Diksha Sundriyal
Every season of Netflix’s ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ presents a new challenge for the protagonist, Mickey Haller. The fourth season is special in the regard that this time, Mickey has to represent himself. The previous season ended with the dead body of his former client and conman, Sam Scales, being found in the trunk of his car. It is a surprise to him, too, but with such overwhelming evidence in front of him, the cop can do nothing but arrest him. Mickey knows he didn’t kill Sam, which means someone else, and finding this someone else becomes his priority, because he knows that, despite all the legalities and loopholes he can use in his favor, they would mean nothing. He needs to prove his innocence, no matter what it takes. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Lincoln Lawyer Season 4 Plot Synopsis
It’s been a while since Mickey Haller was sent to prison for the murder of Sam Scales, but now, it’s finally time for the proceedings to begin, or at least the preliminary ones, where he tries to get bail, or better yet, to have all the charges dismissed. Initially, Mickey is confident about the whole thing, but then Dana Berg, infamous for getting his defendants on death row, among other things, is revealed to be the prosecutor. From her first appearance in court, she makes it clear that she is not taking the case lightly and is ready to do whatever it takes to keep Mickey behind bars. However, she, too, starts to feel the force of Mickey and his team, particularly as Maggie comes into the picture. Mickey succeeds in getting bail, but that is just one of the many hurdles that he has to cross.
While he tries to project an upbeat and optimistic image, we can see the seams start to come apart, particularly as he thinks about the impact that his incarceration has had on his daughter and what will happen if he is found guilty. Fortunately, there are too many people working for him and caring about him to give up so easily. Lorna takes on his case as co-counsel but finds herself stretched thin since she is also trying to keep the firm alive, especially as it keeps bleeding clients and money. Izzy finds a new love interest in Grace, while Maggie ends up playing a much bigger role in saving Mickey in the courtroom, particularly as he finds himself pitted against the justice system.
Who Killed Sam Scales? Who Framed Mickey Haller?
To understand who killed Sam and why Mickey was singled out to be framed for the murder, Mickey and his team look into the commonalities between the two. They knew that Sam was running a scam, and from the way he talked about it the last time the team saw him, it was clear that the conman had gotten himself involved in something big. After picking up on several details and chasing after one dead end after another, it turns out that the whole thing is related to Alex Gazarian, aka Alex Grant. He was last seen in the second season when his name came up in the murder of Mitchell Bondurant, where Mickey defended Lisa Trammell, who also appears in this season to testify against him.
Gazarian was found to have ties to an Armenian crime family, and the Bondurant case brought him to the stand, where he was forced to plead the fifth. Moreover, the case and its limelight also led him to lose the contract and other related projects, leading him to go on a run. He wasn’t heard from again until Sam’s murder led Mickey and Co. back on his trail. The chase also leads them back to the FBI, who are found to have been running an operation that they don’t want jeopardized by Mickey’s quest for justice. They try to keep him away from it, but he cannot go to prison for something he didn’t do, and eventually the whole picture comes into focus.
It turns out that Sam had been involved in a scam targeting a biofuel company called Biogreen. Scammers all over the country had targeted biofuel to get money out of the government, which they called bleeding the beast. Gazarian and the Armenians had been running the same scam in LA, and Sam came into their orbit after Sam and Gazarian were introduced, thanks to Mickey, and then Sam scammed Gazarian. Despite being conned by Sam, Gazarian could see his potential, so he offered Sam a spot in their biofuel scam. Unbeknownst to the Armenian criminal, Sam had already been scouted by the FBI to serve as their informant. So, while Sam helped Gazarian in his scam, he also collected evidence against him and the operation to feed to the FBI.
Apart from being a rat, Sam also stole money from the operation. Eventually, Gazarian found out about the money, and it made him very angry. He knew he had to kill Sam, but at the same time, it had to happen in a way that it couldn’t come back to him. Because he had a bone to pick with Mickey, he decided to frame the lawyer for the murder. He drugged Sam, brought him to Mickey’s garage, where he killed the guy, and then put his body in the trunk of Mickey’s car. He also had the licence plate removed so that Mickey would be stopped by the cops, leading to the body’s discovery and Mickey getting arrested for Sam’s murder. It all worked out pretty well, but Gazarian underestimated the lengths that Mickey and his team would go to save him.
Is Mickey Found Not Guilty? Who Shoots at Him?
Having solved the mystery, Mickey’s only problem is to prove his innocence. He hoped the FBI would clear it up by subpoenaing them, but they refused to do it because the testimony would jeopardize their operation. Meanwhile, Alex Gazarian is killed by his own people, who see him as a liability after Sam’s fiasco. Fortunately, Cisco gets to Gazarian’s girlfriend, Jeanine Ferrigno, in time, and she confirms the whole thing about Gazarian killing Sam. However, she refuses to testify because it would put her in danger. So, Mickey plays the Feds. He makes it look like he is going to get Jeanine on the stand, which would expose the FBI’s operation. His ploy works, and the Feds show up just in time to clear up everything in court.
The initial plan is to make it all go away quietly, with the charges against Mickey dropped. However, he cannot have the stain of murder on his reputation, so he strikes a deal where the prosecution will have to openly announce his innocence. He gets that, and once the announcement is made, his name is publicly cleared, and all the business that he had lost over the past few months starts to pour back in. As for Jeanine, the Feds take her into protective custody because she is their only remaining link to the scam and will help her nail the Armenians. The villains are aware of this, and they hold Mickey responsible for it. They also note that this isn’t the first time he has messed with their business, so they decide to balance the scales.
While on a trip to the supermarket, Mickey is attacked by the Armenians. They shoot at him, but thanks to a concerned stranger’s impeccable instincts, he is saved. Moreover, the FBI arrives on the scene, neutralising the shooters and saving Mickey’s life. It turns out that the Feds had anticipated that the Armenians would come after Mickey for what his actions did to their business. They turned out to be right, due to which Mickey is alive and well and can now look forward to the future. Before a new case falls into his lap, Mickey receives a shock of his life when the good samaritan who saved him reveals her true identity.
Who does Cobie Smulders Play in The Lincoln Lawyer?
Every season of ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ ends with cliffhangers that set up the next season. The third season ended with a dead body in Mickey’s trunk, which sets the stage for the fourth season. This time, however, the show’s creators chose not to set up another murder mystery. Rather, they decided to give a more personal touch to the finale, which is where Cobie Smulders’ character comes into the picture. She and Mickey cross paths at the supermarket. As she eyes him, he wonders if she is interested in him. Later, when he walks out, she follows him and asks if he is Mickey Haller. Before she can answer how she knows him, she notes a man pulling out a gun and pushes Mickey out of the way.
Her instincts save Mickey, and as the dust settles and the Feds leave, Mickey thanks her for saving his life. This is when she reveals the reason she walked up to him. She is far from being romantically interested in him, and she isn’t exactly a client, or at least, not yet. She is, in fact, his sister. Or rather, half-sister. This is the only information we get for this season, as the show leaves us with a cliffhanger that will not be resolved until the next season. While the character’s name is not revealed yet, it would be fair to assume that she is, most likely, Netflix’s stand-in for Harry Bosch. In the books, Bosch is a private investigator and a half-brother of Mickey Haller from his father’s side. The two work together on several cases, one of which features in ‘Resurrection Walk’ by Michael Connelly, which has been confirmed to serve as the source material for the fifth season.
Once again, it features Mickey and his team solving a crime and saving their client from going to jail. But it also includes Bosch helping them with the case. Since Bosch’s character and story are already licensed by Prime Video (which has also made a show on him), Netflix cannot use the character for ‘The Lincoln Lawyer’ and vice versa. In the Prime Video series, the writers found a way to fill Mickey Haller’s role with new characters or expand the ones that already exist. The Netflix series adopted the same approach so far, but it seems they are finally ready to delve into Mickey’s increasingly complicated family with the arrival of his half-sister, who will clearly be at the center of the story in the upcoming season.
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