News Item
Minnesota’s Tenth Judicial District expands help for people representing themselves in court
Posted: Monday, July 11, 2016
In 2015, Minnesota’s Tenth Judicial District established a Self Help Center at the Anoka County Courthouse to provide legal information and resources to the growing number of people choosing to represent themselves in court proceedings. In an effort to expand services at no cost to self-represented litigants throughout the District, Self Help Center staff are now offering weekly walk-in service hours at the courthouses located in Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Pine, Sherburne, Washington, and Wright counties.
“As we see more and more people trying to navigate our legal system without an attorney, we have been exploring new ways to provide resources to these individuals to help them capably seek justice through our courts,” said Tenth Judicial District Administrator Michael Moriarity. “The Self Help Center in Anoka County has proven so successful and popular, that we quickly identified the need to offer this assistance in more communities. We hope many more people will be able to take advantage of this important resource.”
A full list of locations and service hours for the Tenth Judicial District Self Help Center is provided below:
Anoka County Courthouse (Second Level Central, C210)
325 East Main Street, Anoka, MN 55303
Monday – Thursday
9 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. &
1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Chisago County Courthouse (Court Admin.)
313 N Main Street, Center City, MN 55012
Wednesday
8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Isanti County Courthouse (Court Admin.)
555 18th Ave SW, Cambridge, MN 55008
Wednesday
1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Kanabec County Courthouse (Law Library)
18 North Vine Street, Mora, MN 55051
Monday
1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
Pine County Courthouse (Court Admin.)
635 Northridge Drive NW, Pine City, MN 55063
Monday
8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Sherburne County Courthouse (Court Staging Area)
13880 Business Center Dr., Elk River, MN 55330
Tuesday
8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Washington County Courthouse (Court Admin. – 1st Floor)
14949 62nd Street North, Stillwater, MN 55082
Thursday & Friday
8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Wright County Courthouse (Adjacent to Court Admin. Window)
10 2nd Street NW, Buffalo, MN 55313
Friday
8:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m.
In addition to offering walk-in service hours throughout the District, Tenth Judicial District Self Help Center staff are available to provide assistance over the phone and by e-mail to residents of Anoka, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Pine, Sherburne, Washington, and Wright counties:
- Phone: Subject to staff availability, Self Help Center phone service hours are Monday through Thursday, between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m., by calling (763) 279-4325.
- E-mail: Self-represented litigants can also submit questions to Self Help Center staff via e-mail at 10CourtHelp@courts.state.mn.us. Normal response time for e-mail questions is expected to be two to three business days.
Statewide Self Help Center Available to All Minnesotans
Minnesota is a nationally-recognized leader in providing services to those representing themselves in court.
The Minnesota Judicial Branch operates a statewide Self Help Center which provides online, phone, and e-mail support to self-represented litigants across the state. The Minnesota Judicial Branch website, www.mncourts.gov, also offers dozens of “Help Topics” on various legal issues and court process, which include answers to common questions, links to relevant court forms, and helpful tools and resources.
Every courthouse in the state is also equipped with self-help workstations consisting of a desk, computer, printer, and phone, which can be used at no cost to find court information, print court forms, and talk over the phone with Self Help Center staff about forms, procedures, and legal resources.
In addition, the district courts in Hennepin and Ramsey counties also offer walk-in self help services.
For more information on all the resources available to self-represented litigants across Minnesota, visit http://www.mncourts.gov/selfhelp or call (651) 259-3888.
Services Available from Self-Help Center Staff
Self Help Center staff are able to provide instructions on how to complete court forms; review filled-out forms for completeness; help self-represented litigants locate free or low-cost legal services and programs; and provide information about court process, practice, and procedure.
This help is available for a wide variety of court proceedings, including: civil actions; conciliation court matters; criminal expungement; divorce, child support, custody, and family law; landlord and tenant law; name changes; and much more.
While Self Help Center staff are not able to directly provide legal advice, strategy, or research, they will be able to connect visitors with services that offer legal advice and guidance.