- Leslie: I've seen over 200 episodes of Law & Order and it's paying off big time.
Ron tries to buy something online and receives a pop-up ad with his name on it. April explains what "cookies" are to him and he is shocked at what he sees as an invasion of privacy. April then refers him to Google Earth and to type his address in it. He does so and throws his computer out in the dumpster.
Meanwhile, Leslie and Ben come clean to Chris about their on-off relationship that's been going on for the past year. After getting over his initial shock, Chris decides to launch an investigation and hold a hearing the next day to determine whether Leslie has violated any ethical codes and her subsequent punishment, with a hearing for Ben to be held the following day.
The next day, Leslie and Ben meet up early in the courtroom. Leslie is worried the worst could happen. Ben reassures her that she'll likely get a suspension at most, but to Leslie, even that is a terrible thing. He encourages Leslie, even though he won't be allowed to attend the hearing. Later, Chris arrives, miserable at having to hold this trial. He fights his sadness over this by taking an obscenely large amount of herbal remedies and supplements.
The trial commences. Chris asks Leslie when her relationship with Ben began, if she ever received special professional treatment, and if she ever broke a law to cover up the relationship. She answers that she and Ben began their relationship after their road trip to Indianapolis and admits to breaking the "no-dating" rule, but insists she never received special treatment or did anything unethical. Chris, however, believes that Leslie is lying about when the relationship started and that she may be guilty of bribery, and has fourteen witnesses to call up. Leslie is angered and offended by these accusations, but Chris emphasizes that it is his responsibility as City Manager to fully investigate any possible instances of corruption in the government. Leslie becomes determined to fight back against his charges.
During a break, Leslie consults with her team. She assigns Andy and April to get some files out of her office while Ron and Donna are sent to find out who will be testifying. Later, Ron informs Leslie that there is a rumor that Chris has a "killer witness".
The hearing resumes, and Leslie uses the witness testimony from Ann and Donna to establish that her relationship with Ben began just when she said it did and never used the taxpayers' dime for any romantic ventures. Hours pass by and Leslie has refuted every one of Chris' charges. During Ron's testimony, Tammy 2 shows up for her testimony and Ron immediately takes off. When Chris questions Tammy, she claims to have evidence that Leslie and Ben broke the law, but when Chris reminds her that she's under oath and will be fired and prosecuted if she lies, she retracts her statement and takes off.
Leslie addresses the panel, stating that the only broken rule was that she and Ben were in a relationship. Chris calls in his last witness: George Williams, the maintenance man that witnessed Leslie and Ben kissing during the preparations for Li'l Sebastian's memorial service. Since they gave him a gift certificate in exchange for his silence, Leslie and Ben technically bribed him.
Realizing her job is at stake, Leslie, as a last resort, calls for a brief recess and has her team search through old statutes that might get her off the hook. Leslie sends Donna to get Ben, but he can't be found. Leslie is afraid she'll be fired and laments how she screwed things up. Ron gives Leslie some encouragement to admit her guilt. Realizing that she has to face the consequences, Leslie calls off the search and apologizes to her team. They reassure her that they still and always will respect her.
The panel comes back and ends the investigation. Leslie's punishment is a two-week suspension with pay. As things wrap up, Leslie asks Chris why she hasn't been fired. He reveals that Ben called a private meeting, took full responsibility for the bribe, and resigned from his job. Chris apologizes to Leslie and explains that he was just doing his job; Leslie assures Chris that she understands. Chris then adds that out of all the other women he's seen Ben with, Leslie is the only one he truly sees as deserving of his best friend. He also suggests she meet with the court stenographer, Ethel Beavers, to read the transcript of the meeting to her.
Leslie listens to Ethel read the transcript of Ben's meeting with the panel. Chris had asked Ben if the scandal and losing his job were worth it, and Ben replied that he has no regrets because he loves Leslie. Leslie has Ethel reopen the transcript and declares her love for Ben on the record. She brings Ethel to her house later that night to read the official testimony to Ben.
Tropes:
- Accidental Misnaming: Turns out Jerry's real name is Garry. The previous department head called him "Jerry" on his first day at work and he didn't have the heart to correct him. Everyone keeps calling him Jerry anyway since they're just used to calling him that.
- Attention Deficit... Oh, Shiny!: When trying to get Andy to gather evidence, Andy is distracted while scratching his ear and Leslie has to snap her fingers in his face to get his attention, and even then he doesn't understand her instructions.
- Bait-and-Switch Boss: Tammy 2 is introduced as Chris' most dangerous witness, which Leslie agrees is apt, describing her as a dangerous sociopath. However, when Tammy is reminded by Chris what the consequences of lying under oath are, she retracts her statement and leaves, giving space to the real killer witness: the park worker that Leslie and Ben bribed in the season 3 finale.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Chris visibly loses it with Leslie during the trial when she insists that she only violated "[his] rule" in an effort to downplay it and avoid getting punished, sharply pointing out that it's not "his rule", but an important rule in all government offices to prevent fraud and corruption. To her credit, Leslie does realize this and assures him later that he was very fair and she understands why he did what he did.
- Call-Back:
- The painting inside the courtroom is called "Bad Pawnee/Good Pawnee". The bad side references the bread factory fire (mentioned back in "The Camel") and the good side references a wedding between a Wamapoke tribesman and a white Pawnee settler woman (from "94 Meetings").
- When Leslie and Ben come clean to Chris about their relationship, Chris admits he's surprised partly because Ben usually had a preference for tall brunettes.
- Tom is called to testify on Leslie and the time they were mistakenly matched with each other on an online dating service.
- Chekhov's Gunman: George, the maintenance worker who caught Ben and Leslie kissing at Li'l Sebastian's memorial, is called in to testify on their relationship and the bribe they gave him to keep him quiet.
- Comically Missing the Point:
- Ron throws his computer in the trash when he finds the Internet has invaded his privacy.
- Leslie has her team members search through thick books of statutes to help her find a loophole in the law, and Andy says this while flipping through one:
Andy: Okay, mine doesn't have any pictures. - Courtroom Episode: It's right there in the name ("The Trial of Leslie Knope").
- Crazy-Prepared: Chris had a huge number of witnesses ready to testify the Monday after Leslie and Ben informed him of their relationship, and Leslie is visibly stunned by the number of witnesses he's going to call and the evidence he's gathered. The hearing taking place on Monday implies that he had at least a weekend to pull everything together, but that's still a quick turnaround. Based on all that, it's possible that Chris already knew about their relationship and had been quietly gathering evidence for weeks if not months, because he knew if it came out he'd have to investigate and he's too noble and dedicated to even try and be half-assed about it. Leslie, on the other hand, was surprised at the number of witnesses and Chris's accusations, but she's still able to pull together a lot of physical evidence and work out lines of questioning for cross-examination to disprove every accusation Chris made...at least until his star witness testifies, at which point she's reduced to researching obscure laws that are ultimately unhelpful.
- Cry into Chest: Chris breaks down sobbing into Ben's chest. Ben can only awkwardly hold him and tell him to "let it all out".
- Curbstomp Battle: In a way, Chris quickly reminding Tammy 2 that if she lies (which she will do), he will have her fired and prosecuted for perjury. Tammy immediately retracts her "proof" and leaves. Taking her down is practically impossible for Leslie, with Ron (and later on, Diane) being the only one who can get her to back down normally—and even then it doesn't always work.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: As usual, this is Played for Laughs regarding Pawnee's history and old laws. For one thing, black people aren't allowed to legally use sidewalks, every other sexual position except missionary was banned (and even that got banned shortly afterward), and a woman was sentenced to death for having accidentally exposed her elbow.
- Distinction Without a Difference: Leslie tells Ron to silence Chris's decisive witness, then corrects herself — "Don't silence him, just make sure he can't talk."
- Facial Horror: A painting in the courtroom depicts a lawyer from 1800s Pawnee known as "Old Stoneface" who was nicknamed so for his steely demeanor and for the horrible scars on his face that came from him being caught in an explosion at a rock quarry where a stick of dynamite blew off half his face.
- Gilligan Cut: As soon as Ron searches his address on Google Earth, it cuts to the next scene; Ron throwing his computer in the dumpster.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Ben willingly resigns from his job to help Leslie keep hers at the end.
- Know When to Fold Them: Tammy 2 shows up with solid photographic evidence of criminal behaviour on Ben and Leslie's part — then Chris reminds her that presenting false evidence is perjury and a serious crime. She immediately stands up and leaves.
- Lampshade Hanging: When Leslie defends herself by arguing that she and Ben only violated "Chris's rule" about government employees dating their superiors, Chris points out it's actually a law and standard practice in most government institutions.
-
Lawful Neutral: Chris invokes this when Leslie and Ben decide to confess they have been together despite the policy against co-workers being in relationships. Chris tells them how much he loves both of them (he's worked personally with Ben for years), but also proceeds to launch a full and thorough investigation to make sure their relationship didn't compromise city assets. Eventually, a maintenance worker that caught them last season proves they did bribe a city employee to keep their relationship a secret, but Ben takes responsibility and resigns while Leslie is given a mild reprimand. Chris reiterates after it's done that his first responsibility is to protect the city from corruption and scandals and that he still sees Leslie and Ben as some of the best people he's ever worked with. - Malaproper: While refuting another charge of Chris', Leslie talks about how she and the department had to pull an all-nighter to finish some federal grant proposals, and she has a slip of the tongue when she finishes it off with "We got the gramps."
- Moment Killer: Ethel during Leslie and Ben's kiss at the end of the episode.
- Nothing Personal: Chris apologizes to Leslie for putting her and Ben through the wringer in the trial, stating he was just doing his job. Leslie assures him that she isn't taking it personally, and she understands his position.
- Overly Literal Transcription: Ethel Beavers' transcriptions, which include descriptions of actions.Ethel: (reading from the transcript) Mr. Traeger: That was beautiful. I'm literally crying and jumping. Crying noise, crying noise, nose blow.
- Principles Zealot: Chris considers Leslie a great friend and a great employee, and really hates that he has to put her and Ben through an ethics trial. However, he will not half-ass the investigation and does it to the best of his ability.
- Saying Sound Effects Out Loud: Ethel does this while reading from the transcript of Ben and Chris' private meeting.Ethel: Crying noise, crying noise, nose blow.
- Shipper on Deck: Chris becomes one for Leslie and Ben at the end, stating that out of all the other women he's seen his best friend date, Leslie is the only one he feels is truly worthy of Ben.
- Stepford Smiler: Chris is utterly stressed out and really doesn't like that he has to put two people he considers his best friends and good workers through the metaphorical grinder. But thanks to a massive amount of supplements and exercises, he's keeping his positive energy up to eleven.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Tammy 2 is clearly planning to take a golden opportunity to spitefully slander Leslie from the witness box, in true sitcom/TV fashion... right up until the point that Chris reminds her that doing so at an official legal proceeding would be perjury, which would leave her open to being fired from her job, prosecuted and open to serious legal punishment. Moreover, he also makes it clear that despite currently prosecuting Leslie, Chris is not on Tammy's side and has absolutely no motivation to or interest in just letting her get away scot-free with doing so. Tammy 2 gives up and scurries away as quickly as she possibly can.
- Taking the Heat: Ben decides to take full responsibility for bribing George to keep his and Leslie's relationship a secret and resign as deputy city manager so that Leslie won't get fired.
- Tastes Like Purple: A variation - one of the herbal remedies Chris used before coming to the trial was a bee pollen paste he rubbed on his gums that makes his mouth feel like a spaceship.
- Was It Really Worth It?: Chris asks Ben this as he resigns, if all the sneaking around and keeping secrets and losing his job was worth it. Ben replies that being with Leslie made it all Worth It because he loves her and wants to be with her.
- Women Are Wiser: A mild example - Andy needs April's help to gather the evidence Leslie needs to refute Chris' charges, and Donna accompanies Ron around City Hall to meet the other department heads to get information on Chris' witnesses because Ron doesn't know any of the other department heads' names. Donna lampshades this, wondering what's with the men in the Parks office.
