don't think
you know what you want.
Tara,
I plan to keep
your testimony very simple.
Basically,
I want you to establish
that he was open and notorious
with his antics
from the beginning.
Okay.
I will not put you
in the position
of attacking Eugene or Ellenor,
and I don't want you to.
Denny, this is Tara Wilson,
a law student I spoke of.
In need of employment?
Yes. She's extremely talented.
I can personally vouch
for her skills as a paralegal,
as well as--
Stand up, please.
Turn around, please.
Lips real?
Yes.
Yours?
CRANE: Let me tell you
something, Tara.
We hire only pretty people
in this firm.
Pretty people
get better results.
Pretty girls
keep me aroused.
I think more clearly
when I'm aroused.
Are you a pretty girl,
soldier?
I am, sir.
Good girl.
At ease.
I'm always at ease,
sir.
I like her.
The truth is
it's been a horrible year.
I haven't liked going to work
since he's been there.
My cases...
seems he's gotten
all the good ones.
How's your love life?
(scoffs)
Sounds like I hate my life,
doesn't it?
Very much so.
Why don't you change it?
How?
Well, what do you want to do?
Jimmy,
you mean you haven't even asked
yourself the question?
WILSON: Dishonorable?
No.
Ethically challenged?
(sighs) Perhaps.
BILLINGS: What's the difference?
WILSON: He was honest
with how he dealt
with his friends
and his fellow partners.
Where he was perhaps underhanded
was with opposing counsel.
Did the partners
at the firm
know about
his underhandedness?
(chuckles) Yes.
They would often protest
and threaten him,
but as Alan
correctly points out,
at the end of the day,
they would cash the checks.
BILLINGS: And Ms. Wilson,
you had the opportunity
to see the financial records
at Young, Frutt, and Berluti?
I did.
BILLINGS: And what kind
of impact did Alan Shore
have on their business?
WILSON: In dollars?
He more than tripled it.
BURKE: Obviously,
you're friends with Alan Shore.
I consider him a friend, yes.
Forgive my indiscretion,
and admittedly, I'm speculating,
but have you had sex with him?
No.
SHORE: Objection.
She answered the question.
That's what I'm objecting to.
I want to have sex with her.
She keeps saying no.
BURKE: I believe
you've witnessed Mr. Shore
committing acts
of sexual harassment
in the workplace,
have you not?
I have.
In fact, you once complained
to Eugene Young
that he repulsed you,
that you thought he was vulgar.
SHORE: I believe the witness
said she had vulgar thoughts
that involved me.
There's a difference there.
Please rephrase.
WILSON: As you can see,
his behavior is quite
incorrigible but I--
BURKE: Incorrigible?
He lies, he steals,
he conceals evidence,
he openly defies the partners,
and that's the word you use
"incorrigible"?
Well--
BURKE: I'm just curious.
Is Mr. Shore helping you
to find new employment?
Actually, he just helped me
find a new job, yes.
BURKE: Oh, well,
that's interesting.
So, I mean, might you say
you're in his debt a little?
I would.
Thank you very much,
Ms. Wilson.
Isn't it true you really
do want to sleep with...
Nothing further.
CRANE: I mean, Matthew,
the client confuses me.
Does he want to lose?
No, he, uh--he just--
he can't contain
himself sometimes.
He's a complicated guy.
This is not good behavior.
This is not consistent
with someone who wants to win.
I understand.
I'm concerned, Matthew.
The client confuses me.
He called me fat.
Mr. Shore did?
BERLUTI: Almost every day.
Usually in front
of other people,
to humiliate me.
It was some remark
about my body,
or he'd also call me stupid.
This is an associate
directing insults at partners,
and he's all shocked
that we didn't want him.
So that's why you voted
to discharge him,
because of all the insults?
No, that's not
the only reason.
He violated legal ethics.
He ignored privilege.
I voted to discharge him
because we're not just
a place of business.
We're not simply
a corporate entity
that exists
to generate profits.
We're a practice at law.
The people in our practice
have respect
for the profession,
respect for each other
as people.
He didn't.
I voted to discharge him
because it is not okay
to ignore the ethical rules
of the practice.
I voted to discharge him
because it is not okay
to be little people,
to treat them
with cruelty or ridicule.
If he wants to build a firm
where that kind
of behavior is okay,
let him build his own firm,
but he was an associate
at ours,
and he dishonored it,
and us, daily.
Thank you, sir.
You spoke with a great deal
of emotion, Jimmy.
You don't like me, do you?
No, I don't.
Is it possible for you
to completely separate
your personal dislike of me
from your objective
opinion of me
as an attorney,
honestly?
Probably not.
Thank you.
(music playing)
Are you testifying
against me, Ellenor?
Alan, what do you want?
The jury can't order us
to rehire you.
You claim
it's not about the money.
So...
what is it
that you want?
I don't know.
Maybe just to be--
well, let's leave it
at that.
Just to be.
Are you trying
to get the jury
to judge you negatively
to confirm
some twisted--
SHORE: Aw, I got
another psychoanalysis.
I don't have time, Ellenor.
I've got a long day
in court tomorrow.
Do you?
YOUNG:
He had no contract.
It was employee
at will,
and legally,
we're entitled
to terminate an associate
for personal reasons.
But it wasn't just
personal reasons.
We had to protect
the integrity
of our practice.
BURKE: But, Eugene,
as it's been said,
you did take the money.
Yes, he earned revenue
in his capacity
as an associate,
but that didn't give him tenure.
You heard all the things
he did against the law,
against the canons of law,
against us.
How do we employ a person
we can't even trust?
Fiduciary duty,
that has to mean something
in a partnership--
is an implied obligation
to deal fairly
with one another,
honestly.
That man never did.
As a result, he had to go.
He had to go.
BURKE: Thank you.
I want you to know I agree
with everything you said,
and if what you said
about my client is true,
I'd have fired
his ass, too.
Good work, soldier.
Nothing further.
Uh...
I imagine this, uh,
business about fiduciary duty--
obligation to deal fairly,
honestly--
goes both ways.
You would have a duty
to be fair
and aboveboard
with Alan Shore.
I would, and I did.
Good man.
Uh, you had a meeting
with, uh, Samuel Gould,
a client of Al Shore's,
last week, did you not?
I did.
CRANE: Longtime client
of Al Shore's, am I right?
Yes.
(over recorder)
That must strongly caution you
against going with Alan Shore.
GOULD (over recorder): Why?
YOUNG (over recorder):
It is our belief
that he is unstable,
that he has self-destructive
personality tendencies,
that he's also prone
to committing unethical,
sometimes even criminal acts.
Wherever you take
your business,
I would urge you again
not to take it to Alan Shore.
(click)
That was you
trying to steal
Al Shore's client.
Was that a fiduciary stab
in Al's back?
At the time
of that discussion,
Samuel Gould
was a client of the firm.
Your Honor, it's illegal
to secretly tape-record--
CRANE: There was nothing
secret about it.
Mr. Gould taped all
his meetings.
The firm knew it.
Did you forget?
(clicks)
YOUNG (over recorder):
He is unstable,
that he has self-destructive
personality tendencies.
(clicks)
That's slander, Mr. Young.
Truth is a complete defense
to slander.
I spoke the truth.
You know, son,
I'm a senior partner
in my firm the way
you are in yours.
And here's the thing
about good leadership--
and you tell me
if you disagree.
It's not enough
to insist on fidelity
or honesty or fair dealing.
A good leader
has to practice it.
Denny Crane.
SHORE: Was it my imagination,
or was he actually
quite effective?
I keep telling you,
once he's in a courtroom,
all the plaque on his brain
just dissolves.
I don't know
what the hell it is,
but I think
it was effective.
I don't like it
when people talk about me
like I'm not in the corridor.
Last time I checked,
I was in the corridor.
(music playing)
FRUTT: He said
that he had been fired
by his firm
and that he needed
a break.
Did he say
why he was fired?
He embezzled.
He said
it was a half-Robin Hood
kind of thing,
that he took from the rich
and kept it.
BURKE: And knowing this,
you hired Alan Shore?
Yes.
BURKE: Why?
He was a friend who--
well, like you said,
he needed a break.
And this testimony today...
this is difficult?
You have no idea.
BURKE: In fact,
despite all the infractions
he's committed
since joining your firm,
you've continued
to defend him.
Why, Ellenor?
I think Alan
is deeply troubled.
As talented as he is,
as terrific as he is,
I don't think
he likes himself.
And on some
psychological level--
BILLINGS: Objection--
foundation.
This will be a lay opinion
from a friend, Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
BURKE: Please continue.
I think to service
his own self-loathing,
he breeds contempt
from others.
BURKE: We heard
Eugene Young use the words
"self-destructive."
FRUTT: That would be fair.
I've said that to Alan
on more than one occasion.
I truly believe
he's trying
to destroy himself.
I don't think it was ever
his intent
to damage the firm,
but that's what
he started to do.
So, you agree, then,
with the decision
to discharge him?
I do.
BURKE: Thank you, Ellenor.
You really wanna do
this one?
Alan?
SHORE: Yeah.
You think it's best
that I leave.
Did you not say last week,
"Let's work this out"?
Did you not say
you couldn't bear the idea
of going to work
at a place without me?
I said that.
Did you mean it?
I meant it.
But, Alan,
I said that
un-objectively,
as your friend,
as a person who continues
to care deeply for you,
but...
(breathes)
I don't think
you're entirely well.
You are gonna
self-destruct one day,
and I can't prevent that.
But I can't let you
destroy my partners
in the process.
(sighs)
I'm sorry.
I see.
(music playing)
YOUNG: We live in a time
where breaking rules,
being a rebel,
flashing irreverence
for any kind
of convention is cool,
is hip.
Alan Shore is a hip,
cool guy.
He's entertaining, too.
It can be fun
watching him do his thing,
but when he's doing it to you
or people you love
or something you love--
you see
these people here?
We don't have
husbands and wives.
Ellenor has a child,
I have a son,
but no one can accuse us
of living rounded,
balanced lives.
Our lives are that law firm.
Our lives
are each other,
and working together
in a place--
together--
that's something.
I might even
call that "everything."
This man
couldn't get that.
He came in,
from the very first day,
and behaved in a way that said,
"People here
don't have to be moral.
People here don't have
to conduct themselves
with integrity,
that people here don't need
to be honest."
You heard the list,
blackmail, extortion,
breaking privilege,
impersonating
opposing parties,
concealing evidence,
It goes on and on.
He did this
acting as an agent
of the place we built.
Alan Shore thinks he got fired
because we were afraid
he'd bring the firm down.
What he can't seem to get
is that he's already
brought us down.
Like I said,
I know scandal
is hip these days.
For sure, it's profitable.
But at Young, Frutt,
and Berluti,
character still counts.
It must count.
Our dignity is not
a fungible thing,
not to Ellenor,
not to Jimmy,
not to Jamie,
not to me.
Alan Shore...
just can't get that.
(music playing)
When this firm hired me,
they knowingly
engaged the services
of an embezzler.
They let me go about my evil,
sinister business,
and make them rich,
and then they tossed me.
I had an uncle.
He'd bring
a delicious dessert
to every family
get-together,
and everyone would fawn
and gush, saying,
"You're so thoughtful, Charles.
You're so generous."
He admitted to me
he wasn't generous at all.
He was hungry.
And his logic was...
if he brought a pie,
he'd get a slice.
I brought the pie,
ladies and gentlemen.
They didn't give me my slice.
And as for all my despicable,
unethical, immoral,
treacherous, sleazy conduct,
they called me everything
but a terrorist, didn't they?
This business
is not an ethical arena.
Our legal system
is adversarial by nature,
where it is often
the very function
of a lawyer's job
to prevent the truth
from ever coming out.
We get paid to suppress
and squash
and conceal evidence.
Remember, this is the system
that freed O. J.
but also convicted
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.
Every first-year
law student is taught,
"Don't ever,
ever equate legal ethics
with morality.
They're almost always
mutually exclusive."
It's an ugly world
where underhandedness
is often celebrated.
I didn't enter
Eugene Young's church.
It was a law firm.
A criminal law firm.
The dirtiest kind,
where lawyers get up in court,
as Mr. Young has many times,
and knowingly falsely
accuse innocent people
of murder.
Why?
For the noble cause
of getting
the real killer off.
Eugene Young
has put guilty people
back on the street
to kill again.
He's in the business
of freeing serial rapists.
But, hey,
I brought the firm down
by pretending to be
an airline executive.
I'm sorry.
I guess
I just don't get it.
He goes behind my back,
tells my client I'm unstable
for the purpose
of stealing that client.
This somehow falls
within the bounds
of integrity.
I guess
I just don't get it.
There's a couple of things
Eugene Young
just can't seem to get.
First, I'm just
an unscrupulous guy
trying to get by
in an unscrupulous profession.
And second,
I respect him profoundly.
There's perhaps nobody
I respect more.
In the eight or so months
I've known you,
I've found you to be
utterly beyond reproach,
which is why I'm so surprised
he would take all that money
I brought in,
fire me,
then go through all this
just to avoid
giving me my slice.
WILSON: Hey, how'd it go?
SHORE: They're deliberating.
Can we talk
about the outfit?
WILSON: (sighs)
All the assistants here
wear uniforms.
I like it.
Do you?
Well, as soon
as I pass the bar,
it's coming off.
I can't wait.
Let's go to the bar now.
We conduct
our sexual harassment
behind closed doors here,
sailor.
SHORE: I shudder
to think.
Excuse me.
Oh.
CRANE: That was a hell
of a closing.
I like what I see so far.
$9 million, portables,
a closing like that.
What do you say...
we take
our relationship
to the next level?
Are you a homosexual,
Denny?
I'm offering you
a job, sailor.
BILLINGS:
You can't be serious.
They already have a verdict.
SHORE: What?
That means
they never got
to damages.
You lost, pilgrim.
Come on.
It's exciting.
GLEASON: All right.
Mr. Foreman,
the jury has reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
What say you?
FOREMAN: On question one,
"Was the defendant's termination
of the plaintiff wrongful?"
We find in the affirmative.
That means "Yes."
Oh.
FOREMAN: On question two,
concerning damages,
we order the defendant
to pay the plaintiff
compensatory damages
in the amount of $2.3 million.
(music playing)
BILLINGS: Congratulations.
Thank you.
Lost.
$2.3 million.
Two?
We've appealed.
Let's not--
HATCHER: Well,
does this affect payroll?
I mean, can we still
finance our cases?
Do you guys need me
to open up a separate account?
YOUNG: Look, I'll advise you
what to do, Lucy, okay?
Jimmy, Ellenor,
in the conference room, please.
(door closes)
I don't want the money.
If the judgment holds up,
we'll pay you the money.
I don't want it.
Well, you'll get it.
Do with it what you want,
but this firm always meets
its financial obligations.
Maybe we can donate it
to a cause
that we mutually--
legalization of prostitution,
something that--
whatever.
Why are you here?
(chuckles)
I'm here because...
I'm a sucker for closure,
I guess.
Not to be confused
with sentimentality, but...
I wanted you all
to know two things.
First,
I'm sorry
for any embarrassment that--
well, any embarrassment.
And second,
I really loved working here.
I know my coming back
isn't an option,
but...
people should know
where people stand.
I've always believed that.
And...
I loved working here.
I wanted you to know.
(door closes)
(music playing)
(music playing)
BOY: Score, score.
WOMAN: You stinker.
(music playing)
on The Practice.
FRUTT: Are you trying
to get disbarred?
As self-destructive as--
All right, all right,
on that note.
We've decided to let you go.
Go where?
YOUNG: Here's a check
representing two weeks'
severance pay.
I've generated fees
in excess of $6 million.
You've handed me a check
for $15,000.
YOUNG: Alan Shore seemed
to know this was coming.
Did you tell him?
Yes.
YOUNG: Your employment here
is terminated.
Wherever you take
your business,
I would urge you again
not to take it to Alan Shore.
It is our belief
that he is unstable.
FRUTT: I can't bear the idea
of going back to work
with you not being there.
SHORE: I need to be able
to bring Tara back.
My presence is so powerful,
I don't even have to talk.
Sometimes I'm better
when I don't talk.
This was my thinking.
I'm Denny Crane, damn it.
You hired him.
Why didn't you stop me?
You need to argue this motion.
GLEASON: I'm scheduling
an evidentiary hearing
for next week.
We'll take off our gloves
and have at it.
(clears throat)
What's up?
This is Noah Burke.
He'll be representing us
in our labor dispute.
FRUTT: Wow.
So, we are going outside.
Yes.
Just a thought, but shouldn't I
have been included
in that decision?
Well, that's the very issue
we need to talk about.
BURKE: Look, Ms. Frutt, I can
walk you through the legals,
but cutting to the chase,
this thing is close.
I mean, Mr. Shore's
estoppel claims are colorable.
I mean,
we have an associate here
whose financial contributions
grossly exceed
those of the partners.
He's hired an extremely deep
and talented firm.
I mean, we're in--we're in
for a fight here,
a difficult fight.
So, all this really
is to preface one question,
which is,
"Where do you stand?"
Can I get you a cup of coffee?
Okay, look
(clears throat)
the guts of our case
will be that Alan Shore
is a bad guy.
Now, you will need
to testify.
You will need to get
in the witness chair
and not only support the idea
that he's a bad guy
but actually sell it.
I mean, see,
this man has a personal
animosity towards Mr. Shore.
I mean, his bias
will be exposed and lanced
like a giant boil.
This man looks like
he hates everybody,
and his emotions will make him
anything but impartial.
The only objective
and fair-minded voice we have--
if we're to have one is you.
All right, once again,
it's you.
So as I told Mr. Young
and Mr. Berluti,
you will have to win
this case for us.
You will have to take
Alan Shore down.
So let me put to you
the great interrogatory
once posed
by the leader
of the free world--
are you with us,
or are you against us?
(music playing)
BILLINGS: Whether or not
we go forward all depends.
Of course
we're going forward.
Not so fast.
Then slow down.
I canceled your 10:00.
I had to tell the beast,
and she's in a mood, so...
Tell her
she looks beautiful
and the meeting
will be rescheduled.
Well, she won't believe
she's beautiful
unless you tell her.
Then tell her I said so.
Goodbye.
Who's the beast?
Sara Lipp,
wicked senior partner
of the east.
Denny Crane.
Yes, I know
you're Denny Crane.
Why do you always
tell me your name?
Is it so you won't forget?
Well, let me tell you
something, soldier.
I've learned from experience
that people can't believe
they're actually in the room
with Denny Crane.
They think
it can't be true,
so I let them know
it is true.
I look them in the eye--
"Denny Crane."
Gives them something
to tell their grandkids.
Denny Crane.
You know, I wanted him
because he knows the judge.
I'm having deep concerns now
that the judge knows him.
Okay, first of all,
he did win the motion last week.
Second, I'll first-chair.
He'll be second.
But he talks aloud.
I'll rein him in.
He's an asset.
We want him at our table.
Trust me.
Denny Crane.
STRINGER: Tara, hey.
What's new?
Don't even ask.
You doing okay?
Yeah.
FRUTT: Tara,
thanks for coming in.
Let's go in my office.
Listen,
Eugene, Jimmy, and I,
we realize
that we put you
in an impossible situation,
asking you to protect
a firm confidence
to the detriment
of a friend.
And we appreciate
that maybe,
we were unfair.
Anyway, we're offering you
your job back.
We consider you
an extremely valued member
of this practice,
and we hope
that you will consider
rejoining us.
You're offering me
my job back?
Yes.
And you're actually sorry
for putting me
in a difficult situation?
Yes.
Is Eugene sorry?
Yes.
Well, could Eugene
apologize in person?
That would help me decide.
He's obviously
under a lot of stress, Tara.
Let's not make--
WILSON: Ellenor,
I have a great respect for you.
And my hope is,
at the conclusion
of all this ugliness,
there will be no erosion
of that respect.
But this isn't about you
being sorry.
This isn't about you valuing me
as a member of your firm.
This is about you getting me
on your side,
securing my testimony
to favor you.
Look, Tara,
you know I care about him.
And, believe it or not,
I also care about you.
You are a young law student
with your entire future
ahead of you.
You need to consider carefully
which side you'd rather be
associated with here.
I have considered that
very carefully.
I'll be testifying
in support of Alan.
I can't underline
enough my reservations
about him being here.
And I can't underline enough
his presence has currency.
I don't like it
when people talk about me
like I'm not in the room.
Last time I checked,
I was in the room.
SHORE: You know, I'm having
a sudden burst of insecurity.
I could use some reassurance.
Could you just say
those two little words
I so long to hear?
Denny Crane.
Thank you.
BURKE: Sorry we're late.
Let's get started.
Um, I'd like to preface
my remarks by saying--
CRANE: Hold on.
Hold on just a minute.
You're not late.
You derive some sort of power
keeping everybody waiting.
We agreed to meet at 2:00.
No, you turn up at 10 past.
Our plan all along was to start
the meeting at a quarter past,
so we're just gonna stand around
for five minutes,
you little gerbil. Why don't you
gnaw on a stick of celery?
Denny Crane.
Look, we are here to take one
last stab at settling this.
We are not waiting
five minutes.
We are not waiting two.
Let's start over.
Please.
I think we can all assume,
should this go to trial,
you'll be vicious,
we'll be vicious,
it'll get publicly nasty,
and everybody will bleed.
The reason for this meeting
is to avoid all the bloodshed.
Obviously, we have a number.
You have a number, I suspect.
Should I give you ours?
Please.
$750,000.
And before you reject it,
that's three times the salary
of the next-ranking associate,
and it's probably $750,000
more than you'd get
if we proceed to court,
given Mr. Shore's conduct.
And what, if I were you,
I'd be most concerned with--
You're not me, Mr. Burke.
Let's not ever make
that mistake.
BURKE: If certain things
in this trial become public,
Mr. Shore may be unemployable
in perpetuity
and perhaps even disbarred.
Denny Crane.
Let me respond by just--
May I, Matthew?
Let's not compare my salary
with that of
the highest-ranking associate.
The whole point here
is I don't compare
with the rank associates
at Young, Frutt, and Berluti.
I, in fact,
out-earn and out-produce
the rank partners--
You're being contentious.
Denny Crane.
(chuckles) Okay,
uh, why don't you
just tell us your number?
$1.9 million.
What?
BILLINGS: Should Mr. Shore
be declared
a de facto partner,
his share this year alone
will be over a million.
And that doesn't even account
for the revenues
generated in the future
by clients he brought in.
Which he then stole.
Denny Crane.
BILLINGS: And what that really
doesn't account for--
you guys were close
to going under.
Not true.
You know what?
You can read the books
just like I can.
If the jury finds
that Alan saved this firm
and we have to allow
for the possibility
of that finding.
We could get five million,
maybe six.
Alan Shore was fired from
his last firm for embezzling.
We hired him out of charity
more than anything else.
SHORE: We seem to be
moving further apart now.
May I finish, please?
SHORE: You may,
but that last remark just pushed
our demand up to 2.5.
Alan--
You know what?
In the absence
of any contract,
I think the only fair thing
is to agree.
I have no right to work
at your firm.
I should walk away,
and I will.
I just want the money
I brought in, $9 million.
Take out overhead,
give me the rest.
$8.9 million,
we can all shake hands.
I think we're going to trial.
Let's be fair, Mr. Shore.
You were fired
from your previous firm
for embezzling.
And I deserved it.
I did not deserve to be fired
from this firm.
Because?
Because I saved them
from going bankrupt,
because I won my cases,
because I look good doing it.
BILLINGS: Did you
ever break any laws?
Break any laws?
Yes.
Did you extort lawyers?
Did you illegally
download records?
Were you privy to deals,
buying off witnesses?
Did you suborn perjury?
Ah, that.
Perhaps.
BILLINGS: Perhaps?
Look, they knew my character
when they hired me.
I never did anything--
hello, Judge.
I never did anything ever
that wasn't in my character.
BILLINGS: Well, Alan, come on.
You could have risked
disbarment with all this.
That would run to
the reputation of the firm.
I was called
before the bar already.
Eugene Young
stood up unsolicited,
called me a just
and honorable man.
But when it was time to split up
all the millions of dollars
I generated,
I was suddenly unworthy.
BILLINGS: Thank you, sir.
This feels dramatic.
You left out the part
where you impersonated
an airline official
from the opposing side
and then settled a case
under that false identity.
Using money
out of my own pocket
to spare the firm
a malpractice suit.
You left out the part
where you hired a lawyer
who believed
God talked to her.
It was never established
he didn't.
YOUNG: You left out the part
that you constantly defied
the partners.
Only when they were wrong,
which, granted,
was most of the time.
Is it just me,
or are all his questions
in statement form?
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you hid a murder weapon
from the police.
SHORE:
Oh, if I were to mention that,
the police would demand
to know where I hid it.
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you took a hooker
to a client's wedding.
The invitation said,
"Significant other."
I thought it would last.
YOUNG: You left out the part
where you secretly installed
video cameras
in a woman's hotel room
and taped her having sex.
SHORE:
For blackmail purposes only.
Okay, that was a lie.
I watch for my own pleasure.
This is all one big source
of amusement for you,
isn't it, Alan?
I'll tell you this, Eugene.
If you take life too seriously,
it ceases to be funny.
I tried to impart that
and other
little wisdoms to you,
which you never took,
but you always
took the money.
BILLINGS: Alan, I don't know
what you're doing.
You say you want to settle,
but I don't think
you know what you want.
Tara,
I plan to keep
your testimony very simple.
Basically,
I want you to establish
that he was open and notorious
with his antics
from the beginning.
Okay.
I will not put you
in the position
of attacking Eugene or Ellenor,
and I don't want you to.
Denny, this is Tara Wilson,
a law student I spoke of.
In need of employment?
Yes. She's extremely talented.
I can personally vouch
for her skills as a paralegal,
as well as--
Stand up, please.
Turn around, please.
Lips real?
Yes.
Yours?
CRANE: Let me tell you
something, Tara.
We hire only pretty people
in this firm.
Pretty people
get better results.
Pretty girls
keep me aroused.
I think more clearly
when I'm aroused.
Are you a pretty girl,
soldier?
I am, sir.
Good girl.
At ease.
I'm always at ease,
sir.
I like her.
The truth is
it's been a horrible year.
I haven't liked going to work
since he's been there.
My cases...
seems he's gotten
all the good ones.
How's your love life?
(scoffs)
Sounds like I hate my life,
doesn't it?
Very much so.
Why don't you change it?
How?
Well, what do you want to do?
Jimmy,
you mean you haven't even asked
yourself the question?
WILSON: Dishonorable?
No.
Ethically challenged?
(sighs) Perhaps.
BILLINGS: What's the difference?
WILSON: He was honest
with how he dealt
with his friends
and his fellow partners.
Where he was perhaps underhanded
was with opposing counsel.
Did the partners
at the firm
know about
his underhandedness?
(chuckles) Yes.
They would often protest
and threaten him,
but as Alan
correctly points out,
at the end of the day,
they would cash the checks.
BILLINGS: And Ms. Wilson,
you had the opportunity
to see the financial records
at Young, Frutt, and Berluti?
I did.
BILLINGS: And what kind
of impact did Alan Shore
have on their business?
WILSON: In dollars?
He more than tripled it.
BURKE: Obviously,
you're friends with Alan Shore.
I consider him a friend, yes.
Forgive my indiscretion,
and admittedly, I'm speculating,
but have you had sex with him?
No.
SHORE: Objection.
She answered the question.
That's what I'm objecting to.
I want to have sex with her.
She keeps saying no.
BURKE: I believe
you've witnessed Mr. Shore
committing acts
of sexual harassment
in the workplace,
have you not?
I have.
In fact, you once complained
to Eugene Young
that he repulsed you,
that you thought he was vulgar.
SHORE: I believe the witness
said she had vulgar thoughts
that involved me.
There's a difference there.
Please rephrase.
WILSON: As you can see,
his behavior is quite
incorrigible but I--
BURKE: Incorrigible?
He lies, he steals,
he conceals evidence,
he openly defies the partners,
and that's the word you use
"incorrigible"?
Well--
BURKE: I'm just curious.
Is Mr. Shore helping you
to find new employment?
Actually, he just helped me
find a new job, yes.
BURKE: Oh, well,
that's interesting.
So, I mean, might you say
you're in his debt a little?
I would.
Thank you very much,
Ms. Wilson.
Isn't it true you really
do want to sleep with...
Nothing further.
CRANE: I mean, Matthew,
the client confuses me.
Does he want to lose?
No, he, uh--he just--
he can't contain
himself sometimes.
He's a complicated guy.
This is not good behavior.
This is not consistent
with someone who wants to win.
I understand.
I'm concerned, Matthew.
The client confuses me.
He called me fat.
Mr. Shore did?
BERLUTI: Almost every day.
Usually in front
of other people,
to humiliate me.
It was some remark
about my body,
or he'd also call me stupid.
This is an associate
directing insults at partners,
and he's all shocked
that we didn't want him.
So that's why you voted
to discharge him,
because of all the insults?
No, that's not
the only reason.
He violated legal ethics.
He ignored privilege.
I voted to discharge him
because we're not just
a place of business.
We're not simply
a corporate entity
that exists
to generate profits.
We're a practice at law.
The people in our practice
have respect
for the profession,
respect for each other
as people.
He didn't.
I voted to discharge him
because it is not okay
to ignore the ethical rules
of the practice.
I voted to discharge him
because it is not okay
to be little people,
to treat them
with cruelty or ridicule.
If he wants to build a firm
where that kind
of behavior is okay,
let him build his own firm,
but he was an associate
at ours,
and he dishonored it,
and us, daily.
Thank you, sir.
You spoke with a great deal
of emotion, Jimmy.
You don't like me, do you?
No, I don't.
Is it possible for you
to completely separate
your personal dislike of me
from your objective
opinion of me
as an attorney,
honestly?
Probably not.
Thank you.
(music playing)
Are you testifying
against me, Ellenor?
Alan, what do you want?
The jury can't order us
to rehire you.
You claim
it's not about the money.
So...
what is it
that you want?
I don't know.
Maybe just to be--
well, let's leave it
at that.
Just to be.
Are you trying
to get the jury
to judge you negatively
to confirm
some twisted--
SHORE: Aw, I got
another psychoanalysis.
I don't have time, Ellenor.
I've got a long day
in court tomorrow.
Do you?
YOUNG:
He had no contract.
It was employee
at will,
and legally,
we're entitled
to terminate an associate
for personal reasons.
But it wasn't just
personal reasons.
We had to protect
the integrity
of our practice.
BURKE: But, Eugene,
as it's been said,
you did take the money.
Yes, he earned revenue
in his capacity
as an associate,
but that didn't give him tenure.
You heard all the things
he did against the law,
against the canons of law,
against us.
How do we employ a person
we can't even trust?
Fiduciary duty,
that has to mean something
in a partnership--
is an implied obligation
to deal fairly
with one another,
honestly.
That man never did.
As a result, he had to go.
He had to go.
BURKE: Thank you.
I want you to know I agree
with everything you said,
and if what you said
about my client is true,
I'd have fired
his ass, too.
Good work, soldier.
Nothing further.
Uh...
I imagine this, uh,
business about fiduciary duty--
obligation to deal fairly,
honestly--
goes both ways.
You would have a duty
to be fair
and aboveboard
with Alan Shore.
I would, and I did.
Good man.
Uh, you had a meeting
with, uh, Samuel Gould,
a client of Al Shore's,
last week, did you not?
I did.
CRANE: Longtime client
of Al Shore's, am I right?
Yes.
(over recorder)
That must strongly caution you
against going with Alan Shore.
GOULD (over recorder): Why?
YOUNG (over recorder):
It is our belief
that he is unstable,
that he has self-destructive
personality tendencies,
that he's also prone
to committing unethical,
sometimes even criminal acts.
Wherever you take
your business,
I would urge you again
not to take it to Alan Shore.
(click)
That was you
trying to steal
Al Shore's client.
Was that a fiduciary stab
in Al's back?
At the time
of that discussion,
Samuel Gould
was a client of the firm.
Your Honor, it's illegal
to secretly tape-record--
CRANE: There was nothing
secret about it.
Mr. Gould taped all
his meetings.
The firm knew it.
Did you forget?
(clicks)
YOUNG (over recorder):
He is unstable,
that he has self-destructive
personality tendencies.
(clicks)
That's slander, Mr. Young.
Truth is a complete defense
to slander.
I spoke the truth.
You know, son,
I'm a senior partner
in my firm the way
you are in yours.
And here's the thing
about good leadership--
and you tell me
if you disagree.
It's not enough
to insist on fidelity
or honesty or fair dealing.
A good leader
has to practice it.
Denny Crane.
SHORE: Was it my imagination,
or was he actually
quite effective?
I keep telling you,
once he's in a courtroom,
all the plaque on his brain
just dissolves.
I don't know
what the hell it is,
but I think
it was effective.
I don't like it
when people talk about me
like I'm not in the corridor.
Last time I checked,
I was in the corridor.
(music playing)
FRUTT: He said
that he had been fired
by his firm
and that he needed
a break.
Did he say
why he was fired?
He embezzled.
He said
it was a half-Robin Hood
kind of thing,
that he took from the rich
and kept it.
BURKE: And knowing this,
you hired Alan Shore?
Yes.
BURKE: Why?
He was a friend who--
well, like you said,
he needed a break.
And this testimony today...
this is difficult?
You have no idea.
BURKE: In fact,
despite all the infractions
he's committed
since joining your firm,
you've continued
to defend him.
Why, Ellenor?
I think Alan
is deeply troubled.
As talented as he is,
as terrific as he is,
I don't think
he likes himself.
And on some
psychological level--
BILLINGS: Objection--
foundation.
This will be a lay opinion
from a friend, Your Honor.
I'll allow it.
BURKE: Please continue.
I think to service
his own self-loathing,
he breeds contempt
from others.
BURKE: We heard
Eugene Young use the words
"self-destructive."
FRUTT: That would be fair.
I've said that to Alan
on more than one occasion.
I truly believe
he's trying
to destroy himself.
I don't think it was ever
his intent
to damage the firm,
but that's what
he started to do.
So, you agree, then,
with the decision
to discharge him?
I do.
BURKE: Thank you, Ellenor.
You really wanna do
this one?
Alan?
SHORE: Yeah.
You think it's best
that I leave.
Did you not say last week,
"Let's work this out"?
Did you not say
you couldn't bear the idea
of going to work
at a place without me?
I said that.
Did you mean it?
I meant it.
But, Alan,
I said that
un-objectively,
as your friend,
as a person who continues
to care deeply for you,
but...
(breathes)
I don't think
you're entirely well.
You are gonna
self-destruct one day,
and I can't prevent that.
But I can't let you
destroy my partners
in the process.
(sighs)
I'm sorry.
I see.
(music playing)
YOUNG: We live in a time
where breaking rules,
being a rebel,
flashing irreverence
for any kind
of convention is cool,
is hip.
Alan Shore is a hip,
cool guy.
He's entertaining, too.
It can be fun
watching him do his thing,
but when he's doing it to you
or people you love
or something you love--
you see
these people here?
We don't have
husbands and wives.
Ellenor has a child,
I have a son,
but no one can accuse us
of living rounded,
balanced lives.
Our lives are that law firm.
Our lives
are each other,
and working together
in a place--
together--
that's something.
I might even
call that "everything."
This man
couldn't get that.
He came in,
from the very first day,
and behaved in a way that said,
"People here
don't have to be moral.
People here don't have
to conduct themselves
with integrity,
that people here don't need
to be honest."
You heard the list,
blackmail, extortion,
breaking privilege,
impersonating
opposing parties,
concealing evidence,
It goes on and on.
He did this
acting as an agent
of the place we built.
Alan Shore thinks he got fired
because we were afraid
he'd bring the firm down.
What he can't seem to get
is that he's already
brought us down.
Like I said,
I know scandal
is hip these days.
For sure, it's profitable.
But at Young, Frutt,
and Berluti,
character still counts.
It must count.
Our dignity is not
a fungible thing,
not to Ellenor,
not to Jimmy,
not to Jamie,
not to me.
Alan Shore...
just can't get that.
(music playing)
When this firm hired me,
they knowingly
engaged the services
of an embezzler.
They let me go about my evil,
sinister business,
and make them rich,
and then they tossed me.
I had an uncle.
He'd bring
a delicious dessert
to every family
get-together,
and everyone would fawn
and gush, saying,
"You're so thoughtful, Charles.
You're so generous."
He admitted to me
he wasn't generous at all.
He was hungry.
And his logic was...
if he brought a pie,
he'd get a slice.
I brought the pie,
ladies and gentlemen.
They didn't give me my slice.
And as for all my despicable,
unethical, immoral,
treacherous, sleazy conduct,
they called me everything
but a terrorist, didn't they?
This business
is not an ethical arena.
Our legal system
is adversarial by nature,
where it is often
the very function
of a lawyer's job
to prevent the truth
from ever coming out.
We get paid to suppress
and squash
and conceal evidence.
Remember, this is the system
that freed O. J.
but also convicted
Rubin "Hurricane" Carter.
Every first-year
law student is taught,
"Don't ever,
ever equate legal ethics
with morality.
They're almost always
mutually exclusive."
It's an ugly world
where underhandedness
is often celebrated.
I didn't enter
Eugene Young's church.
It was a law firm.
A criminal law firm.
The dirtiest kind,
where lawyers get up in court,
as Mr. Young has many times,
and knowingly falsely
accuse innocent people
of murder.
Why?
For the noble cause
of getting
the real killer off.
Eugene Young
has put guilty people
back on the street
to kill again.
He's in the business
of freeing serial rapists.
But, hey,
I brought the firm down
by pretending to be
an airline executive.
I'm sorry.
I guess
I just don't get it.
He goes behind my back,
tells my client I'm unstable
for the purpose
of stealing that client.
This somehow falls
within the bounds
of integrity.
I guess
I just don't get it.
There's a couple of things
Eugene Young
just can't seem to get.
First, I'm just
an unscrupulous guy
trying to get by
in an unscrupulous profession.
And second,
I respect him profoundly.
There's perhaps nobody
I respect more.
In the eight or so months
I've known you,
I've found you to be
utterly beyond reproach,
which is why I'm so surprised
he would take all that money
I brought in,
fire me,
then go through all this
just to avoid
giving me my slice.
WILSON: Hey, how'd it go?
SHORE: They're deliberating.
Can we talk
about the outfit?
WILSON: (sighs)
All the assistants here
wear uniforms.
I like it.
Do you?
Well, as soon
as I pass the bar,
it's coming off.
I can't wait.
Let's go to the bar now.
We conduct
our sexual harassment
behind closed doors here,
sailor.
SHORE: I shudder
to think.
Excuse me.
Oh.
CRANE: That was a hell
of a closing.
I like what I see so far.
$9 million, portables,
a closing like that.
What do you say...
we take
our relationship
to the next level?
Are you a homosexual,
Denny?
I'm offering you
a job, sailor.
BILLINGS:
You can't be serious.
They already have a verdict.
SHORE: What?
That means
they never got
to damages.
You lost, pilgrim.
Come on.
It's exciting.
GLEASON: All right.
Mr. Foreman,
the jury has reached a verdict?
We have, Your Honor.
What say you?
FOREMAN: On question one,
"Was the defendant's termination
of the plaintiff wrongful?"
We find in the affirmative.
That means "Yes."
Oh.
FOREMAN: On question two,
concerning damages,
we order the defendant
to pay the plaintiff
compensatory damages
in the amount of $2.3 million.
(music playing)
BILLINGS: Congratulations.
Thank you.
Lost.
$2.3 million.
Two?
We've appealed.
Let's not--
HATCHER: Well,
does this affect payroll?
I mean, can we still
finance our cases?
Do you guys need me
to open up a separate account?
YOUNG: Look, I'll advise you
what to do, Lucy, okay?
Jimmy, Ellenor,
in the conference room, please.
(door closes)
I don't want the money.
If the judgment holds up,
we'll pay you the money.
I don't want it.
Well, you'll get it.
Do with it what you want,
but this firm always meets
its financial obligations.
Maybe we can donate it
to a cause
that we mutually--
legalization of prostitution,
something that--
whatever.
Why are you here?
(chuckles)
I'm here because...
I'm a sucker for closure,
I guess.
Not to be confused
with sentimentality, but...
I wanted you all
to know two things.
First,
I'm sorry
for any embarrassment that--
well, any embarrassment.
And second,
I really loved working here.
I know my coming back
isn't an option,
but...
people should know
where people stand.
I've always believed that.
And...
I loved working here.
I wanted you to know.
(door closes)
(music playing)
(music playing)
BOY: Score, score.
WOMAN: You stinker.
(music playing)