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Mickey Haller Faces the Ultimate Test in His Own Murder Trial
There’s an old legal adage that says, “A man who represents himself has a fool for a client,” but not every man is Mickey Haller (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo). If you’ve watched the previous three seasons of the Netflix series The Lincoln Lawyer, you know that Mickey is a lawyer who fights for his clients. However, when you are the client, and you’re fighting for your own freedom, your life, your family, and your reputation, the weight of it is impossible not to feel. While Season 4 marks Mickey’s toughest case yet, it’s also the only case he has taken on where he knows, with 100% certainty, that his client is absolutely innocent.
What Is ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ Season 4 About?
Season 3 ends on a cliffhanger, with Mickey Haller being pulled over in his blue Lincoln convertible by Officer Collins under suspicious circumstances. After Mickey learns that he was stopped because he had no back license plate, the officer insists that he open the trunk when he notices blood dripping from it. Upon discovering the body of Mickey’s former client, Sam Scales (Christopher Thornton), he is arrested.
That brings us to Season 4, based on the sixth book, The Law of Innocence, in Michael Connelly’s bestselling series, which picks up with Mickey locked up and, true to form, offering legal advice to an inmate. Through a voiceover at the top of the premiere, it’s explained that murder is the biggest and most important charge a prosecutor can file, and every murder case is like a tall, shady tree. It’s the prosecutor’s job to feed and water that tree, using every tool they have and sparing no expense to ensure it grows big and strong, since the bigger and stronger the tree grows, the easier it is to get a conviction — and if you’re the one who’s accused of murder, you need an axe to chop that tree down and burn it to ashes. This metaphor sets up the fight between defense and prosecution that continues back and forth until the Season 4 finale.
‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ Season 4 Has a Strong Sense of Family and Loyalty
One of the things that makes The Lincoln Lawyer so easily watchable is the charm that Manuel Garcia-Rulfo infuses into the titular character, which makes the higher stakes and tension of Season 4 even more nerve-wracking. Mickey is putting on a brave face with his positive attitude, but he has a lot of missing puzzle pieces to fill in if he’s ever going to be able to clear his name, leave behind the label of being Inmate 7211956, and reclaim his freedom. All that positivity worries ex-wives Maggie (Neve Campbell) and Lorna (Becki Newton), who regularly check in with each other because they both know Mickey all too well. With Mickey laser-focused on getting himself out of this mess, everyone else is feeling his absence, including Maggie and Lorna, his daughter Hayley (Krista Warner), former biker gang member turned investigator Cisco (Angus Sampson), and assistant Izzy (Jazz Raycole), giving them the perfect opportunity to find their own ways to help out.
In an attempt to keep the office going, Lorna tries to convince Mickey’s clients not to take their business elsewhere, but with no luck, until a walk-in client named Celeste (Kyle Richards, who delivers a really fun performance) comes to look for her. With a strong recommendation from a previous client, Celeste hopes that Lorna can do the same for her own divorce proceedings. When a prenup makes things difficult, Lorna has to get creative, and she does so in a truly satisfying way, proving that not only is she a valuable asset but that Mickey is lucky to have her. At the same time all of this is going on, Izzy connects with fellow law school student Grace (Gigi Zumbado), who not only develops into a love interest but also uses her digital forensics skills to help out. (And Lorna fully approves!)
“Death Row” Dana Is the Big Bad of ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ Season 4
Mickey Haller can’t go through a murder trial without a prosecutor in the courtroom, and that honor goes to Dana Berg (Constance Zimmer), also known as “Death Row” Dana. If her nickname isn’t scary enough, Dana has gone up against Mickey previously and lost, so she’s ready to kick his ass and maybe even get a little payback. Her presence on the case raises a red flag for Maggie, who shares a mysterious backstory with Dana that unfolds as the case plays out. With the bigger spotlight on everyone in Mickey’s life and Maggie playing a more significant role in Season 4, Campbell shines with heart and the fierceness that Mickey needs to make it through his trial.
‘The Lincoln Lawyer’s Fate Has Been Sentenced at Netflix
Production is set to begin sooner than you may think.
In court, Dana looms, ruthlessly proving that she always has some trick up her sleeve. While Mickey keeps poking holes in everything that’s thrown at him, obstacles are thrown his way, and he makes some shocking decisions that lead him down some unexpected paths on his way to the truth. Because this season feels more significant by putting everything on the line for its title character, it requires everyone to step up and give it their all, and they rise to the occasion. It’s also nice to hear and see some names and faces from the past to tie the previous seasons into the larger world that’s being built.
It’s too hard to name an MVP for The Lincoln Lawyer Season 4 because they all get standout moments, whether standing up for a client, making their case in court, or opening up more emotionally. Honorable mention goes to Elliott Gould as Mickey’s mentor, David “Legal” Siegel. While his mother has a larger-than-life personality, Mickey’s father figure grounds him in a way that no one else can.
‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ Has Already Been Picked Up for Season 5
Although Mickey Haller starts this season’s trial by saying, “Act like a winner, and you will be a winner. We’re gonna win this thing, no doubt in my mind,” there are plenty of moments that might make the audience wonder whether that is true. However, he keeps chipping away at his prosecution and fights for his innocence in a way that only Mickey Haller can, and while the outcome of the case is unexpected, it’s a decision that fully resolves that storyline. It also illustrates why it’s better to be on Mickey’s team than to have to face off against him.
With The Lincoln Lawyer already picked up for another 10 episodes, Season 5 will be inspired by Connell’s seventh book, Resurrection Walk. While that story features a team-up between Mickey Haller and his half-brother Harry Bosch (though they’ve yet to have the same relationship in the TV series, as Bosch falls under the umbrella of another streaming service), it revolves around an innocent woman convicted of killing her ex-husband, who needs someone to prove her innocence. There’s no telling how that story will be adapted for next season, and we likely won’t find out until 2027, but it’ll still be fun to tune in and find out how Mickey Haller handles whatever is thrown his way.