ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF ASSISTANCE
SPECIALIZED LEGAL RESEARCH AND ASSISTANCE LegalCORPS, part of the Minnesota Bar Association, provides referrals to Minnesota attorneys and provides pro bono services to small businesses, private nonprofit organizations, and low- income innovators. For more information contact Legal Corps at 612-206-0780. The Mitchell Hamline School of Law offers their Legal Practice Center in which students assist with drafting contracts for nonprofit groups; filing patent applications; and forming business entities for new small enterprises. The University of Minnesota Business Law Concentration has experienced business law attorneys from several law firms supervise two-person teams of law students working with clinic clients. The clinic provides free legal assistance in non-litigation matters to small businesses, nonprofits and entrepreneurs with a viable business plan. For more information contact Business Law Clinic at 612-625-4641. LawM oose is a Minnesota legal search engine that, while not offering legal advice, offers an online legal reference library for researching Minnesota law, an online search engine focused on law related sites in Minnesota, and a Minnesota legal periodical index. The site assists users in framing MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE FOR MINORITY BUSINESSES There are a number of organizations which offer business planning and business management assistance specifically targeted to businesses owned and operated by racial minorities, women, disabled individuals, and other socially or economically disadvantaged persons. A listing of these organizations can be found in the Resource Directory section of this Guide. INCUBATORS Sometimes called enterprise centers, innovation centers or business and technology centers, incubators offer new, small firms a way to minimize both fixed and variable costs by providing low cost office and production space, shared office services, management assistance and – in some cases – financial assistance. A listing of these organizations can be found in the Resource Directory section of this Guide. INVENTORS RESOURCES Resources include The Inventors’ Network, LegalCORPS Inventor Assistance Program (IAP) (free legal representation to low-income inventors seeking to patent their innovations with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO)), and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Depository Office, Inventors Assistance Center (IAC). A listing of these organizations can be found in the Resource Directory section of this Guide. legal questions and issues to address to their own legal counsel. The Minnesota Judicial Branch offers legal help topics and forms.
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