Law & Order season 3

The third season of Law & Order aired on NBC between September 23, 1992, and May 19, 1993 which remained unchanged. This season marked the introduction of Jerry Orbach as Lennie Briscoe, who replaced Paul Sorvino after "Prince of Darkness." A year prior, Orbach had guest starred as a defense attorney in at least one season two episode: “Wages of Love”. At the end of the season, both Dann Florek and Richard Brooks departed the main cast.

Cast and characters
Season 3 began with an unchanged cast. However, during the third and sixth episode, Carolyn McCormick was credited in the opening theme and starting with the ninth episode, she is credited for the rest of the season. This made her the first woman to be part of the cast in the series. A third of the way through, Lennie Briscoe (played by Jerry Orbach) replaced Phil Cerreta (Paul Sorvino) in the role of senior detective. This was the first mid-season replacement of a major character in Law & Order's history; the next would not occur until season 15. This was also the final season to feature Dann Florek as Capt. Don Cragen, and Richard Brooks as Paul Robinette. Both men would later return in guest roles, with Florek eventually joining the cast of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Main Cast

 * Paul Sorvino as Senior Detective Sergeant Phil Cerreta (Episodes 1-8)
 * Jerry Orbach as Senior Detective Lennie Briscoe (Episodes 9-22)
 * Chris Noth as Junior Detective Mike Logan
 * Dann Florek as Captain Donald Cragen
 * Michael Moriarty as Executive Assistant District Attorney Benjamin Stone
 * Richard Brooks as Assistant District Attorney Paul Robinette
 * Steven Hill as District Attorney Adam Schiff
 * Carolyn McCormick as Dr. Elizabeth Olivet

Recurring Cast

 * John Fiore as Detective Tony Profaci
 * Leslie Hendrix as Medical Examiner Dr. Elizabeth Rodgers
 * Donald Corren as Forensic Technician Medill
 * Christine Farrell as Forensic Technician Arlene Shrier
 * Tovah Feldshuh as Defense Attorney Danielle Melnick
 * Philip Bosco as Defense Attorney Gordon Schell
 * Bill Moor as Defense Attorney Bill Patton
 * George Grizzard as Defense Attorney Arthur Gold
 * Elaine Stritch as Defense Attorney Lanie Stieglitz
 * Edie Falco as Defense Attorney Sally Bell
 * Joanna Merlin Defense Attorney Carla Bowman
 * Barbara Spiegel as Arraignment Judge Harriet Doremus
 * Merwin Goldsmith as Arraignment Judge Ian Feist
 * David Lipman as Arraignment Judge Morris Torledsky
 * Bernie McInerney as Trial Judge Michael Callahan
 * John Ramsey as Trial Judge Walter Schreiber
 * Joan Copeland as Trial Judge Rebecca Stein
 * Ben Hammer as Trial Judge Herman Mooney
 * William Sever as Trial Judge Henry Fillmore
 * George Murdock as Trial Judge Eric Bertram
 * Fred J. Scollay as Trial Judge Andrew Barsky
 * Roger Serbagi as Trial Judge Robert Quinn
 * David Rosenbaum as Trial Judge Alan Berman
 * Charlotte Colavin as Trial Judge Lisa Pongracic
 * Rochelle Oliver as Trial Judge Grace Larkin

Notable Guest Stars

 * Eric Bogosian, who guest starred as a defense attorney in the episodes "Conspiracy" and "Night and Fog", would later have a starring role in Law & Order: Criminal Intent.

In addition to above, Law & Order season 3's notable guest stars included: Lauren Ambrose, Lawrence Pressman, Bill Raymond, Laurence Luckinbill, Len Cariou, Joe Morton, Shawn Elliott, George Coe, Dan Hedaya, José Zúñiga, Mark Blum, Claire Danes, Jenny O'Hara, Roscoe Lee Browne, Lisa Eichhorn, Patti D'Arbanville, Leon Russom, Alan King, Allan Arbus, Elizabeth Hubbard, Boyd Gaines, Joyce Van Patten, Mary Mara, Seth Gilliam, Keith Szarabajka, Lindsay Crouse, Lisa Vidal, Gail Strickland, John Pankow, Gary Basaraba, Talia Balsam, Mark Margolis, Wendell Pierce, Frances Fisher, Elaine Stritch, Mary Alice, Andrew Robinson, Michael Lombard, Felicity Huffman, Vincent Pastore, Adam Arkin, Michael Badalucco, Charles Hallahan, Diane Venora, Robert Milli, Morgan Weisser and Julianna Margulies.