Self-Help Legal Materials

The LawHelpMN website focuses on providing information and assistance covering civil legal topics and situations. The site contains helpful information for learning about common legal problems, obtaining legal assistance, locating legal forms and information and contact information for local, state, federal and tribal courts. Many of the materials on the site are available in a variety of foreign languages. Documents are also available in html and pdf format. The site also has links to LawHelp web sites for other states.

FormHelper, part of the LawHelpMN web site (above), provides online legal forms and assistance in filling out forms and letters related to common legal situations and problems in family law, health care and other powers, abuse and harrasment, debts, fees and deposits and landlord tenant. Assistance with some forms is available in Spanish.

A Reach Justice Minnesota initiative and a project of the Minnesota Legal Services Coalition. Includes a list of Legal Kiosk locations in Minnesota.

The Minnesota Attorney General's Office website provides a number of consumer rights publications and information covering various popular legal issues such as buying a car, avoiding fraud, getting quality health care, knowing your rights as a landlord or tenant, investigating charities and dealing with the utilities. There is a special section for senior citizens and a downloadable consumer complaint form.

The Minnesota State Bar Association provides information on selecting a lawyer through its free online lawyer search and referral service, mnfindalawyer.com..

The Minnesota Judicial Branch provides court forms in fillable PDF format for specific legal problems. In addition to the court forms, the Minnesota Judicial Branch also has a Self Help Center which "is intended for people who need to handle a legal problem in Minnesota District Court." It provides information for several legal issues common in state district court, including Divorce, Criminal Expungement, Judgments, Domestic Abuse, and Landlord & Tenant.

Representing Yourself (Pro Se) is designed for individuals representing themselves in Minnesota Federal District Court. The site contains several documents that provide practical information, including a Pro Se Civil Guide Book and procedural information sheets and forms. Links to local court rules and other resources are provided.

University Student Legal Services provides legal representation and legal advice to eligible students on the Twin Cities campus. USLS also publishes brochures and other materials concerning a variety of law-related issues and situations.

Topics include: Right to Self-Representation, Going to Court (what to expect etc...), Filing or Responding to a Lawsuit; Legal Research Resources, Forms, Legal Help Resources (legal aid, self-help centers, law libraries).

A helpful collection of links to various legal topics.

Links to State, County, Federal, and academic law libraries in Minnesota. Also includes links to library associations.

This step-by-step guide from the Legal Information Services to the Public Special Interest Section (LISP-SIS) of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) is designed to walk you through the process of legal research.

In addition to the books, software and online resources it publishes, the Nolo website contains do-it-yourself legal information and tools, including a legal research center, Frequently Asked Questions, court information, a law dictionary and a legal encyclopedia with hundreds of useful articles.