''Street Legal'' is a New Zealand

legal drama A legal drama is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in which a system of justice play ...

focused on the lives of a small group of lawyers. The show was produced by ScreenWorks. A total of four series consisting of 53 episodes were aired between 11 July 2000 and 21 August 2003.

History

Producer Chris Hampson, director Chris Bailey and writer

Greg McGee Greg McGee is a New Zealand writer and playwright, who also writes crime fiction under the pseudonym Alix Bosco. Biography McGee was born in 1950 in the South Island town of Oamaru. In his early 20s McGee played rugby as a Junior All Black and b ...

formed a production company, ScreenWorks, in 1998 to produce Street Legal, which they had been developing since 1993. The pilot aired in 1998 and the first series in 2000.

Synopsis

The show focused mainly on the lives of the partners of the law firm Wyeth & Associates located in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand. The characters include Peter Wyeth (Series 1–3), David Silesi, Joni Collins, Tim O'Connor (Series 1 and 2) and James Peabody (Series 3 and 4). Also seen were Judge Adriana Saunders, Yalena (the goofy secretary), Kees Van Dam, Ange Watson (Series 4), Sadie O'Neil (Series 2 and 3) and Matt Urlich (Series 3 and 4). The main character David Silesi (Jay Laga'aia) is a maverick lawyer who pushes the limits of the law. He will do anything for his clients and his friends. He also spends most of the show pining for his law partner Joni Collins. Joni Collins is a level-headed female lawyer at Wyeth & Associates. In the 3rd Series, David and Joni join and buy out the firm to save it after Peter dies in unfortunate circumstances.

Cast

Main

Jay Laga'aia Jay Laga'aia (born 10 September 1963) is a New Zealand-Australian actor and singer. He is known internationally for his role as Captain Typho in the films '' Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones'' and '' Star Wars: Episode III – Rev ...

as David Silesi * Katherine Kennard as Joni Collins * Daniel Gillies as Tim O'Connor (series 1–2) *

Charles Mesure Charles William David Mesure (born 12 August 1970) is an English Australian actor known for his work in Australia, New Zealand and the United States of America. Birth and education Mesure was born in Somerset, England. When he was five, his fami ...

as Kees Van Dam *

Dwayne Cameron Dwayne Cameron (born 28 October 1981) is a New Zealand actor, writer, director and producer. Cameron is best known internationally for playing the lead roles of Bray on the teen drama series '' The Tribe'' and Tyzonn in ''Power Rangers Operat ...

as James Peabody (series 3–4)

Recurring

* Kate Elliott as Melanie Wyeth (series 1–3) * Carl Bland as Peter Wyeth (series 1–2) *

Louise Wallace Louise Annette Wallace (née Hooper, born 21 November 1959) is a New Zealand television presenter, actress, and director. Early life Born Louise Annette Hooper in Auckland on 21 November 1959, Wallace was educated at St Cuthbert's College. S ...

as Adriana Saunders * Ben Baker as Samson Silesi (series 1) *

Sara Wiseman Sara Wiseman is a New Zealand actress, best known for her roles in the television series ''Mercy Peak'' as Dr. Nicky Somerville, '’ A Place to Call Home'' as Carolyn Bligh and ''The Cult'' as Annabelle Willis. Beginning her career with low-pr ...

as Louise Jarvis (series 1) *

Cal Wilson Cal Wilson (born 5 October 1970) is a New Zealand stand-up comedian, author, radio and television presenter. Early life After attending high school in Christchurch, New Zealand, Wilson completed a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Canterbu ...

as Yalena *

Andrew Binns Andrew Robertt is a New Zealand born actor. His work covers a diverse range of characters across multiple genres. He studied arts and sciences at The University of Auckland, and horticulture and business management at trade school. In his earlie ...

as Det. Sr. Sgt. Jack Clifford (series 2) *

Ingrid Park Ingrid Park (born February 1971) is a New Zealand television actress. She began her acting career in 1998 appearing in the New Zealand television soap opera series ''Shortland Street''. Early life and career breakthrough Ingrid was born in 19 ...

as Maddy McGuire (series 2–4) *

Manu Bennett Jonathan Manu Bennett (born 10 October 1969) is a New Zealand actor. He is primarily known for portraying characters in epic fantasy works, such as Crixus in the TV series ''Spartacus'', Allanon in '' The Shannara Chronicles'', Slade Wilson / ...

as Matt Urlich (series 3–4) *

Tandi Wright Tandi Wright (born 4 May 1966) is a New Zealand actress. She first gained recognition for portraying Nurse Caroline Buxton on the long running New Zealand soap opera ''Shortland Street''. She is best known for her roles as Fenn Partington on ''S ...

as Ange Watson (series 4)

Main characters

David Silesi is an unconventional lawyer. Ambitious, and hot-headed, he's a man with a passion for winning and he's not afraid to bend the rules to get a result. He is the central character in ''Street Legal'' and was specifically created with actor, Jay Laga'aia, in mind. Joni Collins is a colleague of David Silesi's at Wyeth and Associates. Her cool restrained English Rose quality is the very opposite of David's braggadocio. This worked well when they were lovers but now that they have to run the business between them, it creates a lot of conflict. Detective Senior Sergeant Kees Van Dam sees himself as an honest cop relentlessly pursuing the course of justice. And most of the time he is. Bit he can also be uncompromising and single-minded to the exclusion of all else, including his love for Joni Collins. A 1944 Ford Jailbar was also seen in just about every episode of the first three series. It is David Silesi's main companion. Early in the first series, David's Ute was stolen, so his brother seeing his reaction to the truck decided to buy it for him. In the middle of the third series, the truck broke down, and was never seen again, replaced by a brand new Holden Ute.

Awards and nominations

Academy of Film and Television Arts

References

External links

* * * {{URL, https://www.nzonscreen.com/title/street-legal-2000/series, ''Street Legal'' – Series – Television – NZ On Screen 2000 New Zealand television series debuts 2003 New Zealand television series endings New Zealand drama television series Television shows funded by NZ on Air