'SVU' exclusive: Stephanie March is staying!

One down, two to go.

With so much attention focused on the Chris Meloni and Mariska Hargitay talks, I nearly forgot about the up-in-the-air fate of another Law & Order: SVU vet: Stephanie March.

I say nearly because I just did some snooping and learned that the actress has quietly inked a new contract to continue playing ADA Alex Cabot.

How lengthy is her commitment? Read on and find out…

NBC declined comment, but an SVU insider says March’s pact calls for her to appear in a minimum of 10 episodes next season. The show is expected to introduce one or possibly two new characters to fill the ADA void when Cabot isn’t around.

March, who left SVU‘s full-time ranks in 2004, returned for a six-episode run last spring. Her first episode back was one of the show’s most-watched of the season.

Ecstatic that March is sticking around? Then proceed to the comments section, silly!

More TV Scoop:

Latest on a Gilmore Girls movie

Lost finds familiar faces

House expands to two hours