Back in the late 1950s and 1960s, my parents would watch Perry Mason on CBS and I joined them. Half the time I was confused by the plots–I was 10 years old–but I quickly grasped that Perry Mason never lost a case–and he would figure out whodunit. Later, as a teenager, I entertained the notion of becoming a lawyer. But I changed my mind when I took a college class in Constitutional Law–yawn!
Over the years, I’ve read a number of mysteries featuring lawyers. I like John Grisham’s books. I enjoyed Michael Connelly’s early Lincoln Lawyer mysteries. William Bernhardt’s Legal Briefs (1998) presents 11 short stories featuring lawyers.
My favorite story in Legal Briefs is William Bernhardt’s “What We’re Here For.” Bernhardt’s lawyer is in the midst of a trial where he’s losing. His client, a former model, has been in an automobile accident and sustained life-changing injuries to her face. She can’t go back to being a model with her face so messed up. At the same time, the couple in the car that struck his client seem to be hiding something. That Something swings the case in a surprising direction.
I was also moved by John Grisham’s “The Birthday” with its short but moving message.
If you like legal mysteries, here’s an anthology full of courtroom dramatics and clever lawyers. GRADE: B
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Introduction / William Bernhardt — vii
The divorce / Grif Stockley — 1
Poetic justice / Steve Martini — 47
Stairwell justice / Jay Brandon — 75
The client / Richard North Patterson — 95
What we’re here for / William Bernhardt — 115
Cook County redemption / Michael A. Kahn — 147
The Jailhouse lawyer / Phillip M. Margolin — 179
Voir dire / Jeremiah Healy — 195
The birthday / John Grisham — 231
Roads / Philip Friedman — 237
Carrying concealed / Lisa Scottoline — 257
About the Authors — 285
Acknowledgements — 291
Not sure this is my cup of tea, but John and I did just finish watching the entire first run of Perry Mason. It took us several years because of life (and baseball, lol) reducing available viewing time. The plots were occasionally convoluted, but whoever did the production design and decor on that show was dead-on in being able to portray the class and circumstances of a character through things as minor as the art on the walls or if there was a tv in the living room. Great stuff!
Deb, I grew up watching PERRY MASON with my parents who were big fans of Raymond Burr. It won’t surprise you to learn I had a crush on Della Street (soon to be replaced by Emma Peel).
I’m not particularly a fan of legal mysteries as a genre, but I do like Michael Connelly’s Lincoln Lawyer novels. Connelly published three novels across his different series this year!
Fred, I noticed Michael Connelly’s prolific 2025, too! He’s challenging Patterson!
I read this collection years ago. I’ve read books by several of the authors – Bernhardt himself, who was a favorite of my mother’s; Grif Stockley, whose books were set in Arkansas and very enjoyable; Jay Brandon, who I believe is from Texas; Healy, Scottoline and Patterson.
Of course, my favorites include the Perry Masons and John Mortimer’s Rumpole of the Bailey.
Jeff, I have all the PERRY MASON novels, but I’m only about half-way through reading them. I have read all of John Mortimer’s RUMPOLE OF THE BAILEY books! Marvelous!
Oops, of course I’ve read Grisham too.
Jeff, I’ve enjoyed all the Grisham books I’ve read, too.
I watch Perry Mason reruns almost every night on MeTV! The casting was brilliant, and the stories mostly well done! And, yes, Della was a delight!
Bob, those PERRY MASONs from the late 1950s to early 1960s are very watchable. As you note, the cast was brilliant and the stories hold up.
Lisa Scottoline is my pick among the assembled writers, and note she’s batting cleanup in this book, which has gotten past me till now. Kate Wilhelm’s Barbara Holloway series of legal crime-fiction novels, not least the first, DEATH QUALIFIED, which is in part fantastica as well, (I’m definitely a Mortimer fan, as well. Perry Mason, a favorite TV series of my mother’s, didn’t engage me more than mildly as a kid, probably not helped by how many inane insults my duller elementary-schoolmates would try to fashion out of our shared name…haven’t read the novels, nor looked at the TV series for some decades. Did like the theme music.
Todd, I have a stack of Kate Wilhelm’s legal mysteries. I hope to get to them in 2026!