Few of us want to end up in a courtroom facing charges. But we can’t get enough of dramas featuring criminal lawyers, tough prosecutors, bizarre defendants, high-minded rhetoric and (what else) sex, some shows giving the term “legal briefs” a whole new meaning..

Americans have learned much about their legal system from television dramatic series.

 Some have raised the bar for quality; others have been found guilty of melodramatics and bad acting. So allow me to approach the bench and rank the best U.S. legal dramas of all time–not counting “reality” shows that include Judge Judy and her imitators. No appeals here; the verdicts stand.

1. “Twelve Angry Men” (CBS, 1954): Not a series in the literal sense, but it was the first television courtroom portrayal to earn major acclaim. Based on a play by the prolific Reginald Rose (who is responsible for another programme on this list), it aired live on the CBS dramatic anthology “Studio One” in 1954. It had a simple yet powerful premise: A dozen men of various backgrounds sit on a jury that hears the trial of a young man accused of murder; the jurors must then decide unanimously if the young man was guilty of the crime. Each juror had his own reasons for voting to convict or acquit; the jurors favouring a “not guilty” verdict eventually swayed the others. Featuring such talented character actors as Norman Fell, Franchot Tone, Bob Cummings and Paul Hartman, the video version was a critical success. So much so, that director Sidney Lumet brought Rose’s work to film in 1957, with Henry Fonda, Jack Klugman and Martin Balsam in the ensemble cast; it was nominated for several Academy Awards, including best picture. There have been several TV and stage versions since, but “Twelve Angry Men” lit the fire for legal melodrama on the small screen.

2. “The Edge Of Night” (CBS 1956-75; ABC 1975-84): Originally designed to be a daytime drama featuring the fictional lawyer Perry Mason, author Erle Stanley Gardner had a falling out with CBS and pulled his support. But writer Irving Vendig who was a scriptwriter for the radio version of “Perry Mason,” stepped in and created new characters. “The Edge Of Night” premiered April 2nd, 1956 along with another new drama, “As The World Turns”–the first half-hour “soap operas” in television history. Focusing on crime and courtroom intrigue in the fictional town of Monticello rather than domestic situations, “Edge” became a long-running hit for CBS. When sponsor Proctor & Gamble forced CBS to move the show to an earlier time slot in the early 1970's, ratings fell. ABC picked up “Edge” and began running the drama in 1975. It still had a loyal though smaller fan base. But it aired in late afternoons, and ABC stations gradually stopped airing the show in favour of syndicated talk programmes or local news. The final “Edge Of Night” aired December 28th, 1984. (By the way, the city skyline shown in the opening credits for much of “Edge Of Night’s” run were that of Cincinnati, Ohio, where Proctor & Gamble’s headquarters is located.)

3. “Perry Mason” (CBS 1957-66): The best-known fictional lawyer of all time, Erle Stanley Gardner’s creation appeared in novels and on radio before his prime time television debut in 1957. More of a murder mystery with courtroom drama than a true legal series, each “Perry Mason” episode began with a motive for a murder, the murder itself–and Perry peeling the layers of the prosecution’s case to name a suspect within the final minutes of the episode. The format was predictable, but it was great TV. So was Raymond Burr, the man who brought Perry to life. With a stellar supporting cast (Barbara Hale as faithful assistant Della Street; William Tasman as hapless district attorney Hamilton Burger and William Hopper as gumshoe detective Paul Drake), lively scripts and wonderful theme music, “Perry Mason” made an impression on viewers. (And he won EVERY case; when a woman asked Burr why he was so successful, he replied, “But Madam, you only see the cases I try on Saturday!”)

   Proof that Perry was timeless came in 1985, when Burr and Hale reprised their roles for the first of what would become a series of successful “Perry Mason” television movies on NBC; they came to an end with Burr’s death in 1993. Still running strong in repeats, “Perry Mason” remains television’s most influential barrister.

4. “The Defenders” (CBS 1961-65): Originally a one-shot play on CBS’ anthology “Studio One" in 1957 with Lee J. Cobb and a young William Shatner as a father-and-son legal team, “Twelve Angry Men” writer Reginald Rose turned his work into a weekly series–with E.G. Marshall and Robert Reed as Lawrence and Kenneth Preston. “The Defenders” was the first American legal drama to tackle social issues of the time in a courtroom format–blacklisting, abortion, mercy killing, pornography and neo-Nazism. Strong writing and good acting (and a talented array of guest stars) made “The Defenders” a must-watch show for viewers of quality television. The CBS version ran just four seasons; a remake on the cable network Showtime was scratched after star E.G. Marshall passed away during filming. In 2007, a “Defenders” clip from the original “Studio One” production was incorporated into an episode of “Boston Legal.” Shatner–who played attorney Denny Crane on “Legal”–was shown in flashbacks from the “Studio One” drama as a younger Crane successfully defending an accused murderer. A true tribute to one of drama’s best.

5. “Owen Marshall, Counselor At Law” (ABC 1971-74): Not too often seen these days, “Owen Marshall” came from the same production team as the far more popular “Marcus Welby, MD”–and used the same formula: experienced attorney becomes a counselor and mentor to a young hotshot barrister. In this case, Arthur Hill played the wise Owen; his proteges were played by Reni Santoni, followed by a pre-“Starsky & Hutch” David Soul, then Lee Majors (who was also doing “The Six Million Dollar Man” while on “Owen Marshall”). Like “Marcus Welby,” “Owen Marshall dealt with then-topical issues, and won plaudits from a number of legal groups. A competent and pleasant legal series, “Owen Marshall” ran only three seasons–and a few of the early episodes were directed by a budding film maker named Steven Spielberg!

6. “L.A. Law” (NBC 1986-94): The flip side of “Hill Street Blues” also proved to be one of the most popular legal dramas in American television history. “Hill Street” co-creator Steven Bochco teamed up with former “Cagney & Lacey” producer Terry Louise Fisher, after the late NBC Entertainment chief Brandon Tartikoff noted that “Hill Street” was 90 percent police officers and 10 percent lawyers. Why not, suggested Tartikoff, flip the percentages and see what happens?. That’s exactly what the pair did. The fictional Los Angeles legal firm of McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak (Chaney died in the pilot episode) handled all types of cases, from criminal trials to divorces and civil claims. And unlike “Hill Street,” most of the stellar legal eagles were rich, and the series had a high-gloss sheen and a sensibility that matched the self-absorbed “yuppie” mentality and the pro-business climate of the 1980's. But there was substance beneath the style. “L.A. Law” took cases from the headlines and debated them in the courtroom–mercy killings, unfair firings, copyright battles–to create involving, powerful drama. Yet the show didn’t ignore the lighter side of life. There was plenty of romantic intrigue (fans still talk about the “Venus Butterfly” sexual technique that drew Ann Kelsey to fellow lawyer Stewart Markowitz; viewers never learned what the technique was). And there was plenty of controversy, including U.S. network television’s first girl-on-girl kiss. won four Emmy awards for best dramatic series–the most of any legal program. A 2002 reunion television movie proved to be a shadow of what made “L.A. Law” one of a kind–and loved by budding attorneys who entered law schools in droves during its original run.

7. “Law & Order” (NBC 1990-Present): The longest running series in this group (18 seasons as of the 2007-08 television season), “Law & Order” owes much to a short-lived 1963 ABC series called “Arrest & Trial.” A 90-minute series, “Arrest” showed the crime in the first segment; the defendant’s trial took up the second half. It was ahead of its time, but in 1990, producer Dick Wolf took the concept, set the series in New York City, and hired stage and film actors for the key roles. (Wolf also downplayed the personal lives of the characters in favour of the story; he also based his stories on headline cases of the day). Christopher Noth, George Dzunda and Dann Florek were the original leads on the police side; Richard Brooks, Michael Moriarty and Steven Hill were the regulars in the district attorney’s office. NBC complained about the lack of female leads; that changed when Jill Hennessy and S. Epatha Merkerson were added to the cast.
    All the original regulars were eventually replaced during the show’s long run; the late Jerry Orbach was probably much-loved for his role as flawed and world-weary Detective Lennie Briscoe. Other future “Law & Order” regulars included Sam Waterston; Benjamin Bratt; Carey Lowell; Angie Harmon; Jesse L. Martin and Fred Thompson. Over the years, “L&O” became a keystone of NBC’s Wednesday night schedule even as reruns continued on the cable network TNT. 1999 brought viewers “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit;” in 2001 came “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.” (But two other spin-off series, “Trial By Jury” and “Conviction,” proved to have short lives.) At this writing, the original “Law & Order” is the second longest-running drama in U.S. television history, closing in on the 20-year record now held by the classic western “Gunsmoke.” And soon, the UK will get its own version: ITV has ordered 13 episodes to be called “Law & Order: London,” History could well repeat itself, proving the durability of a very good concept.

8. “Murder One” (ABC 1995-97): A unique legal drama inspired by the O.J. Simpson murder trial, Steven Bochco’s second entry on this list focused on a high-profile trial from the original crime to jury selection, strategy, the verdict and the aftermath–all in a single season. In Season One, the storyline centered on the brutal murder of a 15-year-old teenage girl named Jessica Costello, who was known to have consorted with many of Hollywood’s leading men. Daniel Benzali (who occasionally played an attorney on Bochco’s “NYPD Blue”) starred in the first season as high-powered defence lawyer Theodore Hoffman; his nemesis was prosecutor Miriam Grasso (played by Bochco’s former wife Barbara Bosson). Jason Gedrick was drug-using actor Neil Avedon, who is charged with Costello’s murder. But the season was sparked by the powerful performance of then little-known character actor Stanley Tucci as millionaire Richard Cross, a prime suspect in the murder.
    “Murder One” was Bochco at his best–strong acting, powerful writing and realistic settings. But the show was thwarted by bad scheduling. ABC slotted “Murder One” against NBC’s powerful hospital drama “ER.” It was no contest; the Chicago doctors easily defeated the Los Angeles attorneys. For its second and final season, Bochco revamped “Murder One” to focus on three separate cases throughout the season. Benzali left the show after the first season, replaced by a pre-“Without A Trace” Anthony LaPaglia as the new senior partner of the law firm. But the series never gained enough viewers to continue, and the final episode aired in May 1997. Still, “Murder One” was an artistic triumph that lives on in home video.

9. “The Practice” (ABC 1997-2004): David E. Kelley, a former attorney, became a television writer when Steven Bochco hired him to pen scripts on “L.A. Law.” By 1997, Kelley had set up his own production company, and had a critical hit with the CBS drama “Picket Fences.” That year, Kelley returned to full-blooded legal drama with this series about a Boston law practice that focused on major trials and minor but newsworthy cases. Dylan McDermott played Bobby Donnell, the senior attorney of the firm. His partners included Eugene Young (Steve Harris); Ellenor Frutt (Camryn Manheim) and Lindsay Doyle, Bobby’s girlfriend (and later wife, played by Kelli Williams). Lisa Gay Hamilton played receptionist and later associate Rebecca Washington; and Michael Badalucco played associate Jimmy Berluti. Laura Flynn Boyle was assistant prosecutor Helen Gamble, who usually went head-to-head with the lawyers from the firm. “The Practice” was a sharp, well-written series that earned plenty of Emmy recognition and drew many major names to appear as guest stars.
     It also had a few crossover episodes with two other Kelley dramas, the much lighter “Ally McBeal” and the high school-based “Boston Public”–very unusual, because the shows aired on competing networks (“The Practice” was on ABC; “Ally” and “Boston Public” were Fox series). Declining ratings forced ABC to demand cast changes in the seventh season; McDermott, Williams, Boyle and Gamble were among those fired. In its eighth and last season, the show picked up new life when Ellenor hired a new associate, Allan Shore (James Spader)–whose unusual style of defence (even for “The Practice) leads to clashes with the remaining partners. But Shore helped bring millions of dollars worth of new cases into the firm. Still, he is fired. Shore sues; the firm is ordered to pay him $2.3 million dollars. But the firm ends business altogether, with the remaining partners going their separate ways. Despite improved ratings (and an Emmy win for Spader), ABC announces “The Practice” would not be back for a ninth season. Instead, Kelley creates a brand new series from the ashes of “The Practice.” And that, fellow viewers, leads to the final show on the list....

10. “Boston Legal” (ABC 2004-Present)– When Alan Shore sued his old firm, he turned to the Boston-based legal firm of Crane, Poole and Schmidt. And when he needed a new job, Crane was hired by the firm who represented him–leading to Kelley’s new “Practice” spin-off. Unquestionably one of the quirkiest legal dramas ever in America (though not as quirky as Kelley’s own “Ally McBeal," which didn’t make this top ten list), “Boston Legal” also had a liberal point of view–thanks to Shore. But he was counterbalanced by the even stranger senior partner of the firm–die-hard conservative (and aging horndog) Denny Crane. That character gave William Shatner his best television series role since playing the former Captain Kirk of “Star Trek” fame; the Emmy-winning Shatner made Denny Crane both repulsive and loveable–a hard trick to pull off, Also starring on “Boston Legal” were Rene Auberjonois as senior partner Paul Lewiston; Mark Valley as junior partner Brad Chase; and Candace Bergen (the former “Murphy Brown”) as partner Shirley Schmitt. “Boston Legal” quickly became known for handling the strangest cases to come down the pike (even if those cases were based in reality.) And in the David E. Kelley spirit, the firm also grappled with cases “ripped from today’s headlines.” But “Legal” also had its wild side, with plenty of characters that displayed strange behavior–a straight attorney who liked to dress as a woman; a junior lawyer who actually purred like a cat. And in and out of the office, “Legal” offered plenty of sex and sexual tension–all in the tradition of other Kelley legal shows. “Boston Legal’s” strong point of view ensured it marginal ratings, but plenty of critical acclaim. At this writing, it’s unclear if ABC will bring the show back for a fifth season. But no matter what happens, “Boston Legal” has earned a place for being a square peg in the round hole of legal dramatic series.

And the Worst U.S. Legal Series EVER:

“Storefront Lawyers” (CBS 1970-71): One of CBS’ ill-fated attempts to provide “relevant” programmes for younger viewers that season, this series starred Robert Foxworth, Sheila Larkin and David Arkin as three twenty-something attorneys who leave a major law practice to set up a storefront legal service for the poor in Los Angeles. (“That’s where the action is!,” exclaims one of the legal eagles.)
 The idea of legal drama focusing on the poor and disenfranchised was a good idea, but “Storefront Lawyers” botched it from the start, with weak scripts and no real direction. It may have looked hip and new on the surface, but it was the same tired format that younger audiences were rejecting in droves. So were their parents; ratings were so bad, CBS scrapped the series and returned with the same three leads in a new legal drama, with the title “Men At Law” (even though Sheila Larkin was still a co-star). The revised premise had the three lawyers return to the big law firm they had earlier left, now guided by senior partner Devlin McNeil (Gerald S. O’Loughlin). The action was now split between the “storefront” law office and the courtroom for more serious and conventional cases. But it was too little, and far too late. “Men LAw” was disbarred by CBS on September 1st, 1971. The verdict was not appealed.