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Steve F. Wood

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Steve Wood, shareholder in the Nashville office, advises clients on matters related to business technology.

Professional Biography


Mr. Wood counsels tech companies, venture capital funds, health care providers, and financial services companies in a broad array of business and corporate transactional matters, from company formation, acquisitions, and financing transactions to health IT deals, and advises clients on privacy, information security, and HIPAA, GLBA, and PCI compliance matters.

Mr. Wood is well-versed in securities law and taxation and he has particular experience with software licensing and development agreements.  He served as the Chief Information Security Officer for Baker Donelson from 2009 through 2018.

In addition to nearly 30 years as a lawyer (including five years as a law professor at Vanderbilt Law School), Mr. Wood draws upon significant real-world business experience in representing his clients. He had a career in banking and commercial real estate finance prior to law school and later co-founded and was CEO of a successful financial services software business, including two years as division executive of the NYSE-listed firm that ultimately acquired his company. He also has served as an advisor and business consultant to several technology-related start-ups. These hands-on business experiences provide a valuable foundation for understanding the client’s strategic objectives beyond a purely legal perspective.

  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® for Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) (2015 – 2025); Privacy and Data Security Law (2018 – 2025); Technology Law (2018 – 2025); Information Technology Law (2023 – 2025); Venture Capital Law (2023 – 2025)
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2025, 2023, and 2020 Technology Law "Lawyer of the Year" in Nashville
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2019 and 2017 Business Organizations (including LLCs and Partnerships) "Lawyer of the Year" in Nashville
  • Selected to Mid-South Super Lawyers for Mergers & Acquisitions (2023)
  • Board of Directors, Nashville Capital Network (angel investing and entrepreneurial guidance organization)
  • Board of Directors, Nashville Technology Council
  • Founding Director, Nashville Entrepreneur Center 
  • American Health Law Association
  • American Bar Association, Section on Science and Technology
  • Professor, Vanderbilt University Law School, and Adjunct Professor, Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management
  • Business consultant and advisor to technology-oriented businesses
  • Division Executive, Ocwen Financial Corporation (NYSE:OCN)
  • Founder and CEO, Synergy Software, Inc. (financial services software)
  • Vice President, Woodmark, Inc. (real estate finance and investment services)
  • Real Estate Lending Officer, NCNB National Bank (predecessor to Bank of America)
  • Privacy and information security – Business Associate Agreements, regulatory compliance issues (HIPAA, GLBA, PCI, state law), information security requirements in vendor contracts, data breaches
  • Health information technology – development, licensing, and hosting agreements
  • IT aspects of hospital acquisitions – complicated transition services agreements
  • Software license agreements – both installed and hosted/ SaaS/cloud applications
  • Mobile apps (iPhone and Android) – development, hosting, and content management agreements
  • Software application development agreements
  • Data center hosting agreements
  • Large-scale IT outsourcing agreements
  • Online platform and web site click-through Terms of Service and Privacy Policies
  • Source code license and escrow agreements
  • Venture capital and angel financing – both investor and company representation
  • Represented a multi-concept restaurant company in a significant transaction for the sale of one of its business lines.
  • Outside general counsel – broad business-legal counsel to start-up and emerging companies
  • "Partnering with Large Corporations," Health: Further 2016 Conference, Nashville, Tennessee (August 2016)
  • "Financial Institutions and Data Breach Diligence" (May 2016)
  • "Handing Over the Keys to the Kingdom: The New Focus on Vendor Management in Information Security," Tennessee HIMSS (May 2015)
  • "Data has Left the Building: Understanding the Security Side of HIPAA" (December 2013)

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