Mrs. Sorel has been practicing general civil law in Maryland and in the District of Columbia for over 20 years.

Education.

• Yale University.  Mrs. Sorel was among the first classes of women admitted to Yale, where she received her B.A. in Political Science in three years.
• Georgetown University.  Mrs. Sorel received her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center in 1980, passed the bar, and was admitted to practice in the District of Columbia. In 1990 she sought and was granted admission to practice in the State of Maryland.

Experience.  Since opening her Potomac, Maryland office, Mrs. Sorel has handled diverse cases concerning all aspects of divorce law (including property division, alimony, child support, and contested custody), estates and trust law (including estate planning, probate, and contested probate), personal injury (including accident and malpractice claims), business law (including contracts, collections, corporations, and LLCs), and real estate law (including homeowners association matters, boundary disputes, wet basements, and fraud) Her extensive litigation, trial (including jury trials) and general legal experience have made her a strong and effective negotiator and advocate on behalf of her clients.

• Family Law. Mrs. Sorel has extensive experience in virtually every aspect of family law, including divorce, post-judgment enforcement, modifications, and appeals. She has represented clients through complex property and support disputes, as well as contested custody matters. Mrs. Sorel has also served the Court by representing children in family law matters as a Best Interests Attorney (formerly known as Guardian ad Litem).
• Estates, Trusts, and Probate.  Estate planning to maximize objectives and facilitate probate and/or probate avoidance is an area in which Mrs. Sorel has extensive experience. Ms. Sorel has conducted probate of large and small asset estates, and assisted clients with contested probate.
• Business and International Law. Mrs. Sorel has served as General Counsel for several corporations. She has represented international businesses in both projects and disputes. In recent years she has focused particularly both on assisting companies with bankruptcy avoidance through the use of creative work-out strategies, and on collections.
• Appellate.  Through her appellate work involving statutes of limitation, civil battery, and the intentional infliction of emotional distress, Mrs. Sorel helped to create milestones in the development of those areas of law. See: Ford v. Douglas, 799 A.2d 448 (Md.App. 2002)

Professional Affiliations.  Admitted to practice law in Maryland and in the District of Columbia Courts, Mrs. Sorel also practices before the federal Courts in both jurisdictions. She is a member in good standing of the District of Columbia Bar, the Maryland State Bar Association, the Bar Association for Montgomery County, Maryland, the Maryland Women’s Bar Association, the Montgomery County Women’s Bar Association, and the Sobeloff Society. She has served her professional community for several years as a member of the Judicial Nominations Review Committee of the Women’s Bar Association, the Ethic Committee of the Bar Association for Montgomery County, and the Lawyer-to-Lawyer Committee of the Bar Association for Montgomery County.

In the community.  Mrs. Sorel has been an active member of her local community. She has served as (past) Treasurer for the National Capital Area Chapter of A.W.A.R.E.; Vice President of the American Psychiatric Association Alliance; President of the Potomac, Maryland Chamber of Commerce; Director and Ombudsperson for local religious organizations; director and general counsel for the Potomac Theater Company; founding director of the Friends of the Library for Potomac, Maryland; (former) Coach for the Churchill High School Mock Trial Team; Judge and Scorer for the District of Columbia Street Law Project Mock Trials; Secretary and member of the Board of Directors of her homeowners’ association, and she has been active in her local PTAs and PTSAs. Personal. Christiane E. Sorel is married with two adult children, and has resided in the Greater Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area since 1977.