Canterbury's Law
Encyclopedia
Canterbury's Law is an American
legal drama
, which ran from March 10, 2008 to April 18, 2008 as a mid-season replacement on Fox
. The show was created by Dave Erickson and executive produced by Denis Leary
, Jim Serpico
, Walon Green
, John Kane
, and Mike Figgis
, who also directed the pilot
. The series revolved around Elizabeth Canterbury (portrayed by Julianna Margulies
), a rebellious defense attorney
willing to bend the law if it protects the wrongfully accused. A rising star, she puts her career on the line to take on risky and unpopular cases, even when they take a toll on her personal life.
Produced by Sony Pictures Television
and Apostle, the series aired Mondays at 9/8c and was broadcast in Australia
and Canada
on Channel Nine
and Global
respectively. Due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
, only 6 of the 13 episodes ordered were able to be produced.
On March 20, 2008, Fox
announced that Canterbury's Law would move to the Friday 9:00pm/8c slot for the remaining episodes. Repeats of House
assumed the series' original Monday timeslot.
On May 15, 2008, Fox officially canceled the series.
), are both haunted by the disappearance of their young son (Jeremy Zorek) and have just settled in Providence, Rhode Island
, in an attempt to distance themselves from the tragedy and put their relationship back together. But even as they try to move on beyond the tragedy, those goals become elusive whenever Elizabeth's work provides a stark reminder of the justice absent in their own lives.
At work, Elizabeth must also deal with fellow coworkers: associates Russell Krauss (Ben Shenkman
), a former district attorney
, who was forced out of his job by his financially-strapped boss and whose knowledge will guide Elizabeth in their cases, even if she doesn't want to hear his reasoning or logic; Chester Fields (Keith Robinson
), a congressman's son who wants to distance himself from his political family; and Molly McConnell (Trieste Dunn), a headstrong individual who's not afraid to switch sides, even if it's against Elizabeth.
Frank Angstrom (Rescue Me
's James McCaffrey
) is a private investigator with whom Elizabeth has a sometime affair.
Jocko Sims
was originally cast as Chester Fields but the role was re-cast in June 2007. Linus Roache
was also replaced by Aidan Quinn
in August 2007 after the former landed a regular starring role in Law & Order
.
, Jim Serpico
, Julianna Margulies
, Mike Figgis
,
Walon Green
.
Michael S. Chernuchin
was a writer and consulting producer for the series.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
legal drama
Legal drama
A legal drama is a work of dramatic fiction about crime and civil litigation. Subtypes of legal dramas include courtroom dramas and legal thrillers, and come in all forms, including novels, television shows, and films. Legal drama sometimes overlap with crime drama, most notably in the case of Law...
, which ran from March 10, 2008 to April 18, 2008 as a mid-season replacement on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
. The show was created by Dave Erickson and executive produced by Denis Leary
Denis Leary
Denis Colin Leary is an Irish-American actor, comedian, writer and director. Leary is known for his biting, fast paced comedic style and chain smoking...
, Jim Serpico
Jim Serpico
Jim Serpico is Co-founder, along with Denis Leary of Apostle in New York City, specializing in television production. Also executive produced Leary's stand-up shows from the 1990s, including No Cure for Cancer and Lock 'N Load. He has produced a number of television programs including Rescue Me,...
, Walon Green
Walon Green
Walon Green is an American documentary film director and screenwriter for both TV and films. He is currently the showrunner/executive producer for the USA Network television series, Law & Order: Criminal Intent.-Career:...
, John Kane
John Kane
John Kane was an American painter celebrated for his skill in Naïve art.He was the first self-taught American painter in the 20th century to be recognized by a museum...
, and Mike Figgis
Mike Figgis
Michael "Mike" Figgis is an English film director, writer, and composer.-Personal life:Figgis was born in Carlisle, England and grew up in Africa. Figgis for several years had a relationship with the actress Saffron Burrows and cast her in several films...
, who also directed the pilot
Television pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
. The series revolved around Elizabeth Canterbury (portrayed by Julianna Margulies
Julianna Margulies
Julianna Luisa Margulies is an American actress and producer.After several small television roles, Margulies achieved success in her regular role as Nurse Carol Hathaway on NBC's long-running medical drama ER, for which she won an Emmy Award...
), a rebellious defense attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
willing to bend the law if it protects the wrongfully accused. A rising star, she puts her career on the line to take on risky and unpopular cases, even when they take a toll on her personal life.
Produced by Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television, Inc. is an American and global television production/distribution subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment. In turn, the latter is part of the Japanese conglomerate Sony.-Background:...
and Apostle, the series aired Mondays at 9/8c and was broadcast in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
on Channel Nine
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
and Global
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
respectively. Due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike
The 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, more commonly referred to as simply the Writers' Strike, was a strike by the Writers Guild of America, East and the Writers Guild of America, West ....
, only 6 of the 13 episodes ordered were able to be produced.
On March 20, 2008, Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
announced that Canterbury's Law would move to the Friday 9:00pm/8c slot for the remaining episodes. Repeats of House
House (TV series)
House is an American television medical drama that debuted on the Fox network on November 16, 2004. The show's central character is Dr. Gregory House , an unconventional and misanthropic medical genius who heads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in...
assumed the series' original Monday timeslot.
On May 15, 2008, Fox officially canceled the series.
Plot
Elizabeth and her law professor husband, Matthew (Aidan QuinnAidan Quinn
-Early life:Quinn was born in Chicago, Illinois to Irish parents. He was brought up as a Roman Catholic and raised in Chicago and Rockford, Illinois, as well as in Dublin and Birr, County Offaly in Ireland. His mother, Teresa, was a homemaker, and his father, Michael Quinn, was a professor of...
), are both haunted by the disappearance of their young son (Jeremy Zorek) and have just settled in Providence, Rhode Island
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, in an attempt to distance themselves from the tragedy and put their relationship back together. But even as they try to move on beyond the tragedy, those goals become elusive whenever Elizabeth's work provides a stark reminder of the justice absent in their own lives.
At work, Elizabeth must also deal with fellow coworkers: associates Russell Krauss (Ben Shenkman
Ben Shenkman
Benjamin Shenkman is an American television, film and stage actor.-Life and career:Shenkman was born in New York City and raised in what he described as "the secular Eastern European Jewish tradition". He graduated from Brown University, and obtained a Masters of Fine Arts in 1993 from New York...
), a former district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
, who was forced out of his job by his financially-strapped boss and whose knowledge will guide Elizabeth in their cases, even if she doesn't want to hear his reasoning or logic; Chester Fields (Keith Robinson
Keith Robinson (actor)
Keith Robinson is an American actor and R&B singer.-Early life:Robinson was born in Louisville, Kentucky and later moved to Atlanta...
), a congressman's son who wants to distance himself from his political family; and Molly McConnell (Trieste Dunn), a headstrong individual who's not afraid to switch sides, even if it's against Elizabeth.
Frank Angstrom (Rescue Me
Rescue Me
-Music:* "Rescue Me" , covered by many performers* "Rescue Me" * "Rescue Me" * "Rescue Me" * "Rescue Me" * "Rescue Me"...
's James McCaffrey
James McCaffrey
James G. McCaffrey is an American actor.-Biography:McCaffrey was born in Northern Ireland and raised in New York. His first role was for sills models, as a mentally challenged teen, in Bill II: on His Own, the Bill Sackter story. He also played the lead in the first and last seasons of the series...
) is a private investigator with whom Elizabeth has a sometime affair.
Principal characters
- Julianna MarguliesJulianna MarguliesJulianna Luisa Margulies is an American actress and producer.After several small television roles, Margulies achieved success in her regular role as Nurse Carol Hathaway on NBC's long-running medical drama ER, for which she won an Emmy Award...
(Elizabeth Canterbury) - Ben ShenkmanBen ShenkmanBenjamin Shenkman is an American television, film and stage actor.-Life and career:Shenkman was born in New York City and raised in what he described as "the secular Eastern European Jewish tradition". He graduated from Brown University, and obtained a Masters of Fine Arts in 1993 from New York...
(Russell Krauss) - Trieste Dunn (Molly McConnell)
- Keith RobinsonKeith Robinson (actor)Keith Robinson is an American actor and R&B singer.-Early life:Robinson was born in Louisville, Kentucky and later moved to Atlanta...
(Chester Fields) - Terry KinneyTerry KinneyTerry Kinney is an American actor and theatre director, and is a founding member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company, with Gary Sinise and Jeff Perry.-Early life:...
(Deputy Attorney General Zach Williams) - Aidan QuinnAidan Quinn-Early life:Quinn was born in Chicago, Illinois to Irish parents. He was brought up as a Roman Catholic and raised in Chicago and Rockford, Illinois, as well as in Dublin and Birr, County Offaly in Ireland. His mother, Teresa, was a homemaker, and his father, Michael Quinn, was a professor of...
(Matthew "Matt" Furey) - James McCaffreyJames McCaffreyJames G. McCaffrey is an American actor.-Biography:McCaffrey was born in Northern Ireland and raised in New York. His first role was for sills models, as a mentally challenged teen, in Bill II: on His Own, the Bill Sackter story. He also played the lead in the first and last seasons of the series...
(Frank Angstrom)
Recurring characters
- David CallDavid CallDavid Steven Call , is an American film and television actor- Personal life :He is a graduate student of NYU Tisch School of the Arts and the Atlantic Theater Company Acting School.- Acting career :...
(Martin, the receptionist)
Jocko Sims
Jocko Sims
Jocko Sims is an American actor best known for his role as Anthony Adams on the Starz network series Crash. His portrayal of Anthony Adams, a chauffeur and aspiring hip-hop artist, led to the iTunes release of Head Up, a song that is performed by Sims in the third episode of the series...
was originally cast as Chester Fields but the role was re-cast in June 2007. Linus Roache
Linus Roache
Linus William Roache is an English actor.-Early life:Roache was born in Manchester, the son of Coronation Street actor William Roache and actress Anna Cropper. Roache was educated at Bishop Luffa Church of England School in Chichester, West Sussex and at the independent Rydal School in Colwyn Bay,...
was also replaced by Aidan Quinn
Aidan Quinn
-Early life:Quinn was born in Chicago, Illinois to Irish parents. He was brought up as a Roman Catholic and raised in Chicago and Rockford, Illinois, as well as in Dublin and Birr, County Offaly in Ireland. His mother, Teresa, was a homemaker, and his father, Michael Quinn, was a professor of...
in August 2007 after the former landed a regular starring role in Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
.
Main Crew
Dave Erickson, Denis LearyDenis Leary
Denis Colin Leary is an Irish-American actor, comedian, writer and director. Leary is known for his biting, fast paced comedic style and chain smoking...
, Jim Serpico
Jim Serpico
Jim Serpico is Co-founder, along with Denis Leary of Apostle in New York City, specializing in television production. Also executive produced Leary's stand-up shows from the 1990s, including No Cure for Cancer and Lock 'N Load. He has produced a number of television programs including Rescue Me,...
, Julianna Margulies
Julianna Margulies
Julianna Luisa Margulies is an American actress and producer.After several small television roles, Margulies achieved success in her regular role as Nurse Carol Hathaway on NBC's long-running medical drama ER, for which she won an Emmy Award...
, Mike Figgis
Mike Figgis
Michael "Mike" Figgis is an English film director, writer, and composer.-Personal life:Figgis was born in Carlisle, England and grew up in Africa. Figgis for several years had a relationship with the actress Saffron Burrows and cast her in several films...
,
Walon Green
Walon Green
Walon Green is an American documentary film director and screenwriter for both TV and films. He is currently the showrunner/executive producer for the USA Network television series, Law & Order: Criminal Intent.-Career:...
.
Michael S. Chernuchin
Michael S. Chernuchin
Michael S. Chernuchin is an American television writer and producer. He has worked on the NBC crime dramas Law & Order and Brooklyn South...
was a writer and consulting producer for the series.
Season 1: 2008
| # | Title | Original airdate | Code |
|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Nielsen Ratings
| # | Episode | Air Date | Timeslot | Rating | Share | 18-49 (Rating/Share) | Viewers (m) | Rank (Timeslot) | Rank (Night) | Rank (Overall) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Pilot" | March 10, 2008 | 8:00 P.M. | 4.9 | 8 | 1.7/5 | 7.62 | 3 | 8 | 29 |
| 2 | "Baggage" | March 17, 2008 | 8:00 P.M. | 3.6 | 6 | 1.7/5 | 5.66 | 4 | 11 | 57 |
| 3 | "What Goes Around..." | March 28, 2008 | 9:00 P.M. | 3.3 | 6 | 1.2/4 | 4.87 | 4 | 7 | 70 |
| 4 | "Sweet Sixteen" | April 4, 2008 | 9:00 P.M. | 3.9 | 7 | 1.4/4 | 6.07 | 3 | 5 | 48 |
| 5 | "Trade-Off" | April 11, 2008 | 9:00 P.M. | 3.4 | 6 | 1.2/4 | 5.29 | 3 | 7 | 63 |
| 6 | "Sick as Your Secrets" | April 18, 2008 | 9:00 P.M. | 3.2 | 6 | 1.0/4 | 4.68 | 3 | 8 | 68 |