Nelson L. Peralta
Peralta & Peralta, Ltd.
3009 Holmes Ave. S.
Minneapolis, MN 55408
nelson@peraltalawfirm.com | (612) 827-3521

Our spotlight this month features Nelson L. Peralta. Nelson practices with Peralta & Peralta, Ltd. in Minneapolis. He began his legal career at Michigan Migrant Legal Assistance Project in Grand Rapids, Michigan, after which he practiced law at Shutts & Bowen in Miami and at three small firms in Minneapolis before opening his own firm. Nelson was named a "Rising Star" in 2000 and 2003 by Minnesota Law & Politics and has served as President and Board member of the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association as well as receiving its Distinguished Service Award.  He received the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce's "25 on the Rise" award in 2008, and in 2009, Nelson was one of the recipients of the MSBA's President's Award for his firm's participation in the 35W Bridge Collapse Pro Bono Consortium.  He is active in numerous bar and community activities and in 2009 was named a member of the Minnesota CLE Board of Directors.

My practice is
Co-owner of Peralta & Peralta, Ltd. with my wife, Lisa Lodin Peralta. My practice areas are plaintiff's personal injury, immigration law and general litigation. At least two-thirds of my practice is representing Spanish-speaking clients.

What else I do
Parent of three children ages 9, 7 and 3; officer of the Parent Teacher Organization for Windom Dual Immersion, a Spanish/English elementary school; play basketball for fun; active member of the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association and the Hispanic National Bar Association.

What I would be doing if not practicing law
Play-by-play announcer or sports journalist

A recent achievement
Recently concluded representation of four children and one adult pro bono through the 35W bridge collapse litigation

A recent challenge
Immigration clients I last saw nine years ago requested important documentation from their file and I could not find the file.

How I solved it
Repeated searches at our off-storage site; finally rolled up my sleeves and spent three hours at storage going through each box until I found it. Lessons learned: (1) our file archiving system needs improvement! (2) thankfully we keep all of our closed files, no matter how old.  Now that the file has been found and the key documents located, the clients will be eligible to apply for permanent residency!

My coolest software/ website/ gadget
I'm still learning how to use my Blackberry, but I do like it. For websites, I like www.twincitiesfreemarket.org.

A tip for other s/s lawyers
Use written joint representation agreements when sharing attorney fees with another lawyer. See Minnesota Rule of Professional Conduct 1.5(e).

The book(s) I am reading
Play Their Hearts Out by George Dohrmann

The latest movie I saw
Can't recall, but my wife and I just saw The Blenders perform their holiday concert, which is always outstanding, at the Pantages Theater.

My favorite rock star/group
Hall & Oates

My favorite wine
I prefer beer.

My favorite TV shows
Law & Order SVU, The Good Wife, and Grey’s Anatomy

The best advice I ever gave my kids
Don't believe everything you hear.

Five things few people know about me
1) Nearly all of my relatives live in either Mexico or Paraguay; 2) I am a die-hard Detroit and University of Michigan sports fan; 3) I have run five marathons; 4) I trained in classical piano for 10 years growing up; 5) In high school I performed in a "Mock Rock" competition as Daryl Hall.