PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – The Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a Broward County judge be removed from the bench for misconduct before she wore a robe.
Florida's high court accepted as "the appropriate sanction" a recommendation by the state Judicial Qualifications Commission to remove Judge Laura Watson.
The 16-page decision said Watson violated Florida rules of professional conduct while she was an attorney involved in an insurance litigation involving Progressive, Gold Coast Orthopedics and her personal injury protection clients.
Watson was accused of secretly negotiating a settlement with Progressive that paid her firm $3 million and improperly cut out fellow lawyers and shortchanged her clients, who received a total of just $360,000.
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In the JQC's determination, Watson "unilaterally decided that those clients had no interest in the bad faith case and that they had no duty to pay or include unknown people who may or may not someday have a claim."
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Additionally, the JQC concluded that Watson "entered into an undisclosed side deal with Gold Coast, contrary to the interests of the other bad faith claimants" and further concluded that Watson "failed to disclose material information to her clients, including the conflicts of interest and the methodology of allocating funds between the PIP and bad faith claims that substantially decreased the funds available for distribution to the clients."
Based on its findings, the JQC determined that Watson "sold out her clients, her co-counsel and ultimately herself. This conduct is 'fundamentally inconsistent with the responsibilities of judicial office' and mandates removal."
Watson fought the JQC's findings.
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Larry Stewart, an attorney who was involved in the litigation, testified before the JQC that "Watson never objected or corrected any of the agreements or understandings reached" at any of the meetings held with the PIP attorneys.
"Stewart's interpretation of the meetings is bolstered in particular by one email from Watson wherein she congratulated Stewart on getting the favorable discovery ruling and stated, 'We need to keep our foot on their throat and not let them lose (sic),'" the decision stated.
The judge's argument that she wasn't involved or didn't have any knowledge of any agreement with Stewart's firm "is not a reasonable inference from this record," the decision said.
"Watson's primary contention that the PIP attorneys never contracted with Larry Stewart's firm is belied by her email correspondence with him and her admission that he won favorable rulings in the Gold Coast case," the decision said.
The high court concluded that Watson's "conduct is fundamentally inconsistent with the responsibilities of judicial office."
Watson's actions "cast serious doubts" on her "ability to be perceived as truthful by those who may appear before her in her courtroom," the decision said.
Nobody answered the telephone at numbers listed for Watson and administrative Judge Arthur Birken.
Watson was elected to the Broward County circuit court in November 2012 and took office in January 2013.