Biography
Judge Watson served 12 years in the Appalachian Judicial Circuit of North Georgia, four years as Chief Juvenile Court Judge and eight years as Superior Court Judge. Since stepping down from the bench, she has acted both as a single arbitrator and on 3-Judge arbitration panels in a wide variety of cases. As a mediator, Judge Watson has successfully resolved over 95% of her cases. She is well-known for the meticulous preparation and engaging, dedicated and determined approach she brings to all her cases.
As a trial lawyer for 11 years Judge Watson handled a number of medical malpractice cases representing plaintiffs and defendants. She represented dozens of clients in social security disability cases, and was counsel to a surgical physicians group, advising them on all aspects of their practice, including contracts, employees, malpractice coverage and avoidance. During this time, Judge Watson also acted as General Counsel to Pickens General Hospital overseeing contracts with physicians, general employment issues including wrongful termination, malpractice claims and avoidance, and regulatory compliance. She also oversaw contracts with vendors.
Representative Matters:
- In a dissolution of partnership claim, Judge Watson represented a partner against his brother/partner who’d been partners for 40 years, involving ownership of a hospital and medical clinic which required an involuntary sale of all assets in the partnership
- Special Master for 650 mesothelioma cases
- Mediated and arbitrated dozens of medical malpractice claims
- Arbitrated a two-week case involving a hospital and physicians HMO group
- Mediated and arbitrated numerous nursing home cases dealing with standard of care, malpractice, damages, insurance coverage and collections
- Fellow of the American Bar Foundation
- Member, Board of Governors, State Bar of Georgia
- Trustee and Past President of the Georgia Bar Foundation
- Chair, ADR Committee, Council of Superior Court Judges
- Legislative Liaison to Georgia General Assembly, Council of Juvenile Court Judges
- Master, Henry Lumpkin American Inn of Court (University of Georgia Law School)
- Chair, Family Law Section, State Bar of Georgia
- Member, Leadership Georgia, class of 1988
- Member, State Disciplinary Board, State Bar of Georgia
- Arbitrator/Mediator, JAMS
- Judge, Appalachian Judicial Circuit, North Georgia (12 years); Chief Juvenile Court Judge (4 years); and Judge, Superior Court (8 years)
- Private practice that included civil and criminal litigation, employment law, real estate, banking and corporate law, wills and trusts, and domestic relations (11 years)
- Director and organizer of a 50 million-dollar bank, North Georgia; Chair, Audit and Compliance Committee and Member, Investment and Asset Liability Committee, (6 years)
- General Counsel of a bank and a general hospital
- County Attorney, Pickens County, Georgia
- Seaboard Planning Corporation and Capital Funding Corporation, San Francisco
- Language therapist for deaf and brain-damaged children, Davison School, Atlanta
- Speech and hearing therapist, Metro Davidson County, Nashville
- J.D., Emory University School of Law, 1977
- Vocational Rehabilitation Graduate Fellowship in Audiology, Vanderbilt University, 1966-1967
- B.S., Speech Pathology/Psychology, University of Kentucky, 1965
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