Romola Cross is jaded by her work as a criminal defence lawyer in Sydney. In the aftermath of her father's death, she decides to reinvent herself, and blindly accepts a position at prestigious Melbourne law firm Bassett Brown. After years living in his property tycoon father's shadow, Patrick Payne is trying his luck in politics. When his girlfriend Hana Vukovic is found dead in his home, the media accuse him of being an abusive partner, drawing comparisons with the death of his teenage sweetheart many years earlier. At the insistence of his father, Patrick sues for defamation. With his reputation in tatters, Patrick becomes Romola's first client. Drawn into the Paynes' life of privilege, and torn by conflicting family and client loyalties, Romola confronts the question of how to prove Patrick is a good man without sacrificing all that she holds dear.