About this season
Rafferty's Rules was an Australian television drama series which ran from 1987 to 1990 on the Seven Network. Rafferty's Rules was one of the first programs undertaken by the Seven Network's then new in-house drama unit, going into production in May 1985 as "a 15-part courtroom drama". The program had started out as a pilot episode, recorded in early 1984 with the actor Chris Haywood in the lead role. When the pilot episode was remounted later in 1984, Chris Haywood wasn't available and the lead role was re-cast to John Wood. This second recording was eventually broadcast as the program's first episode.
Episodes (30)
1. Security
Aired 9 February 1990 • 46 min
Michael sees the law from another perspective after he becomes the key witness in Flicker's prosecution against an arsonist.
2. That Old Black Magic
Aired 16 February 1990 • 45 min
Michael begins to wonder if someone is trying to put a spell on him after a number of suspicious run-ins with a member of a religious commune.
3. The Plague
Aired 23 February 1990 • 46 min
Lisa confronts the prejudices of society when she defends a man with AIDS who has committed an armed robbery in order to ensure his wife's future following his death.
4. In For a Penny
Aired 2 March 1990 • 45 min
Michael is drawn into the world of a struggling young family after he witnesses a woman being hit by a car.
5. Out of Line
Aired 9 March 1990 • 45 min
Lisa finds herself at odds with her colleagues when she defends an anti-nuclear activist whose family and the police are determined to have detained for his own safety.
6. One for Us
Aired 16 March 1990 • 45 min
Rafferty decides to expose a Chilean military attaché following charges for torturing political dissidents in Chile.
7. Politburo
Aired 23 March 1990 • 46 min
Flicker is horrified after he discovers just what conditions are faced by those in the police cells awaiting trial.
8. One Consideration With Another
Aired 30 March 1990 • 45 min
Racial tensions erupt when two Asian men are accused of murder, while Michael questions his capacity as a magistrate after an act of leniency has dire consequences.
9. Home
Aired 6 April 1990 • 46 min
Flicker and Lisa find themselves dealing with a particularly challenging court case when a girl alleges that she was raped by her father four years earlier.
10. The Book of Love
Aired 13 April 1990 • 44 min
Lisa defends a singer who has beaten his wife, but her personal involvement in the case is made more difficult when he brings a gun into the courthouse.
11. On the Barricades
Aired 20 April 1990 • 46 min
Michael revisits his past as a university radical and conscientious objector when he is forced to decide the fate of a man who he once protested alongside.
12. Funny Peculiar
Aired 27 April 1990 • 45 min
Flicker confronts his own prejudices when he prosecutes a case involving the assault of a female impersonator; however, it is Michael who finds himself at the centre of a controversy after the verdict is given.
13. Whatever Gets You Through the Night
Aired 4 May 1990 • 45 min
Lisa is drawn into an organisation known as Life Force after a man is arrested for break and enter and assault.
14. Whistling in the Dark
Aired 11 May 1990 • 46 min
Flicker finds himself wandering into a murky world of corruption when he prosecutes a case against a police officer who has broken the law and where the key witness is a serial whistleblower.
15. Blood, Sweat and Paycheques
Aired 18 May 1990 • 44 min
Fulvio and Sandra's marriage comes close to breaking point after Sandra is arrested for shoplifting.
16. Home Again Kathleen
Aired 25 May 1990 • 45 min
Michael, Flicker and Lisa are dragged into a murky political world when they discover that the conflict between the British and the Irish is alive and well in Sydney.
17. Driven to It
Aired 1 June 1990 • 45 min
An act of vandalism by the member of an animal rights group leaves Michael becoming emotionally involved with the accused's mother.
18. A Fair Day's Work
Aired 8 June 1990 • 44 min
A man seeks Lisa's help when he is sacked after complaining about the work conditions; however, she soon finds herself defending him when he assaults his former boss.
19. Lies
Aired 15 June 1990 • 44 min
Lisa is drawn to an attractive young lawyer; however, she is forced into an ethical dilemma when his personal life unravels.
20. Consciousness Raising
Aired 22 June 1990 • 44 min
The feminist movement comes to the courthouse when a prominent feminist runs a group of pigs through the shop of a man accused of sexual harassment.
21. Free of Passion
Aired 29 June 1990 • 45 min
Flicker finds himself at the crossroads of a major life decision after he falls in love with a young female Constable, but his excitement at finding new love may see him lose it all.
22. Many Happy Returns
Aired 6 July 1990 • 46 min
A convicted criminal whose ex-wife is about to marry a police officer comes before the court accused of assault.
23. In Custody
Aired 13 July 1990 • 46 min
Lisa assists a young woman whose boyfriend has been arrested; however, she is horrified when she learns that he has been detained without charge and suspects that the police are fitting him up because he is Aboriginal.
24. Lost Empires
Aired 20 July 1990 • 44 min
Lisa fights to save an Indian couple who are facing deportation, only to discover that the collapse of the British Empire means that they have no real home to go back to.
25. The Sea, the Sea
Aired 27 July 1990 • 44 min
Michael and Flicker befriend the beachcomber and poet, Snowy White; however, their admiration is crushed when it begins to appear that Snowy may be guilty of murder.
26. Up, Up and Away
Aired 3 August 1990 • 46 min
Lisa is charmed by a client accused of appropriating money from elderly women; however, Michael and Flicker cause conflict when they question her judgement.
27. Punch Ups
Aired 10 August 1990 • 44 min
A prominent radio host has been charged with brawling. Michael is faced with the consequences of his judgements when he sentences a man accused of assault, only to later learn that the man's employer has sacked him.
28. Best and Brightest
Aired 17 August 1990 • 44 min
Michael is reunited with an old classmate in the lead-up to a school reunion; however, he is left wondering if they've come very far at all since the schoolyard.
29. Unaccompanied Bark
Aired 24 August 1990 • 45 min
An elderly journalist is arrested for shoplifting.
30. Guilty
Aired 31 August 1990 • 46 min
Michael is consumed by guilt after he hits a man with his car; however he starts to wonder if maybe there are deeper issues at play when he seeks guidance on how to deal with his feelings.