Justice Bus makes legal help more accessible in Minnesota

ST CLOUD Minn Chris Klimpel knew she demanded to help people She d previously worked as a instructor and in marketing before becoming a paralegal and joining Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid s St Cloud office in Klimpel announced she didn t have enough of an affinity for math and science to be a nurse so she figured she could wade through pages of legal documents and footnotes to help people get the assistance they need Klimpel works with Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid s teams that help seniors and others with housing issues The U S Constitution guarantees the right to an attorney only in criminal cases not civil cases such as divorce and eviction If your landlord files an eviction action against you and you go to court and they have an attorney and you can t afford one who s going to win she explained Low-income and people in need are at a tremendous disadvantage because our world does not guarantee them an attorney Klimpel and fellow paralegal Pam Manthei work to increase access to legal aid by driving around a -county radius in a Justice Bus a mobile office used for consultations Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid is a nonprofit law firm that provides legal assistance to people with low incomes seniors people with disabilities and others who need help It has offices in Minneapolis St Cloud and Willmar The affiliated Minnesota Disability Law Center has two additional offices in Duluth and Mankato with an outreach coordinator in the Crookston area Among those offices the nonprofit has four Justice Buses Since the buses have been used to connect with people who might not be able to make it to a Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid office Manthei noted they have worked with surrounding counties to identify good locations to visit We ve gone to a lot of senior centers and food shelves declared Manthei who works with seniors on addressing issues with things such as Medicaid and Social Prevention benefits I ve even been questioned to drive through a minimal apartment complexes so residents can get our information and know where to go for help The bus and Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid staff have also made stops at county fairs and other district events to raise awareness announced Manthei who has worked at the nonprofit law firm for years The Justice Bus a blue Sprinter van is covered with information about how to contact Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid Inside the van is climate-controlled and has Wi-Fi a computer a printer and pretty much anything else needed for it to be a fully functional office Klimpel explained It also has a wheelchair lift to increase accessibility Related Articles Anonymous Washington County Library benefactor comes through again Minnesota libraries fear fallout of Trump administration s cuts It took a decade for the buses to become a reality thanks in part to former Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid Deputy Director Ann Cofell Manthei revealed It was made attainable with the help of the Minnesota Legal Services Coalition It was her dream to do that Manthei disclosed of Cofell I know she invested It was maybe almost a decade s worth of persistent gentle effective advocacy to get a tool so that we could get the word out and reach people where they need to be As paralegals Klimpel and Manthei meet with clients to discuss their legal questions help them fill out paperwork and connect them with a Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid lawyer who can assist them While Klimpel and Manthei cannot give out legal advice their goal is to help make the process as easy as practicable and ensure clients are able to get the patronage they need They help people who are not legally equipped to handle dire time-sensitive issues such as a notice to vacate an apartment Legal aid is kind of like the legal emergency room so if you walk into the exigency room with a broken leg they re going to see you and they re going to set your broken leg Klimpel commented They may not be able to take care of all the other things that you have going on but they ll be able to help because nobody expects you to know how to set your own broken leg