PRACTICE, THE: BABY LOVE / GOODBYE {SEVENTH SEASON FINALE} (TV)

Summary

The seventh season finale in this series of dramas about the idealistic attorneys at a struggling Boston law practice. In this two-part episode, the other lawyers are shocked to hear that Lindsay and Bobby intend to go through with their quickie divorce, and Eugene and Jamie's heavily pregnant client Carrie Nielsen, charged with murdering her abusive husband, requests to go through with the trial immediately before giving birth. With Lindsay distracted by the divorce proceedings, Claire eagerly helps Jimmy with his civil case, that of a young girl, Virginia Carter, paralyzed by a fall from a balcony in a public housing unit. Jamie tries to argue that Carrie's use of six gunshots is proof of her fear and shock, not her intent, while back at the office Ellenor pleads with Bobby to at least consider couples' counseling for the sake of his son. Jamie confides to Claire that she wishes to ask Eugene out on a date, and Sarah points out to Bobby that his actions, not just Lindsay's, prompted the divorce decision. During the deposition, the opposing counsel argues that Virginia's mother Naomi had years to notice that the balcony's railing was damaged, as she claims, and Jimmy, agreeing that they have little proof of neglect on the building owner's part, suggests settling for perhaps $50,000.

Carrie's neighbor Alex Gaul testifies to hearing the couple's violent fights, though seems unsure if he heard a conflict right before the fatal gunshots, and when Ellenor appeals to Lindsay, Lindsay explains that she feels emotionally "deadened" by Bobby and needs to leave him in order to be a good mother. Eugene is flustered when Jamie suddenly asks him to dinner, and Jimmy, worried that Claire has gotten Naomi's hopes up too high, gently urges her to "deal with her zeal." In court, Carrie takes the stand and explains how her husband descended into alcoholism and began beating her, particularly when she became pregnant with a child he didn't want, and states that she shot him to protect the unborn baby — but prosecutor Kupcheck argues that she killed him for financial reasons and, having had an abortion before, couldn't really have considered the fetus to be a "baby" yet. Claire tries to persuade Naomi to accept the settlement, as a trial could take years, but then has a brainwave about the building's Department of Housing and Urban Development loans.

Eugene orders Jamie to rewrite the jury instructions and suggests that she asked him out for "currency" in their working relationship, but she retorts that she simply "likes him." Claire works late into the night on the Carter case and then, when the attorney offers a measly $20,000 settlement, reveals that the building company actually received $4 million from HUD that was apparently not used on necessary remodels, like the broken railing, and informs him that they will be audited to root out any fraud. In his closing arguments, Kupcheck insists that Carrie murdered her unarmed husband intentionally, but Eugene points out that, had the husband killed the unborn fetus with his abuse, he would have been prosecuted for murder. Carrie goes into labor just as deliberations begin, and Jimmy, now confident of a bigger settlement, praises Claire's "zeal" in uncovering the HUD loans. Carrie is acquitted and Eugene accepts Jamie's dinner invitation — but when they visit the hospital, they find that Carrie's newborn son is definitely not her husband's, but in fact her neighbor Alex's child, throwing her her entire motivation into question.

Later, Jimmy and Rebecca urge client Tom Bartos to accept an eight-year sentence for the unconfirmed murder of his sister-in-law, though he firmly refuses. Bobby shocks the other employees by announcing his immediate resignation and appointment of Eugene as senior partner, saying only that he has "hit a wall" professionally. A.D.A. Walsh argues that Tom killed Rachel Rosenbloom as revenge for her murder of his brother, for which she had just been convicted, but Jimmy points out that her body has never been found and suggests that she could have staged the very bloody crime scene and then run off to evade prison. On their date, Jamie tries to convince Eugene to see the "silver linings" in his friend and business partner's sudden decision, and Bobby assures Rebecca that his departure is "not personal," though Lindsay then accuses him of trying to dodge alimony.

Tom's fate looks grim as witnesses testify to seeing him at Rachel's home right before her disappearance and then leaving the state with "a large duffel bag" — but he then stuns his attorneys by admitting that he helped Rachel, his lover, fake her death and disappear after she killed his abusive brother, adding that she then left him months later, after which he married his wife, Marcie. Back at the office, Eugene and Ellenor vote to make Jimmy a full partner in Bobby's absence — and to invite Lindsay back, which angers both Rebecca and Bobby. Startled, Lindsay agrees to consider it if Claire is also allowed to join them. On the stand, Tom explains how Rachel drew her own blood and even yanked out a tooth to fake the murder scene, then spending eight months on the lam with him before losing faith in their hidden life and leaving. Incredulous, Walsh points out that he has zero evidence of any affair or elaborately faked murder.

Marcie begs Tom to give up any information of Rachel's whereabouts to clear his name, and Lindsay apologizes to Bobby, assuring him that he "is" the practice. Jamie, observing Eugene's deep sense of betrayal, tries to convince him that he can maintain an outside-of-work relationship with Bobby, as he is now managing to do with her. Tom vows to protect Rachel from her prison sentence at all costs, despite sharing a child with Marcie, and Bobby finally tries to explain things to his best friends, recalling his father's career at a white-shoe law firm. Eugene hugs him goodbye, now able to let go of his resentment. Later, an indignant Walsh receives a bottle with Rachel's fresh fingerprints on it, confirming that she is alive and forcing him to drop the murder charges against Tom — but Rebecca reveals that she sent in the bottle after collecting it from Marcie, who is actually a thoroughly made-over Rachel. A stunned Jimmy warns Tom that he likely still faces obstruction charges, and Rebecca coldly reminds him that his wife "kills husbands." Bobby agrees to share a farewell drink with Lindsay, and he recalls the early days of the firm's ups and downs as he departs for the last time. Includes commercials and promos.

Details

• NETWORK: ABC
• DATE: May 5, 2003 9:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 1:56:02
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: B:77530
• GENRE: Drama, legal
• SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, legal; Divorce; Murder; Friendship; Romance
• SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1997-2004
• COMMERCIALS:
  • TV - Commercials - "Bruce Almighty" motion picture
  • TV - Commercials - "Down With Love" motion picture
  • TV - Commercials - "Finding Nemo" motion picture
  • TV - Commercials - "The In-Laws" motion picture
  • TV - Commercials - "The Matrix Reloaded" motion picture
  • TV - Commercials - 1-800-FED INFO consumer hotline
  • TV - Commercials - Ambien sleep aid
  • TV - Commercials - Applebee's restaurants
  • TV - Commercials - Bausch & Lomb Multi-Focals contact lenses
  • TV - Commercials - Caress body wash
  • TV - Commercials - Clarinex allergy medication
  • TV - Commercials - DeBeers diamonds
  • TV - Commercials - Dove deodorant
  • TV - Commercials - Dove soaps
  • TV - Commercials - Equal sweetener
  • TV - Commercials - Ford automobiles
  • TV - Commercials - GM automobiles
  • TV - Commercials - General Mills Berry Burst Cheerios cereal
  • TV - Commercials - Gillette Venus razors
  • TV - Commercials - Glade plug-in air fresheners
  • TV - Commercials - Goodyear tires
  • TV - Commercials - Hummer automobiles
  • TV - Commercials - Intel computer processors
  • TV - Commercials - L'Oréal Excellence Creme hair color
  • TV - Commercials - Lexus automobiles
  • TV - Commercials - Lincoln automobiles
  • TV - Commercials - Lipitor heart medication
  • TV - Commercials - Lowe's stores
  • TV - Commercials - Mars M&M's candies
  • TV - Commercials - McDonald's restaurants
  • TV - Commercials - MetLife insurance
  • TV - Commercials - Nexium heartburn medication
  • TV - Commercials - Nokia smartphones
  • TV - Commercials - Olay Regenerist facial serum
  • TV - Commercials - Oust air sanitizer
  • TV - Commercials - PUR water filters
  • TV - Commercials - Philips DuraMax light bulbs
  • TV - Commercials - Sears appliances
  • TV - Commercials - Sherwin-Williams house paint
  • TV - Commercials - Subway restaurants
  • TV - Commercials - T-Mobile cellular services
  • TV - Commercials - Target stores
  • TV - Commercials - Tylenol Arthritis pain reliever
  • TV - Commercials - Verizon Wireless cellular services
  • TV - Commercials - Volkswagon Beetle automobile
  • TV - Commercials - Whirlpool washing machines
  • TV - Promos - "8 Simple Rules ... For Dating My Teenage Daughter"
  • TV - Promos - "20/20"
  • TV - Promos - "According to Jim"
  • TV - Promos - "Dragnet"
  • TV - Promos - "George Lopez"
  • TV - Promos - "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
  • TV - Promos - "Less Than Perfect"
  • TV - Promos - "My Wife & Kids"
  • TV - Promos - "NYPD Blue"
  • TV - Promos - "Primetime"
  • TV - Promos - "The Bachelor"
  • TV - Promos - "The Diary of Ellen Rimbauer"
  • TV - Promos - "The Green Mile"
  • TV - Promos - ABC 50th Anniversary Special

CREDITS

• Robert Breech … Executive Producer
• David E. Kelley … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
• Christina M. Musrey … Supervising Producer
• Janet Knutsen McCann … Producer
• Pamela Wisne … Producer
• Joseph Berger-Davis … Producer
• Lukas Reiter … Producer
• Jonathan Shapiro … Producer
• Steven Lang … Co-Producer
• Tammy Ann Casper … Co-Producer
• Marco Beltrami … Music by
• Jon Hassell … Theme Music by
• Pete Scaturro … Theme Music by
• Dylan McDermott … Cast, Bobby Donnell
• Michael Badalucco … Cast, Jimmy Berluti
• Jessica Capshaw … Cast, Jamie Stringer
• Lisa Gay Hamilton … Cast, Rebecca Washington
• Steve Harris … Cast, Eugene Young
• Chyler Leigh … Cast, Claire Wyatt
• Camryn Manheim … Cast, Ellenor Frutt
• Marla Sokoloff … Cast, Lucy Hatcher
• Kelli Williams … Cast, Lindsay Dole
• Lara Flynn Boyle … Cast, Helen Gamble
• For "Baby Love":
• Jeannot Szwarc … Director
• Bill Chais … Writer
• Steven Culp … Cast, Attorney Emmanuel Kupcheck
• Ray Abruzzo … Cast, Detective Michael McGuire
• Shea Farrell … Cast, Foreman
• Brenda James … Cast, Carrie Nielsen
• Dohn Norwood … Cast, Alex Gaul
• Sarah Paalman … Cast, Nurse
• Lisa Renee Pitts … Cast, Naomi Carter
• Teri Polo … Cast, Sarah Barker
• Don Sparks … Cast, Attorney Charles Sloan
• Chelsea Tavares … Cast, Virginia Carter
• Holland Taylor … Cast, Judge Roberta Kittleson
• Patrice Walters … Cast, Dr. Steinberg
• For "Goodbye":
• Michael Zinberg … Director
• Peter Blake … Writer
• Bill Smitrovich … Cast, A.D.A. Kenneth Walsh
• Loanne Bishop … Cast, Christina Wayne
• Billy Campbell … Cast, Tom Bartos
• Aynsley Lemon … Cast, Deborah Bartos
• Keith MacKechnie … Cast, Neil Woolrich
• Melinda McGraw … Cast, Marcie Bartos
• Lawrence O'Donnell Jr. … Cast, Judge Franklin Brown
• Yomi Perry … Cast, Nanny Anna
• Mik Scriba … Cast, Detective Simons