S01.E08: Rule #17: Ask the Answer Lady

[ShellSeeker]

 

Abby's sassy, brassy friend arrives just as Abby gears up to pitch her new brand to her agency. In other developments, Jake lands a job directing a TV episode starring his girlfriend, and Phoebe presides over a press preview for her jewelry line.

 

[ScoobieDoobs]

Another ep where so little made any sense -- at all.  What bothered me in particular was the divorce lawyer sleeping with her client (she seems way too sensible & sharp to do something so flighty & ridiculous) & then he says he wants to marry her -- while he's with her for the very first time.  Er, huh?  And his wife's threats that she'd be "disbarred"  for sleeping with her client was just dumb.  Writers of this show, you suck.

 

Half the time I still can't hear what anyone is saying.  This stupid fuckin' shitty show makes me feel like I'm goin' deaf.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Can someone explain to me why this show is inhabited by both men & women who find Abby's brother so exceptionally irresistible?  I'm not seeing it.  He looks very average & ordinary to me.  Any explanations, please?  Is this yet another miscast?

 

Man, the brother & his partner/husband have absolutely zero chemistry.  WTF?

 

Was Abby's annoying friend brought in as a quick replacement, due to Janeane's hasty exit?

[ChelleGame]

Can someone explain to me why this show is inhabited by both men & women who find Abby's brother so exceptionally irresistible?  I'm not seeing it.  He looks very average & ordinary to me.  Any explanations, please?  Is this yet another miscast?

 

Man, the brother & his partner/husband have absolutely zero chemistry.  WTF?

 

 

 

 

Ditto on all this.

The brother and husband seem like they're in two different scenes which makes it hard to but they're in the same relationship. No chemistry. No rapport. They both seem so uncomfortable with each other.  Neither is interesting together or apart.

 

Also, this show is lousy with unattractive men. I've  never seen anything like it. Needs to be addressed immediately.

 

I wonder if the writers on this show have a writers room or if they all write freelance or on spec. There's a lack of cohesiveness here. The stories don't track and neither does character motivation.

[sunrisepink]

So I guess Janeane really is gone and we're stuck with Delia now. Most awkward write-off ever.

 

 

And his wife's threats that she'd be "disbarred"  for sleeping with her client was just dumb. 

 

Is this really a thing? I can see her being fired by her boss but I didn't think the American Bar Association cared who its members slept with.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Oh please, that was one of the dopiest things this show has put out -- in a sea of dopey shit.  Even if the wife could prove such a thing, it's too silly to consider -- and given she's in Hollywood, she'd get herself a zillion more clients.  The wife would be doing her a favor.  I just thought Delia is too sharp to act like a ditzy idiot -- like Phoebe.  That she would sleep with a client while she's handling his case seems out of her character.  But I guess not, on a show where nothing makes much sense cuz it's so poorly written.  

 

And wait, didn't Delia (in the last ep) actually tell her boss that her slimy client was putting the moves on her -- and her boss seemed to encourage her to respond to him?  What the what?  As if this would happen in any topnotch law firm anywhere . . . er, ever.  Oh Bravo, pull the fuckin' plug on this senseless shitfest.

 

Also, this show is lousy with unattractive men. I've  never seen anything like it. Needs to be addressed immediately

 

.

Another reason I hate this show.  No man candy -- at all.  OK, there was Victor Webster as the creepy hooker, but he creeped me out.  Sheesh, I used to think Jake was merely average looking.  Now I find him downright homely.  And I wish he'd wear something other than those tighty-tight t-shirts.  Ugh, not good.  Well, Answering Machine Guy is supposed to show up in the next ep.

Edited January 21, 2015 by ScoobieDoobs

[bichonblitz]

If this mess is picked up for a second season, I will lose all faith in mankind. 

[Momof2boyz]

Agree with everything everyone has said.  Was going to quote some of you in my reply, but then realized I would be quoting almost everything, so just DITTO.

 

Regarding Delia and sleeping with the client.  Ridiculous.  I am not familiar with client attorney regulations but I don't think you can be disbarred for something like this.  I think the writers are getting doctors and lawyers confused.

 

Regarding the gay brother.  Also ridiculous.  He is OK looking, perfectly fine, but it does seem weird that all these women and men are so hot for him.  Agree it must be miscasting.  The character is probably supposed to be gorgeous.  And his husband is horrible.  No chemistry at all and the actor is blah.  And Jake is repulsing me too lately.  Everything about him.  Yuck.

 

I kind of like the new friend, but agree they must have just hastily written her in to replace Janeane.  Even her dialogue seems like it must have been written for Lyla's character.

 

And what, Phoebe just decides to (literally) chuck her new business venture?  She is that rich that she can just decide on a whim it's not for her and give it up?

 

And can someone tell me why they are pussyfooting around the horrible behavior of that little kid?  I am a mom and I would not put up with that!  What a brat!  Imaginary friend or not.  Not acceptable behavior.  Asking the teacher to eat the corn out of his poop.  Yuck!  Never!

 

Also, thought Abby's presentation at the book pitch meeting was so embarrassing!  And everyone is nodding and smiling like what she is saying is so great?  Please.

[Crazy8]

Again you've all said what I was already thinking. Everyone is just so stupid and horrible. I don't understand how or why they spent millions and millions of dollars on launching this show like it was the second coming of JC, but nobody paid attention to the awful casting or the crappy scripts. Instead of this being renewed, somebody needs to be fired. Even in it's higher rated nights it's still doing badly, and I'll cringe myself to death if this crapfest even gets nominated for an award.

[ahpny]

This is California's current rule about lawyer-client "relations." Many, perhaps most, other states have similar rules. Being disbarred for sleeping with a client indeed is a real thing and a credible threat by the soon to be ex-wife.

 

Rule 3-120. Sexual Relations With Client.

(A) For purposes of this rule, "sexual relations" means sexual intercourse or the touching of an intimate part of another person for the purpose of sexual arousal, gratification, or abuse.

(B) A member shall not:

(1) Require or demand sexual relations with a client incident to or as a condition of any professional representation; or

(2) Employ coercion, intimidation, or undue influence in entering into sexual relations with a client; or

(3) Continue representation of a client with whom the member has sexual relations if such sexual relations cause the member to perform legal services incompetently in violation of rule 3-110.

© Paragraph (B) shall not apply to sexual relations between members and their spouses or to ongoing consensual sexual relationships which predate the initiation of the lawyer-client relationship.

(D) Where a lawyer in a firm has sexual relations with a client but does not participate in the representation of that client, the lawyers in the firm shall not be subject to discipline under this rule solely because of the occurrence of such sexual relations.

[ScoobieDoobs]

Thanks for posting this.  It's interesting, but in order for her to be concerned about being disbarred for having sex with her client, it would need to be proven that her representation was somehow impaired by doing this.  Or there was some coercion involved.  This didn't occur.  And would the ABA actually pursue a case of disbarment against her for this?  While it is possible, it just seems so farfetched & unlikely.  To me, it merely goes along with the crappy writing this show has been so consistent with.

 

I think what really bothered me was her having sex with her client while she's handling his case.  A really stupid & extremely unprofessional thing to do.  Her character, if she is a highly skilled lawyer, would know better.  And her boss seemed to encourage her to sleep with the client when she told him the client had the hots for her.  That really made me go -- WTF?

 

Also, thought Abby's presentation at the book pitch meeting was so embarrassing!  And everyone is nodding and smiling like what she is saying is so great?  Please.

 

 

I cringed at the crap she was saying.  Would anyone say all that shit in a business meeting -- ever?  It's what she should be saying to her shrink.  Those idiots in the meeting all looked high.  I expected someone to yell at her, "Get the fuck outta here & go get yourself some badly needed help, bitch!"

 

And can someone tell me why they are pussyfooting around the horrible behavior of that little kid?  I am a mom and I would not put up with that!  What a brat!  Imaginary friend or not.  Not acceptable behavior.  Asking the teacher to eat the corn out of his poop.  Yuck!  Never!

 

 

Why is she so damn helpless as a mother?  OK, child care issues are a major concern of working mothers everywhere.   That she hasn't learned to deal with it by now, when her older child is in her mid-teens, is yet another ridiculous thing this show throws at us.

Edited January 22, 2015 by ScoobieDoobs

[ahpny]

I can't speak for the ABA or the more likely arbiter of whether something here was wrong - the California Bar Association - but there seems to be more than enough to begin an ethical claim here. Admitted sexual relations and dispute between attorney and client regarding strategy - how hard to press for the "Asian Market" (apparently worth $70 million).  The relationship figured prominently in how that strategy should be played. But for the prospect of continuing the relationship, the client would (possibly or probably) have pursued the Asian Market. That's pretty close to

 

(3) Continue representation of a client with whom the member has sexual relations if such sexual relations cause the member to perform legal services incompetently in violation of rule 3-110.

 

right there. The lawyer made it clear that this was a poor legal strategy, and surely the lawyer would have fought the client's suggestion to give it up much harder, but for the entanglements from the relationship. Indeed, the client's goal to give it up arguably entirely arose from of the sexual relationship and his desire to end the current marriage as quickly as possible.

 

In sum, the lawyer could be in deep trouble in real life. The rules are designed to avoid precisely this type of murky mixed territory. While it is true that the rules do not outright forbid sexual relations between lawyer and client, once such a relationship exists, its a short step to real troubles. That's why most lawyers interpret these rules as simply "don't sleep with clients."

Edited January 21, 2015 by ahpny

[ScoobieDoobs]

Ah, so her representation was definitely altered, so she might have some cause for concern.  But could it be proven it was directly because of her sexual relationship with her client?  Maybe this would have been her strategy regardless.  We know it wasn't, but could be hard to prove.  Anyway, this is just a really dumb, reckless thing (having sex with a client) for any lawyer to do.  And with this-

 

(D) Where a lawyer in a firm has sexual relations with a client but does not participate in the representation of that client, the lawyers in the firm shall not be subject to discipline under this rule solely because of the occurrence of such sexual relations.

 

 

All she really had to do to avoid any concern was to pass the client off to another lawyer in the firm.  Again, if she is a highly experienced attorney, she'd know this.  Makes no sense to me.

Edited January 21, 2015 by ScoobieDoobs

[Momof2boyz]

I cringed at the crap she was saying.  Would anyone say all that shit in a business meeting -- ever?  It's what she should be saying to her shrink.  Those idiots in the meeting all looked high.  I expected someone to yell at her, "Get the fuck outta here & go get yourself some badly needed help, bitch!"

I actually thought she must be dreaming.  I could not believe this meeting was actually happening!

[ScoobieDoobs]

I kind of like the new friend, but agree they must have just hastily written her in to replace Janeane.  Even her dialogue seems like it must have been written for Lyla's character.

 

 

I didn't dislike her, but she does seem to be too obviously a Janeane 2.0.  I like that she calls Abby out on her bullshit.  And I like that she can't stand Jake.  Otherwise, I couldn't follow what she was babbling about, so I have no idea what her backstory is.

 

If Phoebe and the others throwing the baby dolls over the ledge was supposed to be some kind of defining moment for this show, it laid a big fat goose egg.

[ChelleGame]

I think one of the things that's bothering me most about this show is the age of the women blowing up their lives.  Are these ladies supposed to play as mid-40s?  If so, they are just too old - especially in the L.A. job market - to blow their lives up to this extent. Bouncing back as you get older is harder and harder and if you have kids/responsibilities it seems childish and hard to relate to. Maybe if it was just one character but they're all doing it.

 

The lawyer, who until know has come across as savvy and smart, sleeping with a client. Abby, melting down at her book signing, and then giving that weird pitch to a room full of extremely unattractive agents (what is with the casting on this show?).  Phoebe not being able to answer a press question at her own launch and then chucking the whole business and Janine's character just imploding her whole life. It just doesn't jibe with their ages for me. Just my opinion but it feels like twentysomething behavior. Could be that I am missing the point and the show is about arrested adolescent amongst privileged women?

 

Also, back to Abby's brother. He whines more than his nephew who is in elementary school. I cannot stand this character. He started off bad. Very ill conceived character from jump (i.e, obsessed with little league coaching) which made him uninteresting. Coupled with the whining,  pouting, the lack of chemistry with his partner he just comes across as an all-day drag. 

 

Show is just filled with odd, disconnected choices in writing, casting, acting and storytelling.

[jennylauren123]

I'm really tired of shows that depict these helpless, frantic mothers.

 

Most moms I know juggle many responsibilities without much drama. It's what makes us so effin' cool. I worked full-time as an editor at a national newspaper while I finished my BA and raised a young son as a single mom. No drama, really. Just good old hard work and good sense, like most of us.

 

It's not cute to show women helpless, show. Try showing us a few examples of grown women who have their crap together and act like, well, like grown women. That would be so refreshing.

Edited January 22, 2015 by jennylauren123

[Crazy8]

I think the problem is that they were aiming for a Girls/Sex & the City hybrid when they should have been looking to shows like The Good Wife for cues. Props to them for discovering the female equivalent of a man-child though. A lady-baby.

[Lone Wolf]

General observations:

"I have no child care."  "Obviously."  Yep.  

 

Abby needs to quit trying to fix her friends' lives and start focusing on fixing her kid.  He didn't invent his imaginary friend so he can deal with stress. Brick Heck whispers to deal with stress.  He invented his imaginary friend, and he's using it as a buffer from reality/excuse to act out, because the kid's got a problem.  He needs to be in therapy. Stat.

 

I would like to supplement my earlier statement that Abby's house is awesome by saying that her brother's house is also.  Although I like Abby's more.

 

Abby should have gotten Phoebe to babysit.  She seemed to have plenty of time to stalk her ex and his GF...

 

I've been fortunate enough to not be the situation, but ultimately aren't attorneys pretty much supposed to follow their clients' directions, if said directions are within the law (sexual relationship notwithstanding) or else recuse themselves? If the guy wanted to settle, it seems like Delia could get in trouble simply for ignoring his wishes.  If he wanted to push it, that is.

 

Nitpicks:

When Abby walked out the front door heading for the Apple Store, she was wearing a pair of light colored wedges.  Next time we see her, she's back home and sitting on her back porch with her friend, in the same outfit but wearing a pair of blue stilettos.  Edit monkeys asleep at the switch right there.  And I'll admit it - I have a shoe fetish.

 

At Phoebe's kids' jewelry event, Delia is shown draining a glass of champagne as she's walking towards Abby and her friend - head back, bottom of glass in the air. She hugs Abby hello, then just before Abby introduces Delia to her friend, she drains the same glass again - head back, bottom of glass in the air. To paraphrase Samuel L. Jackson in Pulp Fiction, "Continuity, muthafucka! Have you heard of it??"    

 

That is all.

[ScoobieDoobs]

I've been fortunate enough to not be the situation, but ultimately aren't attorneys pretty much supposed to follow their clients' directions, if said directions are within the law (sexual relationship notwithstanding) or else recuse themselves? If the guy wanted to settle, it seems like Delia could get in trouble simply for ignoring his wishes.

 

 

So could Delia not following what he wanted her to do could lead to her being disbarred?  She changed how she handled his case when she started having sex with him.  And this could be discovered by questioning him (maybe).  So I suppose her being disbarred is a possibility (altho it seems farfetched to me).  Why Delia would do something so reckless still makes absolutely no sense to me.

Edited January 23, 2015 by ScoobieDoobs

[whack-a-mole]

I don't know a single parent who doesn't have a list of babysitters they use and a few friends they know they can call in emergencies. Many are also in babysitting exchanges or members of commercial services that provide sitter referrals. Did they never go out at the same time when they were a couple? Could explain the divorce, but not them being adults with careers. Child care is not that hard if you have money. Definitely one of the more contrived bits of drama on this show, and that's really saying something.

 

Also, ditto on everything everybody said about the brother and his partner. They frequently read as total strangers who have no interest in getting to know each other. 

[LibertarianSlut]

 

I've been fortunate enough to not be the situation, but ultimately aren't attorneys pretty much supposed to follow their clients' directions, if said directions are within the law (sexual relationship notwithstanding) or else recuse themselves? If the guy wanted to settle, it seems like Delia could get in trouble simply for ignoring his wishes.  If he wanted to push it, that is.

I think the above is about what it boils down to. I was surprised when I read the rule posted up thread--California is much more permissible than states like New York and Florida, where the ethical rule is basically "don't screw your client (unless you had already been screwing him prior to establishing representation)." When I watched the show, I assumed the NY rule applied and I was STILL screaming at my TV screen, "it's not going to get her disbarred!" The Bar has many ways of disciplining its members, and it's not going to disbar someone for sleeping with a client, unless it can be proven that the sexual relationship materially interfered with the client's representation, which has been suggested.

I just want to point out that the claim against Delia would likely go nowhere, as the complaining party would be the (soon to be) ex-wife, and not Delia's client. Attorney-client confidentiality would still apply, so the male client would be obliged to reveal nothing, as it related to what he wanted versus what Delia demanded for him. This is a man who is willing to throw away $35 million to be with Delia, after all. I have a feeling he would tell the Cal Bar where to go if they started sniffing around, and then the inquiry into Delia's behavior would come to a dead end.

I hate when these shows get the professional rules wrong. It reminds me of The Sopranos, and how badly they botched the rules governing physician-patient confidentiality. It's lazy. And it infantilizes the viewer. If the writers can't come up with an interesting storyline that is in adherence with the professional rules, they need to change the storyline--not the rules.

Also, I hate Abby's kids. Bizarrely, they seem to be the same kid, only in different bodies. Whine, break the rules, get negative attention. Wash, rinse, repeat.

[hoodooznoodooz]

When Abby's son misbehaves, he blames it on his imaginary friend. And then both parents let it go. Is that correct? That is so, so wrong.

[ChelleGame]

Also, I hate Abby's kids. Bizarrely, they seem to be the same kid, only in different bodies. Whine, break the rules, get negative attention. Wash, rinse, repeat.

 

Ditto on that.  Terrible kids.

[grittypearl]

So could Delia not following what he wanted her to do could lead to her being disbarred?  She changed how she handled his case when she started having sex with him.  And this could be discovered by questioning him (maybe).  So I suppose her being disbarred is a possibility (altho it seems farfetched to me).  Why Delia would do something so reckless still makes absolutely no sense to me.

And Delia boinking Glenn Gulia of all people. Nasty!

[QueerGirrl]

And Delia boinking Glenn Gulia of all people. Nasty!

 

 

Hahahahaha!!!  Your name is going to be Julia Gulia!