'The Good Wife': Good Law? - Season 6, Episode 4
"The Good Wife" is now in its sixth season, so it wouldn't have been surprising if it had taken its latest episode "Oppo Research" as a chance for a clip show.
But not so. Instead we are treated to a slightly new way to retread old paths, old characters, and old relationships. Too bad the law had very little to do with it.
Episode Recap (Spoiler Alert!):
Alicia is still thinking about running for state's attorney, and Eli and her new campaign manager start the episode by hitting her with the "oppo research" -- basically all the dirt on Alicia, her family, her clients, and Peter. Move over Zach's pot problem, make room for Zach's abortion secret.
 | |
|
With an offhand reference to Sweeney (who's probably murdered at least one person under Alicia's watch), the biggest problem with her clients is Bishop. Alicia tries to drop him as a client, and she eventually succeeds, but not before learning that he's secretly funding her campaign.
Legal Roots:
Nothing too unique about "Oppo Research," which draws heavily from all political dramas. Kinda like "Scandal" if it had been airlifted out of Shondaland.
Legal Fiction:
It's a major conflict of interest that Florrick/Agos/Lockhart is representing Cary at the same time it's representing Bishop. The legal fiction is that Alicia would wait until she was running for state's attorney to make the decision to drop one or both of them as clients, but we suppose this way was more dramatic.
Legal Fact:
Even while Alicia is still considering running, she gets caught in what seems like a DUI setup. These sorts of situations aren't Hollywood fiction -- "dirty DUIs" like the one Alicia was subject to are fact. While Alicia was within the legal limit and nothing illegal happened during her field sobriety test, it was the DUI photo that was the real goal.
Legal Babble:
Subpoena: The prosecution is subpoenaing Bishop's real estate records as part of a long-game strategy to put the squeeze on Cary in criminal court. A subpoena is simply a request for a person or documents to appear in court.
The Verdict:
"Oppo Research" was a great taste for what's to come in Alicia's campaign, but as we spent so much time out of the courtroom, it was pretty light in legal calories.
What did you think of this week's episode of "The Good Wife"? Is the show guilty of making any legal mistakes? Check back here for more legal recaps of "The Good Wife," and send us a tweet at @FindLawConsumer with the hashtag #TheGoodWife.
Related Resources:
- 'The Good Wife': Good Law? Top 10 Legal Lessons From Season 5 (FindLaw's Insider)
- 'The Good Wife': Good Law? - Season 5, Episode 10 (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
- 'The Good Wife': Good Law? - Season 5, Episode 21 (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
- 'Good Wife,' Good Law: Voter Fraud in a Box (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
