Stephen R. Woods

Shareholder || Greenville

Stephen Woods represents and counsels companies on a wide range of labor and employment law issues—though a significant focus of his practice is on background checks (counseling and litigation), reductions in force (including the ADEA/OWBPA, WARN, and state mini-WARNs), and multi-state compliance. He assists national, regional, and local clients on preventive analysis and advice, class and single-plaintiff employment litigation, and EEOC and state agency charges. He is the chair of both the firm’s OD Comply compliance solutions group and the Background Checks Practice Group and the shareholder-author of the OD Comply: Background Checks subscription and the OD Comply: E-Signatures materials. He is a founding member and past co-chair of the firm’s national RIF/WARN Practice Group. He is a member of the firm’s small COVID-19 leadership team responsible for providing client advice and colleague assistance during the pandemic.

Stephen lives by a client-centric mantra that combines prevention and practicality to create innovative, business-centered, legally-compliant solutions. Making national clients happy takes a unique skill set, which Stephen has developed and honed during his 25+ years with the firm.

Before becoming a lawyer, Stephen served as the Manager of Administrative Services at The Greenville News (Greenville, SC), where he managed the HR function of this 500-employee newspaper publishing company.

Learn more about Stephen R. Woods

Stephen is a practical, plain-English counselor on a variety of subjects, including the following:

On the litigation front, Stephen represents employers on a variety of labor & employment issues, including national background check class actions.  Recently, he successfully settled a background check class action with one of the largest classes and lowest per-member payouts in history.  He also has successfully opposed the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s attempts to enforce an overly broad subpoena seeking national information from a client with operations in all 50 states.

Stephen is a top-rated, repeat speaker to groups and companies throughout the country on labor & employment topics.  He can make even the driest legal topic (think: the Fair Credit Reporting Act, FMLA, etc.) relatable and relevant to an employer’s current workplace and employment situations.

Education

Admission to Practice

Professional Activities

  • South Carolina Bar Association (Labor & Employment section)
  • Greenville (SC) Bar Association
  • National LGBT Bar Association

Speeches

Insights by Stephen R. Woods