- Serena Southerlyn: So the law is the law unless enforcing it causes some collateral damage?
- Arthur Branch: That lady outside with the blindfold, she's got a scale in her left hand, Serena.
- Serena Southerlyn: Yeah, and it's the scale of justice, not pragmatism.
- Arthur Branch: Well, sometimes you can't have one without the other. Especially when Pennington Cleese is across the aisle.
- Jack McCoy: Your old firm.
- Arthur Branch: Representing my old client.
- Serena Southerlyn: The whole country of China was your client?
- Arthur Branch: Up to 10 million a year in billings.
- Jack McCoy: So will there be some kind of conflict here?
- Arthur Branch: Chen wasn't even in this country when I represented them. But...
- Jack McCoy: Don't even think about it, Arthur.
- Serena Southerlyn: What?
- Jack McCoy: Arthur was about to suggest we transfer this case to another jurisdiction.
- Arthur Branch: Well, it would prevent a hell of a migraine.
- Jack McCoy: Take an aspirin.
- Arthur Branch: I was referring to YOUR head.
- Jack McCoy: You know, Mr. Chen, I've been thinking of traveling to China.
- Li Chen: I'm very happy for you...
- Jack McCoy: Of course, I'd go to Beijing, but I'd wanna see more. Would your hometown be of any interest?
- Li Chen: Well, Tianjin is a beautiful city.
- Jack McCoy: But would an American appreciate its beauty? Well, Mr. Pincham thought so.
- Howard Pincham: Stop.
- Howard Pincham: You visited Tianjin, did you?
- Howard Pincham: That has no bearing on this case.
- Jack McCoy: On the contrary. If we go to trial, I could call you as a witness to testify about the detention camps, or lack thereof, whatever the case may be. That puts you... No, that puts your entire firm in a precarious legal position. Serena, why don't you start drafting a brief to have Mr. Pincham's law firm disqualified?
- Howard Pincham: This is ridiculous.
- Jack McCoy: Perhaps. But look at all those fees your firm will lose if a judge agrees with me.
- Arthur Branch: Enter one alibi.
- Jack McCoy: Which was contradicted by the call girl, but who knows?
- Arthur Branch: Did I ever tell you about Howard Pincham? He was my right-hand man at Pennington. My guess, he's going to be opposing counsel in this affair.
- Jack McCoy: We can't afford even the appearance of conflict here, Arthur.
- Arthur Branch: Where do the canons say a couple of pals can't shoot the breeze? So, back in the days when I got paid for working, the Chinese government invited me, as their counsel, to visit their beautiful country. The only problem is I'm what the kids today call a homeboy. I like to stay home.
- Jack McCoy: So you sent Howard Pincham?
- Arthur Branch: Best perk he ever got. He spent the last six months of '99 touring the country in style. Yup, except for a wicked case of Mao's Revenge, old Howie had a wonderful time.
- Arthur Branch: Howard! I didn't think they let Harvard men in here unescorted.
- Howard Pincham: I'm meeting O'Keefe for dinner.
- Arthur Branch: [Holding newspaper] Did you see this? Second Circuit reversed Barsky.
- Howard Pincham: I could have you disbarred for this, Arthur.
- Arthur Branch: For having a drink?
- Howard Pincham: You told McCoy I visited Tianjin. Just because you left the firm doesn't mean you can disclose confidential information about my dealings with clients.
- Arthur Branch: If you recall, I skipped your home movies of that trip.
- Howard Pincham: Splitting hairs doesn't become you, Arthur. We'll just have to see what the Ethics Committee thinks. Unless of course...
- Arthur Branch: Are you trying to extort a deal out of me, Howard?
- Howard Pincham: A proposal, that's all. Suppose I turn my back on this Bar Association thing, and you agree to send Mr. Chen back to China.
- Arthur Branch: So he can be tried for murder by his own people.
- Howard Pincham: Exactly - by a culture that understands him.
- Arthur Branch: Sounds good.
- Howard Pincham: Ah, I knew you'd be reasonable.
- Arthur Branch: Reasonable, but not stupid. Back home, Chen might receive a medal of honor for murdering Helen Quan.
- Howard Pincham: You love this, don't you? Squeezing me into a corner.
- Arthur Branch: Just doin' my job.
- Howard Pincham: Only Chen didn't kill that girl and you don't have any evidence to prove he did.
- Arthur Branch: And he doesn't have an alibi. We know he wasn't feeling particularly frisky that night.
- Howard Pincham: If you're talking about the call girls, that's not Chen's thing.
- Arthur Branch: What is?
- Howard Pincham: A dry vodka martini from the Beekman Hotel around the corner.
- Judge Susan Lehman: How does your client plead?
- Howard Pincham: He doesn't.
- Judge Susan Lehman: Excuse me?
- Judge Susan Lehman: Mr. Chen has consular immunity. It was improper for these charges to have been brought against him at all. I demand that you release him immediately.
- Judge Susan Lehman: You know, I'd love to, Mr. Pincham, but your client's charged with murder, not a parking ticket.
- Howard Pincham: Your sarcasm offends me, Your Honor.
- Judge Susan Lehman: Then go back to the white-collar world where people say "please" before they screw you to the wall. Now, you've got until "three" to give me a plea. One...
- Li Chen: Not Guilty, Your Honor.
- Howard Pincham: With the stipulation on the record that this is not an implicit submission to this court's jurisdiction.
- Judge Susan Lehman: You know, M. Chen, your attorney's worth every penny he's picking from your pocket.
- Serena Southerlyn: Your Honor, under the circumstances, the risk of flight is high...
- Judge Susan Lehman: Save your breath, Counselor. Defendant is remanded without bail.