Night Court’s New Prosecutor Wendie Malick Answers Our Burning Q: Since When Is Her Character a Lawyer?!

We were overjoyed when we heard that Wendie Malick was joining the cast of NBC’s Night Court as a series regular next season… and we were also a little confused when we heard that her character Julianne would be the court’s new prosecutor.

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Malick has guest-starred in two episodes of Night Court as Dan Fielding’s erratic ex Julianne Walters, but we remember her as a volatile criminal Dan once helped put away, with no mention of any previous legal experience. So how, exactly, is she qualified to be a prosecutor?

“The magic of television!” Malick exclaimed while speaking to TVLine at NBC’s summer press tour. “No, the way we’re explaining it is: There was a program called Operation Second Chance, and the only judge that applied for it was Abby,” played by series star Melissa Rauch.

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Malick adds that “if your record has been expunged, you can go back to whatever you did before, and apparently, I was a lawyer before I was sent to the slammer… So as long as I’m on my meds, I can practice law.” But, as she hints with a smile, “I’m not going to be able to stay on my meds forever.”

A TV comedy veteran known for her time on Just Shoot Me! , Dream On and Hot in Cleveland , Malick was added to the Night Court cast earlier this month, replacing India de Beaufort’s Olivia as the court’s prosecutor. Season 3 of Night Court premieres Tuesday, Nov. 19 at 8:30/7:30c, following new comedy St. Denis Medical . ( Click here to get all of NBC’s fall premiere dates .)

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