Partner
Christine N. Wood
Christine Wood is a partner and member of Best Best & Krieger LLP's (BBK) Special Districts practice group and has investigated and reported on allegations involving high-level appointed and elected officials over the course of her career. She has significant experience providing legal opinions and advice to municipalities on a wide range of issues, conducting investigations that support legal strategy and risk mitigation, and litigating cases involving the California Public Records Act and E-Discovery. Christine was also the first leader of BBK’s Advance Record Center, a team of lawyers and paralegals at BBK who focus on advising and assisting California government agencies responding to CPRA requests.
As an investigator, Christine has conducted pre-tort litigation investigations, helping legal teams anticipate liability exposure and develop proactive risk management strategies. By identifying potential vulnerabilities before formal claims are filed, Christine has played a crucial role in shaping early legal posture and minimizing trails including property records, corporate filings, court documents, regulatory data, and archival materials. Christine’s meticulous approach to record sourcing and verification has consistently provided attorneys, risk managers, and corporate clients with actionable insights.
Before joining BBK, Christine worked as an assistant general counsel at the Los Angeles Unified School District, the largest school district in California and the second largest in the country. In that capacity, Christine provided legal opinions, advice and training on PRA, the Brown and Greene acts, as well as school finance, including federal grant requirements and developer fees. Christine also represented clients in recoupment litigation, special education due process hearings, certificated and classified dismissals, as well as Pitchess motions on behalf of the Los Angeles School Police Department. Christine is also an experienced and sought-after trainer and presenter, with an easy and conversational style that clients appreciate.
In her spare time, Christine has served as a coach in the Trial Advocacy Honors Program at Southwestern Law School, where she helps trial teams with litigation strategies and advocacy. Although she has lived on the East Coast and in the Pacific Northwest, Christine was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she lives with her daughter.
- Southern California Super Lawyers, Women's Edition and Rising Stars, 2023
- Black Leader Worth Watching, Profiles in Diversity Journal, 2021
- Minority Leaders of Influence: Attorneys, L.A. Business Journal, 2021
- California Trailblazer, The Recorder, 2020
- Association of Certified E-Discovery, Certified E-Discovery Specialist
- California Lawyers Association Public Law Section Executive Committee, chair, 2020-2021
- Black Women Lawyers of Los Angeles, lifetime member
Publications
- “The Future of Private-Public Partnerships,” Daily Journal, February 20, 2025
- “Government Transparency Act Is A Shameful Abuse of the Initiative Process,” Daily Journal, Sept. 12, 2023
- “Peace Officer Records and the Public Records Act,” Daily Journal, March 5, 2020
- “Questions Emerge After High Court Public Records Decision,” Daily Journal, Sept. 12, 2018
Presentations
- “Do You Know the Way From San Jose?” Law Seminar International Annual Seminar on Public Records Act Litigation, Nov. 9, 2023
- “Tips for Managing the Records Retention Lifecycle,” California Special Districts Association, Board Secretary/Clerk Conference, Nov. 6, 2023
- “e-Discovery & Public Records,” International Municipal Lawyers Association Annual Conference WONK Breakfast, Sept. 29, 2023
- “Public Records Act Requests 2023,” Webinar, California Special Districts Association, Feb. 7, 2023
- “The Engineering of Public Records Processing,” California Special Districts Association Board Secretary Clerk Conference, Nov. 8, 2022
- “E-discovery: Not Just a Litigation Tool: ESI Primer for Public Records (FOIA) Requests," International Municipal Lawyers Association's Annual Conference, Oct. 21, 2022
- “Public Records Act Litigation,” Law Seminars International, Oct. 14, 2022
- “Earth – The Smart City: The Impacts of the Virtual Medium on Municipal Law Practice,” Municipal Law Institute Virtual Symposium, Mar. 18, 2022
- “The Engineering of Public Records Processing,” League of California Cities City Clerks New Law and Elections Seminar, Dec. 8, 2021
- “ESI Primer for Public Records (FOIA) Requests,” International Municipal Lawyers Association’s Annual Conference, Oct. 1, 2021
- “ESI Primer for PRA Requests,” 2021 Virtual Solo and Small Firm Summit, California Lawyers Association, June 25, 2021
- “Social Media Law: Understanding Social Media, the First Amendment and the Brown Act,” City Clerks Association of California's Annual Conference, Apr. 8, 2021
- “2021 Public Records Act Legislative Update,” BBK Webinar, Feb. 18, 2021
- “Social Media and the First Amendment,” Virtual Clerk Training Workshop, City Clerks Association of California, Jan. 20 and 27, 2021
- “Comments, Likes and Emojis, Oh My! An Update on Evolving Social Media Law for Public Officials and Agencies,” BBK Webinar, Nov. 18, 2020
- “Something Old, New, Borrowed, but not Blue...,” Webinar, California Special Districts Association, July 22, 2020
- “Case Study: California Public Records Act Lessons from the Sukumar Case,” BBK Webinar, July 16, 2020
- “Distinguishing Personal and Public Records,” BBK Webinar, June 18, 2020
- “Judicial and Legislative Update,” Law Seminars International Seminar, June 12, 2020
- “A Review of National Lawyers Guild v. City of Hayward's Impact on the California Public Records Act and Video Records,” BBK Webinar, June 4, 2020
- “Best Practices for Handling a Surge in CPRA Requests Post-COVID-19,” BBK Webinar, May 20, 2020
- “Top Ten Public Records Act Tips in the COVID-19 Era,” California Lawyers Association, Open Meetings and Open Records Digital Conference, May 15, 2020
- “Electronic Records: Considerations for Public Agencies to Ensure State Law Compliance,” BBK Webinar, Mar. 26, 2020
- “Exploring the CPRA's Investigatory Privilege," BBK Webinar, Jan. 21, 2020
- “ESI Primer for Public Record Act Requests,” League of California Cities City Clerks New Law & Elections Seminar, Dec. 11, 2019
- “Public Records Laws, Requests and Responses - What You Need to Know,” 2019 CSDA Annual Conference and Exhibitor Showcase, Sept. 26, 2019
- “Producing Police Video and Audio Records,” BBK Webinar, July 30, 2019
- “Update: Social Media Meets the First Amendment,” BBK Webinar, June 18, 2019
- “An Update on the State of the PRA and Police Personnel Records,” California Lawyers Association's Open Meetings and Open Records Conference, May 31, 2019
- April Chapter Meeting, Southern California Inland Empire ARMA Chapter, April 17, 2019
- City Clerks Association of California, May 3, 2019
- “Social Media and the First Amendment,” CCAC Annual Conference, City Clerks Association of California, April 4, 2019
- “ESI Primer for PRA Requests,” 2018 E-Discovery Day at The Par Center, Practice Aligned Resources, Dec. 4, 2018
- “ESI Primer for PRA Requests,” BBK Webinar, Oct. 24, 2018
- “Social Media Meets the First Amendment,” BBK Webinar, July 11, 2018
- “Do You Know the Way [After] San Jose?” BBK Webinar, June 26, 2018
- “Public Records Act - Taming the Email Tiger,” BBK Webinar, May 23, 2018
