Grant Watson is originally from Greenville, South Carolina and spent his youth in Fernandina Beach, Florida. After three years at the University of Central Florida he graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2002, with a Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies, and then went on to attend law school at the University of Florida where he earned his Juris Doctor in 2005, along with a Certificate in Environmental and Land Use Law. Before his admission to the Florida Bar in 2006, Grant worked alongside Professor Thomas Ankersen on local government and public interest projects at the University of Florida Levin College of Law Center for Governmental Responsibility. Grant has spent his entire legal career serving clients in and around Central Florida and has extensive experience representing various businesses and local government entities including municipalities, special districts, tax collectors, and utilities. He is the primary attorney for the City of Leesburg, serves as the Special Magistrate for the Town of Astatula, and represents residential and commercial property owners, buyers, and sellers in transactional, operational, and litigation matters. He also serves as the general counsel for the Florida Council on Affordable and Rural Housing and represents owners and managers of multi-family affordable housing communities across the state of Florida.  Grant happily resides in Lake County with his wife and two children.