John Grisham's novel, The Firm, opens at the Bendini Building on Front Street in Memphis, Tennessee. A lawyer by the name of Royce McKnight is reviewing the resume of a recent law school graduate named Mitchell McDeere. He had graduated within the top five at his law school, Harvard, and served as associate editor of its journal, the Harvard Law Review. Mitch came from a broken family. He had seen hard times and is looking forward to the stability that accompanied a new career. Mitch is heavily in debt from his law school loans. Despite these pressures, he and his schoolteacher wife, Abby, enjoy a happy marriage. They live in a small student apartment and have few possessions. As a job candidate, Mitch is viewed favorably and has already been offered jobs at three other firms. He therefor... (read more)