Sam Calvert has been practicing law in St. Cloud since 1978. He is a graduate of William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota.
I understand the financial pressures my clients face because I experienced some of these same pressures growing up. I know that most of my clients end up in debt through no fault of their own. People call me because their income fell or their expenses rose. For instance, people get laid off because the business closes or moves away.
Or they get divorced and when there was barely enough money to run one household before the divorce, suddenly there are two places to rent, two gas bills, two electric bills, two water bills, etc. Or people get sick and incur a lot of medical bills because they have crummy insurance or no insurance at all. Or they take a risk and start a business, but the business does not succeed.
I understand the fear of having debt you cannot pay. Having creditors and collectors after you can be scary and overwhelming. But the law protects a lot of what you own. The most rewarding part of my job is showing people that they can get get a fresh start.
Bankruptcy: Sam was formerly a member of the private panel of bankruptcy trustees for chapter 7 and a chapter 12 trustee. His bankruptcy practice now focuses on representing people in financial distress and individual or small business creditors–not large corporations.
Real Estate: Sam is a Real Property Specialist, certified by the Real Property Section of the Minnesota State Bar Association. He has examined literally thousands of abstracts of title to land in Central Minnesota. He enjoyed teaching a class at St. Cloud State University, and hopes to do more teaching in the future.