Legal assistance is one of the key professional resources for artists to build a thriving business and career. Springboard’s Minnesota Lawyers for the Arts (MnLA) program provides access to artist-friendly attorneys for consultation.
Legal issues are some of the most common question marks that come up in a creative career, and an area where reliable advice can be critical. Minnesota Lawyers for the Arts maintains a roster of arts and entertainment attorneys who offer consultation time to artists.
Attorneys are vetted and approved by Springboard staff, and provide free 30-minute consultations for artists. Following their consultation, artists and attorneys can determine a rate if further services are required.
Topics for consultation can include business formation, contract questions, intellectual property, taxes, and more, and MnLA offers regular legal clinics and workshops for additional informational opportunities. MnLA is the Minnesota chapter of the National Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (VLA) network. Don’t go it alone with a legal question, get expert guidance through Minnesota Lawyers for the Arts.
Header Image Description: various MnLA consultants and participants.
Individual artists and creatives residing in Minnesota are eligible. Pro bono representation is allotted on an income basis for individual artists. Unlike Springboard’s other services, you will need to verify your income. Eligibility is determined by looking at household size and gross income. Different law firms have different income requirements, though the majority require you to have a gross household income of 300% of the federal poverty guidelines or below. You may be required to present additional information about your income with the law firm.
If you don’t meet the income requirements, we suggest you request a phone consultation and hire an attorney based on those referrals.
Requests are for arts and business-related issues that require full legal representation. These may include signing or creating contracts, entity formation, taxes, intellectual property, trademarks, licensing, copyright and trademark infringement, artist visas or immigration, music royalties, leasing and buying property or estate planning.
Minnesota-based arts nonprofits are eligible in many cases. You will be asked to provide your 990s and mission statement below. Some of our partner firms have eligibility requirements based on your operating budget; in those cases, we’ll help find the best match. In most cases, firms prioritize nonprofits whose mission is related to working with underserved communities and/or providing direct access to services or arts experiences, and you’ll need to demonstrate that in your mission statement.
Fiscally sponsored projects enrolled in Springboard’s Incubator program are generally not eligible. However, individual artists involved with an Incubator project would be eligible, provided they meet the income requirements.
Once your income and eligibility has been verified by Springboard, your request will be sent to a pro bono coordinator at one of our partner law firms. They will conduct a conflict check to verify that the law firm is not already representing anyone involved in the matter. When the conflict check is cleared, you will be put in touch with attorneys from the firm via email, and you’ll begin working together.
Though we try to refer every case, we cannot guarantee that we will find a lawyer to work with you.
Please keep in mind that finding pro bono representation can be a long process, so you’ll need to have a flexible timeline. Your request may take from 2-4 weeks to clear the firm’s intake process, and potentially longer in some cases. If you have a legal emergency that requires immediate action, in most cases we suggest you either speak with a volunteer attorney using our phone consultation service, or contact an emergency legal service.
Help Artists Thrive Donate