Shelly F. Wood

Larachelle “Shelly” Wood is a native of Chesapeake and attended Deep Creek High School, as did her mom and all her mother’s siblings. She attended ODU and graduated in 1997 with a B.S. in Political Science and a minor in Criminal Justice. Shelly knew she wanted to attend law school and throughout college and law school she worked part-time with local attorneys as a legal assistant in the areas of family and criminal law. Shelly attended Regent University School of Law and graduated in 2001. In law school, she competed on the mock trial team and served as an officer for the American Bar Association. In her third year of law school, Shelly obtained a third-year practice license and practiced as an intern with the Norfolk Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. After passing the bar exam, Shelly’s career began as a Public Defender for the City of Norfolk in 2002 handling misdemeanor and felony cases. Shelly went into private practice in January 2004 doing family law, including serving as a Guardian ad Litem on custody matters, and serving as court-appointed counsel for indigent defendants. Shelly also served as a Substitute Judge for a six-year term having been appointed by the Judges of the Chesapeake Circuit Court. Shelly continues to handle criminal and traffic cases in addition to her active family law practice. Shelly successfully ran her own law firm for 14 years before seizing the opportunity to become the Managing Partner for the Chesapeake office of PZ in 2000. The merger allowed Shelly to offer a wide variety of legal services while maintaining her Chesapeake roots. The Chesapeake office has continued to grow and flourish. Attorney Shelly F. Wood answers this question and more during Family Law Fridays!