In the opening episode, barristers and best mates Alex Hay and Billy Guthrie are in court defending two armed robbers. Meanwhile, Billy's girlfriend and fellow barrister Rose is on the verge of going into labour but still taking on new cases, and trainee barrister Morag Black is thrown in at the deep end with a bail application for a notorious criminal.

Billy is stuck at home on suspension and Rose has already returned to work just three days after giving birth. Meanwhile, Morag makes a mess of her second case and, as Billy's disciplinary hearing looms, Alex pulls out all the stops to help to clear his friend.

Alex defends a famous footballer against a charge of indecent assault, and McLeish is determined to milk the case for publicity, even though the player is worried about being outed as gay. Elsewhere, Billy is stressed about his impending court appearance for assault but is offered an unexpected way out; Alex's affair with Stevie hots up; and Wendy becomes embroiled in a relationship with a senior judge.

The head of Leeds' biggest crime family is hauled in on a murder charge. Rose and Billy work together on his case, but Green has other ideas about how his defence should be handled. Meanwhile, McLeish takes on a new pupil, Hussein Ali. Confident, charming and desperate to be everybody's best friend, he could put Morag out of a job.

With criminal proceedings still hanging over his head, McLeish assigns Billy a trivial case - a pensioner accused of sheep-worrying - to keep his mind off things. But the attempt backfires when the prosecuting barrister turns out to be Wilson - and he has a score to settle. Meanwhile, Tom doesn't waste any time moving in on Alex's ex.

Billy and Rose find themselves at loggerheads over the case of two Colombian drug runners. Billy also has other things on his mind; it looks certain that he will be taken to court for assault, and if found guilty it will be the end of his career. However, with Marlowe's job offer still on the table, there might still be a way out...

Leeds' two gangland families, the Greens and the Flecks, are back in court. Meanwhile, outside the courtroom the battle between Morag and Hussein over the one available place in chambers is intensifying, and Alex makes up his mind to end his affair with Stevie.

Rose decides it's time to challenge McLeish's authority, and everyone's loyalties are put to the test. Billy is caught between a rock and a hard place; on the one hand his allegiance to Rose, and on the other his loyalty to McLeish for settling things with Marlowe. And Hussein and Morag have one last chance to prove their mettle.

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McLeish's past comes back to haunt him when his son unexpectedly turns up at chambers. A smart, respectable law student, Rory doesn't seem the type to deal drugs, but he's been caught in possession and needs representation. Meanwhile, the decision is finally taken on which of the two pupils will land a permanent job in chambers.