Success StoryWill-Writing Clinic Provides Free Legal Services



Will-Writing Clinic Provides Free Legal Services

Author: Brian Jeffiers

Planning Unit: Johnson County CES

Major Program: Financial Education - General

Plan of Work: Improve Individual and Family Development

Outcome: Long-Term Outcome

Roughly 68% of the population currently does not have a will to document their wishes for the disposition of their estate upon their death. Without a will, the time and expense of settling the estate becomes much more burdensome to heirs. This effect is amplified if real property remains titled to "the heirs of" the decedent without going through a physical partitioning and titling to the heirs by name. 

Using funds through an heirs' property grant through Kentucky State University, the Johnson County Cooperative Extension Service worked with Livelihoods Knowledge Exchange Network (LiKEN) to host a free will-writing clinic. LiKEN recruited four experienced attorneys to provide pro bono will writing for Johnson County residents alongside education on heirs' property. Eighteen families participated in the clinic, with 15 creating wills on the spot and the other three learning that they needed to gather additional information before completing their wills. Local participating attorneys will honor the free assistance at a later date to those participants.







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