Mission Statement
Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid's mission is to advocate for the legal rights of disadvantaged people to have safe, healthy, and independent lives in strong communities.
Impact and Programs
Accomplishments
Last year, Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (Legal Aid) provided life stabilizing legal services to 16,650 children and adults living in 7,200 households, helping them meet their essential needs and combat individual, systemic, and community challenges. Legal Aid helped our clients secure or retain more than $12 million in economic resources, remain stably housed, access healthcare, work toward citizenship, and defend other basic rights.
Legal Aid has expanded our Community Clinic program in pursuit of a key element of our Racial Justice Value’s Statement, “Ensuring our work is rooted in the communities we serve.” Legal Aid has partnered with a collection of trusted organizations to place legal aid attorneys in our clients’ neighborhoods. Our Clinic Attorneys help our clients with a wide variety of legal needs. In all things, our Clinics strive to be accessible, integrated, and comprehensive.
Legal Aid leverages policy advocacy and impact litigation to improve policies and systems impacting Minnesotans statewide. In one example, attorneys from Legal Aid’s Disability Law Center, in partnership with pro bono counsel, settled a federal court class action on behalf of individuals with disabilities living in group homes. Each plaintiff sought to live in a more individualized and integrated housing option but had not been able to proceed with their wishes. People with disabilities throughout Minnesota will now enjoy greater agency and opportunity.
Current Goals
Legal Aid's goal is to provide effective civil legal assistance to as many eligible families and individuals as possible each year to enable them to live safe, health, and independent lives. We do not set annual goals for service. The board receives detailed case information on an annual basis. Legal Aid has a priorities statement for each area of civil law.
Community or Constituency Served
Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (Legal Aid) provides a wide range of free civil legal services to people with low incomes, people with disabilities, seniors and immigrants.
Geographic Area Served
Legal Aid provides a wide range of free civil legal services to people with low incomes in more than 20 counties in central Minnesota through offices in Minneapolis, St. Cloud, and Willmar, and we serve people with disabilities statewide.
