Mr. Sokol is a graduate with honors from the University of Florida and graduated from Mercer Law School. Upon graduation from law school he worked for Georgia Legal Services Program, first as a Staff Attorney and then as a Senior Staff Attorney. As a Staff Attorney he handled a variety of civil cases. For a while, he specialized in mental health law, representing clients at Central State Hospital in Milledgeville, Georgia (once the largest mental hospital in the world). He was instrumental in developing and implementing the legal procedures that resulted from of the U.S. Supreme Court case of J.L. and J.R. v Parham, (a Georgia case handled by Georgia Legal Services) which protects minors from involuntary hospitalization without due process. He was also lead counsel in a class action case that reformed the physical facilities and conditions of the Binion Building of Central State Hospital. Mr. Sokol was also lead counsel on several class action lawsuits including a public housing case and a public school case, each of which led to significant positive changes for his clients. Mr. Sokol has tried many cases and represented clients in appeals in both the state and federal appellate courts.
As Senior Staff Attorney at Georgia Legal Services Mr. Sokol oversaw the legal work of several attorneys and paralegals. He also co-counseled in numerous cases that went to trial and appeal, including several class action law suits challenging the conditions of several county jails and state prisons. In 1995 he was awarded the Dan Bradley Legal Services Award by the State Bar of Georgia.
While practicing law Mr. Sokol was an active member of the Macon Bar Association. He served as treasurer and then Vice President of the Macon Bar Association. He also served as a member of the Macon-Bibb County Head Start Advisory Committee. Mr. Sokol co-founded the Bibb County Teen Court. The Bibb County Teen Court served as an alternative for juveniles charged with minor offenses allowing them to go to Teen Court instead of Juvenile Court and be judged and punished by their peers instead of a formal adjudication in Juvenile Court.
In 2002 Mr. Sokol became the Director of Paralegal Studies at Athens Technical College. As director of that program Mr. Sokol developed an extensive array of online courses, taught both in class and online, advised students, monitored internships, and handled administrative responsibilities (including reapprovals of the Paralegal Studies Program by the American Bar Association). He is proud to say that several of his students have gone on to become practicing attorneys. Many of his former students are now paralegals working with attorneys in the North Georgia area. In 2013 he was nominated for the Rick Perkins Award of Excellence for teaching instruction.
In 2017 Mr. Sokol retired from his position as Director of Paralegal Studies at Athens Technical College. Not wanting to totally leave the legal field and be full time retired Mr. Sokol attended training for civil and general mediation and domestic mediation and has become a registered mediator with the Georgia Supreme Court Commission on Dispute Resolution.