- You were the travel agent who booked Mr. And Mrs. Moffit
on their trip, is that right?
- Right.
- Were you involved in the planning of the trip?
- I was there to assist the folks.
I was not per se planning the trip.
- You did not plan the trip?
- I did not.
- Sure, it was my idea to go to Sarajevo.
- Excuse me.
Who responded enthusiastically when we talked about seeing
former sites of the Olympics?
- Did you advise them as to the political climate?
- Not a word.
- This is something I need to tell you,
that there are problems over there?
Besides, you weren't staying in Sarajevo.
You were staying in Split.
I got them a villa on the Adriatic for the price
of a Motel , and they sue me.
- Can we continue with the deposition?
- What was the thinking behind Azerbaijan?
- Well, they wanted to go to Astrakhan for the carpets,
and then they wanted to come down the Caspian coast.
Well, that takes you through Azerbaijan.
There is no way to avoid it.
- Did you advise these people as to the incidence
of tropical diseases in the regions they were traveling to?
- You know what is indisputable in all this is that you
have seen places that very few people in the world
ever get to see.
Whether it's East Timor or the Orinoco Basin,
you came to me looking for something out of the ordinary.
Well, I gave you something out of the ordinary.
- You know what?
I don't care how long it takes.
I don't care if I have to go to trial,
if I have to pay for appeals.
Whatever I've got to do, I'm gonna do.
Because in addition to the fact that you're
a despicable human being, you're the worst travel
agent on the face of the Earth.
- A year from now, you'll only remember the good things.
[theme music]
[upbeat music]
- Moffit versus Schiff is mine.
Mr. and Mrs. Moffit went on a world
tour booked by Mr. Schiff.
It turned out to be a nightmare.
They're suing for damages.
We're in depositions.
Settlement appears unlikely.
- What happens if it goes to trial?
- If it goes to trial, I'll engage one of our cr*ck
litigators to try it.
- I've got back-to-back trials through the end of the month.
- I am booked for at least that long.
- Same here.
- I'll handle it if you want me to.
- But don't forget that you're going
to be somewhat tied up by me.
- How so?
- I've got her working on the Irizarry divorce.
- Should the need arise, I can make myself available.
- Thank you, Jane. I appreciate that.
- I would like to turn our attention
to the issue of Eli Levinson.
- Am I an issue?
- You are, now that your trial is over.
- I told Leland you might be open to the possibility
of extending your stay.
- I love it out here.
I just don't know how realistic it is
for me to think about staying.
- Well, let me speak to that question.
After a very brief deliberation, the partners here
would like to express unanimously their feeling
that you would represent a significant asset to this firm.
We would like to extend to you an invitation to join our firm.
- My god, I don't know what to say.
- Don't say anything.
Nobody expects you to answer on the spot.
- Think about it, though.
- I will think about it.
- It's a good life.
- It appears that it is.
- Should there be any doubt, the offer
is an offer of partnership.
- And with that, we're adjourned.
- It will be bitching.
- Have lunch with me today at my club.
- Are you gonna use the occasion to twist my arm?
- Absolutely.
- Good, we're on.
- Well, this is going to slow things up.
- Well, the paint specs have been in the drawing
since day one.
If correcting the finish is gonna slow us up,
that's unfortunate.
However, given that you lose money for every day you're
over schedule, I think you'll find a way to do it right
and to do it on time.
- OK.
- Hi.
- Hi.
- I finally figured out a way to do the threshold detail
that will work with the slate.
- Great.
- Yeah, I was up all night working at it.
I couldn't get it.
I couldn't get it.
I finally fall asleep.
I opened my eyes at : this morning, and I've got it.
Now I need for you to see a rug.
- You found one you like.
- I found one I love.
- Great.
- When are you free?
- Wednesday afternoon.
- Fine.
- I really love what you're doing here.
- Thanks.
I'm pretty pleased myself.
- Before we go see the rug on Wednesday,
could we have lunch together?
- Sure.
- Good.
- Thanks to your obsession with detail,
it appears as though I won't be going skiing this weekend.
- See, many of the new associates coming in
have no sense of what it means to be
a lawyer beyond scrambling up some imaginary career ladder.
- I guess it's tough sometimes not to think about that.
- Well, I don't believe that you think about it.
The way you handled the Morrison case showed me that you
think about your client.
I was very impressed with your commitment.
- Thank you.
- I don't want to pressure you, Eli,
but if it's at all conceivable that you're ready for a change,
I hope you'll give our offer serious consideration.
- Thank you.
- You're welcome.
- Well, this is some place.
- Oh, this is the oldest men's club in Los Angeles.
- Really? - Mm-hmm.
- I've never been inside a men's club before.
- Maybe you'd like to become a member.
- I hate to tell you this, Leland,
but I don't think they'd be all that welcoming
to someone such as me.
- Why wouldn't they be?
- I'm Jewish.
- So what?
- I don't see too many Jewish faces here.
- I'm sure we have members who are Jewish, Eli.
Why, there's, uh, Martin Weiss.
- Weiss isn't necessarily a Jewish name.
- Oh, well, Henry Schiller, Tom Morgenthau.
- Those may not be Jewish names, Leland.
- Well, I'd like to nominate you for membership, unless you
have some objection to that.
- I guess I don't have any objection to it.
- Good.
- I'll speak to the board, set up an interview.
[upbeat music]
- Can you tell us the events that
took place on October , ?
- The Coast Guard was notified by INS officials
that a freighter carrying illegal Chinese immigrants
was on its way to Los Angeles.
We intercepted the vessel about three miles
off the coast of Long Beach.
- And what did you find when you boarded the ship?
- immigrants crammed into the cargo hold.
- Dr. Coburn, can you describe for the court
the conditions in that cargo hold?
- There was one makeshift toilet overflowing with human waste.
The floors and walls were damp.
They reeked of perspiration and urine.
- Can you describe the medical condition of a passenger
by the name of Lin Chen-Zhou?
- Lin Chen-Zhou exhibited symptoms of an advanced
progression of hepatitis B. We transported him
immediately to San Pedro Hospital,
but he went into renal failure.
He d*ed hours later.
- What, in your opinion, led to the death of Lin Chen-Zhou?
- The lack of nutrition, ventilation, and sleep
had so compromised his immune system,
he couldn't fight off the hepatic infection.
In my opinion, the hepatitis itself in all likelihood
was caused by the conditions on that ship.
- What, if any, documents were found on the boat, Doctor?
- We seized receipts for fuel, insurance documents,
and the title of the ship.
- Who was listed as the title holder?
- Objection. Hearsay.
- They've authenticated business records, Your Honor.
- Irrelevant, Your Honor.
- They established knowledge on the defendant's
part of conditions on the boat.
Said knowledge is a critical element
of prosecuting him for m*rder.
- The objection is overruled.
Proceed.
- Once again, Doctor, who was listed
as the owner of the vessel?
- Ronald Chow.
- Did you find any other documents?
- There was a log of high seas phone calls indicating
Ronald Chow had contacted the vessel
times during the course of the voyage.
- I have nothing further.
- Do you have any evidence that Ronald
Chow knew about the conditions in the cargo hold?
- He owned the ship.
He financed the voyage.
He was in telephonic communication with the captain.
- Do you have any evidence that Ronald
Chow knew about the conditions in the hold?
- No, I do not.
- I have no further questions.
- The people call Lu Yu-Shen to the stand.
Until the time of your arrest, what was your occupation?
- [speaking chinese]
- I was captain of the Jade Moon.
- And during the course of your last voyage,
were you in communication with the defendant by telephone?
- [speaking chinese]
- No.
- Mr. Lu, are you telling us you had no contact with Mr. Chow?
- [speaking chinese]
- After we left the dock, I had no contact with him.
Ronald Chow knew nothing about the condition of the boat.
- Has Ronald Chow pressured you to change
your testimony, Mr. Lu?
- [speaking chinese]
- No.
- Is the witness aware that lying under oath
constitutes a serious crime?
- [speaking chinese]
- Yes.
- I have nothing further for this witness.
- No questions, Your Honor.
- The witness is dismissed.
- [speaking chinese]
- Would you tell us what was said
on the occasion when you and your wife
first engaged Mr. Schiff's services?
- We told him we were interested in going around the world.
- Who decided what route you would take, Mr. Moffit?
- Let me put it this way.
He led, we followed.
- Isn't it the case, sir, that your wife indicated a desire
to see places that were, and I believe I'm quoting
now, "off the beaten track"?
- Assume that she did.
We were depending on him to guide us.
- Well, if you had said you wanted
Orlando, Florida, do you think I would
have sent you to Azerbaijan?
- Prior to this trip, Mr. Moffit,
when was the last vacation you had taken?
- What's the relevance of that?
- The relevance is that Herb here hadn't
taken a vacation in years.
He hated vacations.
And he made up his mind before he ever left that he wasn't
going to have a good time.
- And amazingly enough, getting kidnapped
by Armenian separatists did nothing
to improve my disposition.
- Let's talk about that for a minute.
Why don't you describe the events
that took place in Baku for which you now
hold Mr. Schiff responsible?
- I had gone to a drugstore, looking
for something to relieve my by now constant
gastrointestinal distress.
While on the street, I was forced into a car at gunpoint.
They said I was an agent for the Azerbaijanis.
I told them I had a store in Woodland Hills.
They asked me what my mission was.
I told them it was to purchase Kaopectate.
- Is it possible that you were kidnapped
because you were seen videotaping
a political demonstration?
- We didn't know it was a political demonstration.
We thought it was a parade.
- Didn't the tanks on the sidewalk indicate to you
that it might have been something other
than a purely festive event?
- Excuse us, we were looking to bring back something
other than shrapnel wounds.
- You know, your wife has a spirit of adventure
that you are sorely lacking.
- I don't pretend to be Vasco da Gama, my friend.
And as far as I'm concerned, if I'm gonna go someplace,
at least let it have a little entertainment.
- Herb, let's not start talking about Las Vegas.
- What's wrong with Las Vegas?
You've seen everything there is to see there?
- Herb, there's a whole, big, beautiful world out there.
- Yeah?
Well, let me tell you something.
That whole, big, beautiful world is about to find out just
what kind of operation you run.
I think this is a human interest story.
What do you know about that?
I think when the newspapers pick this up,
your business is gonna drop like a rock.
Go ahead ask me another question.
- So copies of these and this one.
Thanks.
- Ann?
[knocks]
- Hi, Eli. - Hi.
Do you have a minute?
- Yeah, sure.
- I've got a little bit of a dilemma on my hands.
- What is it?
- Leland's put me up for membership in his club.
- His men's club?
- Yeah.
He says that whether I decide to join the firm or not,
he'd like me to be able to use the facilities.
They've also got a reciprocal arrangement
with some club in New York.
There's an interview with two of the directors tomorrow.
- So what's the dilemma?
- I don't know that they let Jews into this club.
By the look of it, I'd say it was all WASP.
- What does Leland say?
- He says it won't be a problem.
- Do you actually want to be a member of this club?
- Not particularly.
I knew he wanted me to be impressed by it,
so I behaved as though I was.
It is a pretty nice place.
The problem is, if they reject me,
Leland's gonna feel compelled to make a big stink about it.
- What's wrong with that?
If they have a restrictive policy,
maybe he should make a big stink about it.
- I'd rather that didn't happen.
He obviously enjoys belonging there.
I don't want to disrupt that.
- Just tell him you're not interested.
- I just get the feeling that he doesn't have a lot of friends.
- He knows a lot of people.
I'm not sure how many qualify as friends.
- I think he'd like it if I joined his club.
- So what are you gonna do, try to pass?
- No, I'm just gonna go in there and meet with them,
and whatever happens happens.
- Good luck, I guess.
- You think I couldn't pass?
- As a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant?
- Eli's not necessarily a Jewish name.
Look at Eli Whitney, Eli Yale.
- Levinson.
- It could be German.
- I don't think you're gonna fool 'em, Eli.
- We're hemorrhaging, Daniel.
- What do you mean we're hemorrhaging?
- It means the cost of this renovation
is getting a little out of hand.
- I mean, that we're hemorrhaging.
And that means that the tourniquet is going on.
- At certain stages of the job, it always feels like there's
a lot of money going out.
- This isn't a perceptual problem.
It doesn't feel like there's a lot of money going out.
I'm staring at invoices.
- What in there seems like it's out of hand?
- How about $, for a slate floor?
- Yeah, that is a little high, Daniel.
- It's for the reception area, Leland.
It's the first thing people see when they come here.
- For $,?
Let them see linoleum.
- What else?
- $, for a rug.
- That rug is an Eileen Gray.
- What's Eileen Gray?
- She was an architect and a very important designer.
- Really?
Well, I'm not spending $, to walk on one of her designs.
- As much as we want the offices to look good,
we do have to exercise a little restraint.
- Believe it or not, I have been exercising restraint.
- Really?
Well, between the Sikh contractor and this architect,
we're getting k*lled.
- Hiring this architect was about the only right thing
you guys did on this job.
She's talented.
She takes chances.
She's tough.
I've seen her deal with the contractor.
I've seen her deal with the subs.
Believe me, she's looking out for our interests.
- You should remind her that our interests are best
served by avoiding bankruptcy.
- All right, what are you telling me?
- The rug is out.
We need to know about any other purchases before they're made,
and we need to put a cap on this thing.
- Can you please state your name for the record?
- [speaking chinese]
- Lin Mei.
- Mei Lin.
- How will you relate it to the man who d*ed?
- [speaking chinese]
- He was my husband.
- And could you tell us please how you and your husband
came to leave China?
- [speaking chinese]
- We approached the snakehead, a smuggler, in Fuzhou.
- Can you describe for the court what happened on the journey?
- [speaking chinese]
- We had to stay in a hole during the day.
At night, only a few could sleep at a time.
There was no room to lie down.
- Did the smugglers provide food?
- [speaking chinese]
- Some days, there was rice.
Some days, there was nothing.
- Did they provide water?
- [speaking chinese]
- If you had money, you could buy a bottle of water.
If not, you get a mouthful a day.
- Would you describe what happened
to your husband, ma'am?
- [speaking chinese]
- I gave him my rice.
The others gave him their rice.
By the end, he was too weak to hold up his head to eat.
- Mrs. Lin, is there anyone present
in this courtroom who was also present when you
boarded the boat in Hong Kong?
- [speaking chinese]
- Him, the man they call the Big Boss.
He was there.
- Let the record show the witness has identified
the defendant, Ronald Chow.
I have nothing further.
- Mrs. Lin, had you ever seen Ronald Chow
before the day you boarded the freighter?
- [speaking chinese]
- I knew who he was.
Everyone knew.
- And did you hear Mr. Chow give any orders
pertaining to the accommodations on the journey?
- [speaking chinese]
- No.
- And isn't it true that you have no knowledge of what
Mr. Chow did or did not know about the accommodations
for the journey?
- [speaking chinese]
- I know he is a m*rder*r.
- Move to strike, Your Honor.
- [speaking chinese]
- Mr. Chow, you are not to address the witness.
- [speaking chinese] - Mr. Chow.
- [speaking chinese]
- Mrs. Lin, that's enough.
I said that's enough!
- [speaking chinese]
- Enough!
[crying]
- [speaking chinese]
[upbeat music]
- Mr. Levinson, Avery Phipps.
- Langston Albright.
- How do you do?
- [laughs]
- So, Mr. Levinson.
- Please call me Eli.
Actually, most people call me by my nickname.
- And that would be?
- Topper.
- Topper.
- Right.
- So, Topper, Leland tells us you're from New York.
- That's where I currently live, yes.
- Is that where you're from originally?
- Actually, I'm from Connecticut.
- Whereabouts?
- Darien.
- Really.
- Great sailing there, great sailing.
- You like to sail?
- Love it.
If I'm not at work or I'm not on the squash court,
chances are I'm on the boat.
- Where do you generally sail?
- All over, Long Island, Block Island,
Rhode Island, all the islands.
- You've probably been up to Newport then?
- I make it a point to get up to Newport.
In fact, come August, you'll generally
find me, gin and tonic in hand, just sailing
around the harbor there.
- Tell me, what do you sail?
- You mean, what kind of sail?
- I mean, what kind of boat?
- Oh.
It's wood.
The sail is canvas, white canvas,
triangular white canvas.
- Ready?
- Yeah.
- I found a color slate you're gonna love.
- We have to hold off on the slate.
- Why?
- The senior partners have informed me that we
can't spend that kind of money.
- I thought you were given authority
to make those decisions.
- I thought I was too.
I may have overplayed my hand.
- With whom?
- With everybody, I guess.
- So no slate?
OK.
What else aren't we getting?
- The rug.
- No rug?
- No rug.
- OK, what else?
- They put an absolute cap on the budget.
We have to go through it and figure
out what we can and can't do.
- Then I guess there's not much point in us
going out this afternoon and seeing things.
- I'm answerable to people, all right?
Nobody gave me a blank check.
- It would have been good to have known that.
- This can't be the first time that a client has changed
their mind about something. - You're right.
It's not the first time.
- Then why are you so upset?
- Because I got excited.
For a few minutes there, I felt appreciated,
stimulated, supported.
And that doesn't happen very often.
It felt great.
- Look--
- What it feels like now is a job.
- Can we talk about this over lunch?
- There's nothing to talk about.
- Mr. Chow, would you tell the court
why you bring Chinese immigrants into the United States?
- Many people in my homeland are being persecuted,
pregnant women stopped at checkpoints
and forced to have unwanted abortions.
And I know what it's like to want to escape oppression.
years ago, I fled China myself.
- Mr. Chow, how involved were you
in arranging the passage of the immigrants
aboard the Jade Moon?
- I played the role of banker, but I entrusted the details
to the ship's captain, Mr. Lu.
- And what instructions did you give Mr.
Lu regarding the passengers?
- I told him to make their journey as safe and comfortable
as possible.
I had no idea he would betray them
and me by putting into his own pocket funds meant
for food and medical supplies.
- Do you feel in any way responsible for the death
of Mrs. Lin's husband?
- I had no knowledge of the inhumane conditions suffered
by the passengers, but I hired the man
who committed these atrocities.
I feel guilt about that.
And I've tried many times to contact
Mrs. Lin to offer condolence and compensation without success.
- No further questions, Your Honor.
- You claim that you arrange these trips out of compassion
for your countrymen.
Tell us, if that's the case, why do
you charge them $, a head?
- This sort of operation is quite expensive.
- , times passengers comes out to over $ million.
Are you telling us you didn't make a profit?
- Any profits are channeled right back
into the next journey.
- Isn't it a fact that most of the illegals you bring over
are put to work in restaurants you
own to pay off their passage?
- I employ many of them, yes.
- How much do you pay them, Mr. Chow?
- I pay them a great deal more than they
would ever receive in China.
- You pay them $. an hour, don't you?
- Mr. Mullaney, these are peasants.
$. an hour is a good wage for them.
- Isn't it a fact that you don't care
about the welfare of these people?s
What you care about is money. - Objection.
- What you care about is a steady flow of cheap labor.
- Mr. Mullaney, that's quite enough.
- I care about my people.
I told Mr. Lu to give Lin Chen-Zhou fluid and food
and to have medication on board.
It isn't my fault that he ignored my instructions.
- I thought you didn't know Lin Chen-Zhou was sick?
- What I mean to say is, at the start of the voyage,
I told the captain to provide medicine
for all who became ill.
- Do you have any written proof in the form of receipts
or cancelled checks to prove you provided adequate
food and medical supplies?
- All transactions were done in cash.
- So the answer is no?
- Correct.
- I have nothing further for Mr. Chow.
- What exactly is the purpose of this meeting, Mr. Schiff?
- Conflict resolution.
- Where's your attorney?
- She's not here.
- Why didn't you want my husband here?
- Ah, for reasons that will become readily apparent.
- What is this?
- Gaidar.
- I told you it was my dream to come to America.
Here I am.
I am to be an American taxicab driver.
Who is this?
- This is Gaidar.
- Why is he here?
- He is here to supply us with some details of your trip
that were left out until now.
- Oh, god.
- You have nothing to be ashamed of, nothing.
- Will someone tell me what is going on?
- Well, Edie and Gaidar had something of an
adventure together.
- I had never done anything like that before.
- Blame it on those torrid Levantine nights, huh?
- There was a full moon, and I wanted
to take a walk along the shore of the Caspian Sea.
Herb wouldn't go with me.
All he wanted to do was sit in the room and watch CNN.
I decided to go by myself.
Gaidar worked at the hotel.
He offered to accompany me.
- It was one of the most beautiful
experiences of my life.
- We went for a boat ride and had a very brief
and very passionate affair.
- And now you're gonna blackmail her?
- Moi?
- I don't know what means blackmail.
He sent me the ticket to come, and I came.
- Gaidar what happened between us must never happen again.
I love my husband, and I want to stay married to him.
- I understand.
- Well, I know I'll never tell, assuming, of course,
that we're able to reach an agreement.
If we're unable to, I will have to defend myself in court.
I will have to demonstrate that there were a few bright spots
on your trip around the world.
- You are a despicable human being.
- Come, Gaidar.
It's turning ugly.
- Remember, Edie, we'll always have Azerbaijan.
[romantic music]
- Excuse me.
[speaking quietly]
- Tommy, you talking to yourself now?
- Hey, man.
What are you doing here?
- Trying to pry a continuance out of Judge Sawburn.
I didn't mean to interrupt you.
- No, I got to take off.
I'm just practicing my closing.
- This is the Ronald Chow case, huh?
- Yep.
- How's that going?
- Chow scared off my key witness.
It's not going too good.
- From what I read in the papers, he's a slippery guy.
- Oh, he is slippery.
- Is he gonna walk?
- I don't know.
I mean, I could fan the flames against
the encroaching yellow hordes.
- That doesn't exactly go to the issue of guilt, does it?
- No, it does not.
- On the other hand, a little demagoguery can work wonders.
I've used it myself.
- Did you win?
- As a matter of fact, I did.
[whispering]
- We all watch those tanks roll into Tiananmen Square,
didn't we?
And we all shivered when we saw that one
man stand in the path of one and refuse get out of the way.
I don't know about you, but when I saw that, I found myself
thinking, if I lived in a society like that,
I would do anything to get out.
Now, what Mr. Chow did was to provide a way,
to provide a means of escape.
And if it was John Brown or Raoul Wallenberg, well,
we salute those men as heroes.
Why have we chosen to put this man on trial?
There isn't a shred of evidence to prove
that Mr. Chow knew about the conditions on board that ship.
There is not a shred of evidence to prove
that Mr. Chow knew the status of Lin Chen-Zhou's health.
The ship's captain testified that Mr. Chow in point of fact
did not know that these were circumstances
beyond his control.
As a matter of fact, I think of this man as a hero.
He came to this country impoverished.
He became successful, and he-- he cared enough
about the plight of his people to actually
try to do something about it.
He shouldn't have been indicted, and this trial
should never have taken place.
- Ronald Chow, a hero?
Oh, I don't think so.
What I think is that he is a modern-day sl*ve
trader, a shameless exploiter of human beings.
And ultimately, he is a m*rder*r.
He smuggles thousands of undocumented Chinese
into our country every year.
The fact that he represents himself
as a savior of the oppressed only makes his crimes
all the more repulsive.
A savior would not demand a fee equaling
a lifetime of earnings in rural China
for the privilege of being rescued.
Ronald Chow knew full well what the conditions
were like on the Jade Moon.
He was on the dock when it set sail.
He was on the phone with the captain.
This was a big investment after all.
I'd venture to say that nothing happened on this ship
that he didn't know about.
And so Lin Chen-Zhou is dead.
How many more are dying?
How much pestilence and disease has been released into our city
by the other passengers-- - Objection.
- --on this boat?
Over million--
- Your Honor, I object.
- --illegal immigrants enter our country every year.
- Your Honor. - Mr. Mullaney?
- Your Honor. - How many boatloads--
- Mr. Mullaney?
- --of them will Ronald Chow bring her?
- Mr. Mullaney, you will stop doing what you
are doing right this second.
- Your Honor, I move for an immediate mistrial.
- I'm going to deny that motion.
I'm also going to warn Mr. Mullaney that if he tries
to bring the issue of immigration
into this trial one more time, I'm gonna hold him in contempt.
The jury will disregard in their entirety
all references made thereto.
Proceed, Mr. Mullaney.
- I ask that you find Ronald Chow guilty of m*rder.
[somber music]
- You're in.
- What do you mean, I'm in?
- I mean, that Albright and Phipps
were duly impressed with you.
You're now a member of the club.
- You apparently carry a little weight down there.
- No more than any other member in good standing.
- Oh, come on, Leland.
Those guys read me like a book.
It was painfully obvious I didn't fit in.
- I think you may have an overly narrow view
of what it means to fit in.
- You're saying they want me?
- Yeah.
- I don't believe it.
- Eli, I sponsored you for membership
because you're someone with whom I'd like to spend some time.
I hope you accept it as a gesture of friendship.
- I do.
- Good, good.
I look forward to seeing you at the club, our club,
whether you join this firm or not.
- Thank you.
- You're quite welcome, Topper.
- Just get another one.
- I don't understand.
Why would I settle?
- Herb, I'm up nights because of this case.
I want it to be over.
- When that son of a bitch comes across with the money,
it'll be over.
Until then, take a tranquilizer.
- Hello, everybody.
Are we about to b*at our swords into plowshares?
- Look at this guy.
He's unbelievable.
- I'm hoping that we can walk out of here with a deal.
- Yeah, I think we can put this whole affair to rest.
In a manner of speaking, I think we can persuade the lion
to lie down with the lamb.
Speaking of which, travel opportunities may
be opening up on the West Bank.
- The West Bank?
- Christmas in Gaza, trekking through occupied territories,
well, I know it appeals to the vagabond spirit in me.
- Give us your best offer, Nina.
- ,, payable over five installments over one year.
- I think we should take it.
- Would you mind telling my wife that $,
is not a serious offer?
- Excuse me.
- Oh, good.
Um, I ordered a little snack.
I hope you don't mind.
I get frightfully cranky when my blood sugar's low.
Keep it.
- I think you should take it, Herb.
I think you should take it and have done with this.
- So it won't come out that my wife had an affair?
- What are you talking about?
- And you flew him here just for this?
- May I suggest that we adjourn this meeting for today?
I think both sides need to confer among themselves.
- How could you know about it?
- I couldn't sleep one night.
I went to the window, and I saw him walking you back.
When you came to the room, I pretended that I was asleep.
Then you took a shower.
That told me all I needed to know.
- Why didn't you say something, Herb?
Didn't you care?
- I cared plenty.
What could I do?
Ask you why you did it?
I know why you did it.
You wanted a little romance.
You wanted a little happiness in your life.
I didn't give you these things.
He did.
You went with him.
- It broke my heart for me to realize
that I was capable of going with him, Herb.
It broke my heart because I never stopped loving you.
- Um, forgive me for interjecting,
but could I just kind of wonder out loud
whether a lawsuit is what you two should really
be involved with right now?
- What would you suggest?
- How about a weekend at Esalen, hmm?
Scenic drive up the coast, visit some little galleries
in Carmel, and then two solid days of intensive group
therapy at the institute.
- I have a better idea, two tickets on the Concorde
for Paris, three weeks in a suite at the Ritz,
and $, in spending money.
- Shall we take that to be a counteroffer, Mr. Brackman?
- How could you? - How about it, folks?
Would that do it?
- It would do it for me, Herb.
- Then it would do it for me too.
- Could I persuade you to settle for a junior suite?
- Absolutely not.
- Nina, draw up the papers.
I'm gonna go home and get in bed.
- Hey.
[knocking]
- Hi.
- I think I need to explain myself.
- Come in.
- Yesterday's diatribe was not directed or should not
have been directed towards you.
- Oh, it's all right if it was directed at me.
- There are things we can do that are less expensive
that will still be good.
It'll be OK.
- No doubt.
I'm sorry to put you through it.
- Are you free at all?
- Yeah, let me see when.
- No, I mean now.
- Now?
- Yeah, I don't want you to write it in your book.
If you can get away for like an hour,
there's someplace I want to take you.
- Come on.
- You said you like Neutra.
- Oh, yeah.
That's great.
- There's such an elegance to his lines.
They're so simple.
- I love the pillars.
- The pillars?
- He had such a distinctive vision, you know?
You see it in all his work.
- You're looking at the wrong house.
- I am?
- That's the Neutra.
- Oh, of course.
I was actually thinking that the other one was not particularly
representative of his work.
- How much do you know about Neutra, Daniel?
How much do you know about architecture altogether?
- I did study it in school.
I just forgot a lot of what I knew.
- In other words, you've been slinging it around a bit,
haven't you?
- A bit, yeah.
- How come?
- I guess I wanted to make a good impression.
- Why would you want to do that?
- People going through construction
can be quite vulnerable, you know?
- Why are you telling me that now?
- In case you were planning on taking advantage of me.
- What if I was?
- I'd tell you to go right ahead.
- Mr. Foreman, has the jury reached its verdict?
- Yes, we have, Your Honor.
- What say you?
- In the matter of the People versus Ronald
Chow on the charge of m*rder in the second degree,
we find the defendant guilty.
- The jury is dismissed with the thanks of the court.
This court is adjourned.
- Mr. Mullaney.
I wanna tell you something.
You couldn't win this case on facts, so you won it on racism.
- Mr. Klein, I won because the jury believed
your client was guilty.
- Out-and-out racism.
- Hey, spare me the righteous indignation, counselor.
If you'd gotten your client off, he'd
gone right back to packing those scows
full of poor people desperate enough to get on board.
He's the scum of the Earth.
He belongs in prison.
I feel no remorse whatsoever about what
it took to put him there.
Excuse me.
- [speaking chinese]
Mr. Mullaney, Mrs. Lin asked me to translate.
She'd like to say something to you.
- Sure.
- [speaking chinese]
- She wants to know if you hate the Chinese people.
- Well, tell her no.
Tell her I just wanted to punish the man
responsible for her husband's death.
- [speaking chinese]
- She says I'm glad Chow is in prison,
but I'm also glad there are many to take his place.
- [speaking chinese]
- I'm being sent back to China because I'm illegal.
I will work, and I will wait.
- [speaking chinese]
- Someday I will contact another snakehead the same as Chow,
and I will pay him to let me lie in the same kind of boat.
- [speaking chinese]
- Because for me, there is no other way.
[somber music]
- I was on the phone with my shrink for an hour and a half
last night.
- How come?
- Because I'm actually thinking about taking the firm up
on its offer and moving here.
- What'd your shrink say?
- He said, it sounded like I was asking his permission.
- Well, did he give you his permission?
- No, he said I didn't need it.
- So?
- Well, the truth is, I could do it.
Sidney and Charlie get along without me.
- Mm-hmm.
- I go back there and wrap up whatever I need
to wrap up in a matter of days.
- Yeah, so?
- Audrey and I are in an on-again,
off-again kind of thing.
That would prevent me from moving.
- Well, it sounds like nothing's stopping you.
- Well, there is what I'd be leaving--
Central Park, Zabar's, Fairway.
- I love Fairway.
- Buying the next day's newspaper the night before,
decent rye bread, those soft, sooty
pretzels they sell near the courthouse.
- [laughs] Eli, I know exactly what you're talking about.
I mean, I thought, how could I leave my family, my friends?
I mean, I finally got my own apartment.
I had to leave that too.
- You don't hate it here.
- What's there to hate?
I mean, there's different people,
different opportunities, whole different ocean.
I mean, come on.
- The weather's not bad either.
- Not bad?
Eli, we're on the beach.
It's almost November.
It's gorgeous here.
- [non-english speech]
- Excuse me?
- Man plans, and God laughs.
- Ain't that the truth?
- I mean, all along, tethered to this idea of what
your life is going to be.
Things happen.
Your life isn't like that.
You realize, this is something you could do.
But is it something I will do?
You know what?
- What?
- I'm not gonna worry.
What about that?
I'm not gonna spend a lot of time in contemplation.
I'm not gonna weigh the pluses and minuses.
And I am not gonna call different people
and ask them what they think I should do.
This one time in my life, I am gonna act.
I am gonna to act.
I am gonna choose a course of action.
I'm going to set out on it.
Denise, I am moving to Los Angeles.
- Yeah?
- I am joining this firm, and I am moving to Los Angeles.
- [cheers] I'm so happy.
- Oh, me too.
- I'm so glad.
Now, you know, can I make one suggestion?
- Yes.
- We're on the beach, right?
- Yeah.
- Why don't you loosen your tie and lose the shoes?
- Let's not push it.
[moody music]
- A whole different ocean.
- A whole different ocean.
[light music]
[theme music]
[audio logo]
08x04 - Foreign Co-Respondent
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High-powered law firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak handles both criminal and civil cases, but the office politics and romance often distract them from the courtroom.
High-powered law firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak handles both criminal and civil cases, but the office politics and romance often distract them from the courtroom.