Victor Carl is a hungry, young Philadelphia lawyer who knows what he wants. The only problem is, nobody wants to give it to him.

As his own debts and bitterness threaten to drive him out of the law, Victor receives the sort of prospect he's been craving since law school. Opportunity knocks in the form of Philadelphia blue blood and rainmaker William Prescott, who offers to hire Victor to help with his firm's defense of Jimmy Moore, a legendary councilman being charged with murder and racketeering.

All Victor must do is follow Prescott's lead in the case, and fame, not to mention a whole host of lucrative new clients, will be his for the taking. It's not long, however, before Victor discovers that this dream offer is closer to a Faustian nightmare. Faced with the prospect of sending a potentially innocent man to his death, Victor becomes a pawn in a deadly game that may have lethal consequences for both himself and his client.