In 1941, as the US is on the brink of entering WWII, a nearly bankrupt NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), sends its only lawyer, Thurgood Marshall, to conservative Connecticut to defend a black chauffeur against charges of rape and attempted murder. In need of a high-profile victory, Marshall is joined by Samuel Friedman, a young Jewish lawyer who has never before tried a criminal case. Marshall and Friedman struggle against fear and prejudice, driven to discover the truth which helped set the groundwork for a career that ultimately made Thurgood Marshall the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. Marshall is based on a true story.