After Brian Martell is arrested and charged with the murder of Arthur Kendall, Matlock decides to get involved because, years earlier, his father Charlie had been a suspect in the murder of Arthur's father Jake -- a murder Brian's father Lee was convicted of. Brian is convinced that Matlock is doing it to make up for Lee spending years in prison for a crime that Charlie Matlock convicted, but Matlock swears neither man committed the crime. While investigating the murder of the playwright, their trail soon leads to the woman he was having an affair with, and her very angry son young son.

Although Josh Winfield confessed to the murder of Arthur Kendall, it doesn't take long for the police to blow holes in his story. Matlock then has Conrad take a closer look at Yolanda Bergstrom, the woman Kendall had been with not long before he died, and Conrad then finds there is another connection between Yolanda and Kendall -- her sister Sabrina. Leanne remains convinced that Charlie Matlock had nothing to do with Jake Kendall's murder, and she, Brian and Matlock all investigate the thirty year old case. Matlock continues to date Elaine, trying desperately to be the healthy, fit man he thinks she wants.

Matlock and Jerri head out to the beach with Billy and Cliff as Cliff prepares for an upcoming triathlon. Once there, Matlock is surprised to run into retired F.B.I. agent Ed Wingate, who is investigating a case of his own. While Matlock keeps himself busy occasionally running into Ed, Cliff throws himself into the competition, and Billy throws himself at Anita Montrose, the real estate agent who rented them the beach house they're staying at. When one of the people Ed is investigating is found dead, Matlock agrees to defend his old friend.

While at a triathlon, Matlock runs into a former client, a retired FBI agent trying to solve an old case.