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Douglas Wood
Lawyer, Business Coach, and Novelist
Douglas J. Wood is an experienced lawyer with over 48 years of practice in the legal field.1 He is currently the Principal at Law Offices of Douglas J. Wood, PLLC, based in Leland, North Carolina.1
Career Highlights
- Senior Counsel at Reed Smith LLP: Wood has been serving in this role since February 2004.12
- Founder: He founded the Entertainment and Media Industry Group at Reed Smith LLP in 2004.2
- Partner at Hall Dickler LLP: Wood worked here for 27 years from 1977 to 2004.1
- General Counsel: He serves as legal advisor to several worldwide trade organizations and is General Counsel to the Association of National Advertisers and MMA Global.2
- Founder: Wood is the founder and emeritus member of the Global Advertising Lawyers Alliance (GALA).2
Expertise and Recognition
Douglas Wood specializes in entertainment and media law, with particular focus on:
- Advertising and marketing law
- Motion picture and television
- Publishing
- Intellectual property
- E-commerce matters2
His expertise has been widely recognized:
- Member of the Legal 500 Hall of Fame for advertising and marketing law.2
- Ranked in the top tier by various rating services.2
- Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© for Advertising Law from 2008 to 2024.2
- Selected for inclusion in the New York Metro Super Lawyers list for Media/Advertising from 2007 to 2022.2
Education
- University of Rhode Island: BA in Political Science (1968-1972)1
- UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law: JD in Law (1973-1976)1
- New York University School of Law: LLM in Trade Regulation (1976-1977)1
- University of New Hampshire School of Law: Honorary Doctor of Laws (2011)12
In addition to his legal career, Douglas J. Wood is also an author, having written several books including a political trilogy and a memoir titled "Asshole Attorney: Musings, Memories and Missteps in a 40 Year Career".3
Highlights
As many of you know, I just released my latest book, From Dawn to Dusk: How to Build a Multimillion Dollar Law Practice and Then Give It Away. I'm grateful for the reception that made it an Amazon Best Seller.
The first half of the book – Dawn – tells how I built an eight-figure practice by adopting basic growth strategies taught in every business school worldwide. Regrettably, the systematic application of these basic principles in business development is woefully lacking in the legal profession. That’s understandable. Most lawyers were never educated on how to apply them. I write about one way to succeed. There are other ways as well. My question to readers is whether they’ve adopted a systematic approach. The answer is usually “no”. That is a troubling response since sound business planning is not rocket science. If I did it, anyone can.
The second half of the book – Dusk – explores a reality that most firms have sadly ignored and something I have true passion for. Sooner or later, we all reach our “use by” date whether we like it or not. Most lawyers don’t think about that until it’s too late, and the harsh reality of “embracing irrelevancy” hits them like a ton of bricks. With sound planning, it does not have to be that way. While individual lawyers are undoubtedly responsible for ignoring reality, law firms routinely fail to see how valuable an asset older lawyers can be to a firm’s future, its younger attorneys, and its clients. That needs to change, and I hope my book starts a long overdue conversation on how to reverse the cycle of showing older lawyers the door and instead showing everyone the opportunity that age and wisdom can bring to our profession. As difficult as it may be, let’s have that conversation.
I’ll soon launch a website dedicated to Dawn and Dusk. I’ll also blog on it and launch a podcast later this year. My guests will be lawyers who have “been there, done that” and experts who can discuss how to deal with the challenges beyond “getting your affairs in order.”
Please stay tuned and let me know what you think.
#Retirement #LawPractice #BusinessDevelopment #FuturePlanning
Thank you to Amanda O’Brien for a wonderful interview!
