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The Worst Episodes of The Practice

Every episode of The Practice ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of The Practice!

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A provocative legal drama focused on young associates at a bare-bones Boston firm and their scrappy boss, Bobby Donnell. The show's forte is its storylines about “people who walk a moral tightrope.”

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
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    The Practice Season 2 Episode 5 - First Degree (1)
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #1 - First Degree (1)

    S2:E5

    Ellenor and Lindsay face disbarment proceedings for their unethical conduct. Bobby defends a man accused of murdering his lover's husband. Eugene represents a police officer applying for disability, claiming the job made him a racist.

    Director:Joe Napolitano
    Writers:Michael R. Perry, David E. Kelley, Stephen Gaghan

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  2. The Practice Season 4 Episode 9 - Bay of Pigs
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #2 - Bay of Pigs

    S4:E9

    Ellenor takes on Richard Bay in a case wherein a little old lady is accused of attempting to run over her husband in her car. Bay and Ellenor clash both in and out of court. Jimmy evaluates his relationship with Judge Kittleson when he represents an old girlfriend in a suit regarding the sale of reproductive eggs.

    Director:Oz Scott
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  3. The Practice Season 4 Episode 10 - Day in Court
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #3 - Day in Court

    S4:E10

    Tempers flare over a particularly tough case. Bobby defends old cling/drug dealer Eddie against the murder of an addict. Eddie claims it is self-defense. D.A. Helen brings the coroner to testify that it wasn't. The coroner's testimony is damaged by prior odd behavior. Eddie attacks Helen to try to force the judge into a mistrial. Bobby & Swackheim nearly come to blows. Each of the participants, Bobby, Helen & Swackheim, express their outrage with the legal system.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  4. The Practice Season 4 Episode 11 - Blowing Smoke
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #4 - Blowing Smoke

    S4:E11

    Lindsay sues a cigar company for breaking up a friend's marriage. She alleges that the husband's addiction was the deciding factor in the divorce. Rebecca & Ellenor defend a police officer who killed a teenage boy in a grocery store. The officer claims he saw a gun. The cashier says otherwise.

    Director:Jeannot Szwarc
    Writers:Samantha Corbin-Miller, David E. Kelley

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  5. The Practice Season 4 Episode 12 - New Evidence (1)
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #5 - New Evidence (1)

    S4:E12

    Lindsay takes the firm to Los Angeles to defend an acquaintance who's on trial for murdering his on-line girlfriend. As evidence mounts against their client, Bobby and the rest deal with a controlling judge, an antagonistic detective and the victim's sister, a nun with issues.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  6. The Practice Season 4 Episode 13 - Hammerhead Sharks (2)
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #6 - Hammerhead Sharks (2)

    S4:E13

    Dennis Mills maintains his innocence. The firm continues the trial, striving against all odds to exonerate Mills.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  7. The Practice Season 4 Episode 14 - Checkmates
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #7 - Checkmates

    S4:E14

    Ellenor defends a 'slow' teenager accused of killing a younger boy. A witness comes forward claiming to have information exonerating her client, but Ellenor suspects he's lying. Helen calls in a police officer when his son is under suspicion in a homicide. Representing the accused, Bobby argues the officer was acting as an agent of the court, not a father.

    Director:Andy Wolk
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  8. The Practice Season 4 Episode 15 - Race Ipsa Loquitor
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #8 - Race Ipsa Loquitor

    S4:E15

    Jimmy is tempted to compromise his integrity to get convicted murder (and insect admirer) Henry Olson released. Eugene and Rebecca represent a woman who's suing a plastic surgeon when her husband dies during a liposuction procedure. They soon realize they're as much on trial as the surgeon when the opposing attorney makes several references to their race.

    Director:Alex Graves
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  9. The Practice Season 4 Episode 16 - Settling
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #9 - Settling

    S4:E16

    Bobby is kidnapped by an irate former client who claims Bobby's incompetence in a manslaughter trial forced him to spend 12 years in prison.

    Director:Arvin Brown
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. The Practice Season 4 Episode 17 - Black Widows
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #10 - Black Widows

    S4:E17

    Bobby defends the so-called 'Black Widow'; a woman who's accused of murdering her recently deceased husband and whose two previous spouses also died mysteriously. Helen lies to a 15-year-old girl who killed her unborn child, coercing her into giving a statement.

    Director:Mel Damski
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  11. The Practice Season 4 Episode 18 - Death Penalties
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #11 - Death Penalties

    S4:E18

    Bobby and Helen clash in an assisted suicide case. Bobby remembers his experiences of 'pulling the plug' on his mother and acts as though he were on trial. Meanwhile, Ellenor flies to Pennsylvania to try to exonerate a 31-year-old death row inmate who claims to be innocent of a double homicide.

    Director:Keith Samples
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  12. The Practice Season 4 Episode 19 - Till Death Do Us Part (1)
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #12 - Till Death Do Us Part (1)

    S4:E19

    Ellenor pursues the Donovan case, hoping to forestall his execution. Meanwhile, Rebecca's case representing a woman with Alzheimer's trying to keep her marriage from being annulled becomes complicated when questions arise about the death of her client's first husband.

    Director:Duane Clark
    Writers:Adam Armus, David E. Kelley

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  13. The Practice Season 4 Episode 21 - The Honorable Man
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #13 - The Honorable Man

    S4:E21

    Eugene is disgusted by his client, a homeless man accused of murdering a woman and raping her corpse. Jimmy represents an old friend who's being sued for notifying employees that one of their co-workers has AIDS.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  14. The Practice Season 4 Episode 22 - Life Sentence
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #14 - Life Sentence

    S4:E22

    Ellenor defends a deaf woman who shot and killed the man who allegedly murdered her young daughter. The client's crime is captured on video in front of dozens of witnesses, leaving no doubt as to who committed the act. The only to way to exonerate the client is to manipulate the jury's heartstrings. Meanwhile Lindsay learns that Bobby hates weddings and decides to spring a surprise elopement.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  15. The Practice Season 5 Episode 1 - Summary Judgments
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #15 - Summary Judgments

    S5:E1

    Bobby doesn't want a client to testify to avoid introducing an incriminating videotape. Helen and Richard Bay may have coached a witness in the same trial. Ellenor and Lindsay represent a parent whose three children have all contracted learning disabilities.

    Director:Arvin Brown
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  16. The Practice Season 5 Episode 2 - Germ Warfare
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #16 - Germ Warfare

    S5:E2

    Bobby struggles to overturn the guilty verdict in the Scott Wallace case. Bobby's refusal to allow Wallace to testify may be grounds for a new trial. Ellenor and Lindsay continue their attack against the EPA, but a hostile judge may thwart their efforts. Helen faces a crisis when doing the right thing over Richard's coercion of a witness may cost her a job.

    Director:Duane Clark
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  17. The Practice Season 5 Episode 3 - Officers of the Court
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #17 - Officers of the Court

    S5:E3

    Ellenor continues the Jamison case, challenging Judge Aldrich's decision to cut her client's award. Jimmy is upset when he learns that former client Jennifer Cole is pregnant and has been arrested for possession of cocaine. He conspires with the D.A. to install Jennifer in a rehab program. Bobby continues to work Scott Wallace's appeal. Helen faces alienation from her colleagues in the wake of her unpopular actions in the Wallace trial.

    Director:Jeannot Szwarc
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  18. The Practice Season 5 Episode 4 - Appeal and Denial
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #18 - Appeal and Denial

    S5:E4

    Bobby takes the Scott Wallace case to appeals, hopefully proving that prosecution witness Kyle Barrett perjured himself. Helen faces Rebecca in the courtroom in an emotional case when an abused spouse claims that she was mistaken in identifying her husband as her attacker. Bobby and Lindsay announce that they're expecting a child but Lindsay suspects she may not be the only pregnant woman in the office.

    Director:Dennis Smith
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  19. The Practice Season 5 Episode 6 - Show and Tell
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #19 - Show and Tell

    S5:E6

    The long-awaited Scott Wallace retrial.

    Director:Alex Graves
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  20. The Practice Season 5 Episode 7 - Brothers' Keepers
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #20 - Brothers' Keepers

    S5:E7

    Bobby defends a man on trial for allowing his wife to be murdered in an 'honor killing'; an ancient cultural ritual used to punish adulterous behavior. Eugene reluctantly aids incompetent attorney Harland Bassett yet again. Ellenor announces that she's pregnant, encountering some adversity.

    Director:Arvin Brown
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  21. The Practice Season 5 Episode 8 - Mr. Hinks Goes to Town
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #21 - Mr. Hinks Goes to Town

    S5:E8

    Lindsay defends a psychiatric patient who claims to be a serial killer. His psychiatrist claims he's only a disturbed individual looking for a little notoriety.

    Director:Jeannot Szwarc
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  22. The Practice Season 5 Episode 9 - The Deal
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #22 - The Deal

    S5:E9

    Scott Wallace, William Hinks, and a high profile kidnapping case converge to make this one of the most explosive episode of The Practice thus far. First, Bobby is forced to choose between his responsibilities to his client and the life of a 7-year-old girl when his client knows the kidnapped girl's wherabouts but refuses to divulge her location unless he receives a cushy plea bargain. William Hinks, the acquitted serial killer, begins stalking Lindsay. Meanwhile, an increasingly agitated Scott Wallace is fired from his job and tries to convince his employer that he deserves to be rehired.

    Director:Dan Attias
    Writers:Peter Blake, David E. Kelley

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  23. The Practice Season 5 Episode 10 - Friends and Ex-Lovers
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #23 - Friends and Ex-Lovers

    S5:E10

    Despite a restraining order, William Hinks continues to harass Lindsay, as more questions arise as to whether or not he's the real serial killer. Meanwhile, Bobby blames himself for Scott Wallace's latest offense.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writers:David E. Kelley, Lukas Reiter

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  24. The Practice Season 5 Episode 11 - An Early Frost
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #24 - An Early Frost

    S5:E11

    After Scott Wallace kills his friend, Jimmy becomes a witness for the prosecution. Bobby, meanwhile, is still defending Wallace. Lindsay is convinced that serial killer William Hinks has claimed another victim, and fears for her own life. To protect her, Bobby takes matters into his own hands

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:David E. Kelley

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  25. The Practice Season 5 Episode 12 - Payback
    0.0/10(0 votes)

    #25 - Payback

    S5:E12

    Bobby is arrested for conspiring to murder serial killer William Hinks. The entire firm, with Eugene at the helm, must now rally to defend him. Meanwhile, Rebecca discovers foul play in the wrongful death suit of a friend's husband.

    Director:Andy Wolk
    Writers:David E. Kelley, Marc Guggenheim

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Worst Episodes Summary

"First Degree (1)" is the worst rated episode of "The Practice". It scored /10 based on 0 votes. Directed by Joe Napolitano and written by Michael R. Perry, David E. Kelley, Stephen Gaghan, it aired on 10/11/1997. This episode scored 0.0 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Bay of Pigs".