History Recap / LeverageS01E10TheJurorNoSixJob

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/levjury_5188.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Behind every routine civic function...]]
-->'''Eliot''': ''She's gonna buy the jury.''
-->'''Nate''': ''Not if we…steal it first.''

In a prologue set three years in the past, a man named Ernesto Vargas collapses and dies of a heart attack.

In the present, Parker is having a bit of an attitude problem when one of her aliases, Alice White, gets a [[JuryDuty jury summons]]. Nate and Sophie decide it would be good for her to learn to socialize with ordinary people, and so she’s stuck with it.

At the trial, Ernesto’s wife, Gloria, is trying to get a settlement from William Quint (Creator/BrentSpiner), the manufacturer of a supplement Ernesto was taking which she believes caused his heart attack. As Parker sits there, she notices a tiny camera in the defense lawyer’s briefcase.

When she gets back to the office, she tries to persuade the team to intervene, but they are disinclined to act ("[[TemptingFate Parker, listen, there is not some evil conspiracy lurking behind every routine civic activity.]]"). Eventually, Nate sends Eliot to make she doesn’t do anything rash. They tail Quint and find an entire setup keeping tabs on the trial. The one running the show is Tobey Earnshaw, heiress to a pharmaceutical corp her father runs, but she’s doing a little extra behind his back. She’s already sunk $20 million into Quint's company, and if he loses she’s out all of it. To keep that from happening, she’s rigging the trial.

Quint, however, is rapidly losing interest and seems more inclined to settle the case, but she won’t let him. Parker and Eliot tap their feeds and Hardison is impressed with the setup. A long, lingering shot highlights [[ChessMotifs Earnshaw's chess board]].

With the proof that there is in fact some [[IronicEcho evil conspiracy behind the curtain of every routine civic…]] Nate decides to take the case, stealing the jury before Earnshaw can buy it.

His plan is to have Parker stall the trial, which means she needs to gain the trust of the other jurors. Easier said than done, given her [[NoSocialSkills lack of social skills]]. Hardison and Eliot [[DumpsterDive dig through jurors' trash]] for clues on which member might be compromised. Finally, he sends Sophie ([[ChessMotifs his queen]]) after Quint ([[ChessMotifs Earnshaw's king]]). She presents herself as a representative from Mumbai international, a real Indian pharmaceutical company, making him a much more attractive offer. Quint is very interested.

Hardison finds evidence that Earnshaw has bought off the jury foreman. Parker lifts a bunch of stuff from the other jurors and plants it on him. When it comes up, the other jurors demand his removal. As Parker makes herself helpful, the other jurors decide to make her the new foreman.

With her pawn removed, Earnshaw calls Gloria’s lawyer and makes him a "retirement" offer to abandon the case ([[ChessMotifs queen takes knight]]). The missing lawyer will cause a mistrial, starting the whole process from the beginning, which Gloria won't be able to afford, so Hardison comes in as her new "court appointed" lawyer.

As Earnshaw tries to find out who this new piece is, Sofie makes Quint increasingly uneasy about his position once Earnshaw completes her buyout. He goes to talk to Sophie, but Earnshaw notices and starts investigating her. Sophie brings Quint to the “Mumbai International" offices (actually Leverage HQ) to speak to their home office (a green screen in the next room), then presses him to settle, but the next day, they find that Earnshaw bought out the ''real'' Mumbai International. Now the only option left is to win the trial.

Parker and Hardison head off to court, while the rest delay Quint, take out the goons tailing him, and steal his phone by pretending to help him fix his car (which they sabotaged). Meanwhile, Hardison cross examines Quint’s expert witness, questioning his reliability by pointing out that he’s on the no-fly list. He then gives a heartfelt closing statement, and returns to the Leverage office. This is endgame, and Parker will determine the outcome. As both sides watch the jury deliberation, Earnshaw thinks about everything that’s happened, almost as if someone else were… just then, Parker calls for a vote, and they see a result in favor of Quint. However, having discovered that Quint is trying to sell his company to a competitor, she pressures him to sell the company on the spot (before telling him they've won the case). Quint folds, playing it safe and taking the payout.

In court, the jury returns, and Earnshaw is stunned when the verdict comes back in Gloria’s favor to the tune of $5 million. It turns out that Hardison doctored the recording by combining Parker asking the jury for a vote in favor of Quint and a recording of the jury raising their hands when Parker asked if they wanted pizza for lunch. Earnshaw blames Quint since she tracked him visiting her competitors, but it turns out that Sophie was taking Quint’s stolen phone to various offices when she checked his GPS. As she and Quint come out of the courtroom Quint is shocked to see Sophie, realizing he's been duped while Nate comes up to Earnshaw and presents the king from her own chessboard to her. Checkmate.

Back at headquarters Nate congratulates Hardison for winning the trial without cheating ("I hacked a government no-fly list and used it to humiliate a witness!" "''Excessively''. Without excessively cheating.") while Parker gets a message from Peggy suggesting they go out for some coffee. It seems Parker has actually made a friend outside Team Leverage.

!Tropes stolen in this job:
* AliceAllusion: Parker's alias Alice White debuts in this episode, and while playing the role she wears a headband that visually evokes the well-known Disney version of Lewis Carroll's Alice. The ChessMotifs throughout help too.
** Just like Alice, Parker is encountering an unfamiliar world with strange rules and people she's not sure how to deal with...
* AmoralAttorney: Two examples: Gloria's, who takes Earnshaw's bribe to leave, and Quint's who's taking instructions from Earnshaw herself.
* ChessMotifs: Nate explains the con like a chess game and Earnshaw is seen playing with a chess board throughout. Also in keeping with the episode's subtle AliceAllusion.
%%* CourtroomEpisode
* DumpsterDive: Hardison and Eliot go searching for something to tell them who Earnshaw bought.
* ImprobableAimingSkills: Nate picks Quint's pocket to get his cell phone. Pulling his hand from the pocket, he tosses the phone to Sophie, driving by with her hand sticking out the sun roof. All in one smooth motion.
* JuryAndWitnessTampering: Done by both sides.
* JuryDuty: Hardison's fake identities for the team are so good that one of Parker's gets called up.
* KarmaHoudini: Interestingly Zigzagged. Earnshaw goes down hard but, while trying to rig the trial, she wasn't the one who marketed the dangerous drug. That was Quint, and while he is declared liable and forced out of his company, Earnshaw did give him a payoff (not as much as he wanted, but not a small amount either) in order to acquire it before the verdict which he presumably gets to keep instead of being wiped out like he would have if he’d still had the company and a suddenly uninterested buyer.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: Quint is an unusual combination of this trope and CorruptCorporateExecutive.
* NoodleIncident: We never see the job the crew is coming back from at the beginning but given that it apparently involved an elevator nearly decapitating Parker and Nate, it must have been utterly spectacular.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: At first, Nate is hesitant to investigate Parker's claims about the trial. Sophie has to convince him after realizing that this is the first time Parker has ever ''asked for help''.
* RunningGag: Parker forgetting that Alice White is her alias:
-->'''Parker''': Who’s Alice White?
-->'''Everyone else''': ''You'' are!
** Comes full circle at the end when Parker proclaims that "Alice made a friend" and Eliot has to remind her that she, ''Parker'', made a friend.
* UnconventionalCourtroomTactics: Hardison's entire plan is to stall the trial by introducing copious amounts of evidence. When he runs out of stalling tactics, he discredits an expert witness by pointing out that they're on the government no-fly list due to a list of embarrassing drunken incidents, which Hardison reads aloud to the court. Does it have anything to do with the witness medical credentials? No. Does it work? Flawlessly.
----

* CourtroomAntic: Hardison's entire plan is to stall the trial by introducing copious amounts of evidence. When he runs out of stalling tactics, he discredits an expert witness by pointing out that they're on the government no-fly list due to a list of embarrassing drunken incidents, which Hardison reads aloud to the court. Does it have anything to do with the witness medical credentials? No. Does it work? Flawlessly.
* CourtroomEpisode

* KarmaHoudini: Interestingly Zigzagged. Earnshaw goes down hard but, while trying to rig the trial, she wasn't the one who marketed the dangerous drug. That was Quint, and while he is declared liable and forced out of his company, Earnshaw did give him a payoff (not as much as he wanted, but not a small amount either)in order to acquire it before the verdict which he presumably gets to keep instead of being wiped out like he would have if he’d still had the company and a suddenly uninterested buyer.

-----
Three years ago, a man named Ernesto Vargas collapses and dies.

In the present Parker is having a bit of an attitude problem when one of her aliases, Alice White, gets a [[JuryDuty jury summons]]. Nate and Sophie decide it would be good for her and so she’s stuck with it.

Quint, however, is rapidly losing interest and seems more inclined to settle the case, but she won’t let him. Parker and Eliot tap their feeds and Hardison is impressed with the setup. A long lingering shot highlights [[ChessMotifs Earnshaw's chess board]].

His plan is to have Parker stall the trial, which means she needs to gain the trust of the other jurors. Easier said than done, given her lack of social skills. Hardison and Eliot [[DumpsterDive dig through jurors' trash]] for clues on which member might be compromised. Finally, he sends Sophie ([[ChessMotifs his queen]]) after Quint ([[ChessMotifs Earnshaw's king]]). She presents herself as a representative from Mumbai international, a real Indian pharmaceutical company, making him a much more attractive offer. Quint is very interested.

In court, the jury returns, and Earnshaw is stunned when the verdict comes back in Gloria’s favor to the tune of $5 million. It turns out that Hardison doctored the recording by combining Parker asking the jury for a vote in favor of Quint and a recording of the jury raising their hands when Parker asked if they wanted pizza for lunch. Earnshaw blames Quint since she tracked him visiting her compeditors, but it turns out that Sophie was taking Quint’s stolen phone to various offices when she checked his GPS. As she and Quint come out of the courtroom Quint is shocked to see Sophie, realizing he's been duped while Nate comes up to Earnshaw and presents the king from her own chessboard to her. Checkmate.

At the trial, Ernesto’s wife, Gloria, is trying to get a settlement from William Quint (Creator/BrentSpiner), the manufacturer of a product Ernesto was taking which she believes caused his heart attack. As Parker sits there, she notices a tiny camera in the defense lawyer’s briefcase.

When she gets back to the office, she tries to persuade the team to intervene, but they are disinclined to act ("[[TemptingFate Parker, listen, there is not some evil conspiracy lurking behind every routine civic activity.]]"). Eventually, Nate sends Eliot to make she doesn’t do anything rash. They tail Quint and find an entire setup keeping tabs on the trial. The one running the show is a woman named Earnshaw. She runs a company trying to buy Quint’s, and could lose everything if he loses. He, however, is rapidly losing interest and seems more inclined to just settle, but she won’t let him. Parker and Eliot tap their feeds so now the team sees what they see. Hardison is impressed with the setup.

With the proof that there is in fact some [[IronicEcho evil conspiracy behind the curtain of every routine civic…]] Nate decides to take the case. The woman is Tobey Earnshaw, the heiress of a pharmaceutical corp her father runs, but she’s doing a little extra behind his back, and istrying to acquire Quint’s company. She’s already sunk $20 million into it, and if he loses she’s out all of it. To keep that from happening, she’s rigging the trial.

As they watch, Earnshaw runs a credit check on Alice White.

-->'''Parker''': Who’s Alice White?
-->'''Everyone else''': ''You'' are!

Earnshaw intends to buy the jury, so Nate’s going to steal it first.

His plan is to have Parker stall the trial, which means she needs to gain the trust of the other jurors. Easier said than done. Next he needs to know who she controls on the jury, leaving Hardison and Eliot to [[DumpsterDive dig through trash for clues]]. Finally, he sends Sophie, his queen, after Quint, Earnshaw's king. She presents herself as a representative from an Indian pharmaceutical company looking to buy his company, and presents a much more attractive offer. Quint is very interested.

Hardison finds evidence that Earnshaw has bought off the jury foreman. He needs to be taken off the board. Parker lifts a bunch of stuff from the other jurors and plants it on him. When it comes up, the other jurors demand his removal. As Parker makes herself helpful, the other jurors decide to make her the new foreman.

With her pawn removed, Earnshaw calls Gloria’s lawyer and bribes him to abandon the case, queen takes knight. A missing lawyer causes a mistrial, which starts the whole process from the beginning, which Gloria won't be able to afford. Nate sends Hardison in as the new lawyer, with all the certificates and paperwork to back it up.

He’s basically there to stall long enough for Quint to take the offer. As Earnshaw tries to find out who this new piece is, Quint tries to find out what he will be doing after she buys him out. He goes to talk to Sophie, but Earnshaw notices and starts looking into her. Sophie brings Quint to the “Mumbai International offices” to speak to their home office, then presses him to settle, but Earnshaw counter-moves by buying out the ''real'' Mumbai International. This reveals that Earnshaw is watching Quint. Now the only option left is to win the trial.

Parker and Hardison head off to court, while the rest delay Quint and steal his phone by pretending to help him fix his car after taking out Earnshaw's goons and planting a device that shuts down his car. Meanwhile, Hardison cross examines Quint’s expert witness, by pointing out that he’s on the no fly list, and basically accuses him of being a terrorist. He then gives a heartfelt closing statement, and returns to the Leverage office. This is endgame, and Parker will determine the outcome. As both sides watch the jury deliberation, Earnshaw thinks about everything that’s happened, almost as if someone else were…just then, Parker calls for a vote, and they see a result in favor of Quint. Earnshaw is overjoyed that she’s won. Having discovered that Quint is trying to sell his company to a competitor, she pressures Quint to sell the company on the spot. Quint folds, playing it safe and taking the payout.

In court, Earnshaw is stunned when the verdict comes back in Gloria’s favor to the tune of $5 million. It turns out that Hardison doctored the recording by combining Parker asking the jury for a vote in favor of Quint and a recording of the jury raising their hands when Parker asked if they wanted pizza for lunch. Earnshaw blames Quint and tells him that she tracked him but it turns out that Sophie was taking Quint’s phone to Earnshaw’s competitors so she would think he was looking for a better offer when she checked his GPS. As she and Quint come out of the courtroom Quint is shocked to see Sophie, realizing he's been duped while Nate comes up to Earnshaw and presents the king from her own chessboard to her. Checkmate.

* AliceAllusion: Parker's go-to alias Alice White debuts in this episode, and while playing the role she wears a headband that visually evokes the well-known Disney version of Lewis Carroll's Alice.

* ChessMotifs: Nate explains the con like a chess game and Earnshaw is seen playing with a chess board throughout.

* JuryDuty

With the proof that there is in fact some [[IronicEcho evil conspiracy behind the curtain of every routine civic…]] Nate decides to take the case. The woman is Tobey Earnshaw, the heiress of a pharmaceutical corp. her father runs, but she’s doing a little extra behind his back, and trying to acquire Quint’s company. She’s already sunk $20 million into it, and if he loses she’s out all of it. To keep that from happening, she’s rigging the trial.

His plan is to have Parker stall the trial, which means she needs to gain the trust of the other jurors. Easier said than done. Next he needs to know who she controls on the jury, which Hardison and Eliot need to [[DumpsterDive dig through trash to find]]. Finally, he sends Sophie, his queen, after Quint, Earnshaw's king. She presents herself as a representative from an Indian pharmaceutical company looking to buy his company, and presents a much more attractive offer. Quint is very interested.

He’s basically there to stall long enough for Quint to take the offer. As Earnshaw tries to find out who this new piece is, Quint tries to find out what he will be doing after she buys him out. He goes to talk to Sophie, but Earnshaw notices and starts looking into her. Sophie brings Quint to the “Mumbai International offices” to speak to their home office, then presses him to settle, but Earnshaw counter-moves by buying out Mumbai. This reveals that Earnshaw is watching Quint. Now the only option left is to win the trial.

Parker and Hardison head off to court, while the rest delay Quint and steal his phone by pretending to help him fix his car after taking out Earnshaw's goons and planting a device that shuts down his car. Meanwhile, Hardison cross examines Quint’s expert witness, by pointing out that he’s on the no fly list, and basically accuses him of being a terrorist. He then gives a heartfelt closing statement, and returns to the Leverage office. This is endgame, and Parker will determine the outcome. As both sides watch the jury deliberation, Earnshaw thinks about everything that’s happened, almost as if someone else were…just then, Parker calls for a vote, and they see a result in favor of Quint. Earnshaw is overjoy that she’s won, and decides to buy Quint’s company right now since she tracked his phone to other companies, competitors of hers. Not telling him the results, she makes a deal with Quint and he agrees.

Back at headquarters Nate congratulates Hardison for winning the trial without cheating ("I hacked a government no-fly list and used it to humiliate a witness!" "''Excessively''. Excessively cheating.") while Parker gets a message from Peggy suggesting they go out for some coffee. It seems Parker has actually made a friend outside Team Leverage.

-->'''Everyone else''': You are!

* NewAgeRetroHippie: Quint is an unusual villainous example.