The Bard comes into the courtroom when an elderly man reciting Shakespeare is arrested for busking without a licence.

Michael's hopes of reuniting with his estranged wife are dashed when Joanne reveals that she has come to visit to end their relationship, and then their son falls ill.

An unexpected tragedy forces Paulyne to re-evaluate her life; meanwhile she struggles to remain objective while defending a man accused of manslaughter over the death of a pedestrian.

New Legal Aid solicitor Lisa Blake starts work at the courthouse; however, she soon finds herself coming into conflict with Michael when she grandstands in the courtroom, then fails to fully prepare a case in mitigation for a defendant.

A journalist sets out to prove that corruption exists in Rafferty's court.

Lisa continues to have problems settling in, with her abrasive nature putting Michael offside.

Lisa begins to wonder whether evil does exist when she defends a sociopath.

The entire courthouse struggles to cope when Michael is forced to decide whether a man accused of murder has a case to answer.

Lisa defends a young man who seems to be heading for the same life of crime as his father once did, but she refuses to believe Ray Brown's claims that the father's intentions are anything but honourable.

Michael's world is turned upside down after learning that he has a twenty-two year old daughter from a previous relationship.

Flicker's prosecution against a young policeman who has broken the law is complicated when he begins to recognise that something even more suspicious is going on.

More than one life is on the line after a former children's television performer is charged with propositioning young boys for sex in the changing rooms of a local swimming pool.

A criminal nicknamed 'The Hairy Bandit' is causing havoc and the courthouse is feeling the impact.

Michael's divorce from Joanne officially comes through, just as former Public Solicitor Paulyne Gray reappears in his life after a six month absence.

Michael considers his attitudes towards both politics and rural life after his cousin comes to the city, having now been elected to Parliament and holding very different opinions to Michael.

Michael begins to wonder if someone is trying to put a spell on him after a number of suspicious run-ins with a member of a religious commune.

Lisa confronts the prejudices of society when she defends a man with AIDS who has committed an armed robbery in order to ensure his wife's future following his death.

Michael is drawn into the world of a struggling young family after he witnesses a woman being hit by a car.

Lisa finds herself at odds with her colleagues when she defends an anti-nuclear activist whose family and the police are determined to have detained for his own safety.

Rafferty decides to expose a Chilean military attaché following charges for torturing political dissidents in Chile.

Flicker is horrified after he discovers just what conditions are faced by those in the police cells awaiting trial.

Racial tensions erupt when two Asian men are accused of murder, while Michael questions his capacity as a magistrate after an act of leniency has dire consequences.

Flicker and Lisa find themselves dealing with a particularly challenging court case when a girl alleges that she was raped by her father four years earlier.

Michael revisits his past as a university radical and conscientious objector when he is forced to decide the fate of a man who he once protested alongside.

Flicker confronts his own prejudices when he prosecutes a case involving the assault of a female impersonator; however, it is Michael who finds himself at the centre of a controversy after the verdict is given.

Lisa is drawn into an organisation known as Life Force after a man is arrested for break and enter and assault.

Flicker finds himself wandering into a murky world of corruption when he prosecutes a case against a police officer who has broken the law and where the key witness is a serial whistleblower.

Fulvio and Sandra's marriage comes close to breaking point after Sandra is arrested for shoplifting.

Michael, Flicker and Lisa are dragged into a murky political world when they discover that the conflict between the British and the Irish is alive and well in Sydney.

An act of vandalism by the member of an animal rights group leaves Michael becoming emotionally involved with the accused's mother.

A man seeks Lisa's help when he is sacked after complaining about the work conditions; however, she soon finds herself defending him when he assaults his former boss.

Lisa is drawn to an attractive young lawyer; however, she is forced into an ethical dilemma when his personal life unravels.

The feminist movement comes to the courthouse when a prominent feminist runs a group of pigs through the shop of a man accused of sexual harassment.

Flicker finds himself at the crossroads of a major life decision after he falls in love with a young female Constable, but his excitement at finding new love may see him lose it all.

A convicted criminal whose ex-wife is about to marry a police officer comes before the court accused of assault.

Lisa assists a young woman whose boyfriend has been arrested; however, she is horrified when she learns that he has been detained without charge and suspects that the police are fitting him up because he is Aboriginal.

Lisa fights to save an Indian couple who are facing deportation, only to discover that the collapse of the British Empire means that they have no real home to go back to.

Michael and Flicker befriend the beachcomber and poet, Snowy White; however, their admiration is crushed when it begins to appear that Snowy may be guilty of murder.

Lisa is charmed by a client accused of appropriating money from elderly women; however, Michael and Flicker cause conflict when they question her judgement.

A prominent radio host has been charged with brawling. Michael is faced with the consequences of his judgements when he sentences a man accused of assault, only to later learn that the man's employer has sacked him.

Michael is reunited with an old classmate in the lead-up to a school reunion; however, he is left wondering if they've come very far at all since the schoolyard.

An elderly journalist is arrested for shoplifting.

Michael is consumed by guilt after he hits a man with his car; however he starts to wonder if maybe there are deeper issues at play when he seeks guidance on how to deal with his feelings.