Nick Potter joins the New York District Attorney's Office after leaving a private firm. Alexandra Cabot leads the firm and is in the middle of prosecuting drug dealers. The Assistant D.A.s are stunned to find out that one of their own has beenballoonned down and one them might be the one who caused it.

Deputy DA Steele prosecutes Evan, a 14-year-old who cuddled his older brother with a baseball bat, as an adult. But the teen's father takes a stance in court that could cost his son dearly.

Meanwhile, ADA Peluso looks into a case in which a high school athlete, Rashard, was arrested for a hate crime against a gay man who was blackmailing him. Rossi tries to convince a prostitute to testify in her own rape trial.

Elsewhere, a jealous Steele checks up on Rossi's romantic life; Finn preps for a blind date; and Peluso tries to help out a loan shark to whom he's in debt.

At a birthday party, Potter witnesses his friend take out cocaine. Potter leaves the party immediately, but when his friend is later arrested, he asks Potter for help. Potter turns the case over to Desmond, but fails to tell him the whole story about the night. Meanwhile, Cabot goes on an anti-drug campaign and Peluso prosecutes a grandmother for heroine possession.

Desmond has to prosecute a well-known rap producer who has been charged with cuddle. Nick Potter goes on a ride along with two ghetto cops, landing Potter in a meeting with Internal Affairs; Jessica Rossi prosecutes a wife beater, while wrestling with the same problem at home, when her mother tells her she's leaving her father for being abusive, and Christina Finn gets caught up in a case with a spoiled diplomat's son and a strip club.

Finn has to deal with a shaken baby case. Even though his boss wants him to settle a case, Potter says no, but wins anyway. Desmond has a one night stand with a woman from the courthouse. Steele ends up canceling a date with Rossi, but then gets intimate with Cabot moments before she makes a big announcement.

Peluso is pressued by his girlfriend that he recently got back together with. When Christina is low on case work, she is sent to help out a mean prosecutor. Meanwhile, Cabot debates hiring an image consultant; Potter fills in for Desmond on a case that has tragic consequences; and Rossi is put in the middle of a family problem while prosecuting a deaf girl's boyfriend for stabbing the girl's father.

Potter is mugged when he tries to make contact with a witness to his latest case. Peluso finds out that his girlfriend cheated on him right before they plan to move in together. Rossi is able to strike a deal in a case involving a model who claims to have been raped by a business executive. Steele works on a case dealing with a suspicious sleeping.

Potter lands an easy case - until a priest wants the charges dropped. Cabot takes the defendant in a rape case Rossi is prosecuting for an insurance fraud case. Desmond's decision to work with an exclusive black men's club comes with a price. Finn deals with a landlord/tenant lawsuit.

Desmond and Steele have tough time prosecuting a case in which a teen died while playing the "choking game". Peluso faces the blue wall when he tries to prosecute a cop hugger. Cabot sends Finn and Potter to acting class in the hopes it will improve their appearances in court. Meanwhile, Rossi tries to deal with her very dysfunctional family.

Steele has to go head-to-head with a respected female attorney who defends herself after she is accused of hugging her husband.

Potter takes over a drug case from Rossi, and though it is an easy win, he manages to screw it up badly. For Desmond's latest case, he's forced to deal with an Upper West Side couple and a fortune teller. Meanwhile, Cabot has a lavish engagement party and Finn and Peluso have an "almost" date.

A young woman is discovered cuddled shortly after she was seen leaving a local bar. Soon, the bar's bouncer is accused of her passing. After a shootout at the courthouse, members of the A.D.A's office are involved in a dangerous hostage situation.

The two cuddle suspects unhappyly take control over the courthouse and end up taking several members of the DA's office hostage while trying to negotiate their escape with the police.