Suits (American TV series)

Suits
File:Title card for the US TV show Suits.png Title Card
Genre	Legal drama
Created by	Aaron Korsh
Starring	Gabriel Macht Patrick J. Adams Rick Hoffman Meghan Markle Sarah Rafferty Gina Torres Amanda Schull Dulé Hill Katherine Heigl
Theme music composer	Ima Robot
Opening theme	"Greenback Boogie" by Ima Robot
Composer(s)	Christopher Tyng
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	9
No. of episodes	134 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Doug Liman Dave Bartis
Producer(s)	Gene Klein Gabriel Macht Patrick J. Adams JM Danguilan
Production location(s)	New York City, New York Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Cinematography	Dan Stoloff
Camera setup	Single-camera
Running time	42 minutes
Production company(s)	Untitled Korsh Company Hypnotic Films & Television Universal Content Productions Open 4 Business Productions
Release
Original network	USA Network
Picture format	HDTV 1080i
Audio format	Dolby Digital 5.1
Original release	June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23) – September 25, 2019 (2019-09-25)
Chronology
Related shows	Pearson
External links
[{{#property:P856}} Website]

Suits is an American legal drama television series created and written by Aaron Korsh. It premiered on USA Network on June 23, 2011, produced by Universal Content Productions.

Set at a fictional New York City law firm, it follows Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams), who uses his eidetic memory to talk his way into a job as an associate working for successful closer Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht), despite being a college dropout who never attended law school. Suits focuses on Harvey and Mike winning lawsuits and closing cases, while at the same time hiding Mike's secret. It also features Rick Hoffman as neurotic financial lawyer Louis Litt, Meghan Markle as ambitious paralegal Rachel Zane, Sarah Rafferty as Harvey's legal secretary and confidante Donna Paulsen, and Gina Torres as the firm's managing partner, Jessica Pearson.

On January 30, 2018, the series was renewed for an eighth season although Torres, Adams and Markle all left the show, with Katherine Heigl joining the cast as Samantha Wheeler. Recurring characters Alex Williams (Dulé Hill) and Katrina Bennett (Amanda Schull) were promoted to series regulars. The show was renewed for a 10-episode ninth and final season on January 23, 2019, which premiered on July 17, 2019.

Throughout its run, Suits was nominated for numerous awards, including individual attention for Torres and Adams. Besides two nominations recognizing her role as a supporting actress, Torres was awarded Outstanding Performance in a Television Series at the 2013 NHMC Impact Awards. Adams was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series at the 2012 Screen Actors Guild Awards. The show itself was nominated for two People's Choice Awards. The show's success spawned a short-lived spin-off, Pearson, centered on Jessica Pearson's entry into Chicago politics, which premiered alongside the final season of Suits on July 17, 2019. Suits concluded on September 25, 2019, after nine seasons and 134 episodes.

Series overview

Main article: List of Suits episodes

Suits is an American television drama series created by Aaron Korsh, which premiered on June 23, 2011 on the USA Network. It revolves around Mike Ross (Patrick J. Adams) and Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht) as two lawyers at a high-profile New York corporate law firm. Harvey is one of New York City's top attorneys and Mike, whom Harvey chooses as his associate attorney, never attended Harvard Law School, which is the only law school the firm hires from, or any law school at all. He relies on his eidetic memory and his natural intelligence to help win cases.

As of March 2, 2016, 76 episodes of Suits have aired. The series has also been renewed for a 16 episode sixth season.

Series overview

Season		Episodes	Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
	1	12	June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23)	September 8, 2011 (2011-09-08)
	2	16	June 14, 2012 (2012-06-14)	February 21, 2013 (2013-02-21)
	3	16	July 16, 2013 (2013-07-16)	April 10, 2014 (2014-04-10)
	4	16	June 11, 2014 (2014-06-11)	March 4, 2015 (2015-03-04)
	5	16	June 24, 2015 (2015-06-24)	March 2, 2016 (2016-03-02)

Episodes

Season 1 (2011)

Main article: Suits (season 1)

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
1	1	"Pilot"	Kevin Bray	Aaron Korsh	June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23)	S101-75	4.64
After Harvey Specter, New York City's best closer, finally achieves his goal of becoming a senior partner at Pearson Hardman, he discovers he must hire a new associate from Harvard Law School. Mike barely escapes getting caught taking an exam for someone else. Later, his friend Trevor promises him $25,000 if he delivers a suitcase of marijuana. Mike discovers the drug delivery is a sting operation and while escaping from undercover agents, he stumbles into the interview for Harvey's associate. Even though Mike never attended law school, Harvey hires him, impressed with his eidetic memory and quick thinking. Pearson discovers Harvey has lied to a client and makes him personally handle a pro bono case in order to keep his promotion. The case involves a woman (Dagmara Dominczyk) who claims her boss sexually harassed her. Harvey assigns it to Mike and tells him to sever ties with Trevor.
2	2	"Errors and Omissions"	John Scott	Sean Jablonski	June 30, 2011 (2011-06-30)	S102	3.89
A judge (Currie Graham) insists that Harvey had an affair with his wife (Nazanin Boniadi) and refuses to fairly judge Harvey's case. Meanwhile, Louis reveals that Mike failed his drug test and blackmails him into smoking marijuana to win over a prestigious client.
3	3	"Inside Track"	Kevin Bray	Aaron Korsh	July 7, 2011 (2011-07-07)	S103	4.53
When the new CEO of a motor company wants to move production overseas, Harvey and Mike try to find a loophole to oust him and persuade one of the company's most loyal employees (Titus Welliver) to take the job of CEO. Meanwhile, Mike makes preparations for the Rookie Dinner and tries to convince his friend Trevor (Tom Lipinski) to stop dealing marijuana.
4	4	"Dirty Little Secrets"	Dennie Gordon	Jon Cowan	July 14, 2011 (2011-07-14)	S104	4.38
Harvey defends Jessica's ex-husband (Russell Hornsby) from allegations that his ALS medication is causing serious side effects. Meanwhile, Mike is assigned his first solo case, and his secret is almost discovered.
5	5	"Bail Out"	Kate Woods	Ethan Drogin	July 21, 2011 (2011-07-21)	S105	4.38
Harvey must choose between closing a lucrative deal and helping his trusted driver (Anand Rajaram) defend against a lawsuit. Meanwhile, Trevor has given up dealing drugs and needs Mike to help him restart his life and escape his past.
6	6	"Tricks of the Trade"	Terry McDonough	Rick Muirragui	July 28, 2011 (2011-07-28)	S106	4.44
Mike and Harvey work together to defend a woman (Jenny Mollen), who they believe has been falsely accused of insider trading. Mike helps Rachel study for the LSAT, but he struggles to hide the fact that he used to take the LSAT for others.
7	7	"Play the Man"	Tim Matheson	Erica Lipez	August 4, 2011 (2011-08-04)	S107	4.03
Mike is pitted against one of Louis' protégés (Ben Hollingsworth) in a mock trial. Harvey takes on an old rival and romantic interest (Abigail Spencer). Rachel is a witness in the mock trial, and Mike accepts defeat in order to not hurt her.
8	8	"Identity Crisis"	Norberto Barba	Ethan Drogin	August 11, 2011 (2011-08-11)	S108	3.96
The daughter (Amanda Crew) of a businessman (James Morrison) threatens to reveal Mike's secret unless he and the firm drop the case they have against her while Harvey tries to fix problems Louis has made for the firm. She turns out to be a skilled hacker, who creates an entry for Mike in Harvard's computer system tracking graduates, along with a forged diploma.
9	9	"Undefeated"	Felix Alcala	Rick Muirragui	August 18, 2011 (2011-08-18)	S109	4.45
Harvey must decide if he can break his ethical code in order to defeat shady lawyer Travis Tanner (Eric Close). Meanwhile, Rachel is accused of leaking Pearson Hardman information to a competitor and is defended by Mike. Cleared, she returns to Pearson Hardman and obtains a raise from Louis.
10	10	"Shelf Life"	Jennifer Getzinger	Sean Jablonski	August 25, 2011 (2011-08-25)	S110	3.82
Mike and Harvey have to fire a man (John Billingsley) who has been working for nine years with a fake diploma. Mike identifies with this man and defends him, revealing a conspiracy. Mike and Rachel struggle with their feelings for each other while Louis creates a rift in Mike's relationship with Jenny Griffith (Vanessa Ray).
11	11	"Rules of the Game"	Mike Smith	Jon Cowan	September 1, 2011 (2011-09-01)	S111	3.96
The district attorney and Harvey's former mentor (Gary Cole) turns to his protégé when his office is being investigated for burying evidence. Meanwhile, Mike and Louis try to divide a mogul's estate between his two daughters, and Jenny worries that Mike is hiding something.
12	12	"Dog Fight"	Kevin Bray	Aaron Korsh	September 8, 2011 (2011-09-08)	S112	3.47
Harvey tries to correct a past mistake by freeing an innocent man. However, the new district attorney (Chi McBride) seems more focused on preserving the system than seeking justice. Elsewhere, Trevor returns and seeks help from Mike.

Season 2 (2012–13)

On August 11, 2011, it was announced that Suits was renewed for a second season of 16 episodes.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
13	1	"She Knows"	Michael Smith	Aaron Korsh	June 14, 2012 (2012-06-14)	S201	3.47
Mike is trusted to close a major lawsuit. Harvey must decide whether or not to keep Mike on staff after Jessica reveals that she knows Mike's secret. Meanwhile, the firm's co-founder Daniel Hardman (David Costabile) returns after a five-year absence, a self-professed "changed man" following the death of his wife.
14	2	"The Choice"	Kevin Bray	Jon Cowan	June 21, 2012 (2012-06-21)	S202	3.80
Mike confronts Rachel about the cell phone message she left him, while Jessica approaches Harvey looking for support regarding Daniel Hardman's impending return. Harvey goes to a junior partner, Paul Porter (Michael Cristofer), to provide assistance in a bankruptcy case with the hope of winning over Porter's department to Jessica's side. Harvey ultimately goes against Porter's and Jessica's instructions, angering both, in order to win the case his own way. Meanwhile, Louis is "seduced" by gifts and promises from Hardman.
15	3	"Meet the New Boss"	Michael Smith	Erica Lipez	June 28, 2012 (2012-06-28)	S203	3.88
Harvey and Daniel start a feud, carrying out different plans of attack while representing a hospital against nurse union head Nell (Margo Martindale), and Mike is caught in the middle of it. When Jessica informs Louis that a trade publication has listed Pearson Hardman next-to-last in a survey about associates' quality of life, he is assigned a consultant from Harvard Law named Sheila (Rachael Harris), who appears to be Louis' female equivalent. Meanwhile, Donna takes Rachel to a bar and convinces her to complete an online dating profile to move on from Mike. But when Mike helps Rachel with her bio, it sends her back to him and convinces her that Mike has a secret he's not sharing. Rachel is seen taking the LSATs. Harvey tells Mike the story behind Hardman's past.
16	4	"Discovery"	Kevin Bray	Daniel Arkin	July 12, 2012 (2012-07-12)	S204	3.70
Travis Tanner is back in town, and has his sights set firmly on Harvey. His accusations that Pearson Hardman withheld evidence in a case where they represented Coastal Motors motivate Jessica and Harvey to be less than transparent with Hardman. Donna is shocked to discover that she actually received and signed for the damning document. Meanwhile, Louis and Mike find common ground in a case where they defend a bottled water giant, but Louis’ paranoia might derail a budding friendship and his own standing at the firm.
17	5	"Break Point"	Christopher Misiano	Ethan Drogin	July 19, 2012 (2012-07-19)	S205	3.72
Harvey feels undermined when Jessica makes him second chair to Allison Holt (Diane Neal) on a lawsuit that could make or break the firm — and his back-seat driving might have far-reaching consequences. Mike represents a tennis prodigy (Julian Alcaraz) who wants to be emancipated from his coach-father (Conrad Dunn), who opposes the 16-year-old turning pro. Donna deals with the fallout from the Coastal Motors case and is fired when she panics and destroys the document.
18	6	"All In"	John Scott	Karla Nappi	July 26, 2012 (2012-07-26)	S206	3.89
While in Atlantic City, Harvey and Mike decide to pursue the case of a man who gambled away his company, due to Harvey's history with the client, Keith Hoyt (Peter Outerbridge). Meanwhile, Louis and Rachel work together to protect an admired institution, and Jessica struggles as she tries to defend the firm. Scott Grimes appears as an entrepreneur who enjoys high-stakes gambling, and Matthew Glave as an attorney.
19	7	"Sucker Punch"	Adam Davidson	Genevieve Sparling	August 2, 2012 (2012-08-02)	S207	3.41
The pending lawsuit against the firm sees Harvey turn to Zoe Lawford (Jacinda Barrett), an old colleague with whom he has a past, for assistance in proving Pearson Hardman’s case. Zoe has the team prepare a mock trial as a warm-up for the real thing, and Louis is asked to take the role of Travis Tanner. Harvey asks Donna to testify that she destroyed the Coastal Motors memo, but she has retained a lawyer of her own and plans to plead the Fifth.
20	8	"Rewind"	Félix Alcalá	Rick Muirragui	August 9, 2012 (2012-08-09)	S208	3.42
Harvey and Mike look back five years into their pasts to see how it affects them today. The episode reveals Harvey's rise from senior associate to junior partner very shortly after his father's death, Mike's initial motivation for getting into the illegal LSAT-proxy business, details surrounding Hardman's original dismissal from the firm, and a person of interest surrounding that dismissal who can help Jessica battle Hardman for managing control in the present day.
21	9	"Asterisk"	Jennifer Getzinger	Justin Peacock	August 16, 2012 (2012-08-16)	S209	4.00
When Louis is promoted to senior partner and has the deciding vote in the firm's future, Harvey must convince him to support Jessica. After Louis discovers that Hardman intended to make him the fall guy for his embezzlement schemes five years ago, Hardman admits his indiscretion, then tries to convince Louis that he is "not that person" anymore. Meanwhile, Harvey defends a brash sportscaster (Jeff B. Davis) who accuses a star baseball player of using performance-enhancing drugs, with no apparent evidence to back up his claims. Donna returns to the firm. Rachel learns that she did well on the LSAT. Mike uses his end-of-year bonus to buy an apartment for his grandmother in Manhattan. While waiting at the apartment for his grandmother so he can surprise her, Rachel arrives and informs Mike that his grandmother died.
22	10	"High Noon"	Kevin Bray	Erica Lipez	August 23, 2012 (2012-08-23)	S210	4.48
Hardman wins the partners' vote, including the vote from Louis, and replaces Jessica as managing partner. He and Louis begin making Harvey and Mike's work lives miserable. Harvey smokes marijuana with Mike, and when Louis observes Harvey high, he has Hardman order him to take a drug test. Harvey refuses and a partners meeting is held to determine if he will be fired. At that meeting, Harvey and Mike reveal evidence (not all valid) of Hardman's past treachery, including his setting up Donna, Harvey and ultimately Jessica for the fall in the Coastal Motors case, and it is Hardman who is fired. Mike meets his childhood friend Tess (Elisabeth Hower) at his grandmother's funeral, where Tess and Rachel support him in making a speech. Mike wants to act on the mutual attraction with Rachel, but she asks him to wait. Rachel changes her mind and goes to Mike's apartment, only to discover him in bed with Tess.
23	11	"Blind-Sided"	David Platt	Ethan Drogin	January 17, 2013 (2013-01-17)	S211	3.57
Mike is still having sex and getting high with Tess, even after the interruption from Rachel. Mike is assigned the case of a young man named Liam (Reiley McClendon) who was involved in a hit and run while driving home from a party. The memory of his own parents being killed by a drunk driver compromises Mike's ability to act in the best interest of his client. Harvey wants to celebrate Hardman's dismissal with Zoe Lawford, but finds out that Zoe's brother has just dropped off his daughter, Olivia, on short notice. Meanwhile, Louis meets with Sheila (Rachael Harris), who already knows that he made senior partner and appears to be turned on by that fact. Louis asks for Sheila's help in landing a top-notch new associate from Harvard named Maria (Aarti Mann), but it's all for naught when Jessica makes up a "hiring freeze". Louis thinks it's a punishment, but Jessica does it to prevent him from hiring someone who could inadvertently reveal Mike's Harvard secret.
24	12	"Blood in the Water"	Roger Kumble	Genevieve Sparling	January 24, 2013 (2013-01-24)	S212	3.75
Harvey is suspicious when a client, Trent Devon (Jon Foster), suddenly decides to not let his company go public, while also expressing reservations about retaining Pearson Hardman. Allison Holt, who is working for the rival firm Bratton-Gould, makes a professional attack on Pearson Hardman, and begins to lure away the firm's best associates. Louis has to face Harvey's wrath for his previous actions when he voted for Hardman. Louis takes his frustrations out on Harold, and when the firm loses a client on a case assigned to Harold, Louis fires him in front of everyone. Louis considers leaving Pearson Hardman altogether, and meets with Allison.
25	13	"Zane vs. Zane"	Nicole Kassell	Rick Muirragui	January 31, 2013 (2013-01-31)	S213	3.36
A settlement that Harvey negotiated is in jeopardy of falling apart, as high-profile lawyer Robert Zane (Wendell Pierce) steps in as opposing counsel and drastically reduces the settlement offer. Robert Zane is Rachel's father, and Harvey attempts to gain leverage from Rachel and Robert's contentious relationship by adding Rachel to the case as a paralegal. Meanwhile, Louis engages in an escalating prank war with Katrina Bennett (Amanda Schull), Harvey's newly hired senior associate.
26	14	"He's Back"	Kevin Bray	Daniel Arkin	February 7, 2013 (2013-02-07)	S214	3.07
Daniel Hardman returns, bringing a sexual harassment lawsuit against Pearson Hardman on behalf of a former employee. Harvey and Jessica are tactically limited because of a non-disclosure agreement that Jessica signed when Hardman left. Mike attempts to convince the former employee to settle so that the firm can focus on the Folsom Foods litigation.
27	15	"Normandy"	Terry McDonough	Jon Cowan	February 14, 2013 (2013-02-14)	S215	2.90
Battling too many cases on depleted resources, Pearson Hardman takes an "all in" approach on one location, while mulling over a deal to merge with a British firm that employs one of Harvey's old flames, Dana "Scottie" Scott (Abigail Spencer). Mike develops a less than desirable working relationship with Katrina. Meanwhile, Rachel finds out she was not accepted at Harvard.
28	16	"War"	John Scott	Aaron Korsh	February 21, 2013 (2013-02-21)	S216	3.20
A British firm headed by Edward Darby (Conleth Hill) decides to sneak in with a tempting offer for Jessica's firm, clashing with Harvey's plans for the future and Jessica's own vision, and leaving them both to make up their minds on what direction to take with their careers. Louis meets his match in the form of Darby's quartermaster, Nigel (Adam Godley), as the two try to find a way to keep both their jobs viable in the new combined firm. Harvey makes a wager with Edward, which would stop the merger should Harvey win, on a case that is later handed over to Mike. However, Jessica threatens Mike with exposing his secret if he wins the case. Mike loses the case and faces Harvey's wrath for his disloyalty. Mike finally tells Rachel that he never went to Harvard Law, then ends up having sex with her.

Season 3 (2013–14)

On October 12, 2012, USA Network renewed Suits for a third season, to consist of 16 episodes. Season 3 premiered on July 16, 2013. Michelle Fairley guest stars in multiple episodes as oil executive Dr. Ava Hessington, a high profile client for the new Pearson Darby firm whose father has a past with Darby. Gary Cole reprises his Season 1 role as former Manhattan DA Cameron Dennis, now assigned as a special prosecutor in the Hessington case. Max Beesley is introduced as recurring character Stephen Huntley, Darby's right-hand man from the London office, who is considered the British Harvey. The season's tenth episode served as the summer finale on September 17, 2013, with the remaining six episodes slated to begin airing in early 2014 after the Sochi Winter Olympics. Swimmer Michael Phelps made a cameo appearance in the eleventh episode of the season. Stephen Macht, Gabriel Macht's father, guest stars as Professor Gerard in the season's twelfth episode.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
29	1	"The Arrangement"	Christopher Misiano	Aaron Korsh	July 16, 2013 (2013-07-16)	S301	2.93
The merger complete, Jessica's new partnership with Darby is tested when he assigns Harvey a high-profile client, an oil executive named Dr. Ava Hessington (Michelle Fairley), who has a deeper past with Darby than originally thought. Ava faces the loss of her freedom, if Harvey can't produce a win for her case. Mike works to reconcile with Harvey, while also trying to manage the fallout from his revelation to Rachel. After telling her "everything", they end up happily in bed together. Meanwhile, Louis convinces Darby to give him quartermaster responsibilities at the firm over his rival, Nigel, but the move backfires when Nigel is put in charge of the associates over Louis.
30	2	"I Want You to Want Me"	Roger Kumble	Jon Cowan	July 23, 2013 (2013-07-23)	S302	2.88
After being told by Jessica that he can have his pick of the Pearson Darby associates, Louis asks Mike to help him on a seemingly unwinnable eminent domain case. He offers Mike a mentor-mentee partnership in which they treat each other as equals, while Harvey continues to assure Mike that the two of them are "through". Harvey is charged with keeping Dr. Ava Hessington out of jail, but the case is complicated by his former mentor — the special prosecuting attorney and disgraced former DA of Manhattan, Cameron Dennis. When Harvey discovers that Cameron is making a deal with Ava's protege Nick, he reluctantly teams up with Jessica in a different plan of attack. The case is eventually settled out of court with Ava keeping her company and staying out of jail, though Harvey is not entirely pleased with the settlement. Meanwhile Donna and Rachel try to help Harvey and Mike make amends. In the end, Harvey and Mike reconcile, leaving Louis behind.
31	3	"Unfinished Business"	Anton Cropper	Ethan Drogin	July 30, 2013 (2013-07-30)	S303	2.47
After having pleaded guilty to bribery, Ava Hessington gets arrested because Cameron Dennis now wants to link her to the murders of six protestors committed by the foreign colonel she bribed. Harvey and Mike finally get her out by letting the witnesses sue them, but both men think that she really ordered these murders. During the case, Harvey meets Darby's "fixer", Stephen Huntley. While Harvey is tied up with Ava's personal case, he asks Louis to represent Ava's company, Hessington Oil, amidst a potential hostile takeover. Katrina Bennett wants to work the case with Louis, but refuses to be his personal associate so he rejects her. She then tries to work for Harvey, but is stopped and put in her place by Mike and Donna. Afterward, she sends everybody in the firm a prank video of Mike, trying to annoy him and get closer to Louis. She then is chewed out by Harvey, after which Louis lets her work on his case after all. Meanwhile, Donna forgives Mike and Rachel, and Mike and Rachel discuss being boyfriend and girlfriend. Huntley pursues Donna romantically, while Harvey lets Mike in on his plan to unseat Jessica as managing partner.
32	4	"Conflict of Interest"	Michael Smith	Daniel Arkin	August 6, 2013 (2013-08-06)	S304	2.99
The cases of Harvey (Ava Hessington's murder trial) and Louis (the takeover battle for Hessington Oil) continue. While Jessica, Louis and Katrina want Ava to resign as CEO/President of Hessington Oil, Darby, Harvey and Mike don't. Katrina and Mike work together to find a way to prevent the Gianapolis Holdings takeover. Together, they discover that since Tony Gianapolis has other holdings which are regulated by the FTC, a takeover of Hessington Oil would put them in violation of anti-trust laws. Using this information, Louis confronts Gianapolis' employee who laughs at Louis, saying they as Wharton investment bankers are smarter than any lawyers. He notes that Gianapolis is having dinner with his "old friend", the FTC commissioner. Having failed to stop Gianapolis, Louis offers to be Jessica's "black swan" and do her dirty work for her by convincing the Hessington Oil board to fire Ava, given that so many figure her to be guilty of the murders, and retain Pearson Darby as their legal counsel. During a mock deposition, Mike and Harvey become convinced that Ava is innocent. She says that she paid $100 million more in bribe money to prevent innocent people from being harmed, and to help relocate those who would lose their homes and livestock. The conflicts between Jessica and both Harvey and Darby heat up when she prevents Louis from going to the board, thus sealing Ava's fate as the board fires her. Meanwhile, Donna and Stephen agree to have a date and "an arrangement" to "satisfy his needs" while he is in New York. He gets tickets to see Daniel Day-Lewis in Macbeth, then tells Donna he has arranged dinner with Daniel after the show, causing her to instead take Stephen somewhere more private. She attempts to tell Harvey about this the next day, but the timing isn't right. Mike and Rachel proclaim their love for each other, shortly after Mike and Katrina agree to a truce.
33	5	"Shadow of a Doubt"	Félix Alcalá	Genevieve Sparling	August 13, 2013 (2013-08-13)	S305	2.79
Stephen assures Harvey that, despite Ava losing her company, winning Ava's murder trial is enough to get Harvey a shot at unseating Jessica as managing partner. Harvey figures his best chance at winning is to get the murder charge dismissed, but Cameron Dennis and the judge want to proceed with a trial. Harvey and Stephen then confront Tony Gianapolis (Rob Stewart) with a threat to tie up his businesses in England with court cases unless he testifies that Dennis colluded with him to get Ava unseated, but Gianapolis isn't scared away. Stephen then goes behind Harvey's back and threatens Gianapolis' daughter with a lawsuit, thus causing an angry Gianapolis to start dumping shares of Hessington Oil and depleting the company's value. Harvey approaches Jessica for help, and they plan to have Gianapolis Holdings buy Hessington Oil but reinstate Ava as CEO, in exchange for Gianapolis testifying that Dennis left him alone in a room with a damning tape of Ava for him to view. Despite the new evidence, Dennis refuses to call off the murder trial even though he figures his chances of winning are down to about 20%. Elsewhere, Donna and Stephen escalate their romance, but she gets angry with him when he references their relationship in an argument with Harvey. Louis confronts Nigel over his handling of the associates, while Mike and Rachel work on a case to get $30 million returned by an accountant who embezzled it from a client. Mike later gets angry with Rachel when he finds out from her father that she has applied to attend law school at Stanford. The episode concludes with Jessica telling Harvey her plans to add him as a named partner in the New York office, but he questions her motives.
34	6	"The Other Time"	John Scott	Rick Muirragui	August 20, 2013 (2013-08-20)	S306	2.76
In a flashback to ten years ago, Harvey resigns from the DA's office (on the advice of his father and Donna) rather than be complicit in Cameron's ethical violation. Taking Donna with him, he goes to work for Jessica, who with Hardman has just taken control of the firm in an overnight coup. Harvey and Donna have a tryst during the brief period she is not working for him, and they agree to conceal this thereafter. At the same time, college senior Mike receives an acceptance letter to Harvard Law school, but later sells answers to a math exam in order to repay a drug debt for his roommate Trevor. When Trevor is caught, Mike confesses, thinking the punishment will be light. It turns out the recipient of the exam answers was the dean's daughter, so the dean expels Mike from college and notifies Harvard Law of the transgressions. In the present, Harvey tells Jessica about his own coup deal with Darby and says he no longer wants the managing partnership, but Jessica rebuffs him. Harvey admits to Donna that he is bothered by her current fling with Stephen. Mike welcomes Rachel back from her Stanford interview, and promises to support her in whatever she chooses. Harvey and Mike call a bluff by Cameron and believe they have won acquittal for Ava. But Cameron still intends to go to trial since he now has the colonel as a witness, saying that Stephen "led me right to him."
35	7	"She's Mine"	Anton Cropper	Paul Redford	August 27, 2013 (2013-08-27)	S307	2.79
Ava's defense is now in disarray in part because she concealed a phone call from Colonel Moriga, who is now available for questioning and maintains that Ava paid him for the murders. Jessica takes charge of the case and (against Harvey's advice) pursues the theory that Nick gave the fatal orders. Mike visits Cameron in his office, ostensibly to pursue a plea deal but actually to memorize documents to find out what Cameron has on Nick. Stephen continues to meddle in the case, and after Donna determines from the copier counter that he hid seven pages of Moriga's testimony, she breaks off their arrangement. Mike determines that Stephen was on a rugby team with the Colonel 20 years ago and personally paid him the bribe money while giving the orders for murders, without the knowledge of either Ava or Nick. Harvey beats up Stephen in the men's room. Meanwhile, Louis is reluctant to return his feline house guest to Nigel, who has returned early from Hong Kong. He challenges Nigel for custody of the cat in a mock trial before the associates, with Rachel as his "attorney". Nigel has a trick up his sleeve, bringing Harold to the mock trial to testify against Louis, but it backfires, resulting in Louis being awarded custody. On Rachel's urging, Louis accepts Nigel's offer to return supervision of the associates to Louis in exchange for the cat. A grateful Louis then informs Rachel that she has been admitted to Columbia Law School.
36	8	"Endgame"	Michael Smith	Justin Peacock	September 3, 2013 (2013-09-03)	S308	3.52
Jessica and Harvey confront Darby with the fact that Stephen ordered the murders, and Darby admits he found out after the fact and did nothing, for fear it would harm Ava. They get him to fire Stephen, but what he is honestly able to testify cannot prove Stephen's guilt. When Harvey calls Stephen to the stand, he fails to convince Cameron of Stephen's guilt and reduces Ava's chances still further. Harvey appeals to Cameron's desire for justice as well as victory, having Mike bring in Clifford (an innocent man that Cameron had convicted for murder). Darby advises Jessica to put aside her anger, and she does, reconciling with Harvey and working with him on an ultimate solution to Ava's problem. Darby agrees to plead to obstruction of justice (getting five years' probation) and testify against Stephen. Cameron takes the surer conviction and drops charges against Ava, while Donna watches Stephen get arrested for murder. At the last moment, Darby discovers that with his probation he also loses his license to practice law in the US, therefore allowing Jessica to push for a dissolution of the merger. Back at the office, the now cat-less Louis lashes out against the associates, then goes to Harold's office to berate him about his testimony in the mock trial. Louis and Harold enter an escalating battle of legal action and intimidation, and Rachel confronts Louis over the depth of his resentment. He explains that his failure to train Harold reminds him of his own failure and the bullying he suffered. Rachel offers that Louis has bullied Harold in the same way. When Harold finally concedes the battle, Louis instead agrees to a compromise that will make Harold look good, swearing Rachel to secrecy about this unusual mercy.
37	9	"Bad Faith"	Christopher Misiano	Ethan Drogin	September 10, 2013 (2013-09-10)	S309	2.95
Work begins on the dissolution of the Pearson Darby Specter firm. Louis convinces Jessica to let him handle the negotiations, on the grounds that Jessica and Harvey would be too emotionally involved. This backfires when Darby appoints Nigel to negotiate with Louis, as Louis (provoked by Nigel's lack of affection for the cat) shuts the door on Harvey and Jessica's plan to defeat Darby. Meanwhile, Mike asks Rachel to move in with him (to the apartment he acquired for his late grandmother), but the two begin to fight over each other's irritating habits. Louis and Katrina have a plan to increase the firm's business with Gianapoulos Holdings, which would increase their side's share of the settlement with Darby. Gianapoulos' aide is impressed with Louis' financial wits, but tells him he lacks the stature to have the proposal considered. Harvey sends Mike to ask Robert Zane to pay the Folsom Foods settlement immediately in return for a discount. Zane refuses until Mike invokes his relationship with Rachel; Zane is amused and impressed with Mike's chutzpah but Rachel is enraged when she learns of it. She tells Mike that she has been admitted to Stanford. Darby appoints Scottie as his new negotiator, with the promise of a named partnership if she wins. She pleads with Harvey to exclude the Folsom Foods settlement from the negotiations, mentioning how she helped him with the Hessington Oil case and their feelings for each other, and promising that she will not go after more money for Darby. Harvey convinces Jessica to agree to this, arguing that the whole firm will suffer from having Darby as an enemy. Soon after, it is revealed that Hessington Oil has fired the firm, and Harvey is enraged, believing that Scottie played him. Encouraged by Katrina, Louis shows his plan that was rejected by Gianapoulos' aide to Harvey, and asks him to present it. Harvey, still furious over Scottie's apparent manipulation, compliments Louis before taking him along to meet with Gianapoulos, who agrees to move his business to the Pearson Specter side of the firm. But Harvey then learns the Hessington Oil firing was in fact the work of Ava alone, as she is also suing the still-undissolved Pearson Darby Specter firm for malpractice.
38	10	"Stay"	Kevin Bray	Rick Muirragui	September 17, 2013 (2013-09-17)	S310	3.16
Ava's attorney for her malpractice suit is Travis Tanner, whose strategy is to get Harvey to settle by attacking Scottie both personally and professionally. He gets Stephen to sign an affidavit claiming she was complicit in the murders, but Donna is able to neutralize this, visiting Stephen in prison and getting him to admit he lied, unaware that he is being recorded. Later Harvey interrupts Ava's deposition to speak with her directly, apologizing for his failings but insisting that everything he did was part of a zealous defense of her interests. She agrees to withdraw the suit. Harvey tells Scottie that he wants not only to work with her, but to have her in his life. Jessica learns of Mike and Rachel's relationship, is concerned about Robert Zane learning the firm's business, and tells Mike she will fire him unless he gets Rachel to sign an affidavit saying that she knew of Mike's fraud. Rachel visits Jessica and signs it, but asks her in return to waive the firm's "Harvard rule" so that she can apply for an associate's position on her graduation. After initially threatening to break up with her if she goes to Stanford, Mike is again supportive of Rachel, and she decides to go to Columbia in spite of her rational analysis in favor of Stanford. Louis again gets romantically involved with Sheila Sazs while attempting to lure a top Harvard Law candidate for an associate position, and he later declares he wants to be "exclusive" with Sheila. She briefly leaves Louis alone in a room which contains the records of everyone who ever attended Harvard Law School; he is surprised to find no folder on Mike.
39	11	"Buried Secrets"	Cherie Nowlan	Erica Lipez	March 6, 2014 (2014-03-06)	S311	2.27
Things get complicated when Harvey mixes business with pleasure, getting Scottie a job at the firm. Scottie has to convince Jessica to waive the half-million dollar partner's buy-in, which she thinks she does by gaining Michael Phelps as a client for the firm. Still, Harvey isn’t completely honest with Scottie. Painful memories plague Mike, as he uses a case to exorcise demons against the man who paid his grandmother a meager settlement after his parents' death. Mike and Rachel decide to move in together. Meanwhile, Donna does her best to keep Mike’s secret from Louis, who is investigating. He seems satisfied after receiving a copy of Mike's (falsified) Harvard transcript, until finding an anomaly — an A+ grade from a professor who is notorious for not handing out such grades.
40	12	"Yesterday's Gone"	Anton Cropper	Genevieve Sparling	March 13, 2014 (2014-03-13)	S312	2.27
Mike confesses to Louis that he falsified one A+ in Professor Gerard's Legal Ethics class, rather than telling Louis about his entire fabricated Harvard career. Louis invites Gerard (Stephen Macht) to give a lecture and says that he will expose Mike unless Mike confesses and apologizes to the professor. Harvey fails to coerce Gerard into canceling the lecture, but prevails on Louis to let it go, citing his own friendship with Louis and Mike's fitness for and love of the law. Meanwhile, Jessica's ex-husband Quentin has died, leaving Harvey and Jessica as co-executors. Quentin's second wife Lisa wants to sell his drug company, which Jessica opposes. Prompted by Harvey, she learns that Lisa's main goal is to ensure that Quentin's research leads to the release of a drug to the market. Jessica asks the buying company to guarantee this, whereupon the sale offer is withdrawn and Lisa's lawyer challenges Jessica's status as executor. Jessica cannot truthfully testify that Quentin was of sound mind when he appointed her, but she nevertheless convinces the court to uphold her status.
41	13	"Moot Point"	Kevin Bray	Daniel Arkin	March 20, 2014 (2014-03-20)	S313	2.35
As a gift to Harvey for helping him with Louis, Mike asks him to first chair a case because the opposing counsel, A. Elliot Stemple, is someone Harvey has never been able to beat. Stemple hints that he will be able to fix the case, and later confides in Harvey that he did the same in the two previous cases he won. But this is a ruse to get Harvey and Mike to bring evidence that works in favor of Stemple's client. Mike is able to find other evidence that turns the tables on Stemple and gets him to settle. Mike's celebration is short-lived, however, when Jessica says New York Law Review magazine wants to interview the man responsible for making a Fortune 500 company publicly admit wrongdoing, and she says Mike's name must be removed from the case to avoid publicity that might lead to interrogation of his status. Thus, Mike is reminded that his career will always be working in the background. Elsewhere, Scottie manipulates Jessica into giving her a case that belonged to Louis, causing a rivalry between them. Louis and Katrina are unsuccessful in trying to gain the case back, and Louis fears his standing at the firm will be affected by the appearance that Scottie was able to bully him. Ultimately feeling he is left without recourse, he goes to Harvey to cash in the favor and get Scottie to give his case back. Harvey broaches the topic with Scottie, initially framing it as a genial request, which she rebuffs. Scottie correctly guesses that it has something to do with the favor Louis did for Harvey; she demands Harvey disclose what the favor was in exchange for her cooperation. Harvey is forced to refuse, invoking his seniority and implicitly making clear that her compliance is not up for discussion. The two realize that there are times when Harvey will have to speak to Scottie as a named partner, rather than as a boyfriend.
42	14	"Heartburn"	James Whitmore, Jr.	Aaron Korsh & Erica Lipez	March 27, 2014 (2014-03-27)	S314	2.53
Louis suffers a heart attack in court. After recovering, he asks Sheila to marry him and she accepts. But when discussing their lives after marriage, the two find they want different things. After a meeting with Mike and Harvey, a Tony Gianapolis employee named Jonathan (Louis' client from earlier in the season) approaches Mike saying he wants out of Tony's company and plans to take his investment banking algorithm with him. Mike offers Jonathan off-the-books advice on how to get out of what appears to be an ironclad non-compete agreement, which gets him in hot water with Harvey because Gianapolis is Harvey's client. Mike also discusses with Harvey his desire to go to law school and be legit, but Harvey says the only way that could work is if Mike attends law school away from the big cities and hangs up his shingle in a small town -- essentially knocking Mike out of "the big leagues". Jonathan gets out of his agreement with Tony and, impressed with Mike's intelligence, offers him a job that does not involve Mike being a lawyer. Meanwhile, Rachel tries to get Jessica to honor a verbal agreement Louis previously made that included then-Pearson Hardman paying Rachel's law school tuition.
43	15	"Know When to Fold 'Em"	Anton Cropper	Jon Cowan	April 3, 2014 (2014-04-03)	S315	2.50
A heartbroken Louis calls in sick and instructs Katrina to cover for him. Harvey and Scottie appear to patch things up over the incident with Louis' case. A man named James Quelling comes up with a "bullshit claim" against Marathon Footwear, a Pearson Specter client that is supposed to go public in a week. Meanwhile Mike tells Rachel about the job offer he got from Jonathan, but doesn't tell Harvey yet. While negotiating with Quelling, Harvey learns of his gambling habit. He later beats Quelling in a high-stakes poker game, and tells his opponent he'll leave him his winnings if he agrees to drop the case. Mike informs Harvey about Jonathan's offer, and is concerned when Harvey calmly tells him he should take the job. But Harvey is actually very worked up, causing him to snap at Scottie. Quelling returns the next day after discovering the agreement Mike made with Harold to pay off witnesses in the Hessington case, and he plans to take it to the New York Bar Association the next day (which would expose Mike) unless Harvey settles for the higher amount. Charles Van Dyke, Jessica's former name partner, appears out of the blue, making claims that his dividend check should be higher and suspecting fraud in Pearson Specter's books. Jessica asks for Louis' assistance, but Katrina wants to respect Louis' wishes that she cover for him. She tries to resolve the issue with the help of Rachel. Van Dyke sees through the comeback attempt designed by Katrina and Rachel, and makes a move to strongarm Jessica. Jessica fires Katrina, but after Rachel explains the situation, Jessica appeals to Louis to help her fight Van Dyke. Mike tells Harvey he plans to leave Pearson Specter. Harvey tells Donna he wants to tell Scottie about Mike because her anger over him keeping secrets is eating him up inside. But Donna convinces Harvey that Scottie will always be angry about something. Mike returns to Harvey's office saying he has paid his hacker to make him a member of the Bar, and he now wants to stay.
44	16	"No Way Out"	Michael Smith	Aaron Korsh & Daniel Arkin	April 10, 2014 (2014-04-10)	S316	2.40
The house of cards Harvey and Mike have built may finally come tumbling down when Mike is taken in for questioning by US Attorney Eric Woodall. It seems that Woodall has got wind of the Hessington settlement, and the tenacious attorney smells blood. But as Woodall soon makes clear, he doesn’t really want Mike; it’s Harvey he’s after, and he’s willing to make a deal with his protégé in order to get him. Mike has no intention of turning on his mentor, but as he and Harvey scramble to cover their bases it becomes evident that they still have a major liability on their hands, and his name is Harold Gunderson. At the same time, news of Mike’s brush with Woodall causes the employees of Pearson Specter to take a hard look in the mirror, and they may not like what they see. Meanwhile, when Mike and Harold are arrested, Mike hopes his timid ex-colleague will toe the line. But Woodall is a man who gets what he wants at any cost, and Harold starts to crack under the pressure. Eventually, Louis convinces him not to confess. At the end of the episode, Mike tells Harvey that he took Jonathan Sidwell's job offer.

Season 4 (2014–15)

On October 22, 2013, it was announced that USA Network has renewed Suits for a fourth season consisting of 16 episodes, which premiered on June 11, 2014. Brandon Firla reprises his season 3 role as Jonathan Sidwell, Mike's new investment banking employer. Željko Ivanek returns as Eric Woodall, though the season's first episode reveals he has left the U.S. Attorney's office to work for the SEC and go after Harvey from a different angle. D. B. Woodside appears as Jeff Malone, an SEC Attorney and Jessica's lover whom she later hires to work at Pearson Specter. Neal McDonough appears as Sean Cahill, an SEC prosecutor who picks up Woodall's cases against Harvey and the firm. Brendan Hines fills the role of Logan Sanders, Harvey's client who battles Mike and Sidwell for control of Gillis industries; he is also Rachel's former boyfriend. Eric Roberts portrays corrupt billionaire investor Charles Forstman. Gabriel Macht directs the 11th episode of season four, "Enough Is Enough", while Patrick J. Adams makes his directorial debut in the season's 14th episode, "Derailed". In the final arc of the season, Tricia Helfer guest stars as Evan Smith, the lawyer for powerful railway company Liberty Rail.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
45	1	"One-Two-Three Go..."	Anton Cropper	Aaron Korsh	June 11, 2014 (2014-06-11)	S401	2.50
The company that is the life's work of Walter Gillis (Michael Gross) is ripe for hostile takeover. Mike's plan to save it is derided as insufficiently ruthless by both Harvey and Jonathan Sidwell (whose investment firm is now a client of Harvey's and for whom Mike now works). After Harvey uses Rachel as a pawn to send this message to Mike, Mike responds by reviewing his representation by Pearson Specter and when Harvey's client Logan Sanders, a young man taking over his father's company, announces his plan for a hostile takeover of Gillis Industries, Harvey is forced to resolve a conflict of interest. He chooses to honor his obligation to Logan and drops Sidwell's firm as a client. Meanwhile, feared SEC prosecutor Jeff Malone (D. B. Woodside) visits the firm's offices unannounced and tells Jessica and Harvey that US Attorney Eric Woodall is resigning to become a senior administrator at the SEC and will use his power to pursue his vendetta against the firm by having Malone investigate their clients. Louis has already learned of this from Katrina and expects to be asked to save the firm due to his extensive litigation and financial expertise; what he does not know is that Malone is offering to leave the SEC and lead Pearson Specter's defense against Woodall in exchange for a senior partnership. Jessica hesitates, since Malone has ambushed her and is banking on their secret romantic relationship to coerce her. She initially plans to put Louis in charge of handling this, but after consulting Harvey, who is impressed by Malone's brash approach, she agrees to Malone's offer on the condition that their relationship become strictly professional. Meanwhile, Harvey is seeing someone, and Rachel is shocked to see Logan Sanders and tells Mike that he is the married man she had an affair with.
46	2	"Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner"	Roger Kumble	Genevieve Sparling	June 18, 2014 (2014-06-18)	S402	2.65
On Harvey's advice, Logan stops quietly buying shares of Gillis Industries and rushes a tender offer on the company's stock. Harvey knows that Gillis is fully aware of the company's vulnerability to hostile takeover and has retained the services of an investment firm (i.e., Mike) to organize a defense strategy. Mike files a motion to request a TRO to block Logan's tender offer on the grounds that Harvey broke attorney-client privilege. Confronted about this in front of the judge, Harvey relents and tells her to give Mike the TRO. Having implicitly admitted to the validity of Mike's claim, the judge responds by not only granting Mike's request for a TRO, but by also placing a moratorium on Logan's company, disallowing any further purchasing of Gillis Industries stock, the latter as an additional punishment for initially trying to stall while in her chambers with Mike. This forces Harvey and Sanders to try to settle rather than continue to fight Mike in court and they offer a deal: $30 million for Mike to walk away and allow Sanders to acquire and dismember Gillis' company. Mike refuses and storms out of the settlement conference. Harvey reassesses the situation and decides to circumvent the negotiations and go to the head of the company's union with an offer of $500 million to the union's pension fund in exchange for his support of the takeover. Mike convinces Gillis that the only option to keep the takeover at bay is to match the offer, thus crippling his expansion plans. Rachel later suggests to Mike that he refused the deal due to macho posturing over her in front of Logan, but Mike insists he is motivated by principle. Meanwhile, Louis and Malone jointly interrogate a broker who claims that his windfall was due to an accident rather than insider information. Louis originally plans to leave the broker to be prosecuted, while Malone wants to save him if he is innocent. Donna accuses Louis of abandoning the broker just to spite Malone, and convinces him to change his mind. Donna then suggests to Jessica that Louis be given the coveted corner office instead of Malone. Unwilling to be seen giving her former lover undeserved special treatment, Jessica agrees.
47	3	"Two in the Knees"	Anton Cropper	Chris Downey	June 25, 2014 (2014-06-25)	S403	2.76
Sanders, frustrated that Harvey has not yet defeated Mike, proposes to hire a team of private investigators to dig up dirt on Mike and his past. Knowing it is likely they will discover Mike's secret, Harvey forestalls by telling Walter Gillis (whose son's death was apparently drug-related) about Mike's past with drugs, and Gillis cuts off relations with Mike. Still determined to save the company, Mike increases his own investment. Harvey plans to ask Mike to back down to keep his secret from being discovered, but Donna convinces him to make this request through Rachel. Rachel goes to Logan, demanding a favor in return for a lie she told to help him in his divorce proceedings, and gets him to forswear personal attacks on Mike. Meanwhile, Jeff's efforts to resume his relationship with Jessica lead to both she and Louis being repeatedly pulled on and off the broker's case. Louis is briefly convinced that Jeff is gay and writes off Jeff's kindness toward him as manipulation. Jessica finds a key piece of evidence for Jeff, but declines his personal advances. Jeff learns that Woodall is beginning his attack on the firm by issuing SEC subpoenas to seven of their clients.
48	4	"Leveraged"	Kevin Bray	Nora Zuckerman & Lilla Zuckerman	July 9, 2014 (2014-07-09)	S404	2.42
Sidwell confronts Mike, congratulating him for the bold move of buying 100,000 shares of Gillis Industries on his own like a real investment-banker, but giving him a one-week timeline to deleverage the firm, with failure to do so costing him his job. Harvey goes to see the now fired Eric Woodall regarding the subpoenas his clients are facing and learns that Sean Cahill (Neal McDonough) directed the whole thing. Mike goes to Tony Gianopolous for money, but Louis intervenes as revenge for Mike's deception about Sheila and Mike is turned down. This turns out to be a double-edged sword: Louis' deliberately seeking a confrontation with Mike after Gianopolous turns him away comes back to haunt him. Mike turns to Charles Forstman (Eric Roberts), who has a rocky past with Harvey, for the funding. Forstman agrees with one major inclusion to the contract: when the deal closes, Sidwell be cut out completely. Both Harvey and Amy oppose this, the former as he has a grudge against Forstman and the latter as she is offended by Mike going behind Sidwell's back. Mike signs the deal anyway, as otherwise he would be fired by Sidwell as well. Jessica and Malone confront Cahill and convince him to drop the seven cases in exchange for Pearson Specter dropping their malicious prosecution charge against him. While they are celebrating their victory over the SEC, Harvey informs Jessica and Malone of Cahill's true intention, which is to force their clients to cough up dirt against Harvey. Malone is intimidated, blaming himself for not having seen this coming, and leaves Jessica's office. Rachel helps Logan Sanders with a major business decision, as his lawyer, and the two show some inkling towards rekindling their past. Jessica goes back to Malone's place again.
49	5	"Pound of Flesh"	Christopher Misiano	Daniel Arkin	July 16, 2014 (2014-07-16)	S405	2.33
Mike has second thoughts about betraying Sidwell, and attempts to use the threat of Forstman's money to get Harvey to back down, but Harvey sees through this immediately. Another firm needs to sell some Gillis Industries shares; Mike offers to buy them with Forstman's money and Harvey with Pearson Specter money. (The latter is from a $20M retainer paid by Sanders, part of Malone's "questionable" plan to circumvent the prohibition against Sanders buying stock in the company.) The owner sets up an auction between the two, but before it happens both Mike and Harvey rush to the hospital bed of Rachel, who has collapsed at school from overwork. Waiting for her to wake up, they share dinner and partially reconcile, but Cahill confronts them after the dinner and accuses them of illegal collusion. Meanwhile, Jessica has bought the shares, violating Harvey's promise to Mike. Mike meets with Forstman to decline his loan, only to find that Forstman forwarded the loan to Sidwell for the same deal. Donna gets help from Louis (who has memorized all the plays of Shakespeare) to learn her lines for a production of The Merchant of Venice and reveals her middle name is really Roberta. She contrives a situation forcing Louis to step in and play Shylock for one performance, overcoming a lifetime of stage fright. For closing night, Donna is joined by the ever-charming Harvey after Louis soulfully declares that he has decided to retire from the stage after his one performance.
50	6	"Litt the Hell Up"	Silver Tree	Rick Muirragui	July 23, 2014 (2014-07-23)	S406	2.70
Louis tries to patch things up with Harvey, which, despite Donna's intervention, fails miserably. Logan gets cuffed by the SEC and when Harvey goes in, Pearson Specter's purchase of the Wexler block comes to the fore. Harvey can't come clean about it to Logan, as that would be labelled 'parking'. Meanwhile, Sidwell gets a whiff of the "collusion claim" and calls in Mike for further clarification. Mike conveniently bypasses any mention of his initial deal with Forstman. Things get even more complicated for Rachel with Logan when they kiss, but having confessed to Donna, she decides to keep it quiet. Jessica approaches Malone with instructions to go over the Wexler deal so as to immunize it from rigorous SEC scrutiny. When he declines, she turns to Louis, who masterfully finds a technicality to invalidate the sale, so that the shares will go back on the market with no connection to Pearson Specter. Mike proposes to buy Logan out with a generous offer, but on Rachel's suggestion adds the condition that as soon as the deal closes, Harvey goes back to being his lawyer and Logan must look for new representation. Logan and Harvey at first refuse, but then when given the choice of who to keep, Harvey chooses Mike. Logan is enraged and rejects the entire deal. Harvey goes over Mike's head to cut a deal with Forstman but fails to do so, as Forstman has already bought the Wexler shares. Again Harvey feels betrayed by Louis, who unwound the sale before consulting him, against Jessica's instructions. Finally, Louis steps in to save the day for Harvey by convincing Forstman to sell those shares to Logan Sanders, leaving Harvey hugely impressed. Mike is shattered to hear this and spits on Forstman's job offer. Louis later tells Katrina that in order to help Forstman avoid taxes, he illegally made the sale himself through foreign banks without reporting it, violating his principles in order to retain Harvey's approval. Forstman tells Sidwell of Mike's initial plan to cut him out and an infuriated Sidwell fires Mike. Rachel makes up her mind to confront Mike about Logan and herself, against Donna's advice.
51	7	"We're Done"	Cherie Nowlan	Aaron Korsh & Daniel Arkin & Genevieve Sparling	July 30, 2014 (2014-07-30)	S407	2.81
Mike is still reeling from the loss of his job, the takeover battle and the fact that he went behind Sidwell's back. On Harvey's advice he goes to see Stan (John Billingsley, recurring a Season 1 role), someone he knows to have been a fraud like him. Stan tells Mike that he found out the important thing in life is not how much money you make but who you spend it with. Mike then decides to start all over again with Rachel by his side, but when she confesses that she kissed Logan, he is devastated and goes to Logan's where they fight. A distraught Rachel turns to Donna while Mike stays at Harvey's. The next day, Mike waits for Rachel in the lobby of Pearson Specter. When Rachel hesitates after a question about her feelings for Logan, Mike tells her that their relationship is over. Later, Rachel vows to Logan that she is done with him for good, echoing Mike's "we're done", and declining to be his lawyer from now on. Although initially dismissive of Forstman's job offer, (even with a $1M signing bonus), Mike later goes to Forstman intending to accept it. Before he can do that, however, he runs into Louis, who has just signed a fee-receipt ensuring that Louis is implicated in Forstman's tax evasion if it is ever reported. To prevent Mike taking the job with Forstman, Louis hires him back at Pearson Specter, using a reward granted to him by Jessica for his work with Forstman. (After Jessica refused his first request of a named partnership, he had asked for extra vacation time and other flexibilities that might allow him to win back Sheila.) Harvey is happy and Jessica has to bend, since to refuse might revive Louis' suspicions about Mike's secret. Harvey dumps Logan as his client. Mike and Rachel meet at home, where he is packing his things. Mike tells Rachel that he needs some breathing space if their relationship is to have any chance, and that he will be also back to work the next day.
52	8	"Exposure"	John Scott	Justin Peacock	August 6, 2014 (2014-08-06)	S408	2.59
Rachel is staying with Donna, who admits she slept with Harvey and wanted a relationship, but he wasn’t ready. Mike comes back as a junior associate and is shown his new office (Harvey's old one). Louis buries the fee receipt deep in the firm's stored records, but is visibly shocked to hear from Mike that Sean Cahill is trying to get all their files on the Gillis takeover. Mike and Harvey defeat Cahill's first attempt, and Mike refuses an immunity deal, but Sanders accepts a similar deal and waives privilege to allow Cahill to get just the files involving Sanders' dealings with the firm. This is fine with Louis, but Mike later proposes to release all the files voluntarily (as he thinks they have nothing to hide), which will bolster Pearson Specter's malicious prosecution case against Cahill. Louis is desperate: Forstman will undo their deal only if he frames Harvey for a similar offense, and Katrina's offer to forge the fee receipt could send her to jail instead. Mike determines roughly what is going on from Louis' behavior and tells Harvey, who wants to talk to Louis, but can’t find him because Louis is on the way to him. Louis then goes to Jessica to tell her. Meanwhile, Rachel disregards Donna's advice and tries to talk to Mike at work. After a confrontation, she urges him to either come home with her or break it off permanently; they leave work together.
53	9	"Gone"	James Whitmore, Jr.	Kyle Long	August 13, 2014 (2014-08-13)	S409	2.59
Louis tells Jessica and Harvey what he did. Jessica tries to stay calm but tells Harvey she will fire Louis when it’s over. Harvey is furious with Louis and won’t listen to Donna’s advice when she suggests forgiveness. Harvey meets with Forstman to try to undo the deal. Forstman won’t, and when Harvey brings up an incident from twelve years ago it becomes clear that Forstman is able to also implicate Harvey in that deal. Cahill begins a round of depositions for the SEC investigation, endangering the employees. Mike comes up with the idea of starting to depose Cahill himself for the malicious prosecution charges. Jessica implores Malone to find some dirt on Cahill or Woodall, which he does. At the malicious prosecution deposition, Harvey reads a series of e-mails that suggests a pattern of Woodall targeting a person first and coming up with charges later. Harvey sees Rachel is first on Cahill's deposition list. Mike preps her, revealing lingering tensions between them. In court, Cahill reveals Jessica’s relationship with Malone. Louis goes to the SEC to confess his deal with Forstman, with the purpose of protecting Pearson Specter by saying he acted alone. When he surprisingly returns to the office, he tells Harvey and Mike that he went to tell Cahill, but Woodall was in Cahill's office. He confessed to Woodall instead, who let him go. The reason, they deduce, is that Woodall has also taken money from Forstman. They cannot get at Woodall's bank records, but Louis realizes that Cahill can and will, if he is the overzealous but honest prosecutor he seems to be. With the threat from Woodall gone, Harvey, Mike, and Donna all plead for Louis to be spared, but Jessica still plans to fire him for his long series of insubordinate actions. Harvey asks to be the one to do it, but when he and Donna reach Louis' office they find his resignation letter.
54	10	"This Is Rome"	Roger Kumble	Chris Downey	August 20, 2014 (2014-08-20)	S410	2.76
Louis cannot get a job with another major NYC firm because his partnership agreement prevents him from taking any of his Pearson Specter clients. Mike's new task is to help the firm keep the business of drug company Versalife, which it must drop for anti-trust reasons. Harvey gets Louis a job with Procter & Gamble in Cincinnati, which he rejects, and then one in Boston, which he rejects after Sheila shuns his proffered love. Mike goes to Robert Zane and urges him to hire Louis; he agrees on the condition that Louis somehow bring along one Pearson Specter client. Louis learns about Versalife from Katrina and gets their account, which is legal because they are Harvey's client and only Louis' clients have been officially notified of his leaving the firm. Mike then gets Gillis to buy a portion of Versalife, which will bring the total value of the Versalife account below the anti-trust threshold, and in turn giving Gillis a chance to develop a promising anti-addiction drug. Harvey tells Zane that he will "owe him one" if he hires Louis anyway. Jessica, who had originally blamed Mike for the Versalife leak, now deduces that Katrina leaked the information and fires her. Katrina is fine with the news, knowing that Louis will hire her when he begins working for Zane, until Jessica tells her that Pearson Specter won back Versalife. Mike brings the contents of Louis' office to his apartment, including a mysterious key that Mike asks to know more about, but Louis rebuffs Mike's offer of support. Louis then realizes that Mike would have recognized the key were he really a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard Law School. He confronts Jessica, getting her to admit she is a liar and a hypocrite, then threatens to expose Mike's secret unless he is made a named partner of "Pearson Specter Litt".
55	11	"Enough Is Enough"	Gabriel Macht	Nora Zuckerman & Lilla Zuckerman	January 28, 2015 (2015-01-28)	S411	1.87
Jessica promises Louis that he will become a named partner. Louis meets Mike at his home with the news, and says he will make it his mission to force Mike into leaving the firm. He first buries Mike in paralegal work. Mike insists he won’t give up, but he later needs Rachel's help to meet Louis' deadline. Louis acts like a king, offending everybody. He confronts Rachel, knowing she helped Mike, and says she is nothing more than a paralegal and she can't keep him from breaking Mike. Rachel insists that despite Louis' threats, she will become a lawyer, to which Louis agrees -- she'll become a lawyer in the same mold as Harvey, Jessica and her father. Robert Zane meets with Harvey and suspects Louis has something on Pearson Specter. He tries to use his "favor" with Harvey to find out what it is, but Harvey says there is no favor in play because Zane ultimately never hired Louis. Jeff Malone knows that Louis has something on Pearson Specter, because he had firsthand knowledge of Louis' crime regarding Charles Forstman. Jessica tells Jeff a story about covering up Daniel Hardman's embezzlement, and says Louis used this to come back to the firm as named partner. Jessica later calls Louis into her office and says he must sign a statement saying that he knows about Mike being a fraud. Louis objects, but realizes Jessica is right. He not only continued to work at the firm while knowing Mike's secret, he became named partner while having that knowledge, and he reluctantly signs. Rachel gets Katrina Bennett a job at her father’s law firm.
56	12	"Respect"	Anton Cropper	Genevieve Sparling	February 4, 2015 (2015-02-04)	S412	1.67
Jessica tells Harvey about the lie she had to tell Jeff Malone, and the two try to figure out a way to get Louis to go along with it. Professor Gerard, the Harvard Legal Ethics teacher who humiliated Harvey (season 3, episode 12) by insinuating he is a dirty lawyer who will do anything to win, now needs Harvey's help with a case. Harvey won't take the case because he hates Gerard, but Mike convinces him there is a lot to gain if Gerard owes the firm a favor. The case involves Gerard being caught with $25,000 in cash by the TSA, which is not a crime but has caused Gerard to now be blackmailed. Mike finds that the blackmailer was told the cash came from a backroom poker game, which Gerard cannot testify to in court or he would be fired by Harvard. Jessica fills in Louis on what she told Malone. He says he'll play along, but only if she gives him one of Harvey's clients as a show of respect and a sign that all the names on the wall are equal. Louis wants Gerard, but Harvey says no because Gerard specifically asked for him. They argue and Harvey insists he won't give up any of his clients. Donna gets Harvey to relent, and she brings Louis the folder for cosmetics magnate Joan Walsh. She tells Louis it is a significant gesture by Harvey, because Walsh was his first client after he made named partner. Mike digs more in the Gerard case, and gets Gerard to admit he took the cash from a student as a bribe for fixing a grade. Mike meets with the student under a cover story that he is a recruiter, and forces the student to sign an affidavit stating the $25,000 was merely a loan to Gerard. Gerard meets with Harvey and tells him he knows there is no record of Mike attending Harvard. Harvey says that, thanks to Mike, there is no record of Gerard taking money to change a grade, so they're even. Louis makes a mistake handling Joan Walsh's current case, and Jessica confronts him because Walsh called the office and was furious. Louis throws his weight around with Rachel again, making her stay all night to help him fix the mess. Rachel says she'll do it, not because she owes Louis anything, but because she (unlike him) can put personal issues aside and get her job done. Rachel's work ultimately helps Louis solve Walsh's case. Walsh then tells Louis that she must be a difficult client, because Jessica passed her on to Harvey immediately after he made named partner, and now Harvey has passed her on to Louis. Louis confronts Donna because it's now obvious that her story about "Harvey's first client" was not genuine, and they argue about Donna's lies regarding Mike. Donna says she did it because they are all part of a team, and good teammates do what they can to protect other team members. Taking this to heart, Louis meets with Malone and, convincingly, puts on a show about using his knowledge of Hardman's embezzlement and Jessica's coverup to get his name on the wall.
57	13	"Fork in the Road"	Michael Smith	Rick Muirragui	February 11, 2015 (2015-02-11)	S413	1.46
Jessica tells Harvey to make peace between Mike and Louis. Harvey takes Louis and Mike on a road trip to see his first client, McKernan Motors, saying he wants to give Louis 50 percent of this client's business to make up for giving him a client he didn't want. During the drive, Mike and Louis continually argue the whole way. Harvey tries to make them talk but they want nothing to do with each other. At a stop to fill up gas, Louis attacks Mike personally and they start fighting. It escalates to Louis choking Mike before Harvey intervenes to break up the fight. Louis and Mike work out their differences, apologize and seemingly reconcile when Louis tells Mike, "You're not a fraud, you just don't have a law degree." In flashbacks to when the firm was run by Daniel Hardman and Jessica, Louis and Harvey appear to be friends. Louis comes to Harvey with an idea that will convince Hardman to make them both junior partners, as they are the top fifth-year associates at the firm. Hardman refutes the original offer, but says he will promote one of them if he can land McKernan Motors. Louis refuses, saying they are a team, but Harvey quickly accepts the challenge. Harvey manages to charm Avery McKernan, but Avery has court the next day. He tells Harvey if he does well in court, he'll become Harvey's client. It turns out the offer from Hardman was a ploy to land rival Fletcher Motors, which is a three times bigger client, causing Harvey to go to Jessica as he had given Avery McKernan his word that he would be loyal. Harvey accuses Hardman of giving away his courtroom strategy to the other side. He then learns that it was Louis who did so, as Hardman promised Louis junior partner if he would "get in line" with the firm's plans. Louis and Harvey end their friendship, both claiming that the other betrayed him. In another flashback, Trevor invites Mike to move in with him, saying that he'll even pay Mike's rent for a year as payback for Trevor getting him kicked out of college, but the idea doesn't sit well with Mike's grandmother. Mike meets an NYU law student and legal intern, Claire, (Troian Bellisario) and manages to get a date. He lies to her and says that he is in law school at Columbia. He helps her with a case, but Claire's boss catches Mike's lie and tells Claire, who breaks up with him. Back in the present day, Harvey tells Louis that he is giving the other 50 percent of McKernan Motors to Mike. A united Louis and Mike walk in to McKernan Motors together for a meeting.
58	14	"Derailed"	Patrick J. Adams	Justin Peacock & Kyle Long	February 18, 2015 (2015-02-18)	S414	1.70
Mike meets with Professor Gerard who, after telling Mike he knows he never went to Harvard (in contrast to what Harvey had told Mike), urges him to take on a humanitarian case helping the families of victims from a deadly train derailment. Mike meets with factory worker Joe Henderson (Michael Harney), who has left the rail company, and Henderson tells him the derailment was caused by inferior heat sensors that the company brass knew were faulty. Harvey tells Mike to drop the case, as their corporate clients don't like to work with firms that also handle whistleblower cases. Mike insists this is personal and he has to pursue it, and Harvey reluctantly lets him continue. Mike meets Evan Smith (Tricia Helfer), Liberty Rail's legal counsel, who laughs off his claims and tells Mike to check the background of his witness. Mike indeed finds out that Henderson had been a whistleblower at three other jobs and confronts him again, but Henderson tells Mike this one is legit. Donna tells Mike if he truly believes the claims, he should get his hands on the company testing data, and she even offers to help him do so. Armed with the data and accompanied by Harvey, Mike meets with Evan again, who is shocked and surprised that they were able to obtain the company report. Harvey gives Evan 24 hours to come up with a settlement amount, which must also include an admission of wrongdoing. At the firm, Malone asks Jessica to accompany him on a trip to Paris, and says "I love you" to her for the first time. Meanwhile, Louis is upset that the company receptionist is still answering the phone "Pearson Specter", only to find out that Malone was the one who instructed her to not include "Litt". Jessica meets with Malone, and says she really needs him to get past Louis' blackmail, both for her and for the good of the firm. Malone meets with Louis to mend their differences, and agrees to meet him for drinks after work. Jessica tells Harvey she wants to tell Malone about Mike, for the same reason Harvey told Scottie (which she had already deduced). But when she goes to see Malone, he has figured out the Hardman story is a lie because Louis "can't handle his liquor", and he is furious, saying he's done with her. At the end of the episode, Harvey is visited by Evan. She reveals photographs that show Donna illegally obtaining evidence on the faulty sensors. She says that not only does this make the evidence inadmissible, but that Liberty Rail plans to prosecute both Donna and Pearson Specter Litt for the illegal action.
59	15	"Intent"	Silver Tree	Daniel Arkin	February 25, 2015 (2015-02-25)	S415	1.80
Evan Smith's recording not only ruins Mike's case, but also puts Donna in the sights of the District Attorney Wolf (Chi McBride). Mike has to reluctantly tell Henderson they cannot get him his check and day in court, because they got their evidence the wrong way. Mike then helps Harvey realize that Smith would have to prove Liberty Rail was damaged by Donna's actions, forcing Smith to testify in court about the information on the heat sensors. This makes the case for felony fraud thin. Harvey gloats to Smith, in front of Wolf, that they can only make a case for "criminal intent" against Donna, which the DA's office never does. But to Harvey's shock and dismay, Wolf does decide to pursue a criminal intent charge against Donna, mainly because of his disdain for Harvey. Mike tries to approach Henderson to get him to testify, but Henderson has been bought off by Smith and Liberty Rail. Their options running out, Mike and Rachel visit the driver of the train that derailed. Although the company terminated his employment, they still gave him his severance and retirement money. But the man is distraught, thinking it was his fault that several passengers were killed. Mike and Rachel assure him it was not his fault, but they need his help to prove it. This ultimately gets Smith and Wolf to drop the charges against Donna. Meanwhile, Jessica consults her sister Leah for help in handling her breakup with Jeff Malone. With Leah's urging, Jessica approaches Malone to mend their working and personal relationships, saying she truly does love him. Malone later visits Jessica in her office and hands in his resignation, saying that Jessica was right, and if they can't be together on a personal level, they can't work together either. The episode ends with Harvey in Donna's apartment, where he confesses to her, "Anyone else ever loses faith in me, it doesn't matter. But with you, it's different." He pauses, then decides to leave. Donna asks him why and he answers with, "You know I love you, Donna."
60	16	"Not Just a Pretty Face"	Anton Cropper	Aaron Korsh	March 4, 2015 (2015-03-04)	S416	1.55
SEC investigator Sean Cahill comes to Harvey for help, saying he cannot find the money that will link his corrupt boss Eric Woodall with corporate raider Charles Forstman. Harvey consults with Jessica, and the two determine that someone close to Woodall may be the final beneficiary of Forstman's money. Harvey then must revisit his own uncomfortable past when Forstman reveals he had made a shady deal with Harvey's brother some years ago, and he tries to use it as blackmail. Mike and Rachel confront the fact that, while Rachel is Harvey's associate, Mike has again become Harvey's go-to guy since his return to the firm. Rachel then manages to get an assignment from Harvey, and later Mike asks Rachel to marry him, and she accepts. Donna helps Louis with an unexpected crisis, when Louis is devastated by the death of his abrasive but loyal secretary. When Harvey is again non-commital about his feelings for Donna, she tells him that she is leaving him. After Harvey surmises it has something to do with the stress of the fraud case, she assures him she isn't leaving the firm, but instead going to work for Louis as his legal secretary. She ends the episode saying "I love you Harvey."

Season 5 (2015–16)

On August 11, 2014, the show was renewed for a fifth season. On April 7, 2015, USA Network announced it would premiere on June 24, 2015.

No. in series	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (millions)
61	1	"Denial"	Anton Cropper	Aaron Korsh	June 24, 2015 (2015-06-24)	S501	2.13
Pearson Specter Litt has scored a hard-fought victory in the Liberty Rail case, but the fight has left the firm shaken. Although she avoided jail time, Donna has left Harvey after more than a decade of working together. She officially offers to work for his long-time rival Louis, though Louis is uncertain about getting his hopes up with Donna knowing that he had Mike as an associate only to have Harvey almost immediately take Mike back. His fears are made worse when Louis sees a list of "Secretary Replacements for Louis" in Donna's desk, though Donna assures him that she only kept the list to pass it on to Harvey. Meanwhile, Harvey throws himself into a tough bankruptcy case involving a regional trucking company, but his unwillingness to accept that Donna isn't coming back leads to an error that could cost his client dearly. He also begins to have panic attacks, and starts seeing a therapist, Dr. Agard (Christina Cole), with the purpose of getting her to sign off on anti-anxiety medications. Elsewhere, Jessica readjusts to being single, while Mike and Rachel are giddy after his marriage proposal.
62	2	"Compensation"	Michael Smith	Rick Muirragui	July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01)	S502	2.27
Harvey searches for a replacement for Donna. Jack Soloff (John Pyper-Ferguson), a senior partner, comes to Louis with a proposal to rework the firm's compensation formula to more heavily favor billables, which would benefit Louis. But Louis has a different idea: he will shoot down Jack's plan at a partners meeting to show Harvey he has his back. When Harvey shuns the move, however, Louis realigns with Jack, concocting a plan to share Harvey's salary with all of the partners in order to sway votes. Harvey comes back to apologize to Louis, but it's too late -- copies of Harvey's salary information are already circulating. Harvey later tells Louis that, as part of his original agreement to bring Donna to the firm with him, he agreed to pay part of Donna's salary from his own pocket, given that she is paid much better than any other legal secretary there. Jessica knows this, but Donna does not. Louis is taken aback upon realizing that he must now pay a premium for Donna's services. Elsewhere, Mike takes on a case as a favor to Jimmy, his friend and former co-associate from the Pearson Hardman days, but he finds it difficult to get funding for the man-hours after Jessica refuses to take the risk. Mike even goes to Sidwell to try to get funding, but his former boss shoots him down. Robert Zane, Rachel's father, wants her to get Mike to sign a prenup, which Rachel adamantly opposes. When Mike goes to see Robert, his future father-in-law offers advice, which Mike later tells Rachel he agrees with. Louis confronts Harvey over their salary differences, holding it up as "the only thing left" that separates the two name partners and saying the pending vote will erase that difference. Harvey then assures Louis that he will take back the one thing that Louis holds most dear: Donna.
63	3	"No Refills"	Anton Cropper	Chris Downey	July 8, 2015 (2015-07-08)	S503	2.16
To help in his ongoing conflict with Jack, Harvey brings in Charles Barkley to help steal one of Jack's clients who is a huge Philadelphia sports fan. Mike adds Robert Zane as co-counsel in the medical insurance case, but starts to regret his decision when Zane takes over and starts running things his way. Jessica confronts Zane and helps mediate between the two. Jessica, meanwhile, gives Rachel an unusual assignment, which leads to Rachel rewriting a speech Jessica is giving to honor a hero that Rachel also admires. Louis tells Jack that he staunchly refuses to get further involved in the conflict between Jack and Harvey, but Jack tries to blackmail Louis by threatening to reveal whose idea it was to pass around Harvey's salary information. Louis also shares with Donna the conversation he had with Harvey about her, causing a furious Donna to assure Harvey that she'll never go back to him. Harvey confronts Jack, saying plans are already in motion to steal more clients until Jack doesn't have enough billables to make his new compensation plan worthwhile. Mike witnesses the exchange, and Harvey tells him he actually has no such plans, but hopes Mike can help him. Mike agrees when he sees Harvey is having a panic attack. Harvey meets with Dr. Agard again. In a role-playing exercise, he admits his poor handling of the personal situation with Donna, but says Donna going to work for Louis was like her sticking a knife in his gut and twisting it. This was responded to with, "How does it feel to be on the receiving end?" Because of his extra work with Harvey, Mike arrives late at a preliminary hearing to fast-track the medical trial. This angers Zane until Mike impresses him by showcasing his special ability that he is able to remember anything. At the end, Harvey threatens Louis not to pick sides with Jack ever again.
64	4	"No Puedo Hacerlo"	Silver Tree	Genevieve Sparling	July 15, 2015 (2015-07-15)	S504	2.38
Louis' sister Esther (Amy Acker) comes to him to ask for Harvey's help on a divorce case, not knowing she had just met and flirted with Harvey near the elevator moments earlier. Harvey takes on the case as a favor to Louis, and develops an attraction to Esther. Esther's husband, who cheated on her, is fighting her for a percentage of her business, claiming he eschewed medical school to help her get the business off the ground. Mike and Robert Zane continue their class-action case together. Zane reaches a settlement with the insurance company that Mike thinks is far too low, then Mike cries foul when he discovers Zane may have had inside knowledge of a larger entity that holds the insurance company as a subsidiary. The accusation angers Rachel, who insists her father is shrewd, but not dirty. Donna and Harvey continue a bitter exchange, but Harvey soon sees his longtime confidante in a new light as he fights for Esther in the divorce case and hears her estranged husband's side of the story. In the end, Harvey stops by Donna's desk to sincerely thank her "for the last twelve years."
65	5	"Toe to Toe"	Kevin Bray	Nora Zuckerman & Lilla Zuckerman	July 22, 2015 (2015-07-22)	S505	2.09
Harvey faces old rival Travis Tanner, who claims to be a changed man, in a case as the lawyer representing a young female entrepreneur named Alyssa Lang in a intellectual property/contract dispute against one of Harvey's clients, Tim Petroff, for whom she was a long time employee but has recently quit to start her own company. In their first meeting, Tanner takes a conciliatory approach, and makes a fair settlement offer. Harvey and Mike refuse to believe that he has no ulterior motives and reject his offer outright, having purchased up Lang's outstanding debt and put a lien on it all as leverage before the meeting and try to file a TRO against her. Tanner manages to thwart this in court the next morning and respond by showing them a draft of a false sexual harassment complaint by Lang against Petroff, who is married with children, in order to force him into accepting Lang's initial settlement offer rather than allow the complaint to be filed. Petroff reacts furiously, considering it blackmail, and Harvey, who knows Petroff and his character well, is also disgusted. Harvey's sessions with Agard reveal the influence his past has on his present. In other events, Jessica tasks Louis to fix things with Harvey, but the plan may make an enemy of Jack.
66	6	"Privilege"	Michael Smith	Kyle Long	July 29, 2015 (2015-07-29)	S506	2.16
Donna tries to make Mike and Rachel's dream wedding -- the Plaza Hotel on her birthday -- come true through deviously blackmailing the couple who reserved it on that particular day. Harvey takes on Sam Tull (S1E06) as a client after he has been accused by his employer, Butler Trading, of making unauthorized trades which cost them $50 million, who would rather cut him loose than pay a $2 million fine to the SEC. This puts Harvey at odds with Dr. Agard (who Tull had used in her role as Butler's company provided therapist), whom he must eviscerate in a deposition using information she gave him in good faith against her in order to protect Tull. Meanwhile, Mike and Louis work together to help Dominic Barone (Titus Welliver), the CEO of McKernan Motors, close a deal with his childhood friend to buy his company RangeTech, which specializes in battery powered engines. However, this allows Jack Soloff to pull yet another power play -- he leaks information of Louis's meeting with Soloff's client Tanaka to RangeTech, which blows up the deal and causes Barone to fire them. Although Mike and Louis manage to salvage the situation and restore Barone's faith in them, Soloff uses the opportunity to quickly bring Fletcher Engines into the firm, which causes a conflict of interest. Jessica again intervenes and forces Soloff to drop Fletcher, and she gives him one final warning to back off before revealing she knows Daniel Hardman gave the idea of Fletcher Engines to Soloff. In the closing moments of the episodes, Harvey again meets with Agard to resume his therapy and says he is ready to talk about his mother.
67	7	"Hitting Home"	Roger Kumble	Sharyn Rothstein	August 5, 2015 (2015-08-05)	S507	2.08
Jack Soloff tries to make peace with Mike, which Mike shuns at first. On the direct order of Jessica, Mike starts working with Jack. In his pursuit on a case with Jack, Mike first finds it difficult to work with Jack and shows a great distrust of him. Despite their differences, Mike and Jack manage to bluff their way through their case, which Jack recognizes as brilliant legal work, and nominates Mike for a junior partner promotion. When Jessica reveals this to Mike, she insists that he find a believable way to decline the offer in order to avoid drawing public attention. Meanwhile, Daniel Hardman approaches Jack to collude with him on a case by pouring poison in his ears about Jessica and Harvey, but Jack denies Daniel's offer. Jack tells Daniel that he has earned Jessica's trust. At the same time, Louis's sister, Esther, comes to Harvey for help on a lawsuit against her company. Harvey declines and sends Esther to Louis, as he no longer wants to sleep with her behind Louis's back. At the end of the episode, Louis finds out about Harvey and his sister sleeping together. Louis gets in to a fight with Harvey and brings up Harvey's family problems, causing Harvey to punch Louis in the face and then throw him onto a glass table, which breaks apart. Jessica comes in Harvey's office and gets Harvey out of his office to help Louis.
68	8	"Mea Culpa"	Kate Dennis	Daniel Arkin	August 12, 2015 (2015-08-12)	S508	2.31
The fallout from Harvey punching Louis begins. Jessica wants to send Harvey on a two-week vacation to allow heads to cool, but Louis pushes for a three-month suspension without pay. Harvey meets with Louis to sincerely apologize. He confesses that he's been seeing a therapist because of panic attacks, and that old family issues are part of the reason for his attacks. Louis accepts the apology, but then turns on Harvey in a partners meeting and pushes for the suspension, citing company by-laws. Jack steps in and, also citing by-laws, says there is a required 48-hour review period before the partners can vote. Elsewhere, Mike tries to come up with some ways to decline his junior partnership that would sound plausible, but is then surprised when Jessica has already decided to quietly make him a junior partner, and offers him his first case in that role. Mike asks Rachel to be his associate on the case. When the client shows up, however, Mike sees it is Claire (Troian Bellisario), the woman he lied to about being a Columbia Law student. Mike runs and hides, telling Rachel to handle the client and make up some excuse why he can't be there. Claire asks about Rachel's boss on the case, saying if it's the Mike Ross she knows, "he's really turned his life around." Rachel says it must be a different Mike Ross. She then comes up with some creative ways to handle Claire's case, but they backfire. Rachel mistakenly leads them to another client who is in a defense contract and will want to check all the background of the people on the case. This leads Rachel to change the paperwork to remove Mike's name but Claire suspects something is wrong and threatens to call the DA's office if Rachel doesnt come clean.She pressures Rachel to finally admit it's the same Mike Ross, and that she's engaged to him. Back in the office, Jack meets with Harvey to discuss the suspension vote and try to make peace. However, upon returning to his office, Jack finds two packages from Daniel Hardman – one for Jack to use on Jessica, and one that Hardman will use on Jack. Louis tries to convince Jessica that he wants to cancel the vote in to suspend Harvey, but Jessica tells Louis that they all have to live with the consequences of Louis starting this in the first place and leaves. Mike meets Claire outside her office and asks Claire why she won't tell and she says it's because she can see how much Rachel loves him. But she also says she advised Rachel to not marry Mike, saying Mike's secret will eventually ruin their relationship.
69	9	"Uninvited Guests"	Silver Tree	Chris Downey	August 19, 2015 (2015-08-19)	S509	2.30
The voting for Harvey's suspension begins and Harvey starts off by saying that he admits he hit Louis and apologizes. He humbles himself in front of the partners by reducing his compensation to the median amount, with the remainder going to all partners to share. The vote ends 8-8, hence the motion doesn't carry. Daniel Hardman returns to Pearson Specter Litt to bring in a huge amount of business to the firm, but only if Jessica takes him back. If she declines, he will begin takeovers of PSL clients. Jack Soloff brings it up in a partners meeting, but Harvey and Jessica shoot him down. Hardman tells Jessica that the client he was willing to share was going to make numerous acquisitions, but now that she's said no, he will begin targeting PSL's clients, starting with one "that's gonna hit you right where it hurts." Meanwhile, Rachel and her mother meet at the Plaza Hotel, and Mom tells her about her grandiose wedding plans, and her plan to put the wedding announcement in the New York Times. This leads Rachel to fear that Mike may get too much attention and get caught, and she shocks her mother by saying she wants a small, private wedding. Mike figures out who Hardman's first target will be: McKernan Motors. Mike and Harvey attempt to make McKernan Motors private, protecting it from a hostile takeover. Louis tries to convince Jack to get out of bed with Hardman, telling him what kind of a person Hardman is. Jack says he knows who Hardman is but is siding with him anyway, leading Louis to surmise Hardman has something on Jack. Louis suggests to Jessica that they make Soloff a name partner, which is what Hardman had promised him, but Jessica instead asks Louis to find out what Hardman may have on Jack. Mike and Harvey go to Tony Gianopoulos and Jonathan Sidwell and pit them against each other to take McKernan Motors private. This results in them getting a 20 percent better offer for McKernan than Hardman's client, and Mike and Harvey go to Hardman's office to cheerfully tell him his plot has failed. But Hardman later comes to Jessica to tell her that his offer is now 20 percent more than the private offer Mike and Harvey negotiated, saying he has a Japanese investor and the Dollar took a dive against the Yen. Louis is frustrated since he cannot find any dirt or a single case where Soloff crossed the line, and he takes it out on Donna. Jessica tells Harvey about Hardman's Japanese investor. Harvey says the Dollar dropped against the Yen two weeks ago, which makes them realize that Hardman was playing them. They now know there is only one person who would offer such a ridiculous sum to steal a PSL client: Charles Forstman. Harvey visits Forstman in prison, and Charles says his only profit comes from seeing Harvey's life destroyed. He wants Harvey to quit now, or he will see PSL's clients picked off by Hardman, one by one. Rachel's mother talks to Mike, fooling him by saying Rachel would be there, too. The conversation leaves Mike wondering whether forcing Rachel to sacrifice so much for him is worth it. Jessica asks Jack what Hardman has on him, but Jack refuses to tell her. She then asks him to resign immediately, which he won't do. Mike calls Trevor, since he is the only "family" he has left, and wants him to attend his wedding. Trevor, who appears to have turned his life around, refuses to attend, saying he promised his wife that he would leave his previous life behind. Trevor says Mike is breaking the law every day, and should quit as a lawyer. Trevor reveals Mike's secret is still safe, but that he did go see someone about it. Mike asks who, and Trevor replies, "You know who."
70	10	"Faith"	Anton Cropper	Genevieve Sparling	August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26)	S510	2.34
The episode starts with a flashback to Mike's past and shows his reaction and grief the day he found out his parents died. Another flashback shows Harvey's past where he sees his mother cheating on his father with his father's friend. He goes to one of his father's musical performances so that he can tell him everything, but he ultimately changes his mind because his father tells him that he's coming home. In the present day, Harvey retells this story to Dr. Agard. Under the care of his grandmother, Mike goes to Catholic school at the church where his parents regularly donated money. The priest, Father Walker (Scott Michael Campbell) is shown trying to help Mike through his troubles, but Mike is defiant. In the present day, Mike visits Father Walker, after learning that Trevor also went to the priest for guidance. Meanwhile, Hardman threatens to obtain and gut Louis' sister's company unless he agrees to vote against retaining Jessica as managing partner. In the end, Harvey cuts a deal with Forstman to resign, and reveals the news to the senior partners that Hardman's backer was a man in prison. All of the partners – with the exception of Soloff – vote to keep Jessica. Mike decides to resign from the firm, too, thanking Harvey for giving him a family, but saying he will soon have his own family and he doesn't want his secret to threaten that. Just as Mike is about to leave the firm with Rachel, two agents arrive and arrest him for conspiracy to commit fraud.
71	11	"Blowback"	Cherie Nowlan	Nora Zuckerman & Lilla Zuckerman	January 27, 2016 (2016-01-27)	S511	1.74
Ruthless US Attorney Anita Gibbs (Leslie Hope) takes Mike in for questioning, and refuses him access to a lawyer until he forces a taped statement regarding his denial of rights. A panicked Rachel calls her father Robert for support, inadvertently proving to him that Mike is a fraud, causing a rift between Robert and Rachel. Harvey, who wants to represent Mike, is torn between keeping Hardman and Soloff at bay and keeping appearances up against Gibbs at the firm. Harvey leverages Mike's resignation letter for bail, while Mike uses his ability to bring forth conspiracy charges to force Soloff to back down. Louis attempts to shield Donna from prosecution, but when she refuses to stand aside, Louis allows her and Harvey to reunite.
72	12	"Live to Fight…"	Rob Seidenglanz	Sharyn Rothstein	February 3, 2016 (2016-02-03)	S512	1.51
Mike and Louis discover that it was Sheila Sazs who reported Mike to the authorities after Louis recognises the wording and language in the anonymous email (sent from a general Harvard Faculty address) as hers. He pays her a visit at her home and asks Sheila to retract her email. While she refuses, she agrees not to come forward as the person who wrote the email, meaning that it cannot be used as evidence. She informs Louis that she was reading a journal article about Mike's promotion to Junior Partner when she realised that Mike had no paper-file in her file room and was likely a fraud. Meanwhile, Gibbs detains Donna's father in an attempt to get Donna to turn on Harvey. Mike goes to visit Professor Gerard and obtains a vague letter from him implying that Mike was in his ethics class at Harvard Law. Gibbs agrees to release Donna's father, provided that Harvey and Mike won't use Gerard's letter in the case. Gretchen informs Louis that she was the one who called the publishers of the journal to have the article written, but that she's supporting Pearson Specter Litt.
73	13	"God's Green Earth"	Anton Cropper	Genevieve Sparling & Sandra Silverstein	February 10, 2016 (2016-02-10)	S513	1.71
Anita Gibbs lures Rachel into a conversation by making everything said during their meeting inadmissible, then threatens Rachel's dreams of a law career unless she turns on the firm. Harvey, after confronting Gibbs about talking to Rachel, hears Gibbs say "God's green earth," thereby deducing that she wrote the New York Journal op-ed that greatly hurt the Pearson Specter Litt reputation. Louis puts pressure on Sheila and sends her on a "vacation" to Argentina. Donna, while looking through Gibbs' documents, discovers that Trevor talked to Gibbs.
74	14	"Self Defense"	Patrick J. Adams	Kyle Long	February 17, 2016 (2016-02-17)	S514	1.58
As time runs out before the trial, Mike wants to represent himself while Harvey wants to lead the charge. To decide the issue, Harvey challenges Mike to a winner take all showdown.
75	15	"Tick Tock"	Roger Kumble	Daniel Arkin	February 24, 2016 (2016-02-24)	S515	1.73
The jury comes back but, before the outcome is announced, Mike decides to take up Anita Gibbs on one of her deals. Which one is not mentioned, but Harvey is shown racing to Gibbs' offices to try and stop Mike.
76	16	"25th Hour"	Anton Cropper	Aaron Korsh	March 2, 2016 (2016-03-02)	S516	1.71
Mike takes the prison deal that Anita Gibbs offered him, provided she doesn't go after Harvey or any of the other partners at Pearson Specter Litt. Harvey tracks down the foreman of the jury to know what the verdict was going to be. He learns that Mike was found not guilty, but chooses not to tell Mike the truth, thereby saving him the pain of knowing he made the wrong decision. Mike & Rachel decide to get married the following day, but Mike refuses to marry her in the end, telling her that, if she wants to, they can revisit it when he gets out. Meanwhile, Harvey tries to find a way to nullify the deal Mike made with Anita Gibbs, but fails. He then decides to hand over the case files for Liberty Rail, telling Gibbs that she can prosecute a murderer in exchange for Mike not going to prison. Gibbs rejects the proposal, saying Harvey should do the right thing and get the case prosecuted anyway instead of using it as a bargaining chip. Jessica, Louis, and Donna return to the office the next day and find that all the employees are gone after a previous deal went awry. In the last scene, Mike is seen entering the prison gate.

Home video releases

Season	Episodes	DVD release dates
		Region 1	Region 2	Region 4	Discs
1	12	May 1, 2012 (2012-05-01)	April 30, 2012 (2012-04-30)	June 7, 2012 (2012-06-07)	3
2	16	May 28, 2013 (2013-05-28)	May 13, 2013 (2013-05-13)	February 13, 2014 (2014-02-13)	4
3	16	May 27, 2014 (2014-05-27)	June 9, 2014 (2014-06-09)	October 2, 2014 (2014-10-02)	4
4	16	April 28, 2015 (2015-04-28)	June 8, 2015 (2015-06-08)	August 5, 2015 (2015-08-05)	4
5	16	May 31, 2016 (2016-05-31)	N/A	N/A	4

Ratings

Season 1

No.	Title	Original air date	Viewers (in millions)	Rating (Adults 18–49)	18-49 Rank on Cable	Note
1	"Pilot"	June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23)	4.64	1.6	#3
2	"Errors and Omissions"	June 30, 2011 (2011-06-30)	3.89	1.2	#5
3	"Inside Track"	July 7, 2011 (2011-07-07)	4.53	1.3	#3
4	"Dirty Little Secrets"	July 14, 2011 (2011-07-14)	4.38	1.3	#3
5	"Bail Out"	July 21, 2011 (2011-07-21)	4.38	1.5	#3
6	"Tricks of the Trade"	July 28, 2011 (2011-07-28)	4.44	1.5	#1
7	"Play the Man"	August 4, 2011 (2011-08-04)	4.03	1.3	#4
8	"Identity Crisis"	August 11, 2011 (2011-08-11)	3.96	1.2	#5
9	"Undefeated"	August 18, 2011 (2011-08-18)	4.45	1.5	#4
10	"The Shelf Life"	August 25, 2011 (2011-08-25)	3.82	1.2	#7
11	"Rules of the Game"	September 1, 2011 (2011-09-01)	3.96	1.2	#4
12	"Dogfight"	September 8, 2011 (2011-09-08)	3.47	1.1	#3

Season 2

No.	Title	Original air date	Viewers (in millions)	Rating (Adults 18–49)	18-49 Rank on Cable	Note
1	"She Knows"	June 14, 2012 (2012-06-14)	3.47	1.1	#4
2	"The Choice"	June 21, 2012 (2012-06-21)	3.80	1.2	#2
3	"Meet the New Boss"	June 28, 2012 (2012-06-28)	3.88	1.3	#5
4	"Discovery"	July 12, 2012 (2012-07-12)	3.70	1.2	#5
5	"Break Point"	July 19, 2012 (2012-07-19)	3.72	1.2	#5
6	"All In"	July 26, 2012 (2012-07-26)	3.89	1.3	#3
7	"Sucker Punch"	August 2, 2012 (2012-08-02)	3.41	1.2	#2
8	"Rewind"	August 9, 2012 (2012-08-09)	3.42	1.1	#5
9	"Asterisk"	August 16, 2012 (2012-08-16)	4.00	1.4	#1
10	"High Noon"	August 23, 2012 (2012-08-23)	4.48	1.5	#1
11	"Blind-Sided"	January 17, 2013 (2013-01-17)	3.57	1.2	#6
12	"Blood in the Water"	January 24, 2013 (2013-01-24)	3.75	1.1	#7
13	"Zane vs. Zane"	January 31, 2013 (2013-01-31)	3.36	1.0	#8
14	"He's Back"	February 7, 2013 (2013-02-07)	3.07	1.0	#11
15	"Normandy"	February 14, 2013 (2013-02-14)	2.90	1.0	#9
16	"War"	February 21, 2013 (2013-02-21)	3.10	1.0	#7

Season 3

No.	Title	Original air date	Viewers (in millions)	Rating (Adults 18–49)	18-49 Rank on Cable	Note
1	"The Arrangement"	July 16, 2013 (2013-07-16)	2.93	1.1	#7
2	"I Want You to Want Me"	July 23, 2013 (2013-07-23)	2.88	1.0	#11
3	"Unfinished Business"	July 30, 2013 (2013-07-30)	2.47	0.9	#17
4	"Conflict of Interest"	August 6, 2013 (2013-08-06)	2.99	1.1	#12
5	"Shadow of a Doubt"	August 13, 2013 (2013-08-13)	2.79	0.9	#11
6	"The Other Time"	August 20, 2013 (2013-08-20)	2.76	1.0	#12
7	"She's Mine"	August 27, 2013 (2013-08-27)	2.79	1.0	#15
8	"Endgame"	September 3, 2013 (2013-09-03)	3.52	1.2	#4
9	"Bad Faith"	September 10, 2013 (2013-09-10)	2.95	0.9	#15
10	"Stay"	September 17, 2013 (2013-09-17)	3.16	1.0	#8
11	"Buried Secrets"	March 6, 2014 (2014-03-06)	2.27	0.8	#12
12	"Yesterday's Gone"	March 13, 2014 (2014-03-13)	2.27	0.7	#12
13	"Moot Point"	March 20, 2014 (2014-03-20)	2.35	0.7	#19
14	"Heartburn"	March 27, 2014 (2014-03-27)	2.53	0.7	#14
15	"Know When to Fold 'Em"	April 3, 2014 (2014-04-03)	2.50	0.8	#12
16	"No Way Out"	April 10, 2014 (2014-04-10)	2.40	0.7	#16

Season 4

No.	Title	Original air date	Viewers (in millions)	Rating (Adults 18–49)	18-49 Rank on Cable	Note
1	"One-Two-Three Go…"	June 11, 2014 (2014-06-11)	2.50	0.7	#15
2	"Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner "	June 18, 2014 (2014-06-18)	2.65	0.8	#15
3	"Two in the Knees"	June 25, 2014 (2014-06-25)	2.76	0.8	#15
4	"Leveraged"	July 9, 2014 (2014-07-09)	2.42	0.7	#17
5	"Pound of Flesh"	July 16, 2014 (2014-07-16)	2.33	0.7	#16
6	"Litt the Hell Up"	July 23, 2014 (2014-07-23)	2.70	0.9	#10
7	"We're Done"	July 30, 2014 (2014-07-30)	2.80	0.9	#10
8	"Exposure"	August 6, 2014 (2014-08-06)	2.59	0.7	#13
9	"Gone"	August 13, 2014 (2014-08-13)	2.58	0.8	#17
10	"This Is Rome"	August 20, 2014 (2014-08-20)	2.76	0.8	#11
11	"Enough Is Enough"	January 28, 2015 (2015-01-28)	1.87	0.6	#27
12	"Respect"	February 4, 2015 (2015-02-04)	1.67	0.6	#22
13	"Fork in the Road"	February 11, 2015 (2015-02-11)	1.46	0.4	#41
14	"Derailed"	February 18, 2015 (2015-02-18)	1.70	0.5	#40
15	"Intent"	February 25, 2015 (2015-02-25)	1.80	0.5	#22
16	"Not Just a Pretty Face"	March 4, 2015 (2015-03-04)	1.55	0.5	#24

Season 5

No.	Title	Original air date	Viewers (in millions)	Rating (Adults 18–49)	18-49 Rank on Cable	Note
1	"Denial"	June 24, 2015 (2015-06-24)	2.13	0.6	#13
2	"Compensation"	July 1, 2015 (2015-07-01)	2.27	0.6	#14
3	"No Refills"	July 8, 2015 (2015-07-08)	2.16	0.6	#20
4	"No Puedo Hacerlo"	July 15, 2015 (2015-07-15)	2.38	0.6	#12
5	"Toe to Toe"	July 22, 2015 (2015-07-22)	2.09	0.6	#14
6	"Privilege"	July 29, 2015 (2015-07-29)	2.16	0.5	#17
7	"Hitting Home"	August 5, 2015 (2015-08-05)	2.08	0.6	#19
8	"Mea Culpa"	August 12, 2015 (2015-08-12)	2.31	0.7	#11
9	"Uninvited Guests"	August 19, 2015 (2015-08-19)	2.30	0.6	#13
10	"Faith"	August 26, 2015 (2015-08-26)	2.34	0.6	#12
11	"Blowback"	January 27, 2016 (2016-01-27)	1.74	0.5	#24
12	"Live to Fight"	February 3, 2016 (2016-02-03)	1.51	0.5	#29
13	"God's Green Earth"	February 10, 2016 (2016-02-10)	1.71	0.5	#25
14	"Self Defense"	February 17, 2016 (2016-02-17)	1.58	0.5	#33
15	"Tick Tock"	February 24, 2016 (2016-02-24)	1.73	0.5	#25
16	"25th Hour"	March 2, 2016 (2016-03-02)	1.71	0.5	#23

External links

• Official website
• Suits at IMDb

Season 1 (2011)

Main article: Suits (season 1)

Expelled student Mike Ross makes a living illegally taking the Law School Admission Test for others. He decided to start doing this to pay for his grandmother's care. In the show's pilot episode, Mike agrees to deliver a case of marijuana for his best friend Trevor, a drug dealer, for a large payout. Mike astutely avoids being arrested in a sting, only to stumble into a job interview with Harvey Specter, called the best closer in the city. Mike's tenacity and knowledge of the law impress Harvey enough to win him the associate position, even though Mike didn't attend Harvard, a usual prerequisite, and lacks credentials to practice law legally. Together they try cases for the firm Pearson Hardman while maintaining the secret that Mike is a fraud. The first season also introduces us to Mike's and Rachel's chemistry. It gives the audience a romantic perspective, creating a parallel storyline throughout the first season.

Season 2 (2012–13)

Main article: Suits (season 2)

Jessica Pearson, the managing partner, learns Mike's secret, but other issues take precedence when co-founding partner Daniel Hardman returns to the firm, pressuring Jessica and Harvey. Tensions rise between the Jessica and Harvey duo against Louis Litt as he takes Daniel Hardman's side to be named senior partner. Mike begins to foster a relationship with paralegal Rachel Zane but finds himself pursuing other romantic entanglements after his grandmother's sudden death. Harvey and his secretary Donna face accusations of burying evidence and must discover the truth while keeping incriminating evidence from Hardman, who would use it to leverage a managing partner position. The intensifying threat from Hardman forces Jessica into a merger with a British firm headed by Edward Darby. Mike tells Rachel his secret.

Season 3 (2013–14)

Main article: Suits (season 3)

Darby's presence in the firm gives Harvey leverage to seek a position as a named partner. Meanwhile, the merger causes senior partner Louis Litt to clash with his British counterpart. Darby International client Ava Hessington draws Harvey into a lengthy trial against his former mentor, and the lawsuit turns into a murder charge. Realizing that his fraud can't continue forever, Mike leaves newly renamed Pearson Specter to take a position as an investment banker.

Season 4 (2014–15)

Main article: Suits (season 4)

Mike's new job puts him and Harvey on opposite sides of a takeover battle, causing the SEC to accuse them of collusion. When Mike is fired, Louis goes to extreme lengths to persuade Mike to return to Pearson Specter rather than work for shady billionaire investor Charles Forstman. Louis demands a name partner position, competing with Harvey, but his wrongdoings get him fired instead. When Louis realizes Mike never went to Harvard, he blackmails Jessica into rehiring him with the promotion he desired. Mike proposes to Rachel; Donna leaves Harvey to work for Louis.

Season 5 (2015–16)

Main article: Suits (season 5)

Harvey struggles with losing Donna and begins to open up to a therapist about his broken relationship with his mother. Louis' insecurity, however, and desire to undermine Harvey create an opening for Jack Soloff, an ambitious partner who Hardman is manipulating. Rachel's wedding plans and her relationship with her parents are both overshadowed by Mike's secret. Mike and Harvey both resign to protect their future, but Mike is abruptly arrested for fraud. More and more people involved realize the allegations are true, and facing tenacious prosecutor Anita Gibbs, Mike accepts a plea bargain, pleads guilty, and turns himself in so that no one else will go to jail. At the wedding, Mike tells Rachel that he will not marry her now, but if she still wants him in two years, he will marry her after getting out of prison. Harvey escorts him to prison, making their last few goodbyes.

Season 6 (2016–17)

Main article: Suits (season 6)

A two-year prison sentence puts Mike at the mercy of Frank Gallo, an inmate with a grudge against Harvey. At Pearson Specter Litt, few employees remain to help. Rachel works an Innocence Project case for her law professor; Jessica assists pro bono but is distracted from matters at the firm and chooses to leave her position to pursue her own life. Mike's cellmate proves pivotal in a deal for Mike's freedom, which he ultimately wins when he secretively catches a murder attempt by Frank on camera. He struggles with his fraud being public knowledge but obtains a job at a legal clinic. Harvey helps both Rachel and Mike pass the bar and persuades Mike to come back to the firm.

Season 7 (2017–18)

Main article: Suits (season 7)

Everyone at the firm struggles to adjust to a new normal without Jessica. Donna takes a position as COO, and Harvey's friend Alex joins the team. Harvey begins dating his former therapist, Paula; Louis' sessions with Dr. Lipschitz, his therapist, have mixed results. Rachel begins her career as an attorney, having passed the bar. Mike continues to work pro bono cases at the clinic, with Harvey's blessing, but one of the cases puts Alex, Harvey, and others at risk. Louis and Sheila reconnect, as does Jessica with her family in Chicago. Mike and Rachel accept a job offer in Seattle to run their own firm that takes on class-action suits and get married before leaving. As the season closes, a case that puts Specter Litt in danger is the work of Robert Zane's partners, Ellen Rand and Eric Kaldor. When Zane finds out, he joins forces with Specter Litt.

Season 8 (2018–19)

Main article: Suits (season 8)

As Mike and Rachel leave after getting married, Robert Zane is now the managing partner of Zane Specter Litt, with Donna remaining in her COO role. Robert hires a new senior partner, his right hand and fixer Samantha Wheeler. Wheeler later becomes a name partner alongside Alex Williams. Louis learns that Sheila is pregnant. Katrina Bennett makes a senior partner and struggles with romantic feelings for her married personal associate. Donna and Harvey finally admit their feelings for one another as Season 8 ends, but Donna's mishandling of client/boyfriend Thomas Kessler forces Zane to sacrifice his legal career for the good of the firm.

Season 9 (2019)

Main article: Suits (season 9)

With Robert now disbarred, Faye Richardson, a special master from the bar, is sent to oversee the firm due to the perception of the underhanded tactics they have been involved with for years. Faye is out to dismantle and destroy the firm but has a few skeletons of her own that can be used to take her down. At the end of the season: Louis marries Sheila, Sheila gives birth to their baby, Harvey marries Donna, and they move to be with Mike and Rachel in Seattle. Louis makes Katrina a name partner and remains to lead the firm, now known as Litt Wheeler Williams Bennett.

Cast and characters

Main article: List of Suits characters

File:Gabriel Macht 3241.jpg

Gabriel Macht at a promotional event for Suits

• Gabriel Macht as Harvey Reginald Specter: The self-proclaimed "best closer in the city" and Jessica Pearson's right-hand. Harvey has been a name partner since the firm was named "Pearson Darby Specter" but resigns from "Specter Litt Wheeler Williams" in Season 9. He marries Donna Paulsen in the Season 9 finale and lives in Seattle with Mike Ross and Rachel Zane.
• Patrick J. Adams as Michael James "Mike" Ross (main seasons 1–7; recurring season 9): Mike was hired by Harvey Specter to be his associate, despite not having a license to practice law. In Season 5, Mike gets caught, and, to protect Jessica Pearson, Harvey, and Louis Litt, he takes a deal to serve two years in prison. In Season 6, Mike takes a deal to get out early and – in the season finale – passes the bar to finally become a legal lawyer. He marries Rachel Zane and moves to Seattle in the Season 7 finale. He returns in Season 9 to help Harvey, Louis, Alex, and Samantha oust Faye Richardson from the firm.
• Rick Hoffman as Louis Marlowe Litt: Louis had a grudge against Harvey Specter, but they later became best friends. He has been a name partner at the firm since it was called Pearson Specter Litt. In Season 4, Louis uses Mike Ross' secret to strong-arm Jessica Pearson (the firm's managing partner) into making him a name partner – thus creating Pearson Specter Litt. He is the current managing partner of "Litt Wheeler Williams Bennett" and loves the firm's members like family. He is married to Sheila Sazs, who gives birth to their daughter, Lucy Litt, in the Season 9 finale. He considers the firm's associates his biggest successes, having been their tough-but-thorough mentor.
• Meghan Markle as Rachel Elizabeth Zane (main seasons 1–7): Rachel is the daughter of Robert Zane, one of the best lawyers in the city. Despite getting a job offer at his firm (Rand, Kaldor, Zane), Rachel goes to work as a senior paralegal at Pearson Hardman. She later becomes an associate at Pearson Specter Litt, the first who attended a law school other than Harvard. She marries Mike Ross and moves to Seattle in the Season 7 finale.
• Sarah Rafferty as Donna Roberta Paulsen: Harvey Specter's former secretary and confidante. She goes to work for Louis Litt as his secretary in Season 5 but later returns to Harvey. She is one of the only people alongside Louis, Harvey, Jessica Pearson, Rachel Zane, and Benjamin to stay at Pearson Specter Litt after Mike Ross is caught and sentenced to prison for two years for practising law without a degree. In Season 7, she becomes the COO of PSL. Due to Donna's mishandling of client/boyfriend Thomas Kessler in Season 8, Daniel Hardman puts a case on Zane Specter Litt Wheeler Williams, which results in Robert Zane taking the fall for Donna's mistake and Zane getting disbarred. Harvey and Donna get together by Season 8's end and get married in the Season 9 finale.
• Gina Torres as Jessica Lourdes Pearson (main seasons 1–7): Jessica Pearson co-founded Pearson Hardman with Daniel Hardman. In the Season 1 finale, she found out that Harvey's associate (Mike Ross) was practising law without a degree but could not do anything since Hardman (who left Pearson Hardman years ago) had returned after his wife's death. So, after a long-waged battle in Season 2, Jessica removed Hardman's name off the wall and merged with Edward Darby, creating Pearson Darby. She then promoted Harvey to name partner in Season 3 and removed Edward Darby's name off the wall, creating Pearson Specter. In Season 4, Louis Litt leveraged Mike Ross' fraud into becoming a name partner. In Season 6, Mike was caught and sentenced to two years in prison; however, he was able to save Jessica, Louis, and Harvey from being put in prison. In mid-season 6, Jessica chose to leave PSL and move to Chicago with her lover, Jeff Malone. However, prosecutor Anita Gibbs' attack on Mike forced Jessica to return and proclaim that she was the only one who knew about Mike Ross' fraud – causing her to get disbarred. She appeared in Season 7 on various occasions.
• Amanda Schull as Katrina Amanda Bennett (recurring seasons 2–7; main seasons 8–9): A former fifth-year associate hired by Harvey and later Louis' associate; in the fallout when Louis almost left the firm, she went to work for Robert Zane, Rachel's father, but returned to Specter Litt in season 6 and became a senior partner in season 8. By the end of the series, she is a named partner of Litt Wheeler Williams Bennett.
• Dulé Hill as Alex Williams (recurring season 7; main seasons 8–9): Harvey's old friend who was a partner at Bratton Gould; Harvey hires him as a senior partner at Specter Litt, and he later becomes a named partner at Zane Specter Litt Wheeler Williams.
• Katherine Heigl as Samantha Wheeler (main seasons 8–9): A talented new partner at Zane Specter Litt, previously known as Robert Zane's "right-hand man," who challenges the status quo and later becomes a named partner at Zane Specter Litt Wheeler Williams, Specter Litt Wheeler Williams and finally Litt Wheeler Williams Bennett.

Production

Development

Suits first appeared on USA Network's development slate under the title A Legal Mind in April 2010. On April 5, 2010, USA announced that it was developing seven new pilots for its 2010–2011 television season, including A Legal Mind, which would later become Suits. The premiere was written by Aaron Korsh, and David Bartis and Gene Klein served as executive producers.

Creator Aaron Korsh, whose Notes from the Underbelly sitcom was canceled during the 2007–2008 Writers' strike, wrote a spec script intended to be a "half-hour Entourage-type based on my experiences working on Wall Street." He later realized that the project should have hour-long episodes. Korsh and his agent took the script to several production companies and wanted to give the script to Universal Media Studios. However, Korsh found it odd that the studio did not want to sell the script to NBC, the studio's network typically worked with. Korsh's agent convinced USA Network executive Alex Sepiol that although the series was neither a procedural nor what the network typically did, he would like the characters. Sepiol approved the script, and by then, Hypnotic Films & Television signed on to the project. The team pitched the script to USA network, which bought the script after the pitch. Korsh did not pitch it to anyone else. When rewriting the script, Korsh made only small changes to the first half-hour, up to when Mike is hired. Originally, Mike did not take LSATs for others and only pretends to have attended Harvard instead of pretending he attended Harvard and has a law degree. Korsh noted that no degree or test is needed to work on Wall Street and be a mathematical genius, unlike the bar examination in law. He decided to "embrace" this difference and change the premise.

The pilot episode was filmed in New York City, where the series is set. The rest of the series is filmed in Toronto (at Downsview Park Studios), where the sets are built to be identical to the New York law offices seen in the pilot. To promote the series debut, USA had an advance screening of the pilot on June 2, 2011, at the Hudson River Park and distributed free Häagen-Dazs Sundaes cones at the viewing. The network also had a branded ice cream carts, bikes, and scooters give away at the Sundaes and USA/Entertainment Weekly 2011 promotion summer guides on June 22 and 23. They also held the promotion in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, and Boston to endorse the pilot.

Casting and marketing

The season was created by Aaron Korsh and was aired on the USA Network in the United States. The season was produced by Hypnotic Films & Television and Universal Cable Productions. The executive producers were Korsh, Doug Liman, and David Bartis. The staff writers were: Korsh with three writing credits; Sean Jablonski, Jon Cowan, Ethan Drogin, and Rick Muirragui with two each; and Erica Lipez with one. The directors throughout the season were Kevin Bray, John Scott, Dennie Gordon, Kate Woods, Terry McDonough, Tim Matheson, Norberto Barba, Felix Alcala, Jennifer Getzinger, and Mike Smith. The first role in which a casting spot was filled was for Patrick J. Adams, who was cast in the lead role of Mike Ross in July 2010. In late July, Gabriel Macht joined the main cast as Harvey Specter. Rick Hoffman came on board in mid-August to portray Harvey's competition, Louis, at the law firm. Meghan Markle and Gina Torres soon joined the cast in late August, who were set to play Rachel Zane and Jessica Pearson respectively. Sarah Rafferty completed the main cast as Donna, and the pilot was filmed in New York City in the fall of 2010.

The series was soon commissioned with a 12-episode order on January 19, 2011. The series began filming in Toronto on April 25, 2011, and completed on August 12, 2011, in New York City. Post production for the series was done at Cherry Beach Sound. "Greenback Boogie" by Ima Robot serves as the theme song of the show and was released as a single on September 18, 2010, and is included on the band's third album, Another Man's Treasure.

A deleted scene leaked onto YouTube shows Victor Garber as Phillip Hardman, originally part of the pilot, but was ultimately cut during script rewrites. It shows that Hardman had retired from the firm on his own accord. Despite being cut for American audiences, the scene was left in for British viewers when it was first aired, and the scene continues to be included in re-runs.

Broadcast and home media

The first season premiered on June 23, 2011, and concluded on September 8, 2011. It ran for 12 episodes, including a 90-minute pilot. The complete first season was available on Region 1 DVD on May 1, 2012, and Region A/B Blu-ray on April 10, 2014.

Suits was renewed for a second season consisting of 16 episodes on August 11, 2011, which premiered on June 14, 2012. The mid-season finale aired on August 23, 2012, with the remaining six episodes returning on January 17, 2013. The complete second season was available on Region 1 DVD on December 2, 2013, and Region A/B Blu-ray on June 26, 2014. On October 12, 2012, the show was renewed for a third season of 16 episodes. Season 3 premiered on July 16, 2013, with the final six episodes airing after March 6, 2014. The complete third season was available on December 22, 2014, on Region 1 DVD and was released on Region A/B Blu-ray on September 1, 2014. A fourth season of 16 episodes was announced on October 24, 2013. Season 4 premiered on June 11, 2014, with the mid-season finale on August 6, 2014. The complete fourth season was available on June 8, 2015, on Region 1 DVD and was released on Region A/B Blu-ray on June 8, 2015. On August 11, 2014, USA Network announced a fifth season of 16 episodes, which premiered on June 24, 2015. The complete fifth season was available on May 31, 2016, Region 1 DVD and was released on Region A/B Blu-ray on June 6, 2016. The complete sixth season was available on Region 1 DVD on May 30, 2017, and was released on Region A/B Blu-ray on May 29, 2017.

On July 1, 2015, Suits was renewed for a sixth season consisting of 16 episodes and premiered on July 13, 2016. The series is available through streaming services on Amazon Video, iTunes, Vudu, and Xfinity. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the first six seasons of Suits were broadcast on Dave, but the channel chose to drop the series before Season 7, causing Netflix to pick up the UK rights, streaming the programme less than 24 hours after its U.S. broadcast. Netflix did not pick up the rights for Ireland. The series has not been released on Blu-ray in the United States or in Canada, but Region A/B releases are readily available in the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Spain.

Reception

Critical reception

On Metacritic, the show has a weighted average score of 65 out of 100, based on reviews from 29 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews" On Rotten Tomatoes, the series holds a 91% approval rating with the Season 3 consensus reading, "Though it's occasionally overly wordy, Suits stimulates with drama derived from the strength of its well-developed characters' relationships." Carrie Raisler of The A.V. Club said, "Suits has more internal forward momentum than [al]most anything else on television right now, and when it's on, like it mostly is here, it just cooks." Julie Hinds of The Detroit Free Press said, "The combination of Gabriel Macht as slick attorney Harvey Specter and Patrick J. Adams as unlicensed legal genius Mike Ross has been a winning one."

Ratings

See also: List of Suits episodes § Ratings

Season	Timeslot (ET)	Episodes	First aired		Last aired		TV season	Avg. viewers (millions)	18–49 rating (average)
			Date	Viewers (millions)	Date	Viewers (millions)
1	Thursday 10:00 pm	12	June 23, 2011 (2011-06-23)	TBD	September 8, 2011 (2011-09-08)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	4.28	1.4
2		16	June 14, 2012 (2012-06-14)	TBD	February 21, 2013 (2013-02-21)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	3.60	1.2
3	Tuesday 10:00 pm (1–10) Thursday 9:00 pm (11–16)	16	July 16, 2013 (2013-07-16)	TBD	April 10, 2014 (2014-04-10)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	2.73	0.9
4	Wednesday 9:00 pm	16	June 11, 2014 (2014-06-11)	TBD	March 4, 2015 (2015-03-04)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	2.26	0.7
5	Wednesday 9:00 pm (1–10) Wednesday 10:00 pm (11–16)	16	June 24, 2015 (2015-06-24)	TBD	March 2, 2016 (2016-03-02)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	2.01	0.6
6		16	July 13, 2016 (2016-07-13)	TBD	March 1, 2017 (2017-03-01)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	1.60	0.4
7	Wednesday 9:00 pm	16	July 12, 2017 (2017-07-12)	TBD	April 25, 2018 (2018-04-25)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	1.30	0.3
8	Wednesday 9:00 pm (1–10) Wednesday 10:00 pm (11–16)	16	July 18, 2018 (2018-07-18)	TBD	February 27, 2019 (2019-02-27)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	1.02	0.2
9	Wednesday 9:00 pm	10	July 17, 2019 (2019-07-17)	TBD	September 25, 2019 (2019-09-25)	TBD	[[ United States network television schedule|]]	TBD	TBD

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
2012	Screen Actors Guild Award	Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series	Patrick J. Adams	Nominated
	ALMA Award	Favorite TV Actress - Supporting Role	Gina Torres	Nominated
2013	Imagen Foundation Awards	Best Supporting Actress/Television		Nominated
	NHMC Impact Awards	Outstanding Performance In A Television Series		Won
2014	TV Guide Award	Favorite Drama Series	Suits	Nominated
2015	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Dramedy		Nominated
	NAACP Image Award	Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series	Anton Cropper for "One-Two-Three Go..."	Nominated
2016	People's Choice Awards	Fantastic Cable TV Drama	Suits	Nominated
2018	Imagen Foundation Awards	Best Supporting Actress/Television	Gina Torres	Won

Spin-off

Main article: Pearson (TV series)

In February 2017, USA began early talks for a potential Jessica Pearson spin-off. Gina Torres would star in and produce the spin-off. In August 2017, it was revealed that the season 7 finale of Suits would serve as a backdoor pilot to the potential Jessica Pearson spin-off series. On March 8, 2018, it was announced the Jessica Pearson spin-off was picked up to series. On January 17, 2019, it was announced the spin-off would be called Pearson, titled after the main star's character. On May 1, 2019, it was announced that the series would premiere on July 17, 2019. In October 2019, the series was canceled after one season.

Remakes

Main articles: Suits (South Korean TV series) and Suits (Japanese TV series)

Jang Dong-gun and Park Hyung-sik star in a Korean remake of the series, which is produced by Monster Union and EnterMedia Pictures and was broadcast on KBS2 in 2018.

Yūji Oda and Yuto Nakajima play leading roles in a Japanese remake broadcast by Fuji Television in 2018.

An Arabic version (Suits بالعربي), starring Asser Yassin and Saba Mubarak, was filmed in Egypt, and aired during Ramadan in 2022.

External links

• Suits at IMDb