What do you think?
It needs something.
Olive.
Overstated.
- I'm Ray. - I'm Maggie.
Maggie. What do you do?
Me?
I'm a professional killer.
- Do you like your work? - Yes and no.
See, it's long hours.
And there's a lot of stress.
But when you finally put your head on the pillow at night,
there's this warm feeling you get from knowing
you tore at least one person's heart out that day.
I'm a lawyer.
I think you've had enough.
Ray, there's never enough.
Yeah, but my question is, do they count their time in bed together as billable hours?
Sure. At Grazier's rate.
Maggie's the associate so I assume she does all the work.
- Especially the oral argument. - What about oral arguments?
It's just a case we heard about.
Drilling rights.
Maggie, you didn't go home last night, did you?
It's a month before trial.
The list of people that worked on the Meridian, wasn't there a Pavel?
Yeah, he was one of the research guys. Why?
It's just a weird thing in Getchell's file.
A commendation letter to Getchell, from Flannery who was the CEO back then.
Blah blah blah, usual hype. Then it says "Please accept my gratitude and thanks
for keeping Pavel and the Meridian issue in the family. "
It's signed at the beginning of the 1985 model year.
So?
So, what "issue"?
Could be something. I wanna talk to him.
Thank you.
Do you want a rabbit?
They are the best ones. I even got them toilet trained.
- Dr. Pavel? - Yes?
I'm Margaret Ward. My law firm was in contact with you and said I'd be stopping by.
And?
I'd like to talk to you about some research you did
while you were working at Argo on the Meridian.
What Meridian?
A car. You did extensive research on its electrical system.
It was project 0243.
I'm no longer good with numbers.
It was a 1985 model, station wagon,
and you said there were problems with it.
- The depth charge! - Excuse me?
That's what I called it, the depth charge.
Herbert, stop flirting with the lady.
- Depth charge, sir, is... - You want to know about the circuits.
Yeah, yeah. OK.
- I saved their ass on that one. - Really? How?
- There was this guy. A hillbilly. - Hillbilly?
- What's his name? - You mean Getchell? George Getchell?
That's the one. Getchell, that's the name.
He was your supervisor for 16 years.
16 years. Just testing, testing, testing.
Did you know that whatshisname designed the circuit and I was supposed to test it?
But he said "Alexander Pavel, leave it alone. "
"We've already tooled up for it on the assembly line. The circuit is OK."
That's what he said.
But I am a scientist.
I test it anyway on my own.
I like to mix things.
I like to see how things combine.
The circuit was OK...
until I started hitting the car when the left-turn signal was flashing.
Then...
Depth charge.
- It blew up? - It blew up.
The Meridian blew up?
Yeah.
You see, where there's an impact of metal on metal.
In this area, the devices are maybe 50-75cm apart.
If there's an arc in the flow of the circuit...
Yeah.
Just as it's penetrating the electrical fuel pump,
then the gas tank will blow up.
It's just a simple chain reaction.
So you're saying that, if the car is hit from the rear,
when the left-turn signal is functioning,
it just might blow up.
Correct.
If you are really interested in this, why don't you read my report?
And let's have a coffee.
The report...
When you filed this report, did you give a copy to Getchell?
- To the company. - May I see another copy?
No, the company has it, of course.
- The company has everything? - Yep.
Except my notes.
- You do have notes? - Of course.
- May I see those, please? - No.
No?
If you want my notes, you need to go to Iron Mountain.
Sugar?
Thank you.
Miller's left the office. You want me to try him at home?
No, no.
I think I should have died the day Nixon resigned.
Look at this. See? Look.
See this? This guy here.
How about I make you some dinner at my place?
No. Thank you, but...
I'm really not very hungry.
So...
Anyway, listen. I think I found something pretty interesting.
What's that?
A commendation letter from Flannery to Getchell.
Do you remember an Argo research guy, Alexander Pavel?
- Yeah. - Look at this.
Thank God.
I don't know. Maggie, we're talking about Argo Motors.
- They have guys who research everything. - Not everything.
A glitch that takes three or four things to happen simultaneously could slip by.
I get Getchell to come clean. We settle quietly out of court.
Argo Motors kisses my feet for avoiding a public scandal.
Maybe, maybe. Then again, maybe Pavel is a nut bar.
Maybe.
I grant you, these days, the guy is a couple of sandwiches short of a picnic.
But somebody was at home when that report was made.
Mr. Getchell is returning your call.
Oh, it's our good buddy from Argo!
- Dr. Getchell. - Miss Ward, how are you?
I'm fine, sir. How would you like to discuss Alexander Pavel?
Alexander Pavel is a senile old fool.
So you didn't take his advice on the blinker circuit?
I decided his test results were inconclusive
and informed Mr. Flannery, the chief executive officer at the time.
People were blown up, sir.
We changed that light in the next model year.
I suggest you get an attorney.
I've already talked to one.
It was right at the time the report came out. He said we had nothing to worry about.
What idiot told you that?
If I'm not mistaken, he's your boss.
Michael Grazier.
Miss Ward? Are you there?
What? What did he say?
Maggie?
It was a rough time. I was buried, working on 50 things at once.
It got lost in the shuffle.
You gave advice on something you hadn't reviewed.
I mistook it for another report.
Why didn't you tell somebody?
Well, Quinn had just made me liaison with Argo's in-house counselor.
That was a huge plum.
If I did it well, they were gonna give me all of Argo's litigation.
Not a good time to appear sloppy.
Now what?
We have to lose it.
I am not going to be a party to destroying evidence.
Maggie, Argo paid this firm a little over 8 million dollars in fees last year.
Do you want to jeopardize that?
We'd hurt ourselves and the client. It would compound the mistake.
- Michael, people were killed! - Yes, I know that.
It was a bad mistake, but it's done. Over. We have to move on.
I don't know.
What? What don't you know?
People make mistakes. Mea culpa.
But they don't want to trash their lives. Guilty as charged.
Sometimes you have to learn the hard way.
You know, you're not the only one that doesn't sleep at night.
OK. Tell me you don't make mistakes yourself.
Maggie.
Maggie, come on, please.
If you have any feelings for me, please.
Think about this for a while, huh?
Hey, come on.
Oh, Michael, no.
What?
You didn't give me this case to help my career.
You wanted to cover your ass.
If this ever came up, who better to keep your secret than someone you're sleeping with?
You asked me for this case.
You threw the bait down and waited for me to snap it up.
Maybe this isn't completely clear to you, Maggie. If I go down, so do you.
- I haven't done anything wrong. - You're about to.
You're gonna break rule no. 1, which is don't fuck your friends.
You turn on me, every lie here is gonna turn on you.
You'll be on the bricks faster than you can dream of.
When you try to tie into another firm, you'll be lucky to get hired as a messenger.
I guess that's a risk I have to take.
Look around you, Maggie.
I'm all you've got, anywhere.
Now, you do this, you are all alone.
Frederick, the way I see things...
The way you see things is what's gotten us in this position.
My father does want all of the information on Pavel.
We hand this over, we lose Argo and the case.
If we don't give full disclosure and we get caught,
we lose the confidence of all our other clients.
You're jeopardizing the biggest corporate play this firm has ever been involved with.
We're down to the wire here.
We cannot let this become even more of a disaster.
What do you want to do?
How long did Pavel work for Argo?
32 years.
You have to figure, an awful lot of paper would build up over that time.
Right.
So we bury it.
We send them everything. Every letter, every phone message, every scrap of paper.
Anything we can find, we'll send them the Library of Congress.
They just have to pull the files from the year the research was done.
- Things get misfiled. - You can't do that.
We can inventory the documents any way we like.
Come up with some arcane structure, bury it.
Bottom line, it is within the letter of the law.
- It'll work. - It had better, Michael. It had better.
Now, both of you, this matter is quarantined.
No one outside this room is to hear about it.
There is still the matter of Miss Ward.
What does that mean?
Well, it's obvious there are serious questions regarding her loyalty to this case.
I consider her an important and extremely loyal member of this team, Michael.
Are you going to have a problem with that?
No.
Good.
Can I see that, please?
There it is, page 23, third from the bottom.
I transposed the numbers, put it in project 2340.
Plausible deniability.
- Congratulations, they'll never find it. - That is the idea.
- Ah, the glamour of law! - Justice by avalanche.
Maggie, you're just defending your client.
- What about the victims? - They should have had a better lawyer.
- This entire box is from 1963. - This is a joke.
All of my labels are falling off.
Let's just keep digging. Maybe we'll find what we're looking for.
Hey, what's going on? We lose our lease?
No, this is a Father's Day gift, courtesy of Quinn Califan and Lunt.
- What's so funny? - Don't you get it?
We ask for one man's files. She sends us a paper blizzard.
- She's hiding something. - Yeah. Maybe.
- I ever tell you you're a terrific lawyer? - Yes.
I lied.
Find this guy Pavel. You know, the bunny man? I wanna talk to him.
The testing methodology was state of the art at the time and that's what we went by.
OK, George. We're through for the day.
You're still talking a little above the jury.
Not that that would be difficult.
Just keep it simple.
- I wish I'd never seen that damn report. - Makes two of us.
- May I ask a question, please? - Sure.
Why didn't you just change the blinker circuit?
It's just a question.
I told Flannery about the problem a month or so before he died.
- He called in his head bean counter. - What's that?
- Risk management expert, right? - Yeah.
Flannery shows him the data and asks him how much it would cost to retrofit...
- You mean recall? - Yeah, you got it.
To retrofit 175,000 units.
Multiply that times 300 bucks a car, give or take.
You're looking at around $50 million.
So the risk guy, he crunches the numbers some more.
He figures you'd have a fireball collision about every 3,000 cars.
That's 158 explosions.
Which is almost as many plaintiffs as there are.
These guys know their numbers.
So you multiply that times $200,000 per lawsuit.
That's assuming everybody sues and wins. 30 million max.
See? It's cheaper to deal with the lawsuits than it is to fix the blinker.
It's what the bean counters call a simple actuarial analysis.
Dad?
- Dad! - Miss Ward? What an honor.
You've come to admire your handiwork, I see.
- Is he here? - He's gone.
This wasn't my idea. I'm sorry.
I'm glad to hear that.
So.
You guys got anything stronger than herb tea to drink around here?
That bad?
I'm sorry. Deborah usually does this kind of thing.
- You mean she has another job? - Maggie! She's married.
That never stopped him before, Nick.
She's married to a woman named Cindy.
Really?
Really. He doesn't play around any more, or maybe you hadn't noticed.
- Nope. Maybe I didn't care. - Of course you care. The man owns you.
Everything you are, everything you do is based on driving him crazy.
- Well, thank you, Dr. Freud. - Like it takes a genius to spot it?
Jesus, Maggie! If he stands up, you sit down.
If he turns right, you turn left, even if you don't want to.
Your biggest aspiration is to be his mirror image.
Exactly the opposite of what he is, and the problem is you don't know what he is.
That makes being you impossible.
You give him too much credit, Nick.
I guess you always have.
And what the hell have you done?
You're probably gonna beat him, Maggie.
We both know that.
You got the staff and the money to grind us into the ground.
But even if he loses, he'll know he went down on the right side.
You'll have your big success.
Your partnership. And what else?
I got work to do.
What?
Oh, no. Oh, no!
- Of course, he denied everything. - There's not one single copy left?
- No. - Then, who's to say the notes ever existed?
Here! Good dog.
Go catch the ball.
It won't work, Mr. Quinn.
I can still testify. I can tell them the notes existed.
What then? Your testimony will be vitiated by Michael who has an impeccable record
and loyal friends in the legal community.
And you will have destroyed a very promising career.
I'd hate to see that happen.
What about Pavel?
My father will find him, call him up as a witness and he'll blow the cover.
I don't think so. We have a way of neutralizing him.
- How? - You.
I watched your deposition of Mr. Kellen.
You discredited him while making it seem like he was doing it to himself.
That takes talent.
The good doctor's a far more impeachable witness. He shouldn't be a problem.
At least, I hope it's you. The jury accepts this kind of thing much better if a woman does it.
But even if it's not, you can be certain the good doctor will be dispatched by someone.
It's going to happen.
This is really the way you want it?
It's the way it is.
Bottom line, Michael Grazier's put us in an extraordinarily difficult position.
When it's over, he's going to pay for it.
But that needn't concern you.
You're gonna be far too busy...
as the youngest partner in the history of this firm.
- Margaret! - Yeah?
- Margaret, are you here? - Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Nick said you came by the office the other night. Did you...
- Yeah. - I guess we just missed each other.
How did you get in?
I used your mother's key.
I tried calling you but your phone's been disconnected.
Come in.
I didn't want to use it but I...
I got worried. I thought something had happened to you.
Your mom was mad at me when she died and I...
Don't worry. I'm not going out any windows.
I just wanted to say that I was sorry and I'm wrong. I was dead wrong.
I got real defensive.
I started... I was acting like a clown. I was bullying people. You...
Dad, you don't have to do this.
Wait, I'm not finished yet. I...
I guess I'm finished.
Would you sit down?
Yeah.
You can just toss that.
Dad. I wish Mom were here.
I wish I could call her and talk to her.
And yet I know exactly what she'd tell me.
And I was going to call you. I was.
I wanted to. But I didn't know how.
I'm so used to being angry with you that anything else just doesn't feel right.
It felt kind of awkward.
I'm sorry I spent my whole life being angry with you.
It's been a constructive anger. I've gotten a lot done, somehow.
You were also my scapegoat. If anything went wrong, I blamed it on you.
Anything. I could fail a test and somehow it was your fault.
Now I look at things as they are and I realize I need a new approach.
I don't have the slightest idea where to begin.
I don't know.
I get up and pray to God I can get through the day without somebody catching on.
In-between, it's just all smoke and mirrors.
I always thought I was doing the right thing but maybe I was wrong. I don't know.
I think that's the first time I ever heard you say that.
I guess I should work on that, shouldn't I?
Come in.
Hi.
- These are for you. - Fine.
Nothing terribly important. Interrogatories, depo summaries, witness lists.
Just leave it.
Michael, you were right.
I would make a lousy messenger.
I'm listening.
I saw my father last night.
We talked about a lot of things. Even got some of them straightened out.
Afterwards I did some thinking and I realized...
I realized it had been a long time since I'd done any thinking. It felt good.
Somebody once told me an emotional lawyer is a bad lawyer.
- I've been a pretty bad lawyer lately. - No argument.
I've come very close to blowing everything around here for everyone, including myself.
So, what do you say?
You forgive me, I'll forgive you.
Or I'll forgive you, you forgive me. Please.
Tell me what you know about Pavel.
He doesn't have a chance.
Right.
Dr. Pavel.
Let's talk about the Meridian blinker circuit.
In your capacity as research scientist at Argo, did you have occasion to test it?
Yes, sir, I did.
- Did you have any problems with it? - Did we have problems?
That circuit is garbage. It blew up the gas tank.
I said so in the report to Mr. Getchell.
It was his big invention.
Big deal, Mr. Getchell.
So I gave him the report, and after that, I don't know.
You were certain, and still are, that this circuit should not have gone into that car?
Objection! Calls for conclusion.
Your Honor, his job at Argo was reaching conclusions just like this.
Overruled.
Should this circuit have gone into the Meridian?
Yes, if you want to kill people.
- No further questions. - Your witness, Miss Ward.
Your Honor, does plaintiff's counsel intend to introduce this alleged report?
- Mr. Ward? - No.
So the only evidence of its existence is testimony, such as that of Dr. Pavel?
Yes, just testimony.
Dr. Pavel, in all of your years at Argo, you must have worked on hundreds of projects.
Oh, yes. Hundreds.
Could you tell me about some of your favorites?
Objection. Dr. Pavel's former research has no relevance here.
Overruled.
Please answer, Doctor.
There were lots.
The Atlas, that was a terrific car.
Motorcycle Python.
The Python. Doctor, did it have circuit problems?
No, but I worked on different motorcycles. Maybe some of the others...
Perhaps like the A100. Do you remember a defective gasket on that one?
A100?
No.
What about CA3200? According to reports, an axle had to be replaced.
Yes, yes. That was a wonderful motorcycle.
That was the first time we put that linkage in a two-wheeled vehicle.
The CA3200 was a pickup truck, Doctor.
Objection. Your Honor, she's testifying for the witness.
Sustained.
Doctor, what is 2762396?
Objection! This is not a math test.
It goes to the quality of his memory.
Overruled. I think, without the report, the doctor's memory is relevant.
I'm going to allow this line of questioning.
I'm not so good with numbers any more. Could you please repeat it?
Absolutely. 2762396.
- Isn't that your phone number, sir? - Objection!
- Overruled. - How about 94536?
- Objection. - Overruled. Sit down, Mr. Ward.
Your zip code, sir. 123019?
Isn't that your birthday, sir?
- And 0243? - Objection, Your Honor.
- All right, Miss Ward. - Isn't that the Meridian?
Miss Ward!
- Your Honor... - No further questions.
I'd like that last remark struck from the record.
Strike the last answer.
- Miss Ward, I don't want to warn you again. - Beautiful.
You may step down, Doctor.
Not good with numbers any more.
That's not a crime, is it?
I still remember the most important things.
Next witness, Mr. Ward.
Your Honor, plaintiff calls Michael Grazier.
What? Objection! This is unsupportable!
Your Honor, I need him on the witness stand.
- It's outrageous! - Hold on.
I want you all in my chambers now. Recess.
I don't care. I need him on the stand.
Come on, Jed. You listen to me!
Go and turn some other courtroom into a circus with your half-ass stunts.
Come on, Fred. If it's a stunt, if I'm a joke, let me prove it.
The jury came out on that one a long time ago.
- Wait a minute... - Hold it!
Just sit down. Look, people.
Listening to you spit on each other is entertaining as hell.
But I gotta move this thing along.
- Jed, what the hell are you doing? - I have to have him on the stand.
It's critical to show Argo's state of mind when they built that car.
- He can't do this without prior notice. - He can. It's within your discretion, Judge.
He's trying to save face in front of his clients, so they think he has something.
There's no offer of proof here.
You're asking for a leap of faith here, Jed.
Can you give me one reason why I should?
The worst thing that can happen is that I am wrong.
If I am, you're gonna make it very ugly for me.
I would think the thought of that would be irresistible to you.
Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you God?
- I do. - Be seated and state your name.
Michael McKinley Grazier.
Mr. Grazier, I understand you are in charge of legal affairs for Argo
in the firm of Quinn Califan and Lunt.
I'm the chief legal liaison between Argo and my firm.
If somebody asks for a safety report on Argo, someone like me, for instance,
you would get it and you would turn it over to them. Right?
Right.
All of them. Every single one.
Mr. Ward, you have all the safety research in existence.
You mean there might be a report that is no longer in existence?
There might be eight-legged mice on Venus. That's another question I can't answer.
Very easy for you to make jokes. You have both your arms and legs.
- Objection! Argumentative. - Sustained.
Opposing counsel's not suggested anything that justifies keeping Mr. Grazier on the stand.
- Isn't it time to move on? - I'm leaning in that direction.
Please get to the point.
Mr. Grazier, do you know of the existence, now or in the past,
of a report calling into question the safety of the Meridian model?
I can't testify on some hypothetical report.
It wasn't hypothetical to Dr. Pavel. He wrote it.
- So he says. - So he says under oath.
Do you understand, sir, that you are testifying under oath?
- Yes, I do. - And that perjury is grounds for disbarment?
Mr. Ward, I find that objectionable. I do know the law.
So do I. You're using semantics when all you have to do is answer a question.
- Did you see that report? Yes or no? - Objection! The question has been answered.
- It's been asked and has not been answered. - Overruled.
Yes or no? I think you're being evasive!
I'm not. I'm answering the questions you're asking.
The hell you are! You know that, I know that, the jury knows that.
- Mr. Ward... - Everybody in this courtroom knows it.
- Mr. Ward, sit down. - That son of bitch is getting to the jury.
No. He's only bluffing. He did the same thing in Wrangell v Kincaid.
- I can handle this. - Then do it.
Miss Ward?
Mr. Grazier, Mr. Ward has been thundering on for quite some time now.
It occurs to me that, with all his fire and brimstone, he might have confused the issue.
I'd like to ask you a simple question, straight out.
Have you any knowledge of a report calling any version of the Meridian unsafe?
No.
Have you ever seen one, read one or heard of one?
No.
No further questions.
Members of the jury, what you've seen here is a little unusual.
Mr. Grazier's presence on the stand should not influence you to find for or against his client.
You may step down.
Your Honor, plaintiff calls Anthony Patricola.
- Who the hell is Anthony Patricola? - I've never heard of him.
His name was there. You must have missed it.
I'm sure I gave it to you, along with a bunch of other papers.
Looked like the goddamn Library of Congress.
Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?
- I do. - Be seated and state your name.
Anthony Patricola.
What do you do for a living, Mr. Patricola?
I am the chief accountant in the risk management division of Argo Motors.
Are you what is affectionately called a "bean counter"?
Yes, sir.
- Are you the head bean counter? - Yes, sir.
- So you see a lot of reports in your job? - Yes.
- You take these reports and make... - Bitch.
You gave him Patricola.
I'm sorry, Michael. I guess it's in the genes.
...a defective part.
You make a decision whether to replace that part in a recall
or suffer the consequences of a lawsuit, whichever's cheaper.
Is that correct?
I don't make the decisions, I just analyze the reports.
Reports, yes. Let's talk about them.
Do you recall one questioning the safety of the 1985 Meridian model?
Yes.
- Your Honor... - Mr. Quinn?
May we approach? Defense requests a conference in chambers.
- And, Your Honor... - Yes?
Lead counsel only.
All right, Fred. What's on your mind?
Your Honor, there's been an appalling conspiracy.
One that has compromised our case. I demand a mistrial.
- Unbelievable. - Let's hear it.
Miss Ward's turned over privileged information to her father.
And he's accepted it, in flagrant violation of every principle of legal ethics I know.
- Which one would that be, Fred? - Enough, Jed. This isn't a joke.
The joke is you're being asked to consider legal ethics argument
from the boss of Michael Grazier.
Michael Grazier no longer works for Quinn Califan. He's a closed issue.
- Ballast off a sinking ship. - Listen to me, you son of a bitch!
- I'll have the state bar discipline you. - Do it! Please, do it.
Your daughter will be thrown out of the profession.
Miss Ward discovered that Michael Grazier had destroyed Dr. Pavel's report.
I'm entitled to that evidence. That proved my case.
She couldn't give it to me so she told me about a corroborating witness.
That's not only ethical, legal, but imperative.
By the way, you so much as look in my daughter's direction,
they won't be able to identity you with dental records.
Fred, if what he says is true,
your firm has violated at least three sections of the state bar act.
- Listen, in the best interests of your client... - But, Your Honor...
...and what remains of your reputation,
I think you ought to end this thing as quickly and as quietly as possible.
OK.
I'm going to have to clear this with Argo but...
what's it going to take?
Your Honor, I was looking forward to trying this.
- 30 million. - I think I've got a good chance of winning.
Come on, Jed. Some of your clients weren't even hurt that bad.
50 million dollars.
Dammit, Jed! What's it going to take?
Bottom line, Fred?
You can't count that high.
- Alexander Pavel. - Here's to Mr. Minh's fishing fleet.
Here's to 100 million dollars.
PT Barnum. Father of us all.
Cheers!
- Jed. - Maggie.
- Hi. - So how'd it go?
- It worked. - Good. Good, good.
- Hi, darling. - Thank you, Maggie.
Counselor. I can still call you that, right?
Yeah.
You did good, Maggie.
- What? - It's just you two, together.
I was beginning to think parenthood wasn't such a good idea, but you give me hope.
Dad,
thank you.
- Hey, you did it. - No. Thank you.
You know, I never told you but...
when your mom told me that she was pregnant and we were having you,
I went out and got roaringly drunk.
I prayed fervently there had been a mistake at the lab.
Even in those days, you didn't listen to me.
Then you were in my arms and I looked down at those little crossed eyes,
and I knew you were gonna break my heart.
And you did.
But you gave me back your mom in your hands and your face...
- Dad... - Yeah?
I love you too.
I promised Mom once...
that we would dance.
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