Aahana Swrup
In the CBS reboot of ‘Matlock,’ creator Jennie Snyder Urman brings a compelling twist to the known and loved narrative with the fascinating character of Madeline “Matty” Matlock. Matty is a woman in her mid-70s who ventures back into her professional life as a lawyer, choosing to elbow her way into the prestigious Jacobson Moore law firm. Utilizing her wits and natural ability to blend in with the crowd without raising any suspicions, the woman lands herself an opportunity in front of the firm’s higher-ups. As such, Madeline begins working under soon-to-be senior partner Olympia, undertaking invigorating cases as an associate. As the show maintains its legal drama genre, the Jacobson Moore firm plays a consistently vital role throughout the narrative. Naturally, the establishment’s origins come under questioning. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Jacobson Moore is a Fictional Law Firm
‘Matlock,’ the drama series revolving around the titular lawyer, Madeline Matlock, charts a riveting tale ripe with legally thrilling storylines. However, while it farms an inevitable sense of realism through its genre, the show equips mostly fictitious elements to create its narrative. Some of these elements, such as the protagonist’s characteristics, the relevance of socially driven themes, and the general tone of humor, remain inspired by the show’s predecessor: the 1980s ‘Matlock,’ created by Dean Hargrove. Nonetheless, most characters, establishments, and situations don’t hold a direct counterpart in the source material.
Therefore, Jacobson Moore and the various primary characters under the firm’s banner become entirely fictional characters created in service of the show. While the general depiction of the workflow and culture within the company retains a connection to the reality of a law firm’s workplace, the fictional company holds no direct inspirations in real life. In fact, even the on-screen building lacks an identical counterpart outside of the screen. Thus, most of the on-screen interiors in the sky-scraping Fifth Avenue office of Jacobson Moore are actually sets at Paramount Studios.
Likewise, the firm’s narrative role in the show—as the firm responsible for burying the document that could’ve prevented the introduction of opioids in the market, similarly remains a fictitious storyline. In real life, numerous factors at play were responsible for the tragic opioid crisis that wrecked the nation. Nonetheless, no single law firm has been found to be directly legally responsible for the crisis.
Therefore, Jacobson Moore’s involvement with the opioid crisis allows the show to modernize its concept and craft a compelling tale. Still, it also cements the law firm’s confinement within the story’s overarching fictionality. As such, outside of the firm’s role in bringing socio-political storylines, such as Raymond Harris’ wrongful conviction, into the characters’ lives, the firm holds no other connection to reality. Ultimately, without a counterpart in reality or ‘Matlock’s’ source material, Jacobson Moore remains a fictitious element.
