Working the Engels Episode 1.01 Pilot

A family lawyer visits Ceil Engel with some unfortunate news - Ceil's late husband (a private attorney) owes over $200,000. And, since he can't pay it, the debt now rolls over to Ceil. Shocked by the revelation, Ceil drinks herself into a stupor, climbs to the roof and prepares to jump, only to reconsider suicide at the last moment... and then trip off the roof anyway.

Lucky for her, Ceil lives in a one-story house so the fall results in only minor injuries. Her children join her at the hospital: Jimmy, the ex-con looking to right his ways; Sandy, a reformed pill-popper whose new addiction is "The Bible"; and Jenna, the underappreciated attorney at a big-time law firm and clearly the most trustworthy of the group. Ceil explains the situation, and after some digging at their dad's storefront law firm, Jenna discovers their father offered dozens of clients free work and kept a lot of cases off the books - including a woman who storms in looking to sue a hair dresser for an unfinished straightening.

But before she can offer her services to the client, Jenna's real job (and real jerk of a boss) threatens to fire her unless she returns to work immediately. This interaction - in combination with several irrational demands from her boss - spurs her to quit her job and commit to continuing her father's law firm. When she breaks the news to her family, they lavish her with support... and to her dismay, an eagerness to lend their not-so-well-equipped hands to the cause.

Jenna reassesses her initial impression when Ceil, Jimmy and Sandy all rush to the scene of a car wreck outside the law firm in dutiful pursuit of a new client. Maybe this law firm has a chance after all...