Following graduation from Indiana University with a Bachelors degree in Chemistry and Biology, Sam attended Valparaiso University School of Law and received his Juris Doctor degree in 1986.

Sam then went to work in the Lake County Prosecutor’s Office, working as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in the misdemeanor division. After one year, he was assigned to the felony division where he spent the next three years as a felony trial attorney. For two of the three years he spent in the felony division, he tried more jury trials than anyone else in the Prosecutor’s Office.

During his fifth year, Sam was promoted to Trial Supervisor. In addition to his many assignments, he was responsible for reviewing cases, assigning cases, and overseeing the trial attorneys at trial. He did this for a year before going into private practice.

In 1991, he joined a private law firm in East Chicago, Indiana where he engaged in the general practice of law. In 1992, he was selected by the Indiana Supreme Court to sit as “Judge Pro Tempore” for an open county court judge position. Sam presided as judge for half a year until a replacement was selected. He then returned to the law firm until 1994, when he opened his own law firm in Highland, Indiana, focusing on personal injury cases and criminal defense. Cappas & Associates continues to emphasize these areas of law.

Sam is a member of the Lake County Criminal Defense Bar Association, American Trial Lawyers Association (ATLA), Lake County Bar Association, and the Indiana Trial Lawyers Association (ITLA).  Sam is also active in the community, serving on the Building Fund Committee and on the Board of St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Schererville, Indiana.