The BEST episodes of Law & Order

Every episode of Law & Order ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best episodes of Law & Order!

A blended police procedural and courtroom drama which employs a two-part approach: The first half of each episode focuses on NYPD homicide detectives investigating a crime—often derived from a real-life headline—and apprehending a suspect. The second half takes place in the courtroom, with the district attorney prosecuting the defendant.

Last Updated: 3/14/2024Network: NBCStatus: Continuing
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Invaders
star
7.94
149 votes

#1 - Invaders

Season 16 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/17/2006

The family of a man who once turned his customers into the police is slain, and the ensuing fracas pits McCoy against a corrupt D.E.A. agent.

Directors: Matthew Penn
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Aftershock
star
7.91
230 votes

#2 - Aftershock

Season 6 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/22/1996

After Briscoe, Curtis, McCoy, and Kincaid witness the execution of a criminal they brought to justice, their unique reactions to the event culminate in personal tragedies for each of them.

Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
American Dream
star
7.88
252 votes

#3 - American Dream

Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/9/1993

A skeleton unearthed at a building site resurrects one of Stone's old cases, and brings him face to face with the tenacious, brilliant culprit, who is seeking a new trial.

Watch Now:Amazon
Last Dance
star
7.88
117 votes

#4 - Last Dance

Season 23 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/22/2024

When a woman is found murdered in Central Park, evidence points to two frequent park-goers: a street vendor and a tech billionaire. In the face of extreme political pressure, McCoy takes drastic action to make the case.

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Monster
star
7.87
163 votes

#5 - Monster

Season 8 - Episode 24 - Aired 5/20/1998

During the search for a pedophile who raped a 10-year-old, a snitch offers Briscoe a chance to avenge his daughter's death. Meanwhile, Van Buren learns that her job is in jeopardy; McCoy is ordered to appear before a disciplinary committee because of his conduct in a DUI case; and the increasingly political Schiff worries that the rape case may adversely impact his reelection bid.

Directors: Ed Sherin
Watch Now:Amazon
Pro Se
star
7.86
225 votes

#6 - Pro Se

Season 6 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/8/1996

The investigation into multiple homicides at a clothing store leads to the arrest of a schizophrenic who presents McCoy with a formidable opponent when he decides to represent himself.

Directors: Lewis H. Gould
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Harm
star
7.84
152 votes

#7 - Harm

Season 9 - Episode 16 - Aired 3/3/1999

Briscoe and Curtis investigate a possible homicide while probing the assault of a retired divorce attorney.

Directors: Richard Dobbs
Watch Now:Amazon
Caviar Emptor
star
7.83
155 votes

#8 - Caviar Emptor

Season 14 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/12/2004

When a caviar importer is murdered the day after his wedding to a much-younger woman, the large pool of suspects includes his new wife, his children, and his chief competitor, each of whom has a compelling motive for committing the crime.

Directors: Richard Dobbs
Writer: Roz Weinman
Watch Now:Apple TV
Rage
star
7.82
226 votes

#9 - Rage

Season 5 - Episode 13 - Aired 2/1/1995

A Wall Street broker accused of murdering his mentor uses the defense of "black rage" in court.

Directors: Arthur W. Forney
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Appraisal
star
7.82
126 votes

#10 - Appraisal

Season 22 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/11/2023

Cosgrove and Shaw suspect an art dealer was murdered but can't make an arrest until they locate her body. Price and Maroun must go to trial with a circumstantial case and a suspect with unlimited resources. The squad celebrates a birthday.

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Born Again
star
7.81
161 votes

#11 - Born Again

Season 12 - Episode 16 - Aired 3/6/2002

The investigation into the death of an 11-year-old girl uncovers the possible culpability of the child's mother and a rebirthing therapist.

Directors: Jace Alexander
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Open Season
star
7.81
118 votes

#12 - Open Season

Season 13 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/20/2002

A defense attorney who managed the acquittal of the defendant in the attempted murder of a cop is gunned down outside a Manhattan restaurant. The detectives start with police officers in the precinct of the injured officer, then to his brother, before they are led to a white supremacist who is part of a national network. McCoy is faced with the unlikely prospect that the defendant's attorney, his friend of 20 years and a friend of the slain lawyer, played a part in the murder of a Florida district attorney following the defendant's arrest. McCoy is able to make a deal that perserves the integrity of his adversary, but not without a cost.

Directors: Matthew Penn
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
C.O.D.
star
7.79
145 votes

#13 - C.O.D.

Season 14 - Episode 24 - Aired 5/19/2004

Briscoe bids farewell to the 27 as the prosecution of two women for killing each other's husbands comes to a successful conclusion.

Directors: Matthew Penn
Watch Now:Amazon
Open Wounds
star
7.78
142 votes

#14 - Open Wounds

Season 22 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/18/2023

A senator is gunned down at his daughter's wedding. McCoy pushes for a severe sentence and squares up against a formidable DA -- his own daughter. Price aims to stay neutral but can't help but empathize with the defendant over a shared trauma.

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Old Friends
star
7.77
207 votes

#15 - Old Friends

Season 4 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/25/1994

A truck hits a pedestrian and the investigation reveals the victim's link to a baby-food company in which a new partner has connections to the Russian mob.

Watch Now:Amazon
Cost of Capital
star
7.77
130 votes

#16 - Cost of Capital

Season 16 - Episode 16 - Aired 3/8/2006

The case against a high powered executive accused of killing her lover rests on the executive's estranged husband and unstable teenage daughter.

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Double Blind
star
7.77
145 votes

#17 - Double Blind

Season 7 - Episode 6 - Aired 11/6/1996

The murder of a janitor in a university laboratory building leads back to a student employee whose participation in a drug study may have prompted the crime.

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Couples
star
7.76
143 votes

#18 - Couples

Season 13 - Episode 23 - Aired 5/21/2003

Briscoe and Green catch four murders and a kidnapping on the same day, and get handed confessions in each case.

Directors: David Platt
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Chosen
star
7.75
169 votes

#19 - Chosen

Season 13 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/15/2003

The murder of a bookie with a high-class clientelle leads the detectives to arrest his partner. Charged with first-degree murder, his attorney puts forth an unusual defense strategy that turns the trial into a political statement.

Directors: Ed Sherin
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Heart of Darkness
star
7.75
130 votes

#20 - Heart of Darkness

Season 16 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/18/2006

A journalist's suicide becomes suspect after Green and Fontana find evidence at the scene suggesting that it wasn't a suicide after all.

Directors: Richard Dobbs
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Seed
star
7.75
208 votes

#21 - Seed

Season 5 - Episode 15 - Aired 2/15/1995

A routine investigation into a woman's death leads Briscoe and Logan to a fertility doctor guilty of unethical practices, but who cannot apparently be touched because of confidentiality rules, and patient reluctance to talk.

Directors: Don Scardino
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Hindsight
star
7.74
131 votes

#22 - Hindsight

Season 16 - Episode 21 - Aired 5/10/2006

Fontana and Green are called in to investigate when Green's former replacement, Nick Falco, is suspected of murdering a young woman he had spent the night with.

Directors: Jean de Segonzac
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV
Punk
star
7.73
134 votes

#23 - Punk

Season 9 - Episode 8 - Aired 11/25/1998

The murder of a corrections officer leads detectives to a women's prison where a guard was linked to an inmate Carmichael put away on drug charges and a confrontation with defense attorney Danielle Melnick.

Directors: Matthew Penn
Watch Now:Amazon
Damaged
star
7.72
159 votes

#24 - Damaged

Season 8 - Episode 22 - Aired 5/6/1998

The case of a teacher's shooting uncovers a vendetta involving the rape of a mentally challenged coed by three students, whose attorney claims they weren't aware of her condition.

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Myth of Fingerprints
star
7.72
121 votes

#25 - Myth of Fingerprints

Season 12 - Episode 7 - Aired 11/14/2001

A murder investigation uncovers deliberately faulty forensics in the wrongful conviction of two men 12 years earlier in the case that paved the way for Van Buren's promotion.

Directors: David Platt
Watch Now:AmazonApple TV