Damages

PRESENT DAY:

Ellen has understandably left the old practice and is now working in Narcotics for the DA office. Patty is working on a new case involving Lou Tobin, who has been accused of putting together a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme. The DA's office is readying to bring Tobin to court, while Hewes and Associates have been charged with tracking down and recovering all the money.

The Tobins are Lou, wife Marilyn, a daughter, and son Joseph and his wife: Rachel. Joe doesn't want anything to do with the case and wants to get his name cleared. The family lawyer manages to keep the press away from Joe, much to his dismay, as he's trying to get his reputation cleared in the court of public opinion.

Patty encounters a man in a bar, who seems to be taking a lot of interest in her. Meanwhile, Ellen is working on another big case, trying to get a drug dealer to rat on his supplier. Things aren't going so well until the dealer's prized motorcycle is pummeled by two men with baseball bats, who warn him not to reveal the identity of his supplier. However, this has the exact opposite effect, and the dealer turns to the DA's office, willing to name names.

Ellen receives the credit for this huge break, but she suspects that Patty was behind it all. She confronts Patty, saying that she shouldn't play games with her. And she doesn't have to give expensive purses to her just so they could talk.

Patty decides to make Tom into a partner and put his name on the wall of the practice. More details of the Tobin case emerge: the rest of the Tobins heard about Lou's Ponzi scheme during Thanksgiving dinner. Joe also remembers his father calling someone that night and gets that number from Marilyn. Joe gives the number to Patty, who calls the number, which appears to be to a cell phone carried around by a homeless man in his shopping cart.

SIX MONTHS LATER:

Patty is in her car listening to the radio, and the talk hosts are speaking about her. Another car crashes into her, and both vehicles are wrecked. Patty is fine, but the other driver has apparently fled the scene. Later in the police station, Patty is informed that the other car was registered to Tom.

The police go to the address listed on the registration. It's a tiny apartment, but when a homeless man is spotted snooping around as well, the detectives go after him. The man has Ellen's purse, covered in blood, in his cart, and he doesn't know why he has it. Or so he says. The detectives continue to look around, finding a dumpster which contains Tom's dead body.