Minnesota Statutes Property and Property Interests (Ch. 500-515B) § 504B.115. Tenant to be given copy of lease

Subdivision 1. Copy of written lease to tenant. Where there is a written lease, a landlord must give a copy to a tenant occupying a dwelling unit whose signature appears on the lease agreement. The landlord may obtain a signed and dated receipt, either as a separate document or an acknowledgment included in the lease agreement itself, from the tenant acknowledging that the tenant has received a copy of the lease. This signed receipt or acknowledgment is prima facie evidence that the tenant has received a copy of the lease.

Subd. 2. Legal action to enforce lease. In any legal action to enforce a written lease, except for nonpayment of rent, disturbing the peace, malicious destruction of property, or a violation ofsection 504B.171, it is a defense for the tenant to prove that the landlord failed to comply with subdivision 1. This defense may be overcome if the landlord proves that the tenant had actual knowledge of the term or terms of the lease upon which any legal action is based.