Donald Woodard is a nationally recognized transactional lawyer who represents world renowned talent, high-profile athletes and companies in the entertainment and sports industries. Woodard’s impressive legal career has been spent primarily practicing law with AMLAW 100 law firms. He served as Chief Business Affairs/Deputy General Counsel at USA Track & Field until his departure in January 2021 to start Carter+Woodard, a boutique entertainment and sports law firm in Atlanta, GA.  An influential dealmaker, Woodard specializes in negotiating and structuring complex commercial transactions for businesses and individuals in all facets of their careers in the entertainment, music, and sports industries.

His client list includes Grammy nominee Summer Walker, Grammy award winning record producer Tricky Stewart, Big Boi of the legendary hip hop group OutKast, and the heavily streamed rising star NLE Choppa, among many other recording artists and record producers. Woodard advises Chicago Sky’s 2024 #7 WNBA draft pick, Angel Reese, who, while a collegiate athlete at LSU, was the first student-athlete to sign a sneaker and lifestyle deal with Reebok.  He also represents LSU basketball player Flau’jae Johnson, the first women’s college basketball player to sign a sneaker deal with Puma and a recording contract with Roc Nation.  He advises Colorado quarterback and 2025 Georgia’s High School Player of the Year, Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis who was the first high school football player to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated.  

He is a trusted advisor to corporate clients as well and counsels Rev Racing, a NASCAR-supported development racing team for female and minority drivers, USA Track & Field, and Central City Productions (television producers of the Stellar Awards, Black Music Honors, Black History Honors and other African American family friendly programming).  

Beyond his legal accomplishments, Woodard is widely respected by his peers as a leader within the legal community. He is consistently among an elite group of lawyers selected as a Top Hollywood Entertainment Lawyer by Variety Magazine, Top Music Lawyer by Billboard Magazine and Georgia Super Lawyer. He was recognized as one of the Top 10 To Watch in sports by Diverse Representation.   He is an advocate who fought for the right of all Georgia high school athletes to profit off their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).  He is widely known as a thought leader with respect to NIL in college and high school sports nationally. 

Woodard is a board member of the Judson Lyons Society, an organization serving Morehouse College and other students in the Atlanta University Center with an interest in a career in the legal profession.  He is a former member of the Board of the Black Entertainment and Sports Lawyers Association and Board of Governors for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Woodard grew up in Temple Hills, Maryland.  He is a graduate of Morehouse College and Indiana University-Maurer School of Law, Bloomington.