Janet Walsh is an attorney with Scheller Legal Solutions, a law firm specialized in elder and estate law. Her practice focuses on estate planning; long-term care navigation; asset protection; elder abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation; estate and trust administration; and government benefits for older and vulnerable adults, including those with dementia.
Previously, Janet worked with the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs, where she directed the Humphrey International Fellows program and was an instructor with the Master of Human Rights Program. Janet also served as deputy director of the Women’s Rights Division at Human Rights Watch from 2002 - 2019. There, she spearheaded projects in all regions of the world on domestic and sexual violence; sexual and reproductive rights; women’s land, property and inheritance rights; family laws; women’s labor rights; and work-family policies. Earlier in her career, Janet practiced law at several international law firms and at the United Nations legal office in New York
Janet earned her law degree (JD) from the University of California, Berkeley, and an LLM (Master of Laws) in international and comparative law from the University of Cologne, Germany. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Arizona State University. In 2021, she earned a Certificate in Elder Law from Mitchell Hamline Law School.
Originally from Minnesota, Janet spent years on the East and West Coasts and living abroad before returning to Minnesota to raise her two sons and support her parents in older age.
Her parents’ experiences with long-term care, dementia, and estate planning fuelled Janet’s interest in the rights of older people, leading to a career shift. She is honored to now work with award-winning attorney Suzanne Scheller of Scheller Legal Solutions, advancing the firm’s mission to provide quality, affordable legal and advocacy services with compassion and resolve.
Janet volunteers with nonprofit organizations, including the Alzheimer’s Association and Wills for Heroes. She enjoys cheering on her kids at soccer games, robotics competitions, and other activities. She also likes to bake, kayak, walk her feisty Maltipoo, and travel with her husband and kids.