Street Legal - Pilot Episode

Television (Full Length) – 1998

[The character] was specifically created with actor, Jay Laga'aia, in mind. David is a showman and loves the ‘performance’ of the courtroom. Never one to bury his head in a legal tome, he relies on his common touch to win over juries — he can be charming, persuasive and quick on his feet. If he’s a hero, it’s almost an accident, a consequence of following his heart.
– The Street Legal website, on Jay Laga'aia's character, lawyer David Silesi

You still think law is an abstract process ... people make it happen, Joni. You know: lawyers and judges with their own agendas and hangovers and piles, and I am entitled to work them, as well as the law.
– David Silesi (Jay Laga’aia) to his girlfriend Joni (Katherine Kennard)

That’s what happens when you spend 20 years of your life being a lawyer…you become what you do.
– Lawyer Peter Wyeth (Carl Bland) to Tim O'Connor (Daniel Gillies)