LAOC Celebrates 50 Years of Service to Olmsted County

This spring, Legal Assistance of Olmsted County (LAOC) marks a major milestone: 50 years of providing meaningful access to justice for those who need it most. Since 1973, LAOC staff, volunteer lawyers, and board members have helped thousands of people navigate the legal system. LAOC is one of only two single-county legal organizations in Minnesota helping residents with low incomes resolve critical life-altering legal issues.

In recognition of its five decades of service, LAOC hosted a ribbon-cutting with the Rochester Area Chamber of Commerce on March 23 and will also hold a year-long fundraising campaign with the goal of raising $50,000 to support its critical work. LAOC assisted more than 2,400 people in 2022 but continues to maintain a waitlist.

“Now more than ever legal aid is critical for those in need,” said executive director Karen Fairbairn Nath. “The pandemic impacted our communities of color, especially those in poverty disproportionately. The incredible increase in applications to LAOC since March 2020 reflects that.”

As part of the celebration, LAOC recently unveiled its new website and logo where applicants and the public can learn more about its services, eligibility criteria, volunteer opportunities and more.

Bill Would Offer Protection from Eviction for Renters Seeking Assistance

Last June, when protections for tenants seeking help from RentHelpMN expired, there was nothing to stop eviction actions from moving forward, even as financial hardships endured for many in the wake of the pandemic. Now, proposed legislation supported by housing advocates, including Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (MMLA), could prevent eviction for non-payment of rent as long as the tenant has a pending application for rental assistance with a federal, state or local agency.

Mary Kaczorek, managing attorney with MMLA, told KSTP News, “COVID is still very real. You have people paying a ton of their income to their rent and they get COVID, a family member dies, or their car gets in a car accident, just one thing can change their whole situation. They fall behind in their rent and because these protections are not in place their landlord can file right away.”

The Minnesota Multi-Housing Association supports the concept of the proposed bill, but hopes that reasonable guidelines, particularly about time limits, are added so that both residents and property owners will benefit. Read more on KSTP.com.

LASNEM Featured in January/February 2023 Edition of Duluthian Magazine

In “Striving to Provide Safety, Security, and Stability,” Duluthian Magazine offers its readers a thorough introduction to the far-reaching work of the Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota (LASNEM).

The publication’s overview begins with LASNEM’s 1952 charter by members of the local bar association and delves into how the organization’s mission has remained primary, as its services and priorities have expanded.

With a service area of 27,683 square miles, LASNEM is led by executive director Dori Rapaport and a staff of dedicated professionals serving eleven counties with offices in Duluth, Brainerd, Grand Rapids, Virginia and Pine City.

The article explains how much of LASNEM’s advocacy work accelerated during the pandemic with unprecedented opportunities to respond to client needs with more precision, speed, and efficacy. Some of the projects discussed include virtual housing court and staff expansion through virtual services, the Legal Kiosk and Justice Bus initiatives for meeting clients where they are, incorporation of a business improvement model that includes a call center intake process, and other outreach efforts aimed at “taking it to the streets” to raise awareness of legal aid and the importance of funding civil legal services.

“We want people to understand the critical nature of the work we do,” Rapaport said. Read the article (PDF).

LASNEM and ALS Discuss Impact of Virtual Court

In October’s cover story for Bench & Bar of Minnesota, remote court proceedings are the new normal and what that means for clients, attorneys and the courts is explored. Dori Rapaport, executive director of Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota (LASNEM), discusses the impact of virtual court on her program’s clients and legal aid in “Courtrooms without borders.”

Before the prevalence of remote court, LASNEM staff were forced to make difficult decisions. The logistics of appearing in court for one client in Duluth and for another the same day in Grand Marais, three hours away, was sometimes insurmountable. With the use of “Zoom court” responsiveness to clients has increased dramatically and made it easier to secure representation. Clients have also benefitted by not having to take time off work and find child-care or transportation.

“Because we had virtual courts, we could coordinate all the housing hearings in one calendar. It was one referee hearing all the cases and he became a subject matter expert,” Rapaport said. “Instead of picking and choosing where we could drive to and pick which clients we could help, we could represent them all.”

Litigation director Valerie Field of Anishinabe Legal Services (ALS) has mixed feelings about the impact of remote court. ALS provides civil legal services in tribal and state courts and many of their clients have limited access to the internet. The tribal courts have developed different pandemic approaches, with some remote, some mostly in-person, and some, like Leech Lake, a mix of both.

For more about the benefits of remote court in greater Minnesota and the metro, as well as drawbacks, and a view from the bench, read the full article.

MMLA St. Cloud Named Impact Organization of the Year

The United Way of Central Minnesota recently honored Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid (MMLA) - Saint Cloud with its Impact Organization of the Year award.

The United Way recognizes many outstanding individuals and organizations throughout the year for their contributions to local and regional communities. With the 2022 Impact Organization of the Year Award, MMLA - St. Cloud was recognized for staff responsiveness to pandemic challenges through its work to meet the housing eviction crisis, and the development of creative partnership responses with the court system to handle the wave of evictions after the moratorium was lifted.

The development of consolidated multi-county housing court calendars, direct community outreach via the Justice Bus and Legal Kiosks, and the work of staff to help people get access to much needed health insurance were also praised with the award. Additionally, a significant impact was made through medical/legal partnerships with clinics in five communities, and a community partnership with Promise Neighborhood, a grassroots organization which serves low-income families and children.

Ann Cofell, deputy director of MMLA - St. Cloud, noted that the pandemic years have been particularly difficult for both clients and staff, but that everyone has pulled together—tech staff, finance people, intake staff, secretaries, paralegals, attorneys, supervisors—to innovate and meet the need.

“This award is particularly gratifying because it recognizes our work serving individuals, and the impact of that work on the community as a whole. The understanding that the work of Legal Aid keeping people housed, and fed, and healthy, and safe really makes the whole community stronger, and this award recognizes that,” Cofell said.