s. epatha merkerson

Bombshell news from the 'Law & Order' front: The Ausiello Files is exclusively reporting that S. Epatha Merkerson will end her 16-year run on the NBC legal drama after this season.

Merkerson, who plays Lt. Anita Van Buren, told Ausiello, "It's the end of my contract this year, and the storyline has been so perfect. I've given it my best for 16 years. It's time to move on. I'm doing other things and this will be a great way to leave what has been an extraordinary gig."

Merkerson added that she made the decision around midseason "when I realized my contract was up. And I just looked at the things that I've been doing, and the show takes a lot of commitment. And I just feel like I wanted to do some other things."

To read the full interview, click here.

More of our best of the decade coverage, which started on Tuesday. You can read the other posts at the link above. Here, we talk about the best dramatic actresses of the decade.

Television has always been good to the ladies. Actresses have flourished in dramatic series, and in the past decade, we've seen some amazing performances. There have been lawyers, cops, a U.S. president, nurses, doctors, judges, mothers, daughters and even a real housewife from New Jersey whose husband was in the waste disposal business.

Many of these women have already been honored with Emmys and Golden Globes... and now they get the recognition of TV Squad.

Here, then, without further vamping, the best dramatic actresses of the past ten years:

Kona told you recently that Benjamin Bratt is coming back to Law & Order for a short time. S. Epatha Merkerson's Van Buren character has been diagnosed with cancer, which always gives shows a chance to bring back old characters. But it also gives a show a chance to bring on new characters, and that's what's going to happen starting this Friday.

Ernie Hudson is joining the show for several episodes. He'll play a guy that's "the love of her life."

The 12th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards were held tonight. We listed the nominees in television categories earlier this month, and here are the winners:

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries: Paul Newman / Empire Falls

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries: S. Epatha Merkerson / Lackawanna Blues

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series: Kiefer Sutherland / 24

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series: Sandra Oh / Grey's Anatomy

Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series: Sean Hayes / Will & Grace

Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series: Felicity Huffman / Desperate Housewives

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series: Lost

Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series: Desperate Housewives

See the full list (including the winners in movie categories) at TBS.com [Thanks Seth!]