ABOUT RICH KRAMBEER  - THIRD PARTY NEUTRAL

General Background/Experience

          Rich Krambeer actively practiced Law for over 30 years, representing clients and conducting trials in Family Court and in Criminal and Civil cases.  Twice named a Minnesota Super Lawyer by his peers, nationally recognized lawyer peer rating service Martindale Hubble has also long rated him “AV 5.0 Pre-eminent” - their highest rating for competence and ethics.  Several times, he was a presenter at the Annual Family Law Institute on the topic “Real Estate Issues in Family Law”.

          While he tried cases when necessary, his preferred outcome was always to obtain the best settlement possible for clients instead.  After decades of successfully negotiating hundreds of settlements for clients, Rich became a Qualified Neutral on the Minnesota Supreme Court roster for Civil cases in 2003 and for Family cases in 2004.

          He has served in private practice as a mediator, and as an evaluator in Social and Financial Early Neutral Evaluations (ENE’s).  He also has voluntarily done church-related mediations and been a volunteer mediator and Parenting Time Expeditor for Community Mediation and Restorative Services, Inc., and has participated in training other mediators and has presented a day-long seminar on Resolving Church Conflict to seminarians.

          As a school board member and in the State Legislature, Rich skillfully dealt with a variety of controversies.  He typically took the lead in bringing disputing factions together to resolve difficult community issues.

Serving as a Neutral Decision-Maker

          Rich is also well suited to serve as a Consensual Special Magistrate in contested cases.  He has successfully briefed and argued Minnesota Court of Appeals cases, including a case in which he established the method for valuing the seller’s interest in an ongoing Contract for Deed that is still good law today.  He has prepared dozens of sets of proposed Findings of Fact and Order or Judgment and Decree documents.  He has served as a school district labor grievance hearing officer.  His written Decision as a hearing officer in a dispute over a student’s athletic eligibility was upheld by the State High School League.

Cases Involving Children - Unique Qualifications/Experience

          In cases involving children, Rich has unique qualifications.  Most important, he is a father and a grandfather  In addition, for several years he and his wife were foster parents.  They did short-term emergency shelter care for adolescents, cared for young children of parents with chemical abuse problems, and provided the family of a mentally challenged child regular respite care.  Their training included child development, family systems, alcohol/drug issues, teen suicide, etc.  He has also been court appointed to perform custody evaluations.  While serving as a school board member, he gained additional insight into problems involving both parents and children, including the particular challenges faced by families with a child with special needs.

Other Real Life Experiences/Qualifications

          A Vietnam veteran, he has insight into problems faced by veterans and their families.

          A former prosecutor with both a close relative and a close friend in law enforcement, he has represented many law enforcement officers or their spouses in Family Court.  He knows the unique issues that arise in their lives.

          He knows many people in various medical professions and related fields and has been the attorney for physicians, nurses, dentists, and other medical professionals, or their spouses.  Rich is well suited to help resolve disputes involving someone in the medical professions.

          Those working in the skilled trades typically have special circumstances in their cases.  Whether those relate to owning a small business, seasonal layoffs, or complicated union benefits, Rich likely has dealt with them.  He personally knows a number of people, and he has relatives who are in the trades and has represented both tradesmen and the spouses of tradesmen in court cases. 

          A former school board member, he personally knows many teachers or teachers’ spouses.  He has had many cases involving educators and their unusual schedules and employment benefits.  This gives Rich much insight into those types of cases.

          Rich feels comfortable assisting and communicating with people of all backgrounds.  He has practiced Law and lived in the city and has practiced Law and lived in rural areas.

          He has represented clients whose financial situation was very modest, clients whose net worth was more than a million dollars, and those in situations in between.  Rich has experience problem-solving a broad range of financial issues, regardless of the income and net asset value of the parties.