About Me

MY EXPERIENCE

For 12 years, I practiced at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, where consumer law was my main focus — defending people against debt collectors, claiming exemptions for protected funds, disputing wrongful or illegal debts, and pushing back on companies that took advantage of people who didn't know their rights or couldn't defend themselves. I represented hundreds of clients in court or directly against opposing parties, and advised several thousand more.

I was lead attorney on a class action against a debt buyer we alleged was filing lawsuits built on inadmissible evidence, working with co-counsel on strategy, drafting, and discovery. We won an early motion for a temporary stay, and the case settled with an agreement to drop lawsuits against hundreds of Minnesotans.

That work gave me a deep, practical understanding of what people go through at every stage of debt collection — and it pushed me to help build out the broader network of help available to consumers. I taught CLEs for groups like the Minnesota Legal Services Coalition and the Volunteer Lawyers Network, created training materials for pro bono attorneys, and started a walk-in conciliation court legal clinic for people being sued by collectors. I also helped draft two Minnesota laws: one closed a loophole debt collectors were using to have debtors arrested, and the other required debt buyers to show admissible evidence when requesting default judgments.

I started Carvell Legal Counsel to keep doing this work for the many people who need it but don't qualify for Legal Aid due to income or program limits. My approach hasn't changed: give people a clear, honest picture of their options so they can decide what's right for them — and, where I can, stay with them through the whole process instead of sending them elsewhere.

A LITTLE ABOUT ME

Before law, I taught high school band for eight years. I went back to school at what was then a brand-new law program at the University of St. Thomas, looking for a less traditional path into the profession — and during my first year, I worked on a project fighting credit-card boilerplate. That's where I fell in love with consumer law. I think the years I spent teaching still shape how I practice: a good explanation is a good explanation, whether it's a chord progression or a court filing.

I still get my music fix as the director of Chapel Strings, a community orchestra that performs at nursing homes and assisted living communities in the Twin Cities.