Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services

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Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS) is a non-profit law firm founded in 1909, providing free legal assistance to low-income and elderly individuals in 33 counties across southern Minnesota. The firm focuses on critical civil matters, aiming to help clients enforce their rights and achieve stability. SMRLS annually closes approximately 10,000 cases with the support of its staff and volunteer attorneys.

Según el sitio web del despacho

Abogados

• Micaela Schuneman — Chief Executive Officer

Servicios que ofrece

Family Law, Protection Order, Divorce, Custody Matter, Indian Child Welfare Act Case, Housing, Government Benefits, Immigration, Education Law, Senior Law, Agricultural Worker Project, Social Security's SSI Program

Año de fundación

1909

Honorarios

Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services provides free legal assistance to low-income and elderly individuals in civil matters.

Oficinas

• 445 Minnesota Street Ste. 1800 St. Paul, MN 55101-2134
• 450 North Syndicate Street, Suite 285 St. Paul, MN 55104
• 1015 7th Avenue North Moorhead, MN 56560
• 146 College St. W Albert Lea, MN 56007
• 903 West Center Street, Suite 230 Rochester, MN 55902

Fuente: smrls.org · consultado el 12 de octubre de 2026. Lawyers Near Me no ha verificado estos datos de forma independiente.

Horario de Atención

Lunes

8:30AM–5PM

Martes

8:30AM–5PM

Miércoles

8:30AM–5PM

Jueves

8:30AM–5PM

Viernes

8:30AM–5PM

Sábado

Closed

Domingo

Closed

• Eden Truffle· vía Google

  Amy was supposed to be my intake case worker , she did a very worthless job. They don't genuinely care about your housing situation or well being. Took all my personal information & said I would receive a callback. When I finally called them after two weeks of waiting she didn't even have the decency to tell me my case was closed. Very bad service Minnesota no longer lives up to their name terrible place.

  a year ago
• Jacob Koury· vía Google

  I am posting this review based on my direct, documented experience with Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS) through one of its staff attorneys, Sarah N. Palm, following my initiation of a formal FERPA request for my child's education records. After my request was made, the attorney contacted my child's public school district and conveyed representations regarding my parental rights, custody status, and access to education records without providing the school or me with a controlling court order that removed or limited those rights. This raised significant concerns for me because: • FERPA places the duty to determine record access on the school, not on private or opposing counsel • Schools may not deny a parent access to education records absent a valid, operative court order • Legal advocacy should not be presented to a public school as a substitute for verified judicial findings • Communications that encourage restrictions outside FERPA procedures create compliance and due-process risks The statements made to the district went beyond neutral advocacy and appeared to instruct or pressure a public agency on how to handle a federal records request, despite the absence of documentation establishing that my parental rights had been legally curtailed. As a result, I was forced to pursue additional administrative and legal remedies to correct the record and ensure FERPA compliance. This review is not about disagreement over legal strategy — it is about process integrity, professional responsibility, and the proper role of attorneys when communicating with public school districts on federally protected education records. Parents interacting with schools, custody proceedings, or education records should be aware of the importance of independently verifying representations made by counsel and ensuring FERPA obligations are followed by districts themselves. I hope SMRLS reviews this matter internally and reinforces clear compliance standards regarding F

  8 months ago
• Dumashi· vía Google

  Libby was excellent to consult with, she was accessible and easy to talk to, she asked thoughtful questions and provided meaningful insight. Thanks Libby!

  8 months ago
• Sherril Toft· vía Google

  I contacted SMRLS within the past year to help me with a challenging dilemma. Social Security was threatening to cut off my disabled son's RSDI and charge me for 3 years of back payments. SMRLS instructed me to send legal documents proving I was his legal guardian. I did and waited...never heard back. I called back 2 more times and forwarded the legal paperwork again and again. I never heard back. Time ran out and I was forced to clean out all our bank accts and send $32,000 back to Social Security because I couldn't find anyone who would help us. I know they were probably busy but they should have contacted me or directed me to someone who could help us. There is so much incompetence in this system. I would never recommend this program to anyone in crisis.

  9 months ago
• Sumeya· vía Google

  I truly wish I could give more than five stars. Ann Sullivan is exceptional in every sense of the word. She is not only incredibly responsive, but she also genuinely cares about the people she serves. Ann advocates tirelessly for her clients, always putting their needs first and treating each person with dignity, compassion, and individualized attention. The care and dedication she showed while helping my mother and grandmother meant more to our family than I can fully express. During a time that could have felt overwhelming, she brought reassurance, guidance, and heartfelt support. We are beyond grateful for her kindness, professionalism, and unwavering commitment.

  8 months ago
• Susan Larson· vía Google

  This place is NOT a place that that it is helpful in any way shape or form. They treat you like a number and are rude and unprofessional. You know when their outgoing message says "we expect that you treat us with respect", something is systemically wrong. Not only was I treated with the most utmost disrespect, but I wasn't even given the time nor the help I was promised. This place should get any state or federal funding taken away from them. Just incredibly rude and incredibly unhelpful.

  2 months ago
• Alyssa Woodbury· vía Google

  Not sure what they even get funding for, in my experience they don't actually give any help or direction at all and just say they can't take your case. I hope my taxes aren't wasted on funding this. They told me they'd only help in my wrongful termination case if my unemployment is denied or if my MN Paid Family Leave was denied. I'm not sure how either of those things effect my wrongful termination but thanks for wasting my time. They also previously refused to help with an issue with black mold in my apartment that my landlord refused to acknowledge. This firm literally does not care about struggling people who need help.

  3 months ago
• Kayla Grace· vía Google

  Was seeking help for a high conflict child custody case. Had three phone appointments, one was intake with attorney's assistant and the other two with the attorney. Did not feel either one of them cared or listened to my end of the case. I have sole custody and stopped parenting time due to serious safety concerns and inconsistency that I wanted addressed legally. but was told repeatedly that I should not have stopped parenting time anyway. They did not actually address any of my concerns and I did not receive any advice outside of their singular opinion that I needed to resume parenting time. So I offered my coparent partial time back and he refused. They still blamed me for not offering the previous time that he couldn't even hold up in the first place. Treated as if I was the problem despite the evidence I have proving otherwise, and they acted like they did not have the time of day to even pretend to care. At the end of my second appointment she cut me off while I was speaking to tell me she was closing my file and "good luck". No sense that she was interested in the best interest of our family, but rather what would "resolve" and drop the case the easiest. UPDATE: My coparent was arrested last week with domestic assault charges. Which was one of the safety concerns I addressed and was dismissed. Very thankful I did not take Erin Frana's advice, over my own judgements, to resume parenting time.

  Edited 8 months ago