Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: Season 20
Season 20 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Season 19.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 20 Progress Shield
Man Up
Sep 27, 2018 · 43 min
Teenager Sam Conway shows evidence of rape but refuses to name his attacker. Meanwhile, Benson and Rollins confess to some major life changes.
Man Down
Sep 27, 2018 · 43 min
In the conclusion to the season premiere, ADA Stone blames himself for the shocking verdict in Sam's case, and before Benson can offer help, Sam makes a tragic decision.
Zero Tolerance
Oct 4, 2018 · 43 min
After the rescue of a young girl from a sex trafficker, Benson and Stone must take drastic measures to reunite her with her mother. Meanwhile, Rollins decides to give her rocky rel
Revenge
Oct 11, 2018 · 43 min
As a string of break-in assaults grows more violent, the cops investigate an online incel group to identify a suspect.
Accredo
Oct 18, 2018 · 43 min
A member of a women's empowerment group is found murdered, leading the cops to the group's charismatic male leader. Meanwhile, Rollins keeps her pregnancy under wraps to avoid goin
Exile
Oct 25, 2018 · 43 min
A young woman wakes up in the hospital with no memory of her assault, and Carisi's investigation stalls when she disappears.
Caretaker
Nov 1, 2018 · 43 min
The cops wrestle with an unthinkable crime when a family is murdered in their sleep.
Hell's Kitchen
Nov 9, 2018 · 43 min
When a waitress at a popular restaurant is sexually assaulted, SVU looks for the culprit at the top of the culinary food chain, but Benson and Stone hit a wall when it's time to pr
Mea Culpa
Nov 15, 2018 · 43 min
Stone asks Benson to investigate a sexual encounter from his past that he feels guilt and uncertainty about; Rollins considers a proposal from Doctor Al.
Alta Kockers
Nov 22, 2018 · 43 min
The investigation into a promising new author's death leads to a decades-old secret kept between two reclusive brothers.
Plastic
Jan 11, 2019 · 43 min
A woman accuses a celebrity plastic surgeon and his girlfriend of rape.
Dear Ben
Jan 17, 2019 · 43 min
Stone takes up the unsolved cold case of a serial rapist that consumed his father's career
A Story of More Woe
Jan 31, 2019 · 43 min
Benson tries to help two teenaged sisters after their father is killed. Meanwhile, Rollins goes into labor.
Part 33
Feb 7, 2019 · 43 min
As Stone prosecutes the case of a woman who killed her abusive husband, Benson and her squad wrestle with the duty of testifying against her.
Brothel
Feb 14, 2019 · 43 min
Benson and the team investigate the death of a prostitute at a brothel. They wonder if there was foul play or if this could be a case of a junkie who relapsed, turned to tricking,
Facing Demons
Feb 21, 2019 · 43 min
Benson and the SVU investigate the death of a man they believe to be a pedophile. When they dig deeper, they realize things are not what they seem and that the case actually hits r
Missing
Mar 14, 2019 · 43 min
The SVU pursues a suspect when a child is discovered in the trunk of an abandoned car.
Blackout
Mar 21, 2019 · 43 min
When defense attorney Nikki Staines is raped after a police charity event, Benson reluctantly looks to her own for a suspect.
Dearly Beloved
Apr 4, 2019 · 43 min
The SVU investigates a he-said, she-said case when a woman crashes a wedding to accuse her therapist of sexual assault.
The Good Girl
Apr 11, 2019 · 43 min
Benson and the team work to uncover a pregnant teenager's secret when she refuses to name the baby's father.
Exchange
Apr 25, 2019 · 43 min
Benson helps a teenaged exchange student after she's assaulted by a cab driver.
Diss
May 2, 2019 · 43 min
When a pop star is assaulted in her home, the SVU investigates the public feud between her rapper husband and a competing recording artist; Fin's family ties to a suspect take him
Assumptions
May 9, 2019 · 43 min
The SVU searches for two suspects spotted fleeing the scene after a Muslim woman is assaulted inside a synagogue. Meanwhile, Benson is dismayed to find Rob Miller out on bail.
End Game
May 16, 2019 · 43 min
When a teenager is found dead in the Hudson River, Lt. Benson suspects Rob Miller is behind the mysterious death but can't prove it. Despite having only circumstantial evidence, AD