Denise Bauer-Chase is a fictional attorney on the American legal series Boston Legal, played by Julie Bowen. She is a lawyer at Crane, Poole & Schmidt, introduced in the first episode of season 2. Unlike many new members of the cast, she was not hired during her debut– the show implied that she had been a lawyer at the firm since before she first appeared on air. In Denise's initial storyline, she was in the process of divorce from her first husband. It was revealed in the episode 'Gone' that Denise speaks fluent Italian.