William Allen Woods
Judge Woods no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.
How Judge Woods decides
Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.
Procedural preferences
Woods enforced strict preservation limits after a bench trial: without a special finding and a complete bill of exceptions, appellate review could not be used to reweigh evidence or revisit denial of a new trial.
“to determine whether there was error in that respect would involve an examination of the evidence, which in a case tried by the court without the aid of a jury is not within the power or jurisdiction of this court.”
A shareholder derivative complaint required concrete compliance with the demand requirement; generalized assertions that directors were aligned with alleged wrongdoers did not establish futility.
“A failure to seek action on the part of the corporation itself cannot be excused by vague and general averments of complicity on the part of the directors in the wrongs against which relief is sought.”
Cautions
Woods distinguished ordinary care from maximal precautions. A jury could not be told that a railroad had to adopt the most efficient safety method when the legal duty was ordinary diligence.
“The implication here is that the company was bound to adopt the most efficient mode of discharging a duty,—a proposition which is inconsistent -with the correct statement, which preceded, that the duty of the company was to use ordinary diligence.”
Signed rulings
A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.
“The judgment below is therefore affirmed.”
“The judgment of the circuit court is therefore reversed, and the cause remanded, with instructions to grant a new trial.”
“There is no error in the record, and the judgment is affirmed.”
“The judgment below is reversed, at the cost of the defendant in error, with direction to grant a new trial.”
Caseload & timing
From public federal docket records for this judge.
Circuit judges do not carry a single assigned trial caseload. Woods's earlier District of Indiana service is outside this appellate record.
A historical record
Judge Woods no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.