Mr. Woody's primary areas of practice are labor and employment law, litigation, and appellate litigation practice.

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Education

• University of Virginia, B.A., 1969
• Florida State University, J.D., 1972

Experience

• Lead counsel, plaintiff in Uniform Trade Secrets Act case for misappropriation by employees
• Lead counsel, 15-day trial on successorship issues
• Adjunct Professor of Law, Washington and Lee University Law School, Spring and Fall 2012, Fall 2013, Employment Practices
• Adjunct Professor of Law, Charleston School of Law, Charleston, S.C., Spring 2013, Employment Law
• Law Clerk, John A. Field, Jr., Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, 1973 – 1974
• Brown et al v. Tethys Bioscience, Inc., 2013 WL 65456 (Jan. 4, 2013), 2012 WL 4605671 and 4606386 (Oct. 10, 2012) and WL 4606007 (Oct. 1, 2012) orders granting Tethys summary judgment on negligent misrepresentation, retaliation, discharge and other counts
• Harper v. Jackson Hewitt, Inc., 2010 WL 4723380, W. Va.
• Carolina Power & Light Company v. Aspect Software, Inc., 2010 WL 3210970 (E.D.N.C.)
• State ex re. Richmond American Homes of West Virginia, Inc. v. Sanders, 226 W. Va. 103, 697 S.E.2d 139 (2010)
• West v. West Virginia Department of Transportation, Division of Highways, 224 W. Va. 563, 687 S.E.2d 346 (2009)
• Cottrell Co. v. Carlton, Inc., 614 S.E.2d 1 (2005) (hired for appeal and successfully had sanctions overturned)
• Columbia Natural Resources, 120 LA 1599 (July 28, 2005) (successfully defended successor employer’s alleged failure to match 401(k))
• Holland v. Williams Mountain Coal Co., 256 F.3d 819, 347 U.S. App. D.C., 198, 26 Employee Benefits Cas. 1781 (D.C. Cir., July 31, 2001) (successfully defended successor-in-interest definition under Coal Act; Court did not apply “substantial continuity of operations” test)
• N.L.R.B. v. Labor Ready, Inc., 253 F.3d 195, 167 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2405, 143 Lab. Cas. P 11,007 (4th Cir., 2001)
• Gardner v. E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., Inc., 7 Fed. Appx. 241, 2001 WL 378276 (4th Cir. (W. Va.), 25 Employee Benefits Cas. 2696 (4th Cir. (W. Va.), Apr .16, 2001)
• Holland v. High Power Energy, 98 F. Supp. 2d 741 (S.D.W. Va. 2000)
• Holland v. Big River Minerals Corp., 181 F.3d 597 (4th Cir. 1999)
• Anker Energy Corp. v. Consolidation Coal Co., 177 F.3d 161, 24 Employee Benefits Cas. 1026 (3d Cir. 1999)
• Carbon Fuel Co. v. USX, 153 F.3d 719 (4th Cir. 1998)
• Leary v. Bluestone Coal, 141 F.3d 1158 (4th Cir. 1998)

Distinctions

• Recognized by The Best Lawyers in America as "Lawyer of the Year" 2016 in Charleston, W.Va. in Labor Law - Management
• Nominated by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of Employment Law - Management, Labor Law - Management, and Litigation - Labor & Employment
• Recognized by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business for Labor and Employment: Senior Statesman
• Listed by West Virginia Super Lawyers, 2007 - present

Admissions

• West Virginia State Bar
• The Florida Bar
• West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals
• Supreme Court of the State of Florida
• Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
• United States Supreme Court
• United States District Courts for the Northern and Southern Districts of West Virginia
• United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
• United States Courts of Appeals for the Third, Fourth, Sixth and District of Columbia Circuits

Memberships

• Chair, Labor Section of the West Virginia State Bar
• American Bar Association, Labor and Employment Law Section, Litigation Section
• Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference
• United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Member, Local Rules Committee, 2004
• Tulane School of Law Multi-State Labor and Employment Law Annual Seminar, Member, Planning Committee, 1992 – 2010

Publications & Presentations

• Chapter Co-Author, Trial Techniques for the Labor and Employment Law Practitioner, Bloomberg/BNA, 2019
• “An Argument for Use of Stock Options with Forfeiture Clauses for Breach of Duty of Loyalty,” West Virginia Law Review, November 2016
• "Absence and Leave," The West Virginia Lawyer 50, March 2013
• “How to Handle the Difficult Opposing Counsel,” ABA Young Lawyers Subcommittee, Online Products Liability Articles, 2006
• “How to Second Chair a Trial,” ABA Young Lawyers Subcommittee, Online Products Liability Articles, January 2007
• “Impact of District 29, United Mine Workers v. Royal Coal Co. on the Sale of a Coal Facility,” 88 W. Va. L. Rev. 605 (1986)
• “Liability for Employee Benefits Resulting from Cessation of Mining Operations,” 7 Eastern Min. L. Inst., Ch. 7 (1986)
• Florida State University Law Review?
• Speaker, 2012 ABA Labor and Employment Law Conference, Atlanta, "Developing a Best-in-Class Labor and Employment Law Practice"

Community Involvement

• Chair, Spirit of the Valley, Fundraiser, Charleston YMCA, 2012
• West Virginia Roundtable, Former Member
• The Alzheimer’s Association of Southern West Virginia, Member, Board of Directors, 1997 – 2000