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The Best Episodes of Private Practice

Every episode of Private Practice ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Private Practice!

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Having left behind Seattle Grace Hospital, renowned surgeon Addison Forbes Montgomery moves to Los Angeles for sunnier weather and happier possibilities. She reunites with her friends from medical school, joining them at their chic, co-op,

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    Private Practice Season 3 Episode 23 - The End of a Beautiful Friendship
    8.7/10(305 votes)

    #1 - The End of a Beautiful Friendship

    S3:E23

    Maya and her unborn baby are fighting for their lives on the operating table, and Addison, Amelia and Fife try everything humanly possible to save them. Meanwhile, Sam operates on an incoming crash victim and later makes a grim discovery; Cooper makes an ill-timed but valiant effort with Charlotte, and the staff's world gets rocked by an unexpected death.

    Director:Jeannot Szwarc
    Writer:Debora Cahn

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  2. Private Practice Season 5 Episode 22 - Gone, Baby, Gone
    8.7/10(254 votes)

    #2 - Gone, Baby, Gone

    S5:E22

    When Amelia goes into labor, the Seaside doctors - even those she pushed away -- come to her side as she faces the hardest decision of her life. Meanwhile, after Pete finds himself in life-changing trouble, he and Violet realize what they mean to one another, and Addison is faced with a choice.

    Director:Ann Kindberg
    Writer:Shonda Rhimes

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  3. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 3 - Right Here, Right Now
    8.5/10(262 votes)

    #3 - Right Here, Right Now

    S3:E3

    Miranda Bailey brings a kidney transplant patient to Los Angeles, and Addison and especially Sam is pleased to see her. Addison's consequences of her emotional affair with Noah catch up with her. Sheldon and Pete finally discover who the father of Violet's baby.

    Director:Rob Corn
    Writer:Dana Baratta

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  4. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 8 - Sins of the Father
    8.5/10(246 votes)

    #4 - Sins of the Father

    S3:E8

    While Addison deals with the unwelcome arrival of her father, Cooper is arrested because he refused to cooperate in a case involving a longtime patient. Meanwhile, Pete will stop at nothing to keep a terminally ill patient alive for as long as it takes for him to meet his new daughter.

    Director:Tom Verica
    Writer:Elizabeth J.B. Klaviter

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  5. Private Practice Season 6 Episode 2 - Mourning Sickness
    8.5/10(240 votes)

    #5 - Mourning Sickness

    S6:E2

    The doctors join together for a celebration at Addison's house and to reminisce about the past. Meanwhile, Sheldon counsels a suicidal patient who comes forward with a shocking confession.

    Director:Edward Ornelas
    Writer:Jennifer Cecil

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  6. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 4 - Pushing the Limits
    8.3/10(244 votes)

    #6 - Pushing the Limits

    S3:E4

    Addison, Sam and Cooper treat the sick child of a homeless teen mother they met while volunteering. Meanwhile Violet has trouble relating to her baby when her feelings about her attack resurface during counseling of a rape victim who is now pregnant, and Cooper's financial woes catch up with him when he's asked to help buy out Naomi's share of the practice.

    Director:Allison Liddi-Brown
    Writer:Ayanna Floyd Davis

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of Private Practice

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  7. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 5 - Strange Bedfellows
    8.3/10(243 votes)

    #7 - Strange Bedfellows

    S3:E5

    Katie Kent is apprehended and on trial. Violet is asked to testify against her attacker, but she struggles with whether or not she can face her attacker in court. Meanwhile a serious complication threatens the fetuses of two of Naomi's former patients and Charlotte is determined to convince Addison, Sam and Cooper to let her join Oceanside Wellness Group.

    Director:Steve Gomer
    Writer:Kathy McCormick

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  8. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 6 - Slip Slidin' Away
    8.3/10(239 votes)

    #8 - Slip Slidin' Away

    S3:E6

    The doctors venture into controversial territory when an unexpected new hire at Pacific Wellcare causes Naomi to struggle with the idea of genetically designing babies and Violet makes a sudden decision to try electric shock therapy on a patient. Meanwhile Addison somehow finds herself alone and with a cat.

    Director:Helen Shaver
    Writer:Fred Einesman

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  9. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 7 - The Hard Part
    8.3/10(294 votes)

    #9 - The Hard Part

    S3:E7

    Addison and Sam go for a hike in Malibu, they come across an expecting couple trapped in their car after an accident, they then perform urgent field care. Charlotte, Cooper and Violet treat a newlywed who, on his wedding night has taken too much Viagra. Pete and Sheldon go out to a bar together and end up falling for the same girl.

    Director:Mark Tinker
    Writer:Steve Blackman

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  10. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 9 - The Parent Trap
    8.3/10(236 votes)

    #10 - The Parent Trap

    S3:E9

    Addison performs a complex utero surgery, proving not only her talents to her father but giving them some common ground. Sam and Naomi deal with have a family crisis when they discover Maya is growing up way too fast. Violet does the unthinkable.

    Director:Donna Deitch
    Writer:Craig Turk

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  11. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 10 - Blowups
    8.3/10(251 votes)

    #11 - Blowups

    S3:E10

    An explosion at Dell's house lands Betsey and Heather in the hospital. everyone is pushed to the limit in trying to save their lives. The tensions between Addison and The Captain rise even more when her mother, Bizzy, shows up and a shocking family secret is revealed.

    Director:Mark Tinker
    Writer:Sonay Hoffman

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  12. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 11 - Another Second Chance
    8.3/10(242 votes)

    #12 - Another Second Chance

    S3:E11

    Desperate to help his pregnant daughter, Mark (Eric Dane) follows Addison back to Oceanside Wellness, Dell and Naomi struggle to raise their children under the same roof, and Violet and Cooper heatedly disagree on how to treat a patient on.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writers:Kathy McCormick, Krista Vernoff

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  13. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 12 - Best Laid Plans
    8.3/10(231 votes)

    #13 - Best Laid Plans

    S3:E12

    Maya shocks Sam and Naomi, while Pete and Fife disagree on patient care.

    Director:Bethany Rooney
    Writers:Patricia Carr, Lara Olsen

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  14. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 15 - 'Til Death Do Us Part
    8.3/10(229 votes)

    #14 - 'Til Death Do Us Part

    S3:E15

    It's Maya's wedding day and while Violet helps Sam prepare, a furious Naomi still refuses to take part as she works with Addison and Pete to save a premature baby. Meanwhile, Cooper becomes suspicious of Charlotte's new boyfriend and thinks that he may be abusing drugs.

    Director:Kenny Leon
    Writer:Craig Turk

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  15. Private Practice Season 4 Episode 7 - Did You Hear What Happened to Charlotte King?
    8.3/10(522 votes)

    #15 - Did You Hear What Happened to Charlotte King?

    S4:E7

    Pete finds Charlotte bloodied and bruised in the halls of the hospital, but only Addison learns the full extent of her injuries.

    Director:Allison Liddi-Brown
    Writer:Shonda Rhimes

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  16. Private Practice Season 4 Episode 22 - ...And to Change the Things I Can
    8.3/10(224 votes)

    #16 - ...And to Change the Things I Can

    S4:E22

    The fate of Oceanside Wellness is on the line as the doctors decide if it's time to dissolve the practice. Addison's new admirer makes an enticing offer and things hit close to home for Charlotte with her latest case.

    Director:Mark Tinker
    Writers:Debora Cahn, Steve Blackman, Craig Turk

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  17. Private Practice Season 6 Episode 3 - Good Grief
    8.3/10(229 votes)

    #17 - Good Grief

    S6:E3

    After hearing a patient's chilling confession, Violet turns to Sheldon for advice. Meanwhile, Addison tries to keep her grief a secret, Cooper and Charlotte adapt to their new reality and Sam confronts Sheldon about his denial.

    Director:Bethany Rooney
    Writer:Gabe Fonseca

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  18. Private Practice Season 6 Episode 8 - Life Support
    8.3/10(244 votes)

    #18 - Life Support

    S6:E8

    In an episode told from Cooper's point of view, we follow him from the moment of conception through a nasty fight with Charlotte, which inadvertently threatens the lives of their triplets. Meanwhile, Violet comforts a friend who is being advised to take her partner off life-support.

    Director:Mark Tinker
    Writers:Barbie Kligman, Jennifer Cecil

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  19. Private Practice Season 2 Episode 7 - Tempting Faith
    8.0/10(256 votes)

    #19 - Tempting Faith

    S2:E7

    Addison's brother makes a surprise visit, causing trouble for her, Sam and Naomi; Meg comes back to try and make it work with Pete; a patient accused of a crime angers Violet and Dell.

    Director:James Frawley
    Writers:Robert Rovner, Jon Cowan

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  20. Private Practice Season 2 Episode 20 - Do the Right Thing
    8.0/10(260 votes)

    #20 - Do the Right Thing

    S2:E20

    Cooper struggles with the mother of a patient after learning she allows the 12-year old to be sexually active. Violet is jealous after Pete begins dating a patient's mom. Meanwhile, Sam is scheduled to testify at a colleagues trial for malpractice; and Addison continues to fight her romantic feelings for Noah.

    Director:Eric Stoltz
    Writer:Craig Turk

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  21. Private Practice Season 2 Episode 22 - Yours, Mine and Ours
    8.0/10(318 votes)

    #21 - Yours, Mine and Ours

    S2:E22

    As Violoet chooses between Pete and Sheldon, she must also deal wtih a grief-stricken patient. Meanwhile, Dell worries about his daughter when Heather returns to town and Naomi debates moving to Pacific Wellcare.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writers:Robert Rovner, Jon Cowan

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  22. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 1 - A Death in the Family
    8.0/10(345 votes)

    #22 - A Death in the Family

    S3:E1

    When Pete discovers Violet clinging to live following a violent attack from a patient, he rushes her to the hospital where Addison and Naomi work together to save her life. Meanwhile, the location of Violet's baby are still unknown.

    Director:Mark Tinker
    Writers:Shonda Rhimes, Robert Rovner, Jon Cowan

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  23. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 13 - Shotgun
    8.0/10(235 votes)

    #23 - Shotgun

    S3:E13

    Addison and Cooper are counseling a couple who must pick a child to save with their newborn's cord blood. Meanwhile Dink wants to marry Maya.

    Director:Karen Gaviola
    Writers:Robert Rovner, Jon Cowan

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  24. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 18 - Pulling the Plug
    8.0/10(228 votes)

    #24 - Pulling the Plug

    S3:E18

    A husband's decision to pull the plug on his pregnant wife is overruled by a judge, forcing the hospital to keep her on life support until the fetuses she is carrying as a surrogate are able to survive. Meanwhile, Naomi feels betrayed after learning of Sam and Addison's feelings for one another, and she turns to Dr. Fife for support while William is away on business. And unable to cope with the tension, Addison takes the day off with Pete and Lucas.

    Director:Ann Kindberg
    Writer:Kathy McCormick

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  25. Private Practice Season 3 Episode 21 - War
    8.0/10(252 votes)

    #25 - War

    S3:E21

    After Violet files for joint custody of Lucas, an embittered Pete voraciously fights back by hiring a tough attorney for the trial, forcing their fellow friends and co-workers to choose sides and have their personal lives dragged onto the stand and into the public eye.

    Director:Eric Stoltz
    Writers:Elizabeth J.B. Klaviter, Sonay Hoffman

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Best Episodes Summary

"The End of a Beautiful Friendship" is the best rated episode of "Private Practice". It scored 8.7/10 based on 305 votes. Directed by Jeannot Szwarc and written by Debora Cahn, it aired on 5/13/2010. This episode scored 0.0 points higher than the second highest rated, "Gone, Baby, Gone".