Quinlan Turns To 'Family Law'

By CBSNews.com staff CBSNews.com staff

September 16, 1999 / 6:49 PM EDT / CBS

Actress Kathleen Quinlan received an Oscar nomination for her role as Marilyn Lovell in Apollo 13. She went on to star opposite John Travolta in A Civil Action. Now, she turns to television to star in the new CBS drama, Family Law, debuting Monday night. CBS News This Morning Co-Anchor Mark McEwen reports.

Kathleen Quinlan is Lynn Holt, a marital attorney and mom whose husband leaves her and takes most of their law practice with him. Lynn's now scrambling to keep the rest of her family and her law firm together.

"I think women and men will find this show appealing. Anyone who works hard will appreciate the story line," says Quinlan

At work, she relies heavily on Danni Lipton (played by Julie Warner), one of the firm's best and most ambitious attorneys and the only one who didn't defect with Lynn's husband.

The action starts after Lynn's husband leaves, as the two women spend their first day back at work hustling up work to make the month's mortgage payment that her husband conveniently left behind.

"Looking at my own life, I know how tough it is for me to juggle my schedule with Family Law, with my son's schedule and my husband's," says Quinlan. "And then there's still finding time for me. I also like the fact that this serious drama has its moments of intense humor."

For Quinlan, the television series is an opportunity to stay closer to home. "My family is my life," she says. "As a mother, having a set schedule on a primetime drama gives me more quality time with my 8-year-old son."

"I'm tired of uprooting my family for a film, she adds. "Now we have a place we can truly call home. I like having a regular job like regular people."

Quinlan received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Marilyn Lovell in Apollo 13, which also earned her a Golden Globe nomination.

Her additional feature film credits include American Graffiti, her screen debut, as well as Breakdown, Event Horizon, The Doors, Clara's Heart, Lawn Dogs, Independence Day, and A Civil Action.

She has appeared in television movies including In The Lake Of The Woods, Stolen Children, Trapped, Dreams Lost and Found, Blackout, American Story, Wolf, The Operation, She's In The Army Now, When She Says No, and Children Of The Night.