Zachary J. Watson
Associate

Overview
Zachary J. Watson is a litigation attorney in Holland & Knight's Newport Beach office and a member of the firm's West Coast Litigation Practice Group. Mr. Watson represents clients in a variety of litigation matters, including breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, legal malpractice and bankruptcy adversary proceedings.
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Watson practiced at an elite boutique trial law firm.
Before becoming an attorney, Mr. Watson founded an investment fund in Kyiv, Ukraine, and later served as investment director for a multibillion-dollar family office headquartered in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In addition to these investor roles, Mr. Watson founded a venture-backed technology company in Nashville, Tennessee, aimed at improving residential housing options available to seniors.
While in law school, Mr. Watson participated in the Civil Rights Clinic and worked as a research assistant to Professor Ann Southworth on the topic of campaign finance. He also achieved the Pro Bono High Honors Distinction for contributing more than 200 hours to environmental litigation and efforts to support democratic elections.
Representative Experience
- Lead associate representing Am Law 100 law firm in defense against legal malpractice, breach of fiduciary duty and conspiracy claims brought by successor trustees of a multimillion-dollar trust
- Lead associate representing client in breach of contract and fraud claims against a former partner in state and bankruptcy courts
- Represented a client in multiple actions, including breach of fiduciary duty, defamation and interference with prospective economic advantage, valued in excess of $15 million
Credentials
- University of California, Irvine School of Law, J.D.
- Stanford Graduate School of Business, MBA
- St. John's College, Santa Fe, B.A.
- California
- U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
- Association of Business Trial Lawyers (ABTL), 2022-Present
- Pro Bono High Honors Distinction, University of California, Irvine School of Law, 2022
- Faculty Award, Law and Popular Culture, University of California, Irvine School of Law, 2022
- Faculty Award, Class Action Litigation in Federal Court, University of California, Irvine School of Law, 2021
- Dean's Award, Federal Income Tax Law, University of California, Irvine School of Law, 2020
- Dean's Award, Art Law, University of California, Irvine School of Law, 2020
- Social Innovation Distinction for Non-Profit Management, Stanford University Graduate School of Business, 2013