About Mrs. Sybil Bates
Mrs. Sybil Bates McCormack took a less direct route to law than many of her peers. She read English at Cornell University, earning a B.A. in 1982. The study of literature and language shaped her thinking, she says, and ultimately led her back to school. She earned her J.D. from Texas Southern University’s Thurgood Marshall School of Law in 1994.
After law school, McCormack built a practice in Georgia. She has spent years handling matters that arise when the workplace breaks down. Her membership in the National Employment Lawyers Association, which she joined in 2013, aligns with that work. The association connects attorneys who represent employees in disputes over wages, discrimination and workplace rights. McCormack’s path reflects that professional circle.
Her résumé combines courtroom work and counseling. She prepares pleadings, negotiates settlements and appears in hearings when cases require advocacy. Colleagues describe her as methodical in preparing a case and straightforward with clients about options and risks. She balances the demands of litigation with the practical need to resolve matters when doing so serves the client’s interests.
At the same time, she keeps an eye on the statutes and regulations that shape employment law in Georgia. Changes at the state and federal level alter the arguments that lawyers can make and the remedies available to workers. McCormack has pointed clients to administrative bodies and courts when those venues offered the clearest path to relief.
She joined Barrett & Farahany, LLP, where she practices alongside other attorneys who handle employment-related matters. The firm environment gives her cases access to wider resources while letting her work directly with clients who seek representation in workplace disputes. She is active in professional networks and maintains ties to peers who litigate similar issues.
Outside of the office she has continued to follow legal developments that affect employees. Her background in English and later training at Thurgood Marshall School of Law inform how she frames arguments and drafts documents. She aims for clarity in court filings and in conversations with clients, avoiding legalese when possible.
In her current practice at Barrett & Farahany, LLP, she concentrates on employment law matters.
