Character ending explained

What happens

Jacob qualifies as a lawyer, and the opening mystery resolves: Dreverhaven's death was suicide, not murder, so Jacob is cleared. Their last meeting suggests the father's cruelty was a harsh way of pushing his son to succeed.

The last image

I'm not certain of the film's final shot, so I won't describe it; what stays with you is the last meeting between father and son.

What it says

Character is forged by opposition, and the ending shows love can survive only in a form two proud men can bear. It ends on that revelation because the film is about what Jacob's success cost, and who truly made it possible.