Regional law firm Thrings has appointed experienced commercial litigation specialist Caroline Watson as a partner in its company commercial team.
Caroline, pictured, has acted for national and international clients from the financial services, IT, manufacturing and insurance sectors in commercial disputes for more than 12 years. 
She has joined Thrings, which has an office in Bristol, from Berkshire law firm Gardner Leader, where she was a senior associate.
Caroline becomes the 22nd partner in the company commercial team, which provides proactive commercial advice to a wide variety of clients, ranging from sole traders and entrepreneurs to global and multi-national corporations.
During her career Caroline has dealt with the full spectrum of complex commercial disputes, including director and shareholder issues, contractual disputes, civil fraud and professional negligence claims for individuals, SMEs and household names.
While she has handled several high-profile court disputes, a significant number of Caroline’s cases are also resolved through negotiation or mediation.
She said: “I am very pleased to be joining the strong, established and supportive company commercial team at Thrings, and building on the success of its thriving commercial litigation and professional negligence practice.
“I am also looking forward to strengthening the firm’s offering in the field of commercial arbitration, particularly in a climate where clients are seeking greater control over the final resolution of their dispute, and seeking alternatives to public, expensive and often time-consuming court proceedings.”
Thrings managing partner Simon Holdsworth added: “Caroline is a highly skilled commercial litigator, whose experience will add further depth and breadth to Thrings’ company commercial teams in the South West and London and support their focus on delivering first-class legal advice.
“Her inherent ability to fully understand her clients’ needs has enabled her to settle a significant number of commercial disputes via alternative means. The removal of unnecessary and often expensive involvement from the courts is being welcomed by a growing number of clients who are increasingly demanding greater choice, flexibility and transparency when it comes to fees and the dispute resolution procedure they use.”
Thrings also has offices in Bath, Swindon, Reading and London.
