The long-running police procedural, which launched its record 26th season this fall, has starred Hargitay as Olivia Benson since the show premiered on NBC in late 1999. Peter Scanavino, who plays ADA Dominick Carisi Jr., has been a series regular on SVU since 2013.

After becoming a father to three, Peter Scanavino and his longtime friend and costar Mariska Hargitay were able to find something new to bond over — parenthood. Speaking with PEOPLE ahead of Law & Order: SVU's fall finale,

ADA Sonny Carisi (Peter Scanavino) can talk his way to verdicts in the courtroom, but will that skill—or what he learned as a detective—come in handy in the November 21 episode of Law & Order: SVU, when he’s in the middle of the crime?

Peter Scanavino's character, Assistant District Attorney Dominick "Sonny" Carisi, wed Kelli Giddish's Detective Amanda Rollins in season 24

SVU Season 26 Episode 8 “Cornered.”] What should be a regular day turns into a very traumatic one for Carisi (Peter Scanavino) in the Law & Order: SVU fall finale. After forgetting his paralegal’s birthday,

SVU has showcased countless stars over more than two decades on NBC. Currently, the series features a reduced original cast, and fans witness the evolving relationships between its characters, while Ice-T reveals what it's really like to work with Mariska Hargitay on set.

Born Mariska Magdolna Hargitay on January 23rd, 1964 in Santa Monica, California, Mariska is the daughter of former Mr. Universe actor and bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay and 1950s actress Jayne Mansfield.