Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner

Antitrust, Competition and Trade

Partner - Litigation and Investigations

Patrick Watson concentrates on antitrust and other complex business litigation and leads the firm's Antitrust Class Actions team. In the antitrust litigation area, Pat has significant experience representing corporate plaintiffs who choose to opt out of class action antitrust litigation to pursue direct claims and has obtained large recoveries for such companies. In addition, he has successfully defended corporations in federal and state antitrust cases, including class actions, involving price fixing, monopolization, price discrimination and other alleged violations of the antitrust or unfair competition laws. Pat also has handled litigation involving franchising and distribution issues and unfair trade practices.

In addition to litigation, he has provided legal guidance to companies and trade associations in various industries on a variety of antitrust related issues, including pricing, advertising, joint ventures, benchmarking and strategic transactions. As part of his compliance work, he has assisted clients with antitrust related audits and in the development of training programs. He also has counseled companies on internal investigations and responses to government subpoenas, and has represented clients in obtaining antitrust regulatory approval for mergers.

Apart from antitrust and trade regulation matters, Pat has handled commercial litigation and dispute resolution involving software development contracts, warranty clauses in asset purchase agreements, implementation of ERP systems, ERISA violations and other complex business disputes. He also has substantial experience handling appellate litigation in federal and state courts.

Pat is rated Band 1 for Antitrust Law in Georgia by Chambers USA, has been named a Best Lawyer in America since 2009 (including Georgia Lawyer of the Year in Antitrust Law in 2014 and 2021) and has been designated as a Georgia Super Lawyer every year since 2008. In 2021 he was recognized as an Acritas Star for outstanding client service.

Pat also is a frequent speaker on antitrust and compliance issues. He is a Past Chair of the Antitrust Section of the Georgia Bar and has served on the section board for several years. He is the former Managing Partner of the Atlanta office of BCLP and currently serves on the Firm’s worldwide Board.