The Disability Justice Resource Center
One in five people in the United States is living with some type of physical, intellectual, developmental or psychiatric disability. As a result, people with disabilities constitute one of the largest minority groups in the United States. However, history proves that there is no strength in numbers, at least where disability justice is concerned.
The Disability Justice Resource Center has been created to help members of the legal community better understand the unique and complex issues related to justice for people with disabilities, particularly people with developmental disabilities. It also is designed to help the legal community identify and eliminate biases against people with disabilities.
Explore
Justice Denied
Common issues that stand in the way of assuring that people with developmental disabilities have access to equal justice.
Basic Legal Rights
The evolution of the fundamental legal rights of people with disabilities, relevant constitutional provisions, statutes, regulations, and key cases.
Working with People
Practical advice on ensuring adequate legal representation, access and accommodations issues, and working with people with developmental disabilities in all capacities.
About
Dedication
We dedicate this website to the memory of three remarkable public servants whose integrity, compassion, and commitment to justice strengthened our community.To the late Ken Kohnstamm of the Minnesota Office of the Attorney General, the late U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven E. Rau, and the late Becky Baertsch, judicial assistant to Senior U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank. Their unwavering service and humanity continue to inspire all who follow their leadership.
Acknowledgements
We gratefully acknowledge the many individuals and partner organizations whose dedication, insight, and collaboration made this work possible. We extend our appreciation to Professor Elizabeth Schiltz of the University of St. Thomas School of Law; Dr. Colleen Wieck, Executive Director, and Stephanie Nelson, Planner, of the Minnesota Governor’s Council on Developmental Disabilities; Dan Stewart, Attorney, Metro Center for Independent Living; Tim Lewis and Brian Anderson of Mastcom; and Lisa Haines of juju Design. We also wish to recognize the attorneys, judges, and disability advocates who generously served as faculty members, sharing their expertise, lived experience, and deep commitment to justice and inclusion. Their contributions strengthened this effort in countless ways and continue to support our shared mission of advancing accessibility, justice, and inclusion.
A special thanks to (Ret.) Magistrate Judge Becky R. Thorson, who has spearheaded efforts to provide continuing legal education courses on the topic of disability justice since 2009. Judge Thorson also chaired the outreach effort, “An Unfinished Journey: Civil Rights for People with Developmental Disabilities and the Role of the Federal Courts” for the US District Court (Minnesota) in 2023 and 2024.
“In matters of truth and justice, there is no difference between large and small problems, for issues concerning the treatment of people are all the same.”
– Albert Einstein
