W. Swain Wood
Contact Information
1330 St. Mary's Street
Suite 460
Raleigh, North Carolina 27605
Direct Dial: (919) 829-7001
Main Line: (919) 829-7394
Facsimile: (919) 829-7396
Swain Wood is an experienced commercial and intellectual property litigator. He has been selected on multiple occasions by fellow North Carolina lawyers as a member of Business North Carolina magazine's "Legal Elite," and has an AV® peer-rating through Martindale-Hubbell, the highest rating given by that organization.
Swain has successfully litigated dozens of complex litigation and intellectual property matters around the US involving issues such as copyright infringement, trademark infringement, unfair competition, products liability, trade secrets, and commercial disputes. Swain is regularly involved in matters involving software, the music industry, e-commerce, literary and artistic property, and First Amendment and open government issues. Swain's clients range from publicly traded, market-leading technology companies to best-selling authors, musicians, and publishers, to many pro bono clients.
Examples of Swain's experience include the following:
- Winning the largest reported court judgment in North Carolina during 2009 (as reported to North Carolina Lawyers Weekly), a judgment of more than $11,000,000, on behalf of a High Point, NC-based furniture manufacturer. The case involved claims of copyright infringement, unfair competition, and unfair and deceptive trade practices, as well as cutting-edge issues relating to the legal protectability of decorative furniture designs. It was affirmed on appeal by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in August 2010.
- Representing the winning publisher and author in the landmark Wind Done Gone copyright infringement case, which involved a literary parody of Gone With the Wind. The case involved cutting-edge issues relating to the interplay between the First Amendment, the Fair Use doctrine, and copyright law.
- Bringing a First Amendment/freedom of speech case against the North Carolina Department of Correction on behalf of an imprisoned novelist who had been punished by prison officials for writing books. As part of an out-of-court settlement, the State changed its official policies to allow inmates to write books for publication as long as they do not profit by doing so.
- Defending a software copyright and license case where liability was undisputed, and obtaining a trial result that was less than three percent (3%) of the opposing party's claim.
Swain also devotes a substantial amount of time to pro bono legal efforts on behalf of individuals and charitable and public interest organizations.
Prior to founding the predecessor of Wood Jackson PLLC in 2006, Mr. Wood practiced with Kilpatrick Stockton in Atlanta and Raleigh, and served from 1999-2000 as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Georgia.
Born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Swain has lived and worked in Washington, D.C., London, Chicago, Boston, and Atlanta.
Education
- Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1997
- Georgetown University, A.B., 1992, Phi Beta Kappa
- University of London, King’s College, 1991
Bar Admissions
- North Carolina State Courts
- United States District Court
- Eastern District of North Carolina
- Middle District of North Carolina
- Western District of North Carolina
- Northern District of Georgia
- Middle District of Georgia
- United States Courts of Appeal
- Fourth Circuit
- Eleventh Circuit
- Georgia State Courts
- Georgia Supreme Court
Professional Associations
- North Carolina Bar Association
- Wake County Bar Association
- North Carolina Advocates for Justice
* CV, BV, and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedure's standards and policies.
