William Mitchell program helps new products get off the ground

When Dan Belfry and partner Jon Buck searched the Internet for help grabbing a niche in the craft beer sector, they found the link to a business law clinic affiliated with William Mitchell College of Law. Thanks to help from that clinic and the law students who staff it, their Brewbicle is now a trademarked name for stackable containers to store and age home-brewed beer.

"Having someone familiar with the law was a huge boon for us," Belfry said. "We're not lawyers. I'm a Realtor. But we felt very comfortable with the clinic."

And Belfry and Buck saved about $1,500 in legal fees by using the clinic, which performs its work on a pro bono basis.

William Mitchell's business clinic has been around for 23 years. The current director, K.M. Davis, an adjunct professor at the school, is entering her third year supervising the operation and is looking for clients.

"There used to be a waiting list, but we've worked right through that," Davis said. Most of the clinic's marketing is by word-of-mouth and the clinic, which has five to six students at a time, is now looking for business for the fall semester.

"We've organized LLCs and corporations. We've drafted agreements for independent contractors, written leases, filed trademarks and set up nonprofits," Davis said, noting that clients get a solid 50 hours of work from students who get school credit for their clinic experience.

"We're like a small law firm," Davis said. "There's a lot of collaboration. This is real lawyering. It's not a mock trial. It's not studying. These are all certified student attorneys."

"We are successfully trademarked now," Belfry said. "Even though they were still students, everything was handled very professionally."

Despite all of the Sturm und Drang around the rollout of the Affordable Care Act, many of Minnesota's largest employers saw positive results on the health care front last year, particularly as it relates to costs.

A survey of 31 corporations and government organizations across the state by the Minnesota Health Action Group found that spending on health care rose 4.7 percent last year. That was a slightly slower rate than the previous year and a nearly 15 percent drop from the 5.5 percent mark in 2011, the first year of the polling.

The survey reflects views of health care managers from across the state including such diverse organizations as Wells Fargo, Supervalu, Carlson Cos., Schwan Food Co., Olmsted County, the city of St. Paul and Park Nicollet Medical Center. In all, the companies represent 256,000 workers.

About 90 percent of the companies reported using wellness programs as a way to control costs, and most said they planned to spend more on such programs this year. Common financial incentives include gift cards and spending account contributions that average $500.

Said Carolyn Pare, the group's CEO: "Nobody seems to be wringing their hands about the ACA."

JACKIE CROSBY

PadillaCRT: Five Silver Anvils, the top award from the Public Relations Society of America, for campaigns on behalf of BASF, Coppertone, Wines from Rioja (two anvils) and Be the Match, a multicultural nonprofit effort.

Spong: Three Silver Anvils for work on behalf of Sherwin-Williams, Trane and H&R Block.

Exponent: A Silver Anvil for its CHS campaign called "Tanks of Thanks."

Fallon: A Silver and Bronze Cannes Lion for client IFC Network and the promotion of the miniseries "The Spoils of Babylon."

Periscope: For being named agency of record for BASF and its agricultural products unit for North America.

Christopher Policinski: The CEO of Land O'Lakes is EY Entrepreneur of the Year Master Entrepreneur for his sustained business and philanthropic leadership.

To celebrate 60 years of giving, the General Mills Foundation, in partnership with the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, has doubled to $1 million the amount it will grant to organizations that support the needs of a diverse community.

The grants, ranging from $10,000 to $60,000, celebrate the work of 40 Twin Cities nonprofits. General Mills launched the Celebrating Communities of Color grants program 10 years ago.

The grantees include Breakthrough St. Paul, which provides a variety of programs to academically talented youth and future leaders who struggle with a lack of resources. The program serves middle and high school youth and is being expanded to students in the St. Paul Children's Collaborative and Minneapolis' Northside Achievement Zone.

Others include NorthPoint Health and Wellness Center in Minneapolis, for its mobile food market; Vietnamese Social Services of St. Paul; AccountAbility Minnesota of St. Paul, which provides financial coaching and tax assistance to low-income people; and the Augsburg College Urban Debate League.

Neal St. Anthony

Briggs and Morgan Chairman Brian Wenger is leaving the firm after 26 years to serve as chief legal officer for Optum, a division of UnitedHealth Group Inc. Wenger, who joined Briggs in 1988, has been chairman since 2011 and before that was chairman of the firm's commercial practice.