Congratulations to Daniel Le who was elected as Chair of the Board of Public Defense, the first Asian American and person of color to lead the Board of Public Defense in its history of serving our State!

Dan arrived in the United States with his family in 1975 as refugees from the Vietnam war arriving in Minnesota in 1976. He learned English by watching Sesame Street and since childhood, has assisted family, friends and others to bridge language, cultural and justice gaps. Dan became a naturalized citizen in 1980 and later graduated from the U of M with a B.S. in Applied Economics and received his law degree from William Mitchell College of Law.

Dan has accumulated over 26 years of legal experience in state and federal transactional and litigation areas on behalf of individuals and businesses from the rich cultural and socio-economic backgrounds in Minnesota. Dan currently serves as General Counsel of the Minnesota Credit Union Network, a trade association for credit unions. His practice experience included being a legal aid attorney at Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS), a community prosecutor for St. Paul and private practice in business and corporate law, real estate, employment, non-profit law, immigration, and criminal defense. 

Dan has resided in South Minneapolis for the past 24 years and he currently serves as a member on the Board of Mixed Blood Theater and a former Director for the Vietnamese Community of Minnesota nonprofit. Dan has also served as Treasurer of the Ramsey County Bar Association from 2003-2007 and was a MSBA Delegate to General Assembly.