Pro Business

“Part of our culture is that we want our attorneys to find pro bono projects that they are passionate about,” says Tami Diehm, an associate practicing in the real estate and legislative regulatory groups at the Winthrop & Weinstine, PA, law firm in Minneapolis. “Whether you are a first-year associate or a senior shareholder, if you have an organization or cause that you feel very passionate about, you can bring that forward and say, ‘Hey, this is what I would like to do.’”

In the public’s mind, pro bono may conjure up public defenders acting for an accused person who can’t afford to pay for his or her defense. But in fact, no-fee law practice can take place within any legal specialty, from human resources to real estate to contract law. In Minnesota, many attorneys are using their expertise in business legalities to help nonprofit organizations and low-income entrepreneurs clear some legal hurdles.

Connecting with Clients

Law firms often have pro bono committees to sort through requests from individuals and organizations and find the ones that best fit the firm’s capabilities. “We sometimes get referrals from community agencies that are working with nonprofits or with small businesses,” says Dianne Heins, pro bono counsel at Minneapolis-based law firm Faegre & Benson, LLP.

The firm chooses pro bono clients based on a set criteria. “For small, newly emerging businesses, we require that they already be working with an economic development agency, because then we know that they are ripe for legal service,” Heins says. “They have a business plan in place. They’ve thought about how they are going to finance it. Then we can come in and provide legal advice at the right time.”

Nonprofit pro bono clients are chosen via a similar set of qualifications: Is the organization a small group that is unable to afford standard legal fees? And what is the mission of the organization? Like other firms, Faegre & Benson has established its own set of pro bono public service priorities—in Faegre’s case that includes children and families, economic development, and affordable housing.

Dorraine Larison, chair of the pro bono committee at Gray Plant Mooty, says her firm also tends to find nonprofit pro bono clients through the state bar association and personal contacts. The for-profits it assists are mostly associated with a couple of ongoing projects.

“We work with the University of Minnesota Center for Business Law’s Multi-Profession Business Law Clinic,” she says. “A lot of their work is aimed at helping minority business owners, small business owners, etc. And you work with students, too. A lot of that is the basics of business work: helping them incorporate, helping them choose their entity, leases, license work, that type of stuff.”

Gray Plant Mooty’s entrepreneur group also does pro bono work via a program at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management. Students create businesses and license them, with a percentage of the profits going back to the University. The law firm helps them incorporate those businesses and set up the legal paperwork.