LARRY WOODS
615.321.1426
Larry Woods is the senior partner and shareholder in the Law Offices of Woods and Woods. He was voted Best Lawyer in Nashville in the Nashville Scene poll in 1993 and has served a variety of clients with diverse legal needs during his thirty plus year career as an attorney. He teaches pre-law courses at Tennessee State University where he was honored as the Tennessee State University Teacher of the Year in 1997-1998. He has received numerous other honors including Outstanding Lawyer Award, 1998; Special Award of Merit, National Association of Defense Lawyers, 1978; past president, Federal Bar Association of Nashville and Middle Tennessee; delegate, Tennessee Bar Association House of Delegates 1976-1982; Board of Editors, The Federal Lawyer, 1995-1996; local counsel, N.A.A.C.P.; general counsel, Tennessee State Employees Association; general counsel, National Baptist Publishing Board, and chair of the Tennessee Legal Services Advisory Commission, 1976-1984. He is the author of seven books and law articles on trial practice, civil rights, constitutional law and sex harassment cases.
In addition to the practice of law, Larry advises and prepares leaders and executives for television appearances and interviews. He coached Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen in his television debates in 1994, 2002 and 2006. Bredesen’s campaign manager stated that Larry Woods’ coaching was the turning point in winning the 2002 campaign. Larry served as a senior strategist for the Bredesen Transition Team, as chair of Governor Bredesen’s TennCare Transition committee and as Co-Chair of the Transportation Committee. Larry has also advised U.S. Senators, Members of Congress, state senators and representatives and has lectured at many continuing legal education conferences. He has lectured at Vanderbilt University, Peabody College, and Emory University.
Larry is the chair of the Pelham Memorial Foundation and advises the National Urban Debate Association, the national organization providing grants to encourage participation of young women and minorities in high school debate. He is committed to helping young people with debate and has volunteered to coach debate at Pearl-Cohn, Martin Luther King, Hume Fogg and Overton High Schools in Nashville. In eight years, he coached four high school debate teams to the National Forensics League National Tournament (eight students, six of whom were young women or minorities) and had more than 150 students in the program.
Larry is a book reviewer for several newspapers in Nashville and appears regularly on radio and television programs in the Nashville area concerning government, politics, law and books.
ALLEN WOODS
615.321.1426
Allen Woods is a shareholder of the Law Offices of Woods and Woods and has worked for the law firm, in some capacity, for most of his life. Prior to joining the firm full time, Allen worked for one of the largest law firms in Nashville and gained extensive experience assisting clients with issues related to commercial and residential real estate and finance, zoning, municipal law, environmental law, corporate formations, contract drafting and review, and high level negotiations.
He represents clients that have sustained personal and work-related injuries from sources as diverse as auto wrecks, slip and falls, injuries on the job, foreign objects in food, and injuries sustained form using defective products. He is also experienced in handling all issues related to divorce, child custody, and other family law matters. Finally, he is also experienced in representing clients that have endured workplace discrimination and harassment.
He has also represented clients in numerous regulatory, zoning, and residential and commercial development matters, including the drafting of complex master deeds, covenants and restrictions, and commercial leases for all types of property. He has extensive experience closing residential and commercial real estate and business transactions. He has assisted clients in the purchase, development and sale of numerous small businesses throughout middle Tennessee. In June, 2008, Governor Phil Bredesen appointed Allen to serve on the State Real Estate Commission. He was elected the youngest ever Vice-Chairman of the Real Estate Commission.
Allen has also represented numerous clients before various State boards and commissions, including representing clients on appeal from erroneous board and commission rulings.
Allen graduated from the Vanderbilt University Law School where he was a Dean’s Scholar. While at Vanderbilt, Allen was editor of the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law and was awarded the Vanderbilt Scholastic Excellence Award in Legal Process. He also co-founded the local student chapter of the American Constitution Society. He earned his undergraduate degree from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Prior to law school, Allen worked for Solutions Corporation of America, a consulting firm for healthcare companies addressing special issues related to government scrutiny and regulation. Additionally, for two years Allen worked as a special assistant to former Tennessee fifth district Congressman Bob Clement. His work for Congressman Clement included interacting with elected and appointed officials from all levels of government.
He is involved with the Barkley Forum Foundation, an organization committed to supporting debate in middle and high schools throughout the city of Atlanta, the state of Georgia and the nation. He has served as a winning campaign manager for multiple judges running for the position of court judge in middle Tennessee. Allen is presently or formerly a member of the Nashville, Tennessee and American Bar Associations. He is presently a member of the Tennessee Association for Justice. He is a former board member of the Community Education Initiative and has volunteered his time on a committee for the Center for Nonprofit Management that determined the recipients of that organization’s annual Salute to Excellence award. Allen joined the Urban Land Institute and is formerly a member of the executive committee of its Young Leaders Group. He has also previously been a featured speaker at continuing education seminars teaching lawyers, paralegals, and real estate brokers the intricacies of real estate law in Tennessee.