The First Law by John Lescroart

When defense attorney Dismas Hardy’s longtime friend, Graham Russo, is accused of murdering his dying father, Hardy takes the case — only to uncover a tangle of family secrets, old loyalties, and moral conflicts. As Hardy delves deeper, he discovers that the boundaries between justice and law are not as clear as they seem. The First Law explores themes of loyalty, ethics, and the price of doing what’s right in a world where the first law may be survival itself.