Goochland County offers free Law Day clinic for wills and medical directives

Goochland residents had a free shot at paperwork that can save families time, money and confusion: a Law Day clinic with The Span Center offered help with wills, powers of attorney and advance medical directives. The county calendar listed the clinic for May 27, said it was open all day, and required registration. Residents looking for details were told to contact Candi May at The Span Center.

The value of that kind of clinic goes well beyond filling out forms. A will can direct what happens to property and final wishes. A power of attorney can let someone step in on financial matters. An advance medical directive can spell out health-care choices and name who should speak for a person if illness or injury leaves that person unable to decide. For caregivers, adult children and older homeowners across Goochland County, those decisions often become urgent only after a hospital visit or a decline in health.

The Span Center’s program is part of the Greater Richmond Bar Foundation’s wills-clinic network, which the foundation says has partnered with local organizations since 2007 and has provided more than 5,000 Life Planning Documents. Those documents cover the basics: wills, durable power of attorney and advance medical directives. The program is aimed at people who may not be able to afford a private attorney or who have been putting off estate planning because the process feels complicated.

Goochland has shown interest in this kind of help before. A 2025 Senior Law Day listing set monthly income eligibility at $3,138 for a single-person household and $4,258 for a two-person household, and said the service was for eligible adults and people with disabilities. A 2018 Goochland and Powhatan Senior Law Day notice said legal documents would be prepared for residents age 55 and over and anyone with a medical disability. That pattern suggests a steady county effort to steer residents toward basic legal planning before a family crisis forces the issue.

Virginia law provides a standard framework for written advance directives, including the ability to choose an agent and set health-care wishes. Goochland County also lists The Span Center among its community organizations, which places the clinic inside an existing local service network rather than as a one-off outreach push. For residents who needed to get crucial decisions down in writing, the clinic offered a free, practical way to do it.