Here Are Netflix’s Top 10 Law Dramas for 2025

Fully updated in April 2025

Tom Borman, LawFuel contributing editor

Netflix’s catalog of legal dramas has expanded to include both established classics and innovative newcomers that push the boundaries of the genre in 2025 with The Lincoln Lawyer leading the group, but with top law shows streaming quality content, as we show.

Our selection of the top shows includes a variety of key factors, such as critical acclaim, legal accuracy, and viewer ratings.

Here’s the definitive ranking of Netflix’s legal dramas based on critical reception, audience scores, and cultural impact – plus three wildcards that could shake up the list based on my own experience as a must-watch, must-have legal drama reviewer.

The Gold Standard Tier

2. Better Call Saul (IMDb 8.7/10, RT 97-99%)

Quick Takes

Why it rules: Perfectionist character study with 43 episodes at 100% on RT. The “Chicanery” courtroom breakdown remains TV’s greatest legal scene.

Key Themes: Ethics erosion, cutting corners, sibling rivalry

Why Watch? It’s the origin story of TV’s sleaziest lawyer—and somehow, you’ll root for him.

Truth Bomb: Jimmy McGill’s transformation into Saul isn’t just about breaking bad—it’s about how the legal system chews up small-time lawyers. My aunt, a legal aid attorney, says, “When you’re drowning in student debt, cutting corners gets real tempting.”

Detail Geekout: The writers studied actual bar complaints to make Jimmy’s scams plausible. That scene where he fakes a car crash? A real lawyer got disbarred for pulling that in 2003.

Deep Dive

Here’s a show that provides unparalleled exploration of legal ethics and the gradual erosion of professional standards – all wrapped up in an entertaining, well acted and compulsively written legal drama.

Better Call Saul stands as television’s most nuanced examination of legal ethics and professional identity, chronicling Jimmy McGill’s transformation into the morally compromised Saul Goodman. 

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal ethics professors extensively use Better Call Saul in academic settings due to its sophisticated treatment of professional responsibility issues. 

The series accurately depicts the challenges of client development, the economic pressures facing solo practitioners, and the ethical dilemmas that arise when personal and professional interests conflict, which is often. The show’s exploration of attorney competence requirements demonstrates deep understanding of Model Rule 1.1, examining how lawyers can technically comply with ethical rules while violating their spirit.

Unique Angles: The series benefits from consultation with legal ethics experts and practicing attorneys, ensuring that Jimmy’s ethical violations are both legally accurate and psychologically believable. It also shows the mundane legal practice aspects—paperwork, client development, small courtroom victories—provides rare insight into the daily realities of legal work that most legal dramas ignore as they race to court or conflict in some forum or other.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Jimmy McGill’s gradual moral decline effectively demonstrates how small ethical violations can escalate into major professional misconduct, serving as a cautionary tale for practicing attorneys. The relationship between Jimmy and his brother Chuck provides compelling insight into the psychological dynamics of professional competition within legal families.

Comparative Insights: Better Call Saul’s focus on the business development aspects of legal practice distinguishes it from international legal dramas that typically assume attorneys have established client bases. Real stuff, in a fictionial context.

Better Call Saul is a standout in my pantheon of top legal shows.

3. The Lincoln Lawyer S3 (RT 100%, IMDb 8.1)

Dark horse: Toppled McConaughey’s film version (84% RT) with Manuel Garcia-Rulfo’s nuanced portrayal. Courtroom realism makes lawyers nod approvingly.

Netflix’s adaptation of Michael Connelly’s beloved series has emerged as the gold standard for contemporary legal drama, successfully balancing procedural accuracy with compelling character development1. The series follows Mickey Haller, a defense attorney who operates from his Lincoln Town Car, providing a fresh perspective on legal practice that resonates with both legal professionals and general audiences.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal experts consistently praise The Lincoln Lawyer for its attention to detail regarding evidence law and courtroom procedure.

The show demonstrates sophisticated understanding of hearsay rules, with scenes accurately depicting multiple layers of hearsay objections that would challenge even experienced attorneys. 

Former federal prosecutor analyses confirm that the jury selection processes, discovery procedures, and witness examination techniques depicted in the series align closely with real-world practice20. The show’s portrayal of attorney-client privilege is particularly noteworthy, correctly emphasizing that the privilege belongs to the client, not the attorney.

Unique Angles: The series benefits from extensive legal consulting, with creators working closely with practicing criminal defense attorneys to ensure procedural accuracy1. Unlike traditional courtroom dramas that focus primarily on trial proceedings, The Lincoln Lawyer emphasizes the strategic negotiations and plea bargaining that constitute the majority of real legal work. 

The upcoming fourth season, based on “The Law of Innocence,” will explore the unique perspective of a defense attorney becoming a defendant, offering unprecedented insight into the psychological dynamics of role reversal within the legal system1.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Mickey Haller represents a departure from the idealized portrayals of attorneys common in legal fiction. His pragmatic approach to justice, willingness to work with morally ambiguous clients, and strategic maneuvering reflect the complex ethical landscape that defense attorneys handle daily. 

The series effectively demonstrates how successful defense work often occurs outside the courtroom, emphasizing investigation, negotiation, and client counseling as essential components of legal practice.

Comparative Insights: Compared to international legal dramas, The Lincoln Lawyer’s focus on mobile legal practice and street-level justice provides a distinctly American perspective on legal accessibility and the entrepreneurial nature of legal practice.

The show’s emphasis on the economic realities of criminal defense work contrasts sharply with the corporate law focus of shows like Suits, offering viewers a more representative view of how most attorneys actually practice law.

Prestige TV Tier

3. Unbelievable (IMDb 8.3, RT 98%)

Real-world impact: Changed police rape investigation protocols. Toni Collette’s detective became training video material.

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting by T. Christian Miller and Ken Armstrong, Unbelievable provides a devastating critique of investigative failures while demonstrating the power of methodical, victim-centered police work17. The series offers essential insights for legal professionals about the consequences of investigative bias and the importance of evidence-based decision-making.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: The series accurately portrays the legal and procedural elements of sexual assault investigations, including the challenges of physical evidence collection, witness interviewing, and the coordination between police and prosecutors. 

Lawyers recognize the series’ accurate depiction of how investigative failures can lead to wrongful prosecutions and the denial of justice to victims. The show demonstrates the legal consequences of investigative misconduct and the challenges facing prosecutors when police work is inadequate.

Unique Angles: Unbelievable benefits from extensive consultation with the original investigators and legal professionals involved in the actual cases, ensuring accuracy in procedural details. 

The series provides rare insight into the psychological impact of investigative failures on both victims and the legal professionals who must address these failures. The show’s structure, telling parallel stories across different jurisdictions, demonstrates how different investigative approaches can lead to dramatically different outcomes.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: The series’ portrayal of Detective Karen Duvall and Detective Grace Rasmussen provides a masterclass in victim-centered investigation techniques that have become standard practice in progressive law enforcement agencies. The contrast between their approach and the initial investigation of Marie’s case demonstrates the importance of training and institutional culture in achieving just outcomes.

Comparative Insights: The series provides insight into the American criminal justice system’s decentralized nature, where different jurisdictions can have dramatically different approaches to similar crimes. Compared to more centralized international systems, Unbelievable demonstrates both the challenges and opportunities created by the American system’s emphasis on local control and discretion in law enforcement practices.

4. The Trial (Il Processo) (RT 9/10)

International gem: Italy’s answer to True Detective with Mantua’s foggy canals as its third lead. Dubbing issues can’t hide Vittoria Puccini’s powerhouse performance.

This Italian legal drama provides American audiences with insight into European legal systems and procedural differences, following prosecutor Elena Guerra as she investigates a complex murder case19. The series offers valuable comparative perspective for understanding how different legal traditions approach criminal justice.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: The series accurately portrays Italian criminal procedure, including the investigative role of prosecutors and the different courtroom dynamics that characterize inquisitorial rather than adversarial legal systems9. Legal professionals appreciate the series’ attention to procedural details and the cultural factors that influence legal practice in different national contexts.

Unique Angles: The Trial benefits from authentic Italian legal expertise and provides insight into how personal relationships and cultural factors influence legal decision-making in different national contexts9. The series demonstrates how legal professionals in different systems approach similar ethical dilemmas and professional challenges, providing valuable comparative perspective.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Elena Guerra’s character demonstrates the universal challenges facing legal professionals, including work-life balance, ethical decision-making, and the personal costs of professional dedication. 

The series effectively shows how cultural and systemic differences can influence legal practice while highlighting the common human elements that transcend national boundaries.

Comparative Insights: The series provides invaluable insight into the differences between inquisitorial and adversarial legal systems, demonstrating how these systemic differences affect legal practice, professional relationships, and case outcomes9. For American viewers, The Trial offers perspective on alternative approaches to criminal justice and the cultural factors that shape legal institutions.

Crowd-Pleaser Tier

5. Suits (IMDb 8.4, RT 73-94%)

Quick Takes

Guilty pleasure: Legal accuracy? Questionable. Office drama crack? Addictive. Peak season (S5) features TV’s best deposition scene.

Key Themes: Office politics, ego clashes, “fake it till you make it”

Why Watch? It’s Gossip Girl with briefcases. You’ll laugh, you’ll cringe, you’ll wonder how Harvey’s suits stay so crisp.

Fun Fact: The writer’s room included ex-lawyers who slipped in inside jokes. That episode where Louis Litt obsesses over a cat poster? Inspired by a real partner’s weird desk shrine to his Persian cat.

Global Spin: In Japan, corporate lawyers rarely yell “This is bullshit!” in meetings. But in America? Happens more than you’d think.

Deep Dive

Suits continues to dominate Netflix’s legal drama offerings with its sophisticated portrayal of corporate law practice, focusing on the complex relationship between brilliant attorney Harvey Specter and his protégé Mike Ross. The series excels in depicting the interpersonal dynamics and competitive nature of large law firm practice, particularly at Big Law.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal professionals acknowledge that while Suits takes creative liberties with legal procedures, it accurately captures the collaborative nature of legal work and the intense office politics characteristic of large law firms. Largely, anyway. The show’s portrayal of team collaboration, with lawyers, paralegals, and support staff working together to build cases, largely reflects real-world legal practice. 

However, the show’s compressed timelines and dramatic courtroom moments significantly differ from the methodical, time-intensive nature of actual corporate litigation.

Unique Angles: The series benefits from careful attention to law firm culture, examining power struggles, mentorship relationships, and the ethical gray areas that attorneys navigate in high-pressure environments. The show’s exploration of non-traditional paths to legal success, may resonate with contemporary discussions about legal accessibility.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: The mentor-mentee relationship between Harvey and Mike is one of television’s most compelling professional partnerships. If anything, it depicts how legal expertise extends beyond technical knowledge to include strategic thinking, client management, and interpersonal skills.

Comparative Insights: Unlike international legal dramas that often focus on criminal or family law, Suits provides viewers with insight into corporate law, including the adversarial nature of business litigation and the role of large law firms in major commercial transactions.

6. How to Get Away with Murder (RT 84-100%)

Viola Davis effect: Carried declining ratings (14M→2.4M viewers) through sheer force. Law schools now teach “Annalise Keating closing arguments.”

Shonda Rhimes’ creation offers a darkly compelling exploration of legal education and criminal justice, centering on Professor Annalise Keating and her students who become entangled in criminal conspiracies.

 While highly dramatized, the series raises important questions about legal training, prosecutorial ethics, and institutional bias within the justice system.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal educators note significant inaccuracies in the series’ portrayal of law school curriculum and student involvement in active cases19. Real law students cannot legally provide representation or advice to clients due to licensing restrictions, making the students’ direct client involvement unrealistic.

 However, the series accurately depicts certain aspects of criminal law education, including the study of mens rea, criminal defenses, and the elements of various crimes.

Unique Angles: The series draws from real-world criminal cases and legal procedures, with executive producers consulting practicing attorneys to ground the show’s more realistic elements19. The show’s exploration of criminal conspiracy law accurately reflects the legal elements required for conspiracy charges, including agreement between parties and intent to commit crimes21. The series benefits from legal consultation that ensures its portrayal of criminal procedure, while dramatized, maintains connection to actual legal practice.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Annalise Keating’s character addresses important issues of representation and bias within the legal profession, particularly regarding women of color in positions of authority. 

The series effectively demonstrates the psychological toll of criminal defense work and the ethical challenges facing attorneys who represent clients in high-stakes cases. Viola Davis’s Emmy-winning performance brings authenticity to the portrayal of a complex legal professional navigating institutional pressures.

Comparative Insights: The series’ focus on criminal conspiracy and the interconnected nature of criminal enterprises reflects aspects of American criminal law that differ significantly from international systems. The show’s emphasis on prosecutorial power and plea bargaining dynamics provides insight into the American criminal justice system’s unique characteristics, particularly the broad discretion afforded to prosecutors in charging decisions.

Flawed But Fascinating Tier

7. Flawed But Fascinating Tier

Cranston’s curse: First “Rotten” show in his career. Season 2’s prison riot episode (8.6 IMDb) showed brief flashes of Breaking Bad magic.

Bryan Cranston’s masterful performance anchors this compelling examination of judicial ethics and family loyalty, exploring what happens when a respected judge’s personal and professional obligations conflict. The series provides unique insight into judicial decision-making and the ethical constraints governing judicial conduct.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal professionals recognize the series’ sophisticated treatment of judicial ethics and the realistic portrayal of evidence evaluation in criminal cases6. The show accurately depicts the importance of physical evidence, including CCTV footage and forensic evidence, in criminal prosecutions6. The series also correctly portrays the tension between attorney-client privilege and the duty to seek justice, particularly in cases involving family members of legal professionals.

Unique Angles: Your Honor stands apart from other legal dramas by focusing on judicial ethics rather than attorney conduct, providing rare insight into the unique pressures facing judges.

The series explores the intersection of organized crime and the justice system, demonstrating how criminal enterprises can influence legal proceedings through intimidation and corruption. The show’s New Orleans setting provides cultural context that influences the legal and social dynamics portrayed throughout the series.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Judge Michael Desiato’s moral journey resonates with legal professionals who understand the weight of judicial responsibility and the personal sacrifices required to maintain judicial integrity. 

The series effectively demonstrates how judicial decisions impact not only the parties before the court but also the broader community, particularly in cases involving organized crime and systemic corruption.

Comparative Insights: The series’ focus on judicial ethics provides perspective on the American judicial system’s unique characteristics, including the broad discretion afforded to judges in criminal sentencing and the expectation of judicial neutrality.

Compared to international legal systems where judicial roles may be more narrowly defined, Your Honor demonstrates the complex balance American judges must maintain between legal obligations and personal considerations.

8. Goliath (IMDb 7.6)

Niche Appeal Tier

9. Reasonable Doubt (IMDb 6.5)

Diversity win: Jax Stewart’s natural hair journey sparked more Twitter threads than legal analysis. Season 3’s 9.1 finale suggests upward trajectory.

Raamla Mohamed’s series brings crucial diversity to legal drama through its focus on Jax Stewart, a brilliant defense attorney navigating high-profile cases while confronting the unique challenges facing Black women in the legal profession18. The series provides important perspective on representation and bias within contemporary legal practice.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: The series accurately portrays the strategic and ethical challenges of high-profile criminal defense work, including the intersection of media attention and legal strategy8. Legal professionals recognize the show’s realistic depiction of the collaborative nature of defense work and the importance of investigative support in building effective defense strategies. The series effectively demonstrates how personal relationships and professional obligations can conflict in high-stakes legal practice.

Unique Angles: Reasonable Doubt addresses issues of representation and bias that remain prevalent in legal practice, providing perspective on challenges that are often overlooked in other legal dramas. 

The series explores the intersection of criminal defense work with social justice issues, demonstrating how attorneys can use their professional skills to address systemic inequities. The show’s focus on the personal costs of high-stakes legal work provides insight into the psychological demands of criminal defense practice.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: Jax Stewart’s character development addresses the complex dynamics facing attorneys who must balance zealous advocacy with personal integrity and professional responsibility. 

The series effectively demonstrates how identity and background can influence both the practice of law and the perception of legal professionals by clients, colleagues, and the broader community.

Comparative Insights: The series’ focus on representation and bias provides perspective on issues that are particularly relevant in the American legal context, where diversity within the legal profession has been a longstanding concern.

Compared to international legal systems that may have different demographic compositions and cultural dynamics, Reasonable Doubt demonstrates the ongoing challenges of achieving equitable representation within the American legal profession.

10. For the People (IMDb 7.3)

Shonda’s stepchild: Legal Eagle fans adore its SCOTUS deep cuts. “The Library” (S2E4) remains a surprise hit in federal clerk circles.

Set in the prestigious Southern District of New York, For the People offers insight into federal legal practice through the experiences of young prosecutors and public defenders navigating complex constitutional issues. 

The series provides valuable perspective on the dynamics of federal criminal practice and the challenges facing early-career attorneys.

Legal Accuracy and Professional Insights: Legal professionals appreciate the series’ realistic portrayal of federal court practice, including the constitutional nature of many federal cases and the high stakes involved in federal prosecution. 

The series accurately depicts the learning curve facing new attorneys and the importance of mentorship in developing legal skills and professional judgment. The show’s portrayal of plea negotiations and the adversarial relationship between prosecutors and defense attorneys reflects real-world federal practice dynamics.

Unique Angles: The series benefits from its focus on federal rather than state criminal practice, providing insight into the unique aspects of federal jurisdiction and the types of cases that come before federal courts. 

The show’s emphasis on the Southern District of New York, known as one of the most prestigious federal districts, provides context for understanding the high-pressure environment of federal legal practice.

Character Development and Real-World Relevance: The series effectively demonstrates the personal and professional challenges facing early-career attorneys, including work-life balance issues and the ethical dilemmas that arise in high-stakes legal practice. 

The show’s portrayal of mentorship relationships provides insight into the importance of guidance and support in legal career development.

Comparative Insights: The series’ focus on federal practice provides perspective on the American legal system’s dual structure, where federal and state courts have different jurisdictions and procedures. Compared to unified national court systems in other countries, For the People demonstrates the complexity and specialization that characterizes American federal legal practice..

Author: Tom Borman writes on legal issues, law marketing and other matters of interest to lawyers, including his most recent article on law firm marketing in the age of automation. He can be contacted at news@lawfuel.com.