Laying Down the Law: Catching Up with the Cast of L.A. Law

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Harry Hamlin (Michael Kuzak)

Harry Hamlin played heartthrob, litigator, and partner Michael Kuzak. He tried to romance D.A. Grace Van Owen (Susan Dey), but she told him that he would have to be a monkey for her to be interested in him. So he showed up at the courthouse in a monkey suit on her wedding day. It worked—she didn’t get married to the other guy!

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Harry Hamlin

It’s a familiar story: Hamlin left the show after the fifth season (and after being named People's Sexiest Man Alive) to work on his film career, but that it didn’t quite work out. Most recently he’s had recurring roles on Veronica Mars and Army Wives, while he and his wife, Lisa Rinna, have become a staple of reality television, both on Dancing with the Stars and their own show, Harry Loves Lisa.

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Susan Dey (Grace Van Owen)

Was it a bit of stunt casting to see Laurie Partridge all grown up as district attorney Grace Van Owen on L.A. Law? Maybe, but it worked! She won a Golden Globe for the role and was nominated for three Emmys. She played a notorious ice queen, but melted for Michael Kuzak.

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Susan Dey

Dey left the show after the sixth season and starred as the lead in the sitcom Love & War, but she was replaced by Annie Potts after the first season. Besides the occasional TV movie, we don’t see much of her otherwise these days, sadly.

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Corbin Bernsen (Arnie Becker)

Arnie Becker was a beautiful man. That full head of blond hair, that smile. Corbin Bernsen played the office’s bad boy and divorce attorney who, let’s just say, offered full services to his clients.

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Corbin Bernsen

Bernsen was one of a couple of cast members to stick with the show through its entire run, and he’s worked pretty steadily since, with guest spots on shows like Seinfeld and The West Wing (and a reality-TV detour for a couple of seasons of Celebrity Mole). He currently has a recurring role on Psyche and also writes, directs, and produces his own independent films—the most recent is 25 Hill.

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Jill Eikenberry (Ann Kelsey)

Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker were married long before being cast together on L.A. Law. They quickly became a couple on the show. It may or may not have been because of the “Venus butterfly.”

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Jill Eikenberry

Eikenberry still occasionally acts, with recent guest spots on Law & Order and Body of Proof, and a role in the film Something Borrowed. She was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer right before the beginning of the show and continues to be an outspoken activist for cancer research and early detection. She and Michael Tucker are still married today.

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Alan Rachins (Douglas Brackman Jr.)

He was brash, insensitive, argumentative, and all about business. So in short, Alan Rachins’ Douglas Brackman Jr. was a lawyer, and a good one. But we saw his sensitive side come out when he began dating a sex therapist.

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Alan Rachins

After the show wrapped, Rachins went on to star in Showgirls (yup), and then as Dharma’s father on Dharma & Greg.

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Michele Greene (Abby Perkins)

Michele Greene played Abby Perkins, the clerk turned associate who is probably best known for sharing the first lesbian kiss ever on television.

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Michele Greene

Greene left the show after the fifth season to pursue a music career. She has since released two bilingual Spanish albums. And she still continues to act, with recent recurring roles on Brothers and Sisters and Big Love.

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Jimmy Smits (Victor Sifuentes)

Jimmy Smits played Victor Sifuentes, the public defender recruited by the firm. He was a talented lawyer, and passionate about social issues. He stayed with the show for five seasons and won an Emmy, but he is one of the few members of the cast who declined to return for the 2002 reunion movie.

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Jimmy Smits

Smits is maybe the best-known former cast member. Ironically, he originally turned down a role on NYPD Blue, the one that went to David Caruso, whom he would eventually replace. He also played Martin Sheen’s successor as president on The West Wing.

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Michael Tucker (Stuart Markowitz)

What is the “Venus butterfly”? Only Stuart Markowitz knows, and he’s not telling. Michael Tucker’s character is best known for learning of this mysterious sex act (and using it on his on-screen girlfriend, Ann Kelsey). The show received letters and phones calls for more details on the technique, which was only described off-camera, but the show’s creator and writer Terry Louise Fletcher says it’s just made up. Sorry, guys.

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Michael Tucker

Most recently Tucker can be seen reteaming with Corbin Bernsen for his film 25 Hill, but he also continues to collaborate with his wife (on- and off-screen), Jill Eikenberry, on stage and film projects.

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Susan Ruttan (Roxanne Melman)

Susan Ruttan played Roxanne, Arnie Becker’s secretary. She didn’t have a law degree, but she was likable, and always good at cleaning up Arnie’s messes.

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Susan Ruttan

Ruttan still shows up on television every once in while. Most recently she’s guest-starred on Grey’s Anatomy, Hawthorne, Hannah Montana, and Castle.

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Richard Dysart (Leland McKenzie)

Richard Dysart (who won an Emmy for the show) played Leland McKenzie, the older, more seasoned (and kind of stiff) partner and father figure in the law office. It’s often regarded as one of the greatest moments of television when he was shown in bed with rival Rosalind Shays, whom he secretly romanced until her untimely death.

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Richard Dysart

Dysart returned for the L.A. Law movie but hasn’t acted since. He racked up an impressive list of screen and stage credits before the show started, so we can’t fault him for enjoying retirement.

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Blair Underwood (Jonathan Rollins)

Blair Underwood joined the show in the second season as Jonathan Rollins, a young new associate brought into the firm. He was a charismatic lawyer but was often at odds with the senior partners for his brash tactics.

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Blair Underwood

Underwood is still a hot commodity in Hollywood. He’s had recurring roles on Sex and the City, Dirty Sexy Money, and The New Adventures of Old Christine. He most recently starred in the short-lived series The Event.

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Larry Drake (Benny Stulwicz)

Larry Drake joined the show in the second season and won two Emmys for his role as Benny, the mentally impaired office mate of the L.A. Law staff. Just like the rest of the office, Benny managed to get his too, in an episode where he sleeps with the mentally impaired daughter of a client.

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Larry Drake

Today Drake mostly provides the voices for video games and cartoons, like Johnny Bravo.

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John Spencer (Tommy Mullaney)

In the fifth season, John Spencer joined the cast as a new lawyer at the firm named Tommy Mullaney. He later leaves the firm for the D.A.’s office and starts a relationship with Roxanne, who asks him to father her child.

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John Spencer

Spencer, of course, went on to star on The West Wing for seven seasons as Leo McGarry and won an Emmy for the role. He passed away in 2005 of a heart attack at the age of 58.