What Minnesota Justice Foundation does

Minnesota Justice Foundation (MJF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1982 by University of Minnesota law students to expand pro bono and public interest legal service opportunities in Minnesota. Headquartered at the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis, the organization operates with a small staff (approximately four staff attorneys, one embedded at each of the three Minnesota law schools: Mitchell Hamline School of Law, University of Minnesota Law School, and University of St. Thomas School of Law). MJF's mission is to increase the capacity of legal organizations serving low-income and underrepresented Minnesotans by connecting law students with public interest legal service opportunities.

MJF delivers its mission through three core programs: the Law School Public Service Program (LSPSP), which places student volunteers in legal aid offices and public interest organizations; the Summer Fellowship Program, the longest-running offering, which funds paid summer fellowships at public interest law offices; and Street Law, which places law student volunteers in classrooms to teach civic and legal education to K-12 and adult learners. The organization's technology stack is minimal and entirely third-party, relying on thedatabank.com for student account management and volunteer hour logging, and the 12twenty job board for distributing fellowship postings at each law school. MJF holds no proprietary technology, patents, or AI/ML capabilities.

The organization is funded entirely through charitable donations from individuals, law firms, and the legal community; donations are tax-deductible under Section 501(c)(3) (EIN: 41-1447537). It is governed by a Board of Directors of approximately 20 members, led by Executive Director Anna Beadle, with Eva Kendrick as Board President. MJF maintains no external equity or venture backing and operates exclusively within Minnesota. Its distribution is direct: staff attorneys at each of the three law schools recruit students, facilitate placements, and manage host organization relationships with legal aid providers including Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services, Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, and others.

Name

Minnesota Justice Foundation

Legal name

Minnesota Justice Foundation

Website

https://mnjustice.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Minnesota Justice Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1982 that connects law students at Minnesota's three law schools with public interest and pro bono legal service opportunities through volunteer placements, paid summer fellowships, and classroom legal education programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Interest Legal Programs

NAICS

Legal Services (5411), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Human Rights Organizations (813311), Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Legal Aid & Client Advocacy Services (BPAGAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industries

Criminal Justice Reform & Legal System Advocacy (BPAGAFAI), Legal Literacy & Public Legal Education (Know Your Rights) (EDAAAFAI), Clinical Legal Education & Legal Aid Clinics (Law School–Run) (EDAHAIAG)

Keywords

• Public interest law programs
• Pro bono legal services
• Legal aid fellowships
• Law student volunteering
• Access to justice

Headquarters

HQ city

Minneapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Charitable Donations: MJF is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN: 41-1447537) that raises funds from individual donors, law firms, and the legal community to support its operations and the Summer Fellowship Program. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Minnesota Justice Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that connects law students at Minnesota's three law schools with public interest and pro bono legal service opportunities. Its core offerings include the Law School Public Service Program (volunteer placements), the Summer Fellowship Program (paid 10-week fellowships at legal aid offices), and the Street Law program (classroom legal education for K-12 and adult learners).

Product overview

The Minnesota Justice Foundation operates as a unified nonprofit organization offering three interconnected programs that connect law students with public interest legal service opportunities. The core offerings include the Law School Public Service Program (LSPSP), which facilitates ongoing volunteer placements; the Summer Fellowship Program, which funds paid 10-week summer positions at legal aid offices; and the Street Law program, which places law students as educators in classrooms. All programs are supported by MJF's student account platform for opportunity management and hour logging. MJF serves all three Minnesota law schools (Mitchell Hamline, University of Minnesota, and University of St. Thomas) and links students to opportunities throughout the legal services community.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Law School Public Service Program (LSPSP) A program that matches law students with volunteer opportunities in public interest and pro bono legal work across Minnesota, promoting experiential education and increasing legal services for low-income populations.
• Summer Fellowship Program MJF's longest-running program that creates and funds paid 10-week summer fellowships for law students to work at public interest law offices serving low-income and underrepresented Minnesotans.
• Street Law A national program administered locally by MJF that places law student volunteers into local classrooms to teach middle school, high school, and adult students about their legal rights and civic engagement.
• MJF Student Accounts Online platform for law students to create accounts, view volunteer opportunities, and log volunteer hours with MJF programs.

Quantifiable outcome

• By 1983, 250 law students had pledged one percent of their summer income to support four public interest clerkships.

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Mitchell Hamline School of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMJF has a staff attorney stationed at Mitchell Hamline who manages student volunteer placements and the Summer Fellowship Program. Mitchell Hamline is one of the three Minnesota law schools MJF serves. Student chapters at Mitchell Hamline raise funds to support public interest clerkships and coordinate group volunteer opportunities.
• University of Minnesota Law SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMJF is headquartered at the University of Minnesota Law School and has a staff attorney there. The school is a primary partner in administering the Law School Public Service Program and Summer Fellowship Program. MJF was founded by U of M law students in 1982.
• University of St. Thomas School of LawcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMJF has a staff attorney stationed at St. Thomas who manages student volunteer placements. St. Thomas opened in 2001 and MJF expanded to serve its students. Student chapters at St. Thomas raise funds to support public interest clerkships.
• Minnesota State Bar Association (MSBA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMJF works with MSBA to further the Law School Public Service Program. MSBA's Access to Justice Committee (formerly Legal Assistance to the Disadvantaged) formed the Law School Initiatives working group in 1993, which developed the model for the LSPSP program that MJF administers.
• Legal Service Providers (Minnesota)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMJF partners with legal aid organizations throughout Minnesota to host student volunteers and summer fellows. These include Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS), Central Minnesota Legal Services, Legal Services of Northwest Minnesota, Legal Aid Service of Northeastern Minnesota, Volunteer Lawyers Network, Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, and others. These organizations serve as host sites for MJF placements.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Regional players

• Public Law Center: Orange County, California's pro bono law firm providing direct legal services in civil matters. Comparable to MJF as a regional public interest legal services organization that depends on volunteer attorney capacity to serve low-income populations.

Others

• Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law: National nonprofit legal organization that mobilizes private attorneys to provide pro bono civil rights legal services. Thematically comparable to MJF as a participant in the pro bono public interest law ecosystem, though focused on civil rights rather than general legal aid.
• Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP): National advocacy organization focused on policy advocacy for low-income populations, including access to justice issues. Thematically comparable to MJF because both work at the intersection of legal services, public interest, and serving underrepresented communities.

Direct peers

• Pro Bono Institute: National nonprofit that promotes pro bono legal service through law firms, in-house counsel, and public interest organizations. Directly comparable to MJF because it operates a similar model of building pro bono capacity across the legal profession, with overlap in target audience (law students, attorneys, legal aid organizations).
• Public Counsel: Largest pro bono law firm in the United States, providing direct legal services and operating public interest programs in California. Comparable to MJF because it channels volunteer and pro bono attorney capacity into public interest legal service for low-income communities.
• Equal Justice Works: National nonprofit organization that runs public interest law fellowship programs for law students and lawyers. Directly comparable to MJF because both organizations broker paid public interest law placements between law students and legal services organizations, with a similar mission of expanding access to justice.
• Street Law, Inc. National nonprofit that originated the Street Law program which MJF locally administers in Minnesota. Directly comparable because Street Law provides the curriculum and methodology MJF uses, making it both a content partner and structural peer in civic legal education.

Broad incumbents

• The Legal Aid Society: One of the oldest and largest civil legal services organizations in the United States, based in New York City. Comparable to MJF as a major legal aid host organization and ecosystem participant, though at far greater scale and with broader geographic scope.
• National Legal Aid & Defender Association: National membership and advocacy umbrella organization for legal aid and public defender offices across the United States. Comparable to MJF as a broader incumbent operating in the same ecosystem, with MJF's host legal aid organizations typically being NLADA members.
• American Bar Association Center for Pro Bono: National center within the ABA that promotes pro bono legal service and supports legal aid delivery. Comparable to MJF as a broader incumbent supporting the same pro bono and public interest law ecosystem that MJF operates in.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/MNJusticeFoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/minnesota-justice-foundation

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Minnesota Justice Foundation