Watson practices in the areas of civil rights litigation, governmental liability and appellate practice. She has defended a number of complex civil rights cases against cities, counties, and other quasi-governmental entities in state and federal courts. In state court, she has litigated several matters of first impression, including the application of the Kansas veterans preference law. Watson also practices in the state and federal courts of appeal, applying her six years of experience as a research attorney for the Kansas Court of Appeals and Kansas Supreme Court to obtain outstanding results for her clients. Watson was named to the list of Best Lawyers in America in 2010, 2011 and 2012 in the area of appellate law. She was named to the 2011 list of Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers® in the area of appellate law.

• Washburn University, B.A. summa cum laude, university honors (1991)
• Washburn University School of Law, J.D. magna cum laude (1994)

• Kansas (1994)
• U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas (1994)
• Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals (2003)
• U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri (2004)
• Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals (2004)
• United States Supreme Court (2006)

• Topeka Bar Association
  • Past President (2008-09)
  • President (2007-08)
  • President-Elect (2006-07)
  • Treasurer (2004-06)
  • Board Member (2000-2009)
  • Publications Committee Chair (1997-2000)
  • Newsletter Editor (1997-2000)
  • Legislative Committee (1998-2000)
  • Young Lawyers Division Treasurer, Social Committee Chair (1995-99)
• Kansas Bar Association
  • Board of Governors (2006-2011)
  • Bench Bar Committee (2011-present)
  • Insurance Law Section
    • President (2005-06)
    • President-Elect (2004-05)
  • Government Attorneys Section Secretary/Treasurer, Section Editor (2002-04)
  • KBA Journal Opinion Digest Writer/Coordinator (2001-2003)
  • Media-Bar Committee
  • Criminal Law Section
  • Awards Committee
• Women Attorneys Association of Topeka
  • Past President (2000-01)
  • President (1999-2000)
  • President-elect (1998-99)
  • Board Member (1996-2001)
• Kansas Women Attorneys Association
  • Past-President (2005-06)
  • President (2004-05)
  • President-Elect (2003-04)
  • Secretary (2001-03)
  • Executive Committee (2001-present)
• American Bar Association
  • ABA Council of Appellate Staff Attorneys (2001-02)
• Kansas Association of Defense Counsel
• Defense Research Institute

• What Counties Need to Know About USERRA, County Counselors Association/Kansas Association of Counties, 2011.
• Adult Entertainment and Zoning: A Starting Point for Adopting or Updating Adult Business Ordinances, Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, April 2011, pages 30-40.
• Roadside Memorials and Other Right of Way Liability Issues, City Attorneys Association of Kansas/League of Kansas Municipalities, 2010.
• Adult Entertainment and Zoning: Litigating a Challenge to Adult Business Ordinances, County Counselors Association/ Kansas Association of Counties, 2008.
• Use It or Lose It: Giving Notice of Tort Claims to Municipalities Under K.S.A. 12-105b(d), Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, March 2005, pages 24-33.
• Orientation to Kansas Practice, Topeka Bar Association, 2005.
• Surviving Apprendi: A Procedural Ideal Meets the Real World of Determinate Sentencing, Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, January 2003, pages 44-57.
• Kansas Sentencing Guidelines Act after Apprendi v. New Jersey, Kansas Trial Lawyers Association (now Kansas Association for Justice), 2003.
• The Health Care Maze: Understanding the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Group Health Provisions. Missouri Agent, November 1998, page 18.
• Pre-employment Drug Tests Require Care: Safeguards by Employers Can Prevent Common Legal Challenges, Kansas City Business Journal, December 4-10, 1998, page 43.
• Cameras in the Courtroom: Beyond O.J. Simpson. National Association of Women Lawyers Journal, Spring 1996.
• Criminal Law: Marshaling the Defense-Indigent Defendants Guaranteed Psychiatric Assistance at Trial to Explain Battered Woman Syndrome (Dunn v. Roberts, 963 P.2d 308 (10th cir. 1992)) Washburn Law Journal, Volume 32, Issue 2.