Howard Sokol

Howard Sokol is a partner in the Litigation Section of Holland & Knight's New York City office, practices within the Labor, Employment and Benefits Group and is co-chair of the firm’s OSHA, Workplace Safety and Whistleblower Claims Team. He represents management in myriad labor and employment matters before both state and federal courts, as well as local, state and federal administrative agencies and arbitral tribunals.

Mr. Sokol's experience includes representing private sector national and international employers in matters and disputes involving employment discrimination, harassment and retaliation; whistleblowing; restrictive covenants; employment-related torts; including defamation, negligent hiring and retention, unfair competition, conversion and misappropriation of trade secrets; wage and hour claims; multi-employer pension plan withdrawal liability, labor antitrust, union organizing; collective bargaining; occupational safety and health; workers compensation and unemployment; and disability access and accommodation.

Mr. Sokol also regularly provides counsel and advice to clients across numerous industries wide-ranging in size, including developing personnel practices and employment policies; preparing employment agreements and executive contracts; negotiating separation and severance agreements; planning acquisitions, closures, and relocations; strategizing restructuring; and on many other aspects of management-workforce relationships and their commercial impact on clients' business goals and operational necessities.

Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Sokol worked as a management and marketing consultant focused primarily on developing targeted print advertising and promotional advertising and sales campaigns for, among other businesses, those in the financial services, insurance, retail and consumer, and communications industry sectors.

While in law school, Mr. Sokol was selected as a member and then an editor of the St. John's Law Review. He also is a contributing author to the American Bar Association's treatise, Occupational Safety and Health Law and regularly publishes articles and presents at conferences and other events on a variety of noteworthy topics and key developments across the labor and employment spectrum.