The fourth season takes place two years after the Tobin case. Ellen has moved on with her life. Now an attorney at her old mentor's firm, she's content with her cases and colleagues. Deep down, however, she wants a bigger challenge. When she discovers her friend has been through a traumatic experience while working for High Star, a private security firm hired by the U.S. government to carry out special missions in Afghanistan, she suspects foul play and asks Patty for help. Patty knows that trying a case against High Star can make Ellen's career. Or ruin it. It was inspired by recent events and controversies surrounding Blackwater Security Consulting.
S04E01
Ellen investigates Howard Erickson's company despite warnings from her boss and from Patty; Patty takes on a big pharmaceutical firm; Erickson goes after defense contracts for his company.
S04E02
Ellen takes the High Star case to the senior partners; Chris feels certain he is being targeted; Erickson and Boorman try to make the lawsuit go away.
S04E03
Ellen learns that Chris used to hunt down terror suspects; Patty rejects Erickson's settlement suggestion for the High Star case.
S04E04
Ellen meets the son of Chris' Afghan contact; Erickson decides to torture Chris for information about the possibility of an intelligence breach; Patty discovers that High Star extracts terror suspects for the CIA.
S04E05
Ellen and Patty move Nasim to a safer place as they gather evidence against High Star; Boorman frames Nasim for an attempted bombing to prevent his deposition; Erickson struggles to maintain his CIA contact.
S04E06
Now that Nasim is labeled as a terrorist, he loses his credibility as a witness. Erickson buys land to build a private army. Ellen enlists journalist Dean Gulickson to track down Chris in Afghanistan. Michael comes to see Patty and demands to meet Catherine.
S04E07
Patty uses her drug-company case to gain information on High Star; and a journalist tries to embed with High Star mercenaries in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Michael Hewes seeks out his daughter, Catherine.
S04E08
While reporter Dean Gullickson (Griffin Dunne) heads to Afghanistan, Erickson orders his staff there to deal with Sanchez once and for all. He also confronts Boorman. Meanwhile, the judge in the High Star case allows Ellen to depose Erickson. "Just remember that we're in the middle of a game," Patty tells her. "We don't have to win it now. We just want to keep playing."
S04E09
Boorman tries to align himself with Patty. Meanwhile, Chris' life remains in jeopardy and the case becomes personal for Erickson.
S04E10
Ellen is furious with Patty for violating their agreement about the High Star case. And tempers come to a head between Erickson and Boorman—with Chris' life hanging in the balance.