A list of characters from the television series The Good Wife.
For tropes related to the characters in the After Show The Good Fight, see here
open/close all folders
Main
Alicia Florrick (née Cavanaugh)
Played by: Julianna Margulies
- Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: She's generally cool and composed, especially when she's in court, with dark brown hair. She also gradually becomes more aloof over time.
- Amoral Attorney: More heroic than most examples, but Alicia will do whatever it takes to defend her client regardless of their guilt or innocence and has represented murderers like Colin Sweeney and drug kingpin Lemond Bishop.
- Beware the Nice Ones: She's usually nice and calm, but when she gets angry, look out. Threatening her family is an especially dumbass move. It has only increased since departing Lockhart-Gardner.Alicia: [sweetly] Die choking on your own blood.
- Brainy Brunette: Trained as a lawyer and highly intelligent and observant, which makes her excel in her profession. She has dark hair.
- Brother–Sister Team: Alicia and Owen turn into this more and more, especially when she is in the process of divorcing Peter and Owen moves in temporarily with her.
- Career Versus Family: Goes through both sides of this conflict during the show. She needs to choose career first (to make money), but then it becomes a much closer race as to whether she'll choose family (especially Peter's family, with politics) or career (law, Will).
- Cool Big Sis: To Owen, although she was apparently a nerd in the past.
- Good Parents: She truly is; she loves her children more than anything, and will put them above anything, including her relationships with anyone else.
- Goodis Not Soft: Alicia has a very strong moral compass, but her determination to do what is right will often lead her to act in a way that is not nice. Especially noticeable after Kalinda tries to toughen her up, and when in political and legal scraps.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: Her temper can be extremely terrifying when her buttons are pushed. She only loses her composure when her kids are threatened, and almost anything regarding her personal life. Following Will's death, bringing that up is also a very bad idea.
- Has a Type: Intelligent, powerful, charismatic, dark-haired men.
- Hello, Attorney!: She's very attractive to several clients, such as Colin Sweeney, but also to Will and Peter, of course.
- Heroic BSoD: Defied. After her fight with Eli over Will's message, she was this close to losing hope on living until Lucca snapped her out of it.
- Hopeless with Tech: Constantly. She always needs Zach's help with it.
- Knight Templar Parent: Her children come before anything else, including her relationships with Peter and Will.
- Mama Bear: The minute she finds out about anybody trying to hurt Zach or Grace, she'll turn into one.
- Manipulative Bitch: Justified but also deconstructed. While she's becoming more like this over time, multiple characters, including Kalinda, tell her that she needs to be more manipulative in order to get what she wants and needs.
- Nice Girl: Sometimes, she can be kind and caring when she's in a good mood, and her heart's in the right place.
- Parents as People: Truly a warm, loving and capable mother, but her career often makes it hard for her to give her kids the time they need.
- Plucky Girl: Downplayed, but she becomes plucky both through necessity (Peter's imprisonment) and choice (as she finds her feet in Lockhart-Gardner).
- Pretty in Mink: Attends a gala in a red dress topped with a black fur wrap.
- Silk Hiding Steel: After she discovers Kalinda's affair with Peter, she becomes more ruthless, but until then, this trope belongs to her. She can be very tough and fierce, but generally, she's nice, kind, and softly-spoken.
- The Spock: Everything Alicia does is very well-planned and thought through, and it's rare for her to act on impulse, unlike Will, Diane, or Peter, all of whom are likely to be much more hotheaded.
- The Stoic: She's become inured to the bad press of the Florrick name and so is very good at managing other's negative reactions to her.
- Took A Level In Cynicism / Took a Level in Jerkass: Particularly after she learns about Kalinda's affair with Peter. While her hurt is understandable, she becomes much harder and more cynical towards others, especially Kalinda and during her legal work.
- Tragic Keepsake: The magazine that declared Will one of Chicago's most eligible bachelors becomes one for her after he dies.
- Tranquil Fury: She has a tendency to rein in all of her emotions and then unleash them at a time when she needs them.
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Will. To the point where he says that they have "always had bad timing". Resolved as the closer of season two. Later with Finn, which remains unresolved after both acknowledge the tension and he backs away.
Diane Lockhart
Played by: Christine Baranski
- Being Good Sucks: Numerous times her liberal values are put in direct contrast with her work, or they're straight-up tested as when she learns that her father betrayed his best friend and was not the
- The Gadfly: She sometimes trolls her Love Interest Kurt McVeigh by randomly name-dropping left-wing talking points, just to watch him twitch.
- Only Sane Man: Routinely has to be above it all when dealing with either the defendants or her coworkers. Because of this, it's allowed her to see Bond attempting to oust her, Will and Alicia willing, and Alicia, Cary, and the fourth years leaving to start their own firm. Also, given Will's own brushes with the wrong side of the courtroom, she serves as the voice of reason for when his ideas can cause problems for the firm, or for him.
- Opposites Attract: Dates and ultimately marries ultra-conservative Southern weapons expert Kurt McVeigh, despite being a lifelong liberal who's largely anti-gun."I can't. Three generations of Democratic ancestors are screaming in protest."
- Platonic Life-Partners: With Will. To the point of platonically slow dancing. They agree their professional relationship has everything but sex.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: She's much more moral and careful than Will, and can often be counted on for more levelheaded advice.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The "blue oni" (calm, levelheaded, realistic) to Will's red as head of Lockhart-Gardner.
- Specs of Awesome: She often wears a pair of prominent black glasses.
Will Gardner
Played by: Josh Charles
- Ambiguous Situation: Played for Drama in the episode "The Last Call." Alicia spends the entire episode speculating what Will's final message on the phone was about. Was he calling to make peace with her? Was he calling to tell her to stop poaching his clients? Was there another reason? By the end of the episode, Alicia comes to accept she'll never know the truth since Will is dead.
- Amoral Attorney: Was one in the past, and still displays some signs, such as when he tries to blackmail a judge. He's largely balanced out by the more moral Diane and Alicia, though both fail him at times.
- Anyone Can Die: He is killed in Season 5.
- Badass Bookworm: A brilliant lawyer who is also physically endowed and totally willing to fight when he needs to.
- Betty and Veronica: Appears to be the Betty in Season 1 to the manipulative, deceitful, imprisoned Peter, but he actually turns out to be the Veronica when he encourages Alicia's career and provides her with another option outside of being Peter's wife.
- Guile Hero: True of most of the lawyers, but Will is quick-talking, deceitful, and depends on wit and intellect, but shown as being (mostly) moral.
- Has a Type: Appears to have a type for intelligent, accomplished, dark-haired women.
- Hello, Attorney!: In-universe as well as out. He's considered one of the most eligible bachelors in Chicago by a magazine.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Veers regularly between a nice guy and a jerkass. Will can be vindictive, coldly calculating, and apologetically manipulative. He also seems to have a soft spot for certain, emotionally-charged cases, is quite loyal to those he cares about (particularly Diane, Kalinda, and Alicia), and is, oddly enough, probably the biggest romantic on the show.
- Love Triangle: Alicia is the main target of both his and Peter's affections.
- Platonic Life-Partners: With Diane. They agree they are so well-matched that they have "everything but the sex" as far as being married goes.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The "red" (impetuous, impulsive, romantic) in comparison to Diane's more calm, relaxed, subtle demeanour.
- The Strategist: Has proven an unconventional brilliance when it comes to navigating the world of law.
- Tall, Dark, and Handsome / Tall, Dark, and Snarky: Both are Alicia's types, after all. The "snarky" part tends to come out when he's doing his job.
- Unlucky Childhood Friend: Has apparently been in love with Alicia for the better part of two decades, but can never seem to get past their "bad timing".
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: Zigzagged with Alicia. It appears to get resolved multiple times, but after Alicia leaves the firm, he dies, and so they can never be reunited.
- Unstoppable Rage: When he realises that Alicia and Cary are leaving Lockhart/Gardner and starting their own firm.
Kalinda Sharma
Played by: Archie Panjabi
- Action Girl: On a show full of lawyers (hence lots of talking), Kalinda acts rather than chats.
- Aloof Dark-Haired Girl: She's an attractive brunette in an imposing way and has an aloof demeanour.
- Ax-Crazy: She can come across as this when pushed too far, because she will do exactly what it takes, including illegal and immoral actions, to get shady people what they deserve.
- Beware the Quiet Ones: Kalinda is a woman of few words, but she is the last person you want to go up against.
- Breakout Character: Won the show's first Emmy and quickly became a favorite in a rich ensemble.
- Child Hater: Played for laughs. She is adamantly childfree, and jokes to Alicia that her life would have been easier if she never had her kids."You know what your mistake was? Not getting your tubes tied."
- Consummate Liar: Used primarily in her duties as an investigator, but also to hide her private life and past from even her closest friends and colleagues.
- Cute Bruiser: She has a mean right hook and will gladly deck anyone who tests her patience.
- Dating Catwoman: On the other side of the trope; she has a casual relationship with FBI agent Lana Delaney, which sometimes puts them on different sides of a case.
- Dark Action Girl: Kalinda doesn't want to be violent, exactly, but she will be and she can handle herself very well in a fight, in addition to always wearing dark clothes and dark lipstick.
- Even the Girls Want Her: Kalinda is openly pansexual and quickly attracts the attentions of the female Agent Delaney. Cary jokes about it to a woman in one episode:Dana Lodge: I am not a lesbian.
Cary: I know a lot of people who weren't anything until they met Kalinda. - Femme Fatale: Fits most of the criteria, down to seducing people who know they shouldn't fall for it, except for the fact that she's also the hard-boiled private investigator.
- Hell-Bent for Leather: Going along with her status as an action girl. She almost always wears a leather jacket and leather boots.
- Hyper-Competent Sidekick: To Alicia more specifically and Lockhart-Gardner more generally. She's a crack investigator and all of Lockhart-Gardner knows it.
- Ms. Fanservice: Her outfits are usually short and revealing, she has a very active sex life (often shown in much more detail than others'), and she has sexual tension with just about everyone.
- Mysterious Past: Kalinda Sharma is not her real name to begin with...
- Put on a Bus: Kalinda departs at the end of Season 6, following her betrayal of Lemond Bishop and Archie Panjabi's contract ending.
- Really Gets Around: Kalinda frequently sleeps around and has no particular preference for either men or women: in the first season alone she seduces two different recurring characters, Detective Anthony Burton and FBI Agent Lana Delaney, the latter of whom becomes a recurring paramour. She later starts a relationship with Cary, although it ends when she disappears.
- Run or Die: Has to do this in her final season when she betrays Lemond Bishop.
- The Stoic: Is excellent at keeping her emotions under the surface, which makes it all the more powerful when they do burst through.
- Twofer Token Minority: The only woman of colour at the firm for a long time, and Lucca is her replacement.
- Undying Loyalty: To Will, ultimately, as proved when she tries to decide between staying at Lockhart Gardner or going with Alicia and Cary to their new firm."I've always got your back."
- Vague Age: She said she was 12 when Alicia last practiced law in the pilot, which would put her age at 25, but that's pretty young for a character with that much experience in everything played by a 37-year old actress.
Although it's likely she was just being hyperbolic or lying like many things about her past. For all we know she could be as old as Alicia just younger looking and likes dressing like a college girl.
Cary Agos
Played by: Matt Czuchry
- Break the Haughty: His stay in prison during Season 6 becomes this for him. He's much softer after that.
- The Casanova: He really gets around and is popular with most of the young women that Lockhart-Gardner encounters.
- The Chew Toy: Cary is very smug, but it's hard not to sympathise with him because of how often he loses: the position to Alicia in Season 1, respect in Season 2 at the State's Attorney, his job at Lockhart-Gardner once again.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: Hasn't had a boss yet who he hasn't turned on at some point. Including himself, in a sense, when he went behind Alicia's back at Florrick-Agos.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Silly Season" in Season 2 and "Affairs of State" in Season 3.
- Defrosting Ice King: A variant, as he becomes much more mature throughout the season and therefore stops being so petty and more open with Alicia, especially when they start working together.
- Friendly Enemy: To Alicia, though he seems to view her more as his enemy than she does, but they also have a warm relationship a lot of the time and are very supportive to each other. This gets finally subverted at the end of Season 4 and beginning of Season 5 when they start up their firm.
- Heel–Face Revolving Door: Can be helpful or nasty depending on his mood. The major Face–Heel Turn was working for Childs. The major Heel–Face Turn was testifying on the firm's behalf after they're under fire for trumped up charges.
- Heel–Face Turn: Returns to Lockhart/Gardner after the DA's office and later starts his own firm with Alicia, after the two of them being rivals for most of Season 1.
- Irony: Says he appreciates the "moral clarity" of working as a prosecutor, but as Peter could've told him, it turns out to be just as murky as working on the other side of the aisle.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Sometimes as he's very ambitious, but he demonstrates multiple times that he cares much more about justice and doing the right thing that he'd care to admit, though he can be very smug even then.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Near the end of the final season of The Good Wife, he finally gets tired of all the scheming at the firm, sells his shares to Diane and quits. He is later seen teaching a class at a college.
- Smug Snake: At his worst moments because he tends to be a Perpetual Smiler most of the time, so this smile can turn smug very quickly.
- The Rival: To Alicia. In Season 1, the two are competing for a job at Lockhart/Gardner, as the firm has hired both of them provisionally for a year with a view to giving a permanent job to the superior employee at that time. After Alicia gets the job, Cary joins the State's Attorney's office, and the two are on opposing sides of cases almost every week. The pair become true friends and partners after Cary rejoins the firm, and even break away to form their own firm together. However, their relationship begins to sour due to their competing ideals about how to run the firm, and by the end of the series Cary is one of many friends that Alicia seems to have lost the respect of due to her continued defence of Peter in the midst of yet another corruption scandal.
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: Feels he has disappointed his wealthy father.
Eli Gold
Played by: Alan Cumming
You ever seen Drag Me to Hell? It's gonna be just like that.
A fixer employed by Peter Florrick to deal with the fallout from his sex scandal. Later his campaign manager and chief of staff.
- The Ace: He's known for being the best, and he brings a lot of money to the firm when he joins in Season 3, although it borders on Informed Attribute with all the mistakes he makes.
- Berserk Button: "I hate AMATEURS!" Don't do anything to hurt Eli's campaign if you don't want him to spit coffee and throw books or strangle you.
- Culturally Religious: He's an ethnic Jew and Marissa once even tries to get him to move to Israel to work on the campaign of an anti-Likud political candidate. However, he's never indicated to actually practice Judaism as a religion.
- Cultured Badass: In addition to having a law degree and being one of the best political fixers in the business, he studied economics and is a classically trained pianist.
- Consummate Liar: A point of pride with him.Eli: Look, I lie 24/7 for my job. It's actually a gift.
- Endearingly Dorky: Whenever Natalie Flores is around, Eli's slick demeanor cracks. He tries to make her smile by doing a terrible contortionist pose, snarks self-deprecatingly about his own age, and looks mortified when his daughter teases him about being on a date. And the first time he sees Natalie in over a year, he dissolves into a stuttering mess that has everyone staring at him like he's lost his mind.
- Establishing Character Moment:
- When deciding whether or not they should hire Eli, all of Peter's team tries to track down a strange beeping noise in the kitchen. None of them can find the source, so they meet with Eli while the beeping continues softly in the background. Eli listens to Peter's job offer, then calmly opens the dishwasher and says the strainer needs to be changed.
- Afterward, Peter's PR specialist, Kya, worries that she's being replaced and tries to stake out her territory. Eli is unfazed.Kya: Just so we're clear: if we're going to fight, you're going to lose. Peter trusts me. Golden may want you here, but Peter is the ultimate decider.Eli: [unzips his pants]Kya: [startled] What are you doing?Eli: Lowering my pants so you can kiss my ass.
- Even Evil Has Standards: While he doesn't have many lines he won't cross, a few include:
- He is disgusted with an immigration lawyer who is clearly just stringing his clients along.
- When it comes to light that Jim Moody committed voter fraud, Eli is appalled and denies that he ever intended for Moody to go that far.
- When Peter decides not to make Diane a supreme court judge, Eli is conflicted and visibly reluctant to screw over one of the few people at Lockhart & Gardener that he truly respects.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: Eli can have quite a temper when things don't go as he planned.
- Honest Advisor: Not honest in general - he's known for being unscrupulous - but he is always frank and honest with Peter and, to a lesser extent, Alicia.
- Hidden Depths: Loves horror movies. "Because they're awesome."
- Informed Ability: Eli Gold is supposedly "the best" political manager in the business, but in early season 2 he misses huge problems or plays into a lot of serious screw-ups. Even more so later, especially in Season 6.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Might embrace the nastiest elements of politics to get himself and his candidate ahead, but also grows to genuinely care about a handful of people, most notably the Florrick family and Natalie Flores.
- Manipulative Bastard: As he freely admits, he'll do anything to win a campaign and politics is a messy business.
- May–December Romance: With Natalie Flores.
- Pet the Dog: They start showing up right and left in season four. Respects Alicia's decision about the interview, snaps at the interviewer when she gets rude, shows deep guilt about prying into Alicia's private life and explicitly says that he's protecting Alicia, not just Peter, from malicious rumors.
- Smug Snake: To an extent, especially when he's on his political game. It's known as one of his more negative traits, which Alicia quickly guesses.
- Token Evil Teammate: This is explicitly why Peter and his team hires Eli in the first place. Eli is referred to as a "wartime consiglieri" and a "thug," but he is undeniably the person they need on their side.
Grace Florrick
Played by: Makenzie Vega
- Annoying Younger Sibling: Downplayed. Grace is pretty mature and tries her best, but she still sometimes annoys Zach as he needs to be protective towards her.
- Plucky Office Girl: Having been a Plucky Girl throughout most of the series, she becomes one of these when she steps up to help Alicia in law and managing house in Season 6.
- She Is All Grown Up: Played for drama after Season 2 and more into 3 as Grace grows up and becomes the object of creepy websites and pictures on the Internet.
- Token Religious Teammate: No other member of her family is religious, but she becomes interested in religion - and subsequently baptised - in Season 3.
- Took a Level in Badass: From approximately Seasons 5 to 7, when Alicia needs her help in managing her own firm.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: Very much so. Even in comparison to Zach, Grace is extremely innocent and naive in all circumstances, often worrying about some of her family's more immoral actions.
Zach Florrick
Played by: Graham Phillips
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: Gender-flipped, especially with Manipulative Bitch Becca, who is older than him.
- Big Brother Instinct: Throughout. He viciously beats up a friend upon discovering he's been creeping on Grace, and is constantly protective of his mom.
- Dating What Daddy Hates: His mom rather than his dad. Alicia hates Becca and is concerned about almost all of Zach's girlfriends, especially after college when he elopes to France and marries his latest girlfriend.
- Momma's Boy: Very downplayed, but Alicia and Zach are close and it's portrayed very positively.
- Put on a Bus: To go to college, as does his actor. He returns occasionally.
- Techno Wizard: Zach loves computers and uses them frequently, as well as recording on his phone when he gets in trouble with the police, and helps out on Peter's campaign.
David Lee
Played by: Zach Grenier
- Ambiguously Gay: In "Undisclosed Recipients", a series of leaked emails at the firm shows that some employees suspect him of being gay, though he denies this.
- Deadpan Snarker: While everyone has their moments, David Lee takes the cake; he has a line for every single circumstance.
- Humanizing Tears: After hearing about Will's death, David Lee immediately storms out of the main boardroom, finds a conference room, orders everybody in the room out, and then bursts into a brief sob over the death of his friend. It's probably the greatest indication in the entire show that Lockhart/Gardner's Token Evil Teammate really does have a heart.
- Jerkass: David Lee will never miss a chance to make money, no matter the circumstances, and he doesn't care who he has to hurt or walk over to get there.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Occasional. This is especially shown after Will died, when he is shown to be genuinely upset.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: In the Season 5 episode, "A Precious Commodity", Alicia represents a pregnant woman who is defying the wishes of the couple she is acting as a surrogate for by refusing to have an abortion when it is determined that the fetus may have severe birth defects. Alicia is surprised to see David take a vested interest in the case and fight tooth and nail for the surrogate's right to have the baby, only to learn that David needs the baby to be born so that he can file a multi-million dollar malpractice suit against the hospital.
- Only in It for the Money: Claims this as his motivation at one point; his only desire is to squeeze every last drop out of the firm and then move on.
- Pet the Dog:
- When Alicia considers divorcing Peter and seeks David's legal advice, he shows complete professionalism and discretion and gives her honest, well-meaning advice while going the extra mile to prevent anyone else at the firm from finding out what they're talking about.
- As much as a Jerkass as he can be, he does love his niece Caitlin.
- He gets friendly with Alicia's mother and even expresses genuine concern when he thinks she's made a bad investment.
- He really steps up when Will is shot and killed during a trial, keeping things going at the firm so Diane will get some space and expresses genuine grief.
- Token Evil Team Mate: One of the more amoral attorneys of Lockhart-Gardner. He'll often backstab every other member if it suits him, and he often does, as shown when the firm is under attack.
Finn Polmar
Played by: Matthew Goode
- Died in Your Arms Tonight: Tries to stop the bleeding when Will is shot; failing that, holds and tries to comfort him until help arrives.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness: In a world full of Grey-and-Gray Morality, even among the "good guys", Finn definitely has the straightest moral compass, shying away from his "hero" image following the shooting and even quitting his ASA job upon discovering Castro's true intentions.
- Nice Guy: Genuinely kind, charming, funny, and warm, particularly towards Alicia.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Fills the leading-man gap left by the departure of Josh Charles, particularly in his evolving friendship with Alicia.
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: Season 6 really ramps up unresolved sexual attraction between him and Alicia.
Jason Crouse
Played by: Jeffrey Dean Morgan
- Beware the Nice Ones: A perfectly easygoing, charming guy, but he is implied to have a more violent side.
Supporting / Recurring
Introduced in Season 1
Peter Florrick
Played by: Chris Noth
- The Atoner: Trying to make up for what he did both as a public, political figure and as a husband.
- Betty and Veronica: Deconstructed between him and Will. Will should be the Betty, as Peter cheated on Alicia and got her involved in some shady dealings), but Peter is much more Betty-like in that Alicia comes to see him as the safe option as their family can be together.
- Fake Guest Star: Despite his importance throughout the series as the husband of the titular good wife, Chris Noth was only ever billed as part of the recurring cast.
- Papa Wolf: Which goes well with Alicia's attitude towards their kids. His responses to people trying to get at him through his family has ranged from using his political connections to mess with them, to punching a guy in the face.
- Relationship Revolving Door: His and Alicia's marriage has been a true and loving one, on the brink of collapse, a completely political sham on both sides, and everything in between.
- Sleazy Politician: In Season 1 especially. He's been sent to prison for corruption and sex scandals, but the corrupt prosecution proves inaccurate and it tries to remain good as possible.
- 10-Minute Retirement: Apparently from politics at the beginning of Season 1 when he goes to prison, but it (predictably) doesn't stick.
- Tall, Dark, and Handsome: A mysterious and somewhat amoral politician who remains very attractive to his wife.
- Took a Level in Dumbass: In Seasons 1 and 2, he won back the popularity of the public and managed to fight his way back to his position, but by Seasons 6 and 7, he's cajoled into a mistaken presidential run and has become more like The Load to Alicia.
Glen Childs
Played by: Titus Welliver
- Amoral Attorney: The closest person the show has to being this trope; he's extremely corrupt and went as far to frame Peter for his corruption. And he's an attorney, although not a practicing one.
- Corrupt Politician: And how, shown by his deep involvement in illegal business practices.
- The Rival: To Peter Florrick, partly because he's his replacement in his job, and then later when Peter challenges him for the position.
- Smug Snake: He's very clear about his villainous intentions and nearly always wears a smug smirk.
- Villain Decay: Glenn Childs went from rather cunning and vicious in Season One to fairly incompetent and even approaching
Jerkass Woobie status in Season Two.
Colin Sweeney
Played by: Dylan Baker
- Bondage Is Bad: Justified in that he's also a murderer, but his perverse, overtly sexual interests are very disturbing.
- Comedic Sociopathy: Sweeney's blasé attitude towards killing his wife and overall creepiness are usually played for Black Comedy.
- Has a Type: He seems to prefer attractive, dark-haired, self-possessed women who are interested in unconventional sex/relationships. While most of those apply to Alicia — who he may be interested in — he also likes her as a lawyer and, he says, as a person. She’s also the closest thing he has to an actual friend, apparently.
- Hated by All: Sweeney's second wife, Isobel Swift, is the only person in the entire series who has any affection for him, and that's only because she's just as much of a sociopath as him. Otherwise, Sweeney is universally despised for killing his wife and getting away with it by the State's Attorney's office, the public, judges and even his own lawyers, who are consistently creeped out by his dark sense of humor and overtly sexual comments and frustrated by his being a horribly unreliable witness who they have to scramble to defend. One judge even outright calls Sweeney a scumbag to his face during a trial he's presiding over in which Sweeney is the defendant, admitting he's likely to be reprimanded for this but considering it to be worth it.
- Karma Houdini: Played with. He murders his wife and gets away with it - then goes to prison for a crime he didn't commit.
- Laser-Guided Karma: As he admits. He goes to prison for a murder he didn't commit, having brazenly gotten away with a murder he did.
- No Social Skills: Sweeney never seems to get that making creepy jokes about killing his wife in court is not going to endear him to any jury.
- Rich Bitch: Gender-flipped. Murderous and extremely obvious with it.
- Smug Snake: Lampshaded. Sweeney's absolute unlikeability backfires on him multiple times.
- Troll: Sweeney endeavours to make every conversation as uncomfortable as possible for whoever he's talking to.
Nancy Crozier
Played by: Mamie Gummer
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She acts sensitive and innocent, but she is no less ruthless than any other lawyer on the show.
- Dumb Blonde: She totally acts like she's one, but as Alicia learns the first time she goes toe-to-toe with her, she's extremely intelligent and sharp. It's all an act.
- Manipulative Bitch: Is good at putting on an innocent act, and likes to exploit it.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: Minor example as she often claims her lack of knowledge to be from innocence, but she can veer towards it a great deal.
- Running Gag: Did she mention she's just a girl from Michigan?
- Simple Country Lawyer: A pretty blonde variant; she loves trying to endear herself to juries by claiming to be just a "simple girl from Michigan" out of place in all these big-city dealings.
Kurt McVeigh
Played by: Gary Cole
- The Ace: There is absolutely no question that Kurt is the best ballistics expert in the business.
- Everyone Has Standards:
- He's a bit of a Gun Nut, being an outspoken advocate of the Second Amendment and having dedicated his career to the study of ballistics, but he will not stand for malfunctioning guns being allowed into general circulation.
- Kurt despises Colin Sweeney for killing his first wife and getting away with it, but agrees to help Lockhart & Gardner defend him from a trumped-up charge for dangerous gun use when his investigation reveals that Sweeney is, in fact, innocent of that crime.
- For Great Justice: He only lends his expertise in legal cases to clients he is convinced are innocent (and offers lower rates than most for that reason).
- Opposites Attract: Enjoys a loving relationship with Diane, despite the fact that their political views differ widely.
- Strawman Political: Averted. Despite being a Republican (or rather, Tea Party member) in a show where most prominent characters are Democrats and/or left-leaning, he never comes off as extreme in any way, though he is a vocal supporter of the Second Amendment if the topic of gun laws comes up.
- Troll: In his first appearance, after he sees that Diane has a photo of herself with Hillary Clinton at her desk, he puts a photo of himself with Sarah Palin at his desk when he has Diane over.
- Unfortunate Names: Has the same last name as the perpetrator of the Oklahoma City bombing; he is quick to point out that they are not related.
Lemond Bishop
Played by: Mike Colter
A Chicago drug lord who retains the services of Lockhart/Gardner for legal representation in cases relating to his legal(-ish) business and family matters.- Affably Evil: Despite running a criminal gang and drug dealing operation, he is a charming, suave guy and a good parent.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He is a genuinely loving, caring father to his son, Dylan. He tells Kalinda that his own father ran out on him when he was six, and he is determined to be better with his own child.
- Knight Templar Parent: Subverted in one episode, when he learns that his son is being bullied at school. Kalinda becomes afraid that he will respond by going after the bully or his family, Bishop simply calls the bully's parents and, in a very reasonable manner, tells them what their son is doing and asks them to talk to him about it.
- Scary Black Man: Despite usually being perfectly nice, civil and well-dressed, nobody ever forgets that he is a ruthless drug lord. When he gets mad, it manifests more as Tranquil Fury, which isn't less scary than the alternative. It says a lot that he's the only character in the series that Kalinda seems to be genuinely afraid of.
Elsbeth Tascioni
Played by: Carrie Preston
- Attention Deficit... Ooh, Shiny!: She can have trouble keeping a train of thought; in one episode when she goes up in court against Alicia, she uses this to throw Elsbeth off her game by leaving conspicuous magazines on her desk in the courtroom.
- Beware the Nice Ones: She is incredibly friendly and likable to just about anyone she meets, but may God have mercy on your soul if you go up against her in some legal action.
- Beware the Silly Ones: Though, she can be a bit of an oddball at times, but it is not wise to make her uspet.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Very quirky and cute, but sharp as a tack. Brilliant in her career as a lawyer.
- Cloudcuckoolander She comes across as this and she could be the trope codifier; she's constantly getting distracted, she's extremely quirky in thought, but she is still rational.
- Fiery Redhead: She has very bright red hair and, although not a traditional example, she's very feisty and holds her ground against all her enemies, especially when she observes amoral behaviour from others.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: A common tactic of hers; she acts all innocent and charming and uses this to her advantage to throw people off their guard and get the information she wants.
- Silk Hiding Steel: Elsbeth often acts sweet and childish but, as proved when she goes up against her opponents, she is cunning, determined, and highly intelligent.
Introduced in Season 2
Wendy Scott-Carr
Played by: Anika Noni Rose
- Best Served Cold: She seems to just want to do her job properly until she reveals to Will who she's really after in season 3, which she's been waiting for since Season 2.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: She has young children, she's very softly-spoken, and she's extremely ruthless and ambitious, as everyone who comes across her learns.
- Smug Snake: And how! She's always smiling regardless of whether she's being beaten or not.
Louis Canning
Played by: Michael J. Fox
A rival lawyer to Lockhart/Gardner who suffers from tardive dyskinesia and loves to milk his condition for jury sympathy in court.- Affably Evil: Canning represents some very shady clients with zero remorse, but he's still a genuinely friendly guy who loves his wife and kids and has enormous respect for Alicia's skill in court.
- Amoral Attorney: Canning can usually be found defending pharmaceutical corporations from class actions for unsafe medicines they've produced, and resorts to extremely dirty tactics in court.
- Disability as an Excuse for Jerkassery: Canning constantly milks his tardive dyskinesia for sympathy from judges and juries, then acts offended or accuses his opponents of discriminating against him when called out on it.
- Obfuscating Disability: Downplayed. Although Canning really does have tardive dyskinesia, he frequently misleads others in regard to the severity of his condition, and continually causes people to underestimate him.
- Punch-Clock Villain: Canning defends some horrifically corrupt corporations from serious charges and resorts to dirty tactics in court, but is a perfectly nice guy outside of his job and is easily capable of going home and being a great husband and father. He even criticises Alicia for not being this, telling her that lawyers need to be able to separate the morality they apply in their personal lives from that of their jobs.
- Worthy Opponent: He considers Alicia to be one and attempts to convince her to work for him multiple times.
Marissa Gold
Played by: Sarah Steele
- Ascended Extra: She first appears as a fleeting guest star, but she gets a permanent position as Alicia's assistant due to their association with Eli, and then she becomes a permanent main cast member on the spinoff.
- Hyper-Competent Sidekick: This is actually why she becomes an assistant (to Alicia) in Season 6 at all.
- Deadpan Snarker: Like her father, she's extremely witty and intelligent.
- Quirky Curls: She has distinctive dark hair and a bright, intelligent demeanour alongside it.
Howard Lyman
Played by: Jerry Adler
A legacy partner at Lockhart/Gardner brought back to the firm by Will and Diane to help them vote Bond out of the firm in Season 2. He remains at the firm for the rest of the series, and causes a lot of trouble due to his senility and lack of political correctness.- December–December Romance: He gets engaged to Jackie Florrick in Season 7.
- Dirty Old Man: He nearly brings a sexual harassment suit down on the firm by making a pass at a paralegal and ruins a simple meeting with Latina client Natalie Flores because he can't resist going off on a tangent about how sexy Mexican women are.
- The Millstone: He does absolutely no work and causes the firm nothing but trouble between his politically incorrect comments, sexually inappropriate behaviour and general idiocy, while still raking in millions of dollars a year in profits due to being an equity partner. Cary even cites Howard's presence as proof of Lockhart/Gardner's mismanagement when he decides to leave and start his own firm.
- Racist Grandpa: Due to ignorance rather than malice, but his reaction to meeting a black man who is a potential new client is to give him a fistbump instead of a handshake. Naturally, the firm doesn't win the client's business.
Introduced in Season 3
Mike Kresteva
Played by: Matthew Perry
- Gaslighting: In pretty much every appearance, he will conduct a conversation with someone, then - later - claim that they said things they did not say. His insistence that his fiction is fact, and his condescending attitude towards his victims' attempts to correct him, makes him truly despicable.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Peter turns his Gaslighting tricks against him by punching him in the face and then brazenly lying about it, telling everyone Kresteva got too drunk and fell in the bathroom.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Every time he shows even the slightest hint of a sympathetic trait, it will either turn out to be an act or will be something that he exploits for his own gain.
- Smug Snake: If he breaks from looking smug for so much as a second, he's almost certainly lying to manipulate you.
Introduced in Season 4
Clark Hayden
Played by: Nathan Lane
- Badass Bureaucrat: You know you're doing something right if you make David Lee sweat during a negotiation.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: His last appearance was in the season 5 episode "A Weird Year". After that, like many people who worked at Alicia and Cary's law firm, he then just disappeared from the story and was never again mentioned.
- Defrosting Ice King: Was fairly distant at first, but became much more personally invested with the firm over time; in "Waiting For The Knock", he even uncovered vital clues while assisting in a case.
- Hidden Depths: Was a CPA for 22 years and still knows quite a few tricks of the trade.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He can come off as a bit blunt when running the firm, but genuinely means well.
- Odd Friendship: With Cary, who is extremely ambitious and self-serving most of the time - but Cary genuinely comes to like and support Clark, especially when it comes to him taking the bar and becoming a lawyer.
Charles Lester
Played by: Wallace Shawn
An associate of Lemond Bishop. Supposedly a consulting lawyer, he acts more as a fixer or an enforcer.- Amoral Attorney: Though the "attorney" thing seems to be more of a cover for a less legal profession.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Despite his old, harmless exterior and overall amiable attitude, he is a ruthless and loyal operative working for an equally brutal drug lord.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: When he works with Alicia and talks to witnesses, he just asks irrelevant questions. However, he is sharper and more ruthless than that when issuing threats.
- The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: As Alicia points out in his first appearance, in his 25 years as a lawyer, Lester has never tried a case, written a brief, been part of a firm or had an office and has only had two clients, namely Bishop and a mafia don who died ten years previously. This is because being a lawyer is just a cover for his real job, which is intimidating witnesses on Bishop's behalf.
- Villainous Friendship: He and Bishop are shown to be really chummy with each other in a scene where they are driving together.
Robyn Burdine
Played by: Jess Weixler
Lockhart/Gardner's second investigator, hired to work alongside Kalinda in Season 4.- Beneath Suspicion: When Will finds out that Alicia is leaving to start her own firm with Cary, he assigns Robyn to keep track of Alicia's movements until he can have her fired and escorted out of the building. It's clear he never suspected that the cute, sweet Robyn was actually planning on joining Alicia's firm, and she immediately begins helping her new boss take client files with no one being any the wiser until Kalinda blows her cover.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She disappears without a trace after the second episode of Season 6.
- Foil: She contrasts with Kalinda whenever they work together, being a bubbly blonde Nice Girl to the dark-haired, distant, serious Kalinda.
- Nice Girl: She's cheerful and friendly with everyone.
Introduced in Season 5
Carey Zepps
Played by: Ben Rappaport
A lawyer at Lockhart/Gardner who leaves with Alicia and Cary to join Florrick/Agos.- One-Steve Limit: Averted and lampshaded. Several characters confuse him with Cary Agos and Neil Gross even suggests one of them change their name.
- Remember the New Guy?: He's never seen before Season 5, then shows up as one of the associates planning on leaving Lockhart/Gardner with Alicia and Cary as if he's been around all along, despite the fact that he very noticeably was not among this group during Cary's meetings with them in Season 4.
Introduced in Season 6
Johnny Elfman
Played by: Steven Pasquale
- The Cynic: Starts out utterly utilitarian and cynical when questioning Alicia about motives for running, but gradually comes to truly believe in her.Alicia: How do you know that I can do better things than Prady?Johnny: Because I... I've talked with you, and been with you, and...I believe in you.
- Emotionally Tongue-Tied: Turns out that for all his quick thinking and strategic ruthlessness, when it comes to his feelings for Alicia, he turns into a stammering dork who can hardly meet her eyes.
- Foil: To Eli. Both are political advisers/consultants working with a Florrick on a campaign, but Eli is immensely snarky and hot-tempered, while John tends towards a calmer, more thoughtful demeanor.
- Manipulative Bastard: A job requirement, though to a much lesser degree than Eli.
Frank Prady
Played by: David Hyde Pierce
- Ambiguously Gay: Even though he is divorced and has two children, there is a rumor that he is secretly gay. He's not. He hasn't remarried because he is a Jesuit, so for him a second marriage would be considered adultery.
- Incorruptible Pure Pureness: Frank borders on this when he's in the race with Alicia, which Alicia and Eli find very difficult to deal with as they're used to being more unscrupulous.
- Nice Guy: One of the most moral politicians featured on the show, especially in contrast to Glenn Childs, and he's always nice to Alicia.
- Worthy Opponent: He and Alicia respect each other as this, and part on friendly terms after the conclusion of the State's Attorney's race.
Guy Radmayne
Played by: Ed Asner
A rich, old Democratic mega-donor.- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: When he and Alicia first meet, he comes off as a harmless old man, but quickly reveals a less pleasant side.
- Dirty Old Man: DoubleSubverted. When he is introduced, he appears next to a much younger woman in a photo. She turns out to be his granddaughter/assistant and not a trophy wife, as it might appear at first glance. However, when he meets Alicia alone, he gets pretty creepy. Another time, when he hugs her, she is disgusted by him pressing his groin up against her while doing so.
- Heteronormative Crusader: He doesn't want to back Frank Prady for district attorney because he is rumored to be a closeted gay man and Redmayne, in his own words, "[doesn't] like fags".
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: When Frank Prady calls him out for his unpleasant behavior:Frank: You... you're disgusting!
Redmayne: Right, but I’m rich, so it really doesn’t matter, does it?
