<P> Law & Order : Special Victims Unit ( often abbreviated to Law & Order : SVU or just SVU ) is an American police procedural , legal , crime drama television series set in New York City , where it is also primarily produced . In the style of the original Law & Order , episodes are often `` ripped from the headlines '' or loosely based on real crimes that have received media attention . Created by Dick Wolf , the series premiered on NBC on September 20 , 1999 , as the second series in Wolf 's successful Law & Order franchise . Law & Order : Special Victims Unit has been nominated for and won numerous awards , including the 2006 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Mariska Hargitay , the first , and to date only , Emmy to be received by a regular on any Law & Order series . It is the current longest running scripted non-animated U.S. primetime TV series since the cancellation of the original Law & Order on May 24 , 2010 and is the fourth - longest running scripted U.S. primetime TV series on a major broadcast network . </P>
<P> Law & Order : Special Victims Unit ( often abbreviated to Law & Order : SVU or just SVU ) is an American police procedural , legal , crime drama television series set in New York City , where it is also primarily produced . In the style of the original Law & Order , episodes are often `` ripped from the headlines '' or loosely based on real crimes that have received media attention . Created by Dick Wolf , the series premiered on NBC on September 20 , 1999 , as the second series in Wolf 's successful Law & Order franchise . Law & Order : Special Victims Unit has been nominated for and won numerous awards , including the 2006 Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for Mariska Hargitay , the first , and to date only , Emmy to be received by a regular on any Law & Order series . It is the current longest running scripted non-animated U.S. primetime TV series since the cancellation of the original Law & Order on May 24 , 2010 and is the fourth - longest running scripted U.S. primetime TV series on a major broadcast network . </P>
when did law and order special victims unit start
when did law and order special victims unit start
September 20 , 1999
September 20 , 1999