James Peter Watson
August 29, 1945 - June 20, 2021
Witty, charming, sharply intelligent, and notoriously indifferent to all things related to organized sports… except, of course, for Cal football. Jim Watson will be remembered by family, friends, and colleagues for all of these.
James Peter Watson was born in Monterey, California in 1945 to Peter and Dorothy Watson. He moved with Dorothy to Coronado after his parents’ divorce, and they later settled in San Diego, where he attended Hoover High School.
Jim worked his way through the University of California at Berkeley, graduating in three years (1966). While an undergrad, Jim helped the Cal debate team win several tournaments across the west coast. Jim subsequently attended Cal’s Boalt Hall School of Law, receiving his JD in 1969, and passing the California bar exam in 1970.
He began practicing law at Vogelin and Barton in Los Angeles, then moved to the firm of Cox, Castle, and Nicholson in 1974 where he was a partner specializing in labor and construction litigation. He had many reported cases and law articles, and memorably argued two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1982 and 1983.
He met Janice Daar in Los Angeles, and they happily married in 1975. They were thrilled to adopt daughter Sara Ann at her birth in 1989.
In 1988 Jim and Jan moved to San Francisco where Jim joined Tom Stanton and Larry Kay to become a managing partner of the new firm of Stanton, Kay, and Watson.
Jim was an avid reader, movie fanatic, restaurant lover, and political junkie. With Jan and Sara he relished travel to Europe, South Africa, South America, and even Antarctica.
Jim undertook many volunteer commitments including a term as board president of San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocates (SFCASA) in the organization’s formative years; serving on the San Francisco Civil Grand Jury; and working as a Judge Pro Tempore for the San Francisco Superior Court.
He is survived by wife Janice Daar Watson, daughter Sara Watson, and son-inlaw Jackson Anderson.
The family thanks By the Bay Health (Hospice By the Bay), Sunrise of Burlingame, and the UCSF Geriatric Clinic for their care in Jim’s final years. Donations in Jim’s memory may be made to San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocates (SFCASA), 2535 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110, https://www.sfcasa.org.