Doug Schmeiser lives in Saskatoon, and is a Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Saskatchewan. He has had a varied career as a practising lawyer, a professor of criminal and constitutional law, a law reform commissioner, and a national and international consultant on legal, judicial and constitutional reform. He has written several legal texts, but this is his first venture into the world of fiction. The book draws on his rural roots, his legal experience, and his concern for the environment.

While defending a client charged with sexual assault, Jeff Phillips commits an error of professional judgement which changes his life forever. It leads him into a world of revenge and blackmail, where he no longer is the professional advocate, but a possible criminal. How could this have happened to a successful, experienced lawyer who prided himself on his ability to help clients in impossible situations? Was this just happenstance, or has he been the victim of a sinister plot executed with devilish accuracy and timing? What effect does his personal predicament have on his views on justice and the legal system? In crafting this tale of human weakness and its consequences, Doug Schmeiser takes us not only into the world of the law, the functioning of the courts, and legal education, but also the practice of medicine, the ranching industry, and the dangers of environmental degradation by the oil industry. The book highlights the inescapable love of the land by those who produce food from its bounty, and the importance of living in harmony with nature.