20 Best TV Lawyers of All Time | From TV Shows & Movies
Ever wonder why we’re obsessed with lawyers on screen? Maybe it’s the sharp suits and sharper comebacks. Or the way they always have the perfect objection at the perfect moment. Or maybe we just like watching someone else deal with impossible situations while we eat popcorn on the couch.
Truth is, TV and movie lawyers have been stealing scenes since before most of us were born. From slick Manhattan dealmakers to bumbling public defenders who somehow save the day, these characters stick with us. They’re quotable, memorable, and sometimes even the whole reason we watch.
Whether they’re fictional or real, we’ve grouped them into three buckets. TV show lawyers who rule primetime, movie lawyers who own the big screen, and actual lawyers who became household names.
Best Lawyers from TV Shows
Harvey Specter (Suits)
The guy who made everyone want to be a closer. Harvey doesn’t just practice law; he treats it like psychological warfare with better tailoring. His office has more baseball memorabilia than legal books, which tells you everything. Known for winning 97.8% of his cases, drinking single malt that costs more than your car payment, and somehow making “I don’t get lucky, I make my own luck” sound cool instead of insufferable.
Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill (Better Call Saul)
What started as comic relief in Breaking Bad became six seasons of his own show that might’ve been better than the original. Jimmy’s transformation from small-time hustler to Saul Goodman to Gene the Cinnabon manager is Shakespeare if Shakespeare had written about strip-mall law offices. The man turned billboard ads into an art form. “Better Call Saul” isn’t just a catchphrase; it’s burned into our collective brain.
Jackie Chiles (Seinfeld)
Kramer’s lawyer was a masterclass in alliteration and outrage—a larger-than-life character loosely based on Johnnie Cochran, yet somehow even more theatrical. Though he appeared in only six episodes, he became instantly iconic. His fiery declaration, “This is totally inappropriate. It’s lewd, lascivious, salacious, outrageous!” still echoes in pop culture. No one delivered legal indignation quite like Jackie Chiles, turning even the most trivial case—like a coffee spill—into the trial of the century.
Ben Matlock (Matlock)
The Southern lawyer who solved murders better than the police while charging exactly $100,000 per case (in 1980s money!). Always wore the same grey suit. Ate hot dogs for lunch. Pretended to be a simple country lawyer, then destroyed you on cross-examination. Andy Griffith made Matlock so lovable that elderly viewers scheduled their entire week around watching him expose the real killer in the last five minutes.
Philip Banks (Fresh Prince of Bel-Air)
Uncle Phil wasn’t just a lawyer; he was a judge who went from civil rights activist to Beverly Hills conservative. The man threw Jazz out of the house at least once per episode, but gave Carlton and Will the lectures that made us all cry. When he told off Will’s deadbeat dad? Television history. James Avery made Uncle Phil the TV dad everyone wished they had, gavel and all.
Jessica Pearson (Suits, Pearson)
Before there was Harvey, there was Jessica. She was the managing partner who played chess while everyone else played checkers. She even got her own spinoff show in Chicago because one city couldn’t contain her. She’d fire you on Christmas Eve if it protected the firm. Gina Torres made power suits and devastating one-liners look effortless. The only person Harvey Specter actually feared.
Abigail “Abby” Bianchi (Family Law)
A brilliant but troubled lawyer is forced to work at her father’s family law firm as part of her probation. Premiering in 2021 and still going strong, this Canadian legal drama proves that not every TV lawyer needs a Manhattan office—sometimes, all they need is a complicated family, a few custody battles, and a breathalyzer ignition lock. Messy, sharp, and full of heart, it’s a refreshingly imperfect take on life and law.
Annalise Keating (How to Get Away with Murder)
A law professor who made criminal defense feel like a blood sport. Viola Davis won an Emmy for transforming Annalise Keating into one of TV’s most complex lawyers: brilliant, broken, often drunk, yet somehow always winning cases that seemed unwinnable. Her students kept committing murder—a fact that, surprisingly, didn’t seem to impact her teaching evaluations. Chaos, genius, and grit collide in every episode.
Lionel Hutz (The Simpsons)
Springfield’s worst lawyer who somehow stayed in business. Business card claimed “Works on contingency? No, money down!” Kept his law degree in his car. Voiced by Phil Hartman until 1998, making even terrible legal advice hilarious. “Can you imagine a world without lawyers?” followed by happy dancing was peak Lionel Hutz.
Lawyers from Movies
Elle Woods (Legally Blonde)
Harvard Law’s most unlikely success story who proved you can know fashion and torts. The bend and snap might be her signature move, but cross-examining Chutney about hair care won the case. Reese Witherspoon made pink the new power color. Elle showed that being underestimated is sometimes your biggest advantage. Plus, she was nice to everyone, which apparently nobody expected from lawyers.
Vinny Gambini (My Cousin Vinny)
Took six tries to pass the bar, then delivered the greatest cross-examination about tire tracks in cinema history. Joe Pesci in a leather jacket explaining positraction to a Southern jury shouldn’t work, but it absolutely did. His fiancée knew more about cars than the FBI expert. “Two yutes” became the most quoted mispronunciation ever. Not technically a practicing lawyer when he took the case, but who’s counting?
Erin Brockovich (Erin Brockovich)
Not a lawyer—technically a paralegal—but she built the case that brought down PG&E. Julia Roberts in push-up bras and mini skirts doing legal research sounds like a different kind of movie, but this one won Oscars. Based on a real person who’s still fighting corporate polluters. Proved you don’t need a law degree to practice justice, just a phone book and pure determination.
Willie E. Gary (The Burial, 2023)
Jamie Foxx brought this real-life personal injury lawyer to the screen in The Burial. Flamboyant doesn’t even cover it. Private jet, gospel-singing openings, turning a handshake deal into a $100 million verdict against a funeral corporation. The movie showed America a larger-than-life lawyer most had never heard of. Gary’s the guy who makes other lawyers look boring. Based on true events from 1995, but felt completely fresh in 2023.
Faith Killebrew (Juror #2, 2024)
Toni Collette as a Georgia prosecutor running for DA in Clint Eastwood’s latest (maybe last?) film. She’s trying to convict someone for murder while campaigning, then realizes something’s seriously wrong with one juror. Ambitious, sharp, and willing to dig when everyone else wants the easy conviction. Released in late 2024, Collette made Faith the kind of prosecutor who actually cares if she’s sending the right person to prison.
Barney Greenwald (The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial, 2023)
Jason Clarke took on this classic military lawyer role in William Friedkin’s final film. Navy lawyer reluctantly defending sailors accused of mutiny, then systematically destroying a captain’s credibility. The 2023 version kept the 1950s story but made it feel immediate. Greenwald’s drunk victory speech about who the real villains are? Still hits like a punch to the gut 70 years later.
Lawyers on Network News & Pop Culture
Mark Geragos
Mark Geragos is a prominent criminal defense attorney with a career spanning high-profile cases, representing clients such as Michael Jackson and Colin Kaepernick. A frequent legal analyst on CNN, he provides insight into complex legal matters and celebrity-related cases. While his practice has faced challenges—including the widely publicized Scott Peterson trial—his reputation for skillful advocacy remains strong. As an Armenian-American lawyer with a distinguished career in both high-stakes litigation and media commentary, Geragos has become a trusted advisor to clients in the public eye.
Shannon Bream (Fox News Sunday)
Shannon Bream, anchor of Fox News Sunday since 2022, is a former attorney and Liberty University Law School graduate who brings real-world legal experience to her reporting. She explains Supreme Court decisions and complex legal issues to a broad audience with clarity and authority, making constitutional law accessible to viewers who may not have engaged with it since high school. A former Miss Virginia (1990), Bream combines poise, insight, and firsthand legal expertise as a chief legal correspondent who has actually practiced law, setting her apart from many television analysts.
Harvey Levin (TMZ)
A University of Chicago Law School graduate, he practiced law for two decades before co-founding TMZ. He began his media career as a legal analyst for KCBS-TV and went on to build one of the most influential celebrity news platforms in the United States. Known for breaking major stories—from Michael Jackson’s death to Mel Gibson’s DUI incident—he transformed court documents and paparazzi photos into a media empire. He continues to host TMZ Live, offering insight into celebrity legal matters and the high-profile cases that capture public attention.
Jerry Springer
Jerry Springer, a Northwestern Law School graduate, briefly practiced law before serving as mayor of Cincinnati and later becoming the host of one of television’s most infamous talk shows. Yes, the Jerry Springer who presided over headline-grabbing disputes in the studio actually argued cases in court. He passed away in 2023, but the influence of his show continues to be felt across reality television. Springer’s career is a reminder that a law degree can lead to unexpected and sometimes unconventional paths.
Alan Dershowitz
A Harvard Law School professor emeritus, he has built a career defending clients across a wide spectrum of high-profile cases, including serving as O.J. Simpson’s appellate adviser, representing former President Trump during his impeachment, and acting as counsel for Jeffrey Epstein. At 87, he continues to appear on major news networks, sharing his legal expertise. The author of dozens of books and mentor to thousands of students, he has earned both admiration and criticism across the political spectrum. To some, he is a principled defender of civil liberties; to others, a provocative contrarian.
Chris Cuomo
A Yale Law School graduate who opted for a career in television rather than the courtroom, he worked at CNN until 2021 and now anchors on NewsNation. His brother served as governor for a time, and he has interviewed a wide range of high-profile figures while navigating politically charged stories. While his law degree informs his commentary, it often serves more to sharpen his on-air debates than to practice law. His career demonstrates that a J.D. can open doors well beyond the courtroom.
Judge Judy
Judith Sheindlin transformed a small claims court into a $500 million television empire. A retired family court judge, she presided over Judge Judy for 25 seasons, earning a reputation for her sharp wit, no-nonsense demeanor, and signature one-liners—most notably, “Don’t pee on my leg and tell me it’s raining.” Her influence on how the public views the legal system rivals that of many real-world judges. Now leading Judy Justice on Amazon, Sheindlin proves that retirement is optional when you’ve built a courtroom brand recognized around the world.
Michael Cohen
Michael Cohen, once known as Donald Trump’s personal attorney and fixer, has undergone one of the most public transformations in modern legal history. Disbarred in 2019 after pleading guilty to campaign finance violations and tax evasion, he served a three-year federal sentence before reinventing himself as an author, commentator, and podcast host. Now a frequent critic of his former client, Cohen’s story illustrates the complex boundaries of loyalty, ethics, and attorney–client privilege in high-stakes legal practice.
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