NLADA Honors Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman with Courageous Leader Award

Minnesota House Speaker Emerita, Melissa Hortman, was posthumously honored with a Courageous Leader Award from the National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA) at their Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. on October 31, 2025. Speaker Emerita Hortman’s children, Colin and Sophie Hortman, attended in person to accept the award on her behalf. Also in attendance from Minnesota were the current and former executive directors of Central Minnesota Legal Services, Daniel Morris and Jean Lastine, along with current and former executive directors of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid, Milo Mumgaard and Jeremy Lane. Lastine was the convening author of the nomination letter recommending Hortman for the award on behalf of both programs, and all of the statewide legal services community.

In accepting the award for the Hortmans, family friend Robin Ann Williams’ remarks were accompanied by a video of Speaker Hortman in action at the State Capitol, vividly demonstrating what a fighter for equal justice she was. Williams’ tribute was followed by an emotional and heartfelt standing ovation from colleagues across the country.

The NLADA Courageous Leader Award is given to trailblazers who model the commitment and courage needed to advance meaningful and lasting racial equity and justice in America. The award honors advocates who show the determination and courage necessary to create lasting change.

While still in law school, Hortman worked as a law clerk at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid in the housing department and was later hired as the first staff attorney for Central Minnesota Legal Services. In a case that began with an African American mother’s dispute with her landlord over a broken furnace, Hortman was successful in obtaining a jury verdict that is still the largest racial discrimination verdict for a single family in Minnesota.

Hortman then transitioned from law practice to public service, serving for 19 years in the Minnesota House of Representatives — the longest tenure of any woman in state history (including seven years as speaker). After the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May 2020, Speaker Emerita Hortman worked across the aisle to negotiate police reforms and was also an advocate for gun violence prevention. Among her achievements were support for the 2023 Restore the Vote Act at the Minnesota Legislature, the passage of which restored voting rights to formerly incarcerated Minnesotans upon completion of their sentences. Then, after the 2024 election, Hortman negotiated a power sharing deal where Republican Representative Lisa Demuth could serve as speaker for a two-year period even though the parties had an equal number of seats. This resulted in Representative Demuth becoming the first African American Speaker of the Minnesota House.