It’s as if Courtney Ernston decided at a young age to craft the perfect resume to join Minnesota Construction Law Service’s someday.

Courtney grew up working in her family’s Twin Cities roofing business for 12 years, so she understands the challenges of recruiting and retaining reliable employees and surviving as a subcontractor. Then, she immersed herself in real world immigration matters in several countries while earning her law degree. After admission to the Minnesota bar, she focused on immigration and small business law and served as General Counsel in the family construction business.

Today Courtney is uniquely qualified to advise Minnesota Construction Law Service’s clients on construction litigation, collections and immigration matters.

Courtney graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2010 with a BA in Political Science and Anthropology. She received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Law in 2013.

At Oklahoma, she founded the International Law Society, which helped foreign students navigate US law and culture. She received the Pros For Africa Fellowship in her first year of law school and spent summers working in Uganda and Costa Rica for the International Court of Human Rights. After law school she taught English and worked with human rights groups in South Korea. She also is on the Minnesota State Bar Association delegation that is helping to set up a bar association in Kosovo.

Courtney is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, Ramsey County Bar Association, Hennepin County Bar Association, Minnesota State Bar Association, Center for Victims of Torture, and Minnesota Women Lawyers. She is fluent in Spanish.

Courtney and her husband, Derrick, are lifelong Minnesotans and currently reside in St. Paul. They have one child. In her precious spare time, Courtney enjoys kayaking and Netflix binging.