Minnesota residents are rebuilding their lives from the wildfires, having legal assistance is important. Displaced families might have lost social security cards, birth certificates and other legal documents. Thanks to a disaster grant, Justice North is providing free legal aid during this disaster recovery.

Over 150 structures have been destroyed from the wildfires happening in northern Minnesota. As families try to navigate through this chaotic and confusing time, sometimes legal help is needed. Jude Schmit is a disaster attorney with Justice North. He says in the aftermath of these wildfires recovering legal I.D.’s and other documentation is important.

“Here at Justice North we are a free legal service, so we encourage people to call in. A lot of the legal work we do too is not necessarily going to the courtroom. It’s the behind the scenes, the background work.” Schmit said. “Whether it’s document retention, title clearing, all those things that are very important but not perhaps what you would traditionally think when hiring an attorney.”

Schmit says whether a home is damaged or fully destroyed, having proof of ownership is important for rebuilding. Especially for any potential financial assistance.

“The thing about disasters is these are prolonged cases that can be upwards of 18 months to two years. You have insurance claims that take forever, issues with title clearing,” Schmit said. “For instance these wildfires, there’s a lot of family properties that have been passed on generations. One of the things we can help people with is navigate the title clearing within St. Louis County.”

During the recovery from any disaster, those who are displaced may fall victim to identity fraud or scams as well. Claire Hardi, a disaster preparedness response coordinator, says the step-by-step process to receive professional advice is simple. There’s also a legal kiosk available at Justice North to help people get started for free legal aid.

“It can be a really confusing and overwhelming process and that’s where we come in. We’ll figure out where you are,” Hardi said. “If you are trying to replace lost documents we’ll figure out what you have, what you need to get. We can help you prioritize what you need for certain documents to get other documents. Every one situation is different, we will follow your lead. As long as you call us, we can start getting started on the process of helping you recover legally.”

Don’t hesitate to reach out to Justice North, for other legal protections like foreclosure prevention or bankruptcy. Also WDIO News is covering other stories about non-profits like United Way helping people from the wildfires.