A native of Decatur, Alabama, Woods graduated from Boalt Hall in 1949 where he was editor of the California Law Review.
[4] He led a team of staff lawyers (that included future First Lady Hillary Clinton)[5] examining constitutional and legal questions related to impeachment and the definition of "high crimes and misdemeanors" – one of the grounds stated in Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution for impeachment of a federal official.
[6] Since 1974, it has been used as a guidebook during two House presidential impeachment inquiries: against Bill Clinton in 1998 and against Donald Trump in 2019.
[5] Woods was a member of the National Council of the Institute of Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley and was president of the Alameda County Bar Association, representing Alameda County in the ABA House of Delegates from 1982 to 1990.
[1] A fellow of the American Bar Association from 1983, Woods served on the board of directors until his death and in later life wrote for the ABA's monthly newsletter.