Main

• Manuel Garcia-Rulfo as Mickey Haller, a criminal-defense lawyer and recovering addict.
  • Adan James Carillo as young Mickey Haller (season 1)
  • Gabriel Negret as young Mickey Haller (season 2)
• Neve Campbell as Maggie McPherson, Mickey's first ex-wife and a criminal prosecutor.^[4]
• Becki Newton as Lorna Crane, Mickey's second ex-wife and his legal aide.
• Jazz Raycole as Izzy Letts, a former addict and client of Mickey in an assault and theft case and now working as his personal driver to pay off her legal fee to Mickey.
• Angus Sampson as Dennis "Cisco" Wojciechowski, Mickey's friend and go-to investigator and Lorna's fiancé.
• Christopher Gorham as Trevor Elliott, a billionaire video game developer suspected of a double murder (season 1)

Recurring

• Ntare Mwine as Detective Raymond Griggs, a detective investigating Jerry Vincent's murder case
• LisaGay Hamilton as Judge Mary Holder, the Chief Judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court (season 1)
• Jamie McShane as Detective Lee Lankford, a detective investigating Angelo Soto with Maggie (season 1)
• Reggie Lee as Angelo Soto, a business owner suspected of utilizing slave labor; currently being prosecuted by Maggie (season 1)
• Carlos Bernard as Robert Cardone, a District Attorney running for re-election (season 1)
• Kim Hawthorne as Janelle Simmons, also running for District Attorney (season 1)
• Michael Graziadei as Jeff Golantz, Deputy District Attorney and prosecutor in the Trevor Elliott trial (season 1)
• Krista Warner as Hayley Haller, Mickey and Maggie's daughter
• Lamont Thompson as Judge James P. Stanton, the judge presiding over the Trevor Elliott trial (season 1)
• Saul Huezo as Jésus Menendez, an old client of Mickey's, whom Mickey encouraged to plead guilty despite believing he was innocent
• Katrina Rosita as Tanya Cruz, Soto's girlfriend (season 1)
• Heather Mazur as Carol Dubois, an insurance agent who had an affair with Jan Rilz (season 1)
• Mikal Vega as Eli Wyms, a former marine and client of Jerry Vincent (season 1)
• Mike McColl as Glenn McSweeney, Juror Number Seven (season 1)
• Chris Browning as Teddy Vogel, leader of the Road Saints Motorcycle Club
• Lana Parrilla as Lisa Trammell, a chef accused of murdering a real estate developer (season 2)
• Yaya DaCosta as Andrea "Andy" Freemann, a formidable criminal prosecutor in Trammell's case (season 2)
• Matt Angel as Henry Dahl, a true crime podcaster covering Trammell's case (season 2)
• Angélica María as Elena, Mickey's mother, an actress (season 2)
  • Andrea Savo as young Elena (season 1)
  • Ilean Almaguer as young Elena (season 2)
• Douglas Bennett as Pete "Kaz" Kazinski, a member of the Road Saints Motorcycle Club (season 2)
• Marlene Forte as Judge Teresa Medina, the judge presiding over the cases of Kymberly Wagstaff, Eli Wyms, and Lisa Trammell
• Elliott Gould as David "Legal" Siegel, Mickey's mentor and a friend of his father, a retired lawyer
  • Brion Bronson as young David "Legal" Siegel

Guest

• Christine Horn as Joanne Giorgetti, Deputy District Attorney and prosecutor in Eli Wyms' case, also Hayley's soccer coach
• Jeff Francisco as Alvin Aquino, a parolee affiliated with Angelo Soto
• Paul Rae as Bruce Carlin, Jerry Vincent's investigator
• Paul Urcioli as Jerry Vincent, a defense lawyer whose practice Mickey inherits
• Jordyn Chang as Charlotte Yeoh, Trevor Elliott's receptionist
• Shwayze as Terrell Coleman, a client of Jerry Vincent who Mickey sympathizes with
• Mageina Tovah as Wren Williams, Jerry Vincent's receptionist
• Kadeem Hardison as Detective Kinder, a detective investigating the murders of Trevor's wife and her lover
• Katy Erin as Lara Elliott, Trevor's wife, who he is accused of murdering
• Johann Urb as Jan Rilz, Lara's yoga instructor, with whom she had an affair
• Puja Mohindra as Sonia Patel, a friend and former coworker of Lara
• Jonathan Avigdori as Anton Shavar, a man running a private security firm whose ex-wife also had an affair with Jan Rilz
• Camilla Arfwedson as Gwen, a poker player acquainted with Mickey
• Darrell Dennis as Detective Kyle Winters, the detective in Jésus Menendez's case, a former protege of Detective Lee Lankford
• Ramona DuBarry as Detective Linda Perez, an associate of Lankford and Winters who formerly worked as vice
• Amelia Brantley as Cherry, a prostitute and associate of Gloria Dayton who also works as an informant for Mickey
• Anthony A. Kung as David Loresca, an informant for Maggie in her case against Soto
• Chris Gehrt as Michael Connelly, a reporter who wrote stories of Mickey's father. Connelly is the writer of the books upon which the series is based and worked as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times before becoming a full-time writer.
• Jon Tenney as Mickey Haller, Sr, Mickey's father
• Fiona Rene as Gloria Dayton, a prostitute and the key witness for Jésus Menendez's case
• Christopher Thornton as Sam Scales, a fraudster and client of Jerry Vincent
• Anna Khaja as Dr. Miriam Arslanian, a forensic expert and witness in the Trevor Elliott trial
• John Cothran as Judge Wallace Canter, the judge presiding over Izzy Letts' case
• Meera Rohit Kumbhani as Sarah Shepard, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Izzy Letts
• Turhan Troy Caylak as Robert Holt, a witness against Izzy Letts
• Bernie Kopell as Marvin Beedleman, a jeweler who is friendly with Mickey
• Justene Alpert as Krisha Gold, a coworker of Jan Rilz
• Julie Ariola as Judge Winifred Champagne, the judge presiding over Terrell Coleman's case
• Eugene Kim as Ernest Choi, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Terrell Coleman
• Paloma Esparza Rabinov as Kymberly Wagstaff, a repeat client of Mickey
• Megan McNulty as Gina Russo, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Kymberly Wagstaff
• Paul McKinney as Tony Walsh, a defense attorney friendly with Mickey
• Christopher Amitrano as Dennis Byrne, a mechanic for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department
• Melvin Diggs as Deputy Murray, a sheriff's deputy who initially investigated Lara and Jan's murders
• Andy Fong as Judge Frank Oh, the judge presiding over assigning bail to Angelo Soto
• Gabriel Burrafato as Mike Pomerantz, Angelo Soto's lawyer
• Michael Cory Davis as Ernie Quienero, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Sam Scales
• Matt Orduna as Officer Alfaro, an LAPD officer
• Bryan Michael Nunez as Officer Doby, Officer Alfaro's partner
• Jill Johnson as Debbie, a citizen of LA
• Melanie Benz as Neema Shavar, Anton Shavar's ex-wife
• Olivia Baptista as Nichelle Moreno, a jury consultant employed by the district attorney's office
• Chau Long as Ryan Lee, a former classmate of Lorna from law school
• Chuck McCollum as Phillip, an employee of the restaurant owned by Judge Stanton's husband
• Makeli Leonard as Misha, a player on Hayley's soccer team
• Alex Lewis as Eric Loomis, a forensic technician for the LAPD
• Jeremiah Caleb as Raj Chowdhury, a client of Gloria Dayton
• Rudy Martinez as Julio Muniz, a videographer who recorded the arrests of Trevor Elliott and Eli Wyms
• Gregory Gast as David Shapiro, Anton Shavar's lawyer
• Bruce Davison as Judge Walter Abrams, the judge presiding over Jésus Menendez's case
• Emerson Brooks as Ben Miller, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Jésus Menendez
• Matt Kirkwood as Dan Daly, Linda Perez's lawyer. Daly is actually a real-life lawyer who went to college with Michael Connelly
• Harry Zinn as Judge Christopher Eagan, the judge presiding over Angelo Soto's case
• Carolyn Ratteray as Sarah Walker, an assistant United States attorney friendly with Maggie McPherson
• Clint Carmichael as Mitchell Bondurant, a real estate developer who Lisa Trammell is accused of murdering
• David Clayton Rogers as Russell Lawson, a new client of Mickey, accused of burglary
• Sachie Alessio as Beth Sauber, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Russell Lawson
• Richard Kuller as Judge Mortimer Lyons, the judge presiding over Russell Lawson's case
• Paul Lincoln Alayo as Luis Castillo, former roommate of Jésus Menendez
• Jason Matthew Smith as Harold "Hard Case" Casey, a member of the Road Saints Motorcycle Club
• Brian McGovern as Dean Wheaton, the interim dean at Lorna's law school, formerly a professor who taught one of her classes
• Darien Sills-Evans as Detective Howard O'Brien, the detective investigating Mitchell Bondurant's murder
• Andrew Hawtrey as Officer Crimmins, a desk sergeant for the LAPD
• Shelby Lee Parks as Rae, Izzy's ex-girlfriend and business partner, also a former drug addict
• Joanne Baron as Margo Schafer, a witness against Lisa Trammell
• Anais Lee as Angelica Coleman, Terrell Coleman's daughter
• Carolyn Mignini as Judge Sandy Lockett, the judge presiding over Angelica Coleman's case
• Brian Dare as Ernest Moore, a deputy district attorney prosecuting Angelica Coleman
• Amy Davidson as Karen Foster, a witness against Angelica Coleman
• Keong Sim as Walter Kim, a building inspector who worked for Mitchell Bondurant
• Robert Horry as himself
• Tiffany C. Adams as Detective Ginny Long, Detective O'Brien's partner, also investigating Mitchell Bondurant's murder
• Elizabeth Anweis as Hannah Gates, a forensic technician for the LAPD
• Conroe Brooks as Hansen, an ATF SWAT leader in the LAPD
• Rudy Quintanilla as Gustavo, a tailor friendly with Mickey
• Adam J. Harrington as Jeff Trammell, Lisa Trammell's ex-husband
• Michael A. Goorjian as Alex Grant, a contractor and business partner of Mitchell Bondurant with ties to the Armenian Mob
• Patrick Fischler as Jacob Zimmer, Alex Grant's lawyer
• Miriam Flynn as Donna, a clerk working for the FBI who Cisco uses as a source
• Hemky Madera as Agent Felix Vasquez, an FBI agent investigating Alex Grant
• Damian Delgado as Sergio Beltran, a landscaper
• Tina Arning as Valerie Stern, a long-time neighbor of Lisa Trammell
• Ryan W. Garcia as René Morales, an employee of Lisa Trammell's restaurant
• La'Charles Trask as Gary Furlong, a member of Lisa Trammell's jury
• Kristin Carey as Jennifer Little, the owner of a property Izzy attempts to rent
• Juan Monsalvez as Carlos, the manager of a property owned by Jennifer Little
• Matthew Garbacz as Taylor, a part time worker at Hayley's riding lessons
• Devon Graye as Julian La Cosse, a pimp and a new client of Mickey

Season 1 (2022)

Season 2 (2023)

Season 3

The writers for the third season are Ted Humphrey & Dailyn Rodriguez, Gladys Rodriguez, Matthew J. Lieberman, and Lisa Quintela.^[5]

Development

In 2018, David E. Kelley wrote a spec script for a television series set up at Epix by A&E Studios. When the script failed to move forward, he decided to work on a different project with A&E, ultimately adapting The Lincoln Lawyer after sharing his interests in working on legal dramas. In June 2019, the project was given a series production commitment by CBS.^[3] In February 2020, Ted Humphrey came aboard as showrunner and Kiele Sanchez joined the cast as Lorna,^[6] with Angus Sampson and Jazz Raycole joining a few weeks later as Cisco and Izzy, respectively.^[7][8] In May 2020, it was reported that the series would not be going forward at CBS due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.^[9]

At the time of the decision, which CBS Entertainment President Kelly Kahl called a "tough call", two scripts for the series had been written, with two more in development, and Logan Marshall-Green had been in negotiations to star as main character Mickey Haller.^[9][10] On January 11, 2021, Netflix picked up the series with a 10-episode order, down from the original 13-episode plan,^[9] and announced that Manuel Garcia-Rulfo would star as Haller.^[11][12] In February 2021, Neve Campbell and Becki Newton joined the cast, with Raycole and Sampson returning to the series.^[13][14] Christopher Gorham was cast in March.^[15] In April, Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine was cast in a role created specifically for the series,^[16] with LisaGay Hamilton,^[17] Jamie McShane, and Reggie Lee joining the cast in recurring roles.^[18] Krista Warner was cast in May.^[19]

On June 14, 2022, Netflix renewed the series for a second season, which will be based on The Fifth Witness.^[20] On August 30, 2023, Netflix renewed the series for a third season, which will be based on The Gods of Guilt.^[21]

Filming

The Lincoln Lawyer began filming in Los Angeles on March 30, 2021.^[22][23] That same day, author Michael Connelly revealed on social media that the COVID-19 pandemic had previously delayed principal photography for around a year.^[24] On June 8, 2021, Connelly said in an interview that six out of the ten episodes had been filmed, of which three of them had been edited completely, while also confirming that characters in the Amazon Prime Video series Bosch, including Haller's half-brother Harry Bosch (portrayed by Titus Welliver), would not be making appearances as both shows are from different networks.^[25] Filming concluded on August 3, 2021.^[26] Notable filming locations included Admiralty Way in Marina del Rey,^[27] Spring Street in Downtown Los Angeles,^[28] Grand Avenue,^[29] the Wilshire Ebell Theatre,^[30] and Wilshire Boulevard.^[31]

Filming on season 2 was due to begin on October 31, 2022 and run through March 2023.^[32] Filming locations for season 2 included the Paseo Club in Valencia, The Cowboy Palace Saloon in Chatsworth, Sixth Street Bridge, and the Los Angeles Equestrian Center.^[33]

Filming on season three began on January 18, 2024.^[4]

Lawsuit

In August 2021, A+E Studios subsidiary Frankl & Bob Films II, LLC filed a lawsuit against ViacomCBS for "millions of dollars" in losses after it decided to not move forward with the series the previous year.^[34] Citing the company's creation on December 4, 2019, the documents state that "after the merger, ViacomCBS's new leadership, led by [George Cheeks] had second-guessed CBS Network's decision to enter into the 13-episode series commitment," and that after finding it "was not valuable to ViacomCBS ... Mr. Cheeks and his fellow ViacomCBS executives decided that it would be better for ViacomCBS as a whole if CBS Network breached that commitment."^[34] The documents also claim that ViacomCBS rejected the series because the first episode had not been filmed and said "that breach ensured that the series would never make it onto broadcast television."^[34]

Audience viewership

By its first three days of release, the series finished #2 on Netflix's weekly ratings. In its first full week of streaming, it was the platform's most-watched English-language series globally, with over 108 million viewing hours, more than three times the second-place show.^[36] Between May 8 and June 5, 2022 the series was watched 260.53 million hours globally.^[37]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 79% of 33 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.50/10. The website's consensus reads: "David E. Kelley's adaptation of The Lincoln Lawyer relies too much on quirk to paper over its lack of true novelty, but this is a reliable enough vehicle for fans of legal pulp."^[38] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 62 out of 100 based on 16 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[39]