This guide builds on the Virginia guide, which covers Rule 7.1 and Virginia's AI opinions. Here the focus is the local market: one independent city, neighboring counties with their own courts, and pages that keep those lines straight.
One market name, several localities
Virginia defines a city as an independent incorporated community, and Va. Code 17.1-500 gives Richmond its own circuit court. Henrico County, which borders the city, is a separate locality with a separate court. Chesterfield County is separate again.
If your firm takes clients from all three, a single page that says "Richmond" and nothing else leaves out where most of the procedure actually happens. A page per locality earns its place here because the court, the clerk, and the address genuinely differ.
Getting the local court facts right
The Virginia courts directory lists each circuit court separately:
| Locality | Circuit | Circuit court location |
|---|---|---|
| City of Richmond | 13th Judicial Circuit | John Marshall Courts Building, 400 North Ninth Street, Richmond |
| Henrico County | 14th Judicial Circuit | 4309 East Parham Road, Henrico |
| Chesterfield County | 12th Judicial Circuit | 9500 Courthouse Road, Chesterfield |
Probate follows residence. Under Va. Code 64.2-443, a will is offered in the circuit court of the county or city where the decedent had a known place of residence. A Henrico estate goes to Henrico, not to the John Marshall Courts Building, and a page that blurs the two gives an assistant the wrong answer to repeat.
What differs from the rest of Virginia
In Richmond, the boundary that matters most is between a city and the counties around it. The Virginia Beach market has a different shape: an independent city whose nearby neighbors, such as Norfolk and Chesapeake, are also cities with their own circuit courts. The same rule applies in both places, name the locality first, but the pages end up organized differently.
What we build for Richmond firms
- Practice-area pages that state which locality and which circuit court each process runs through
- Separate Henrico and Chesterfield pages where you take clients there and the court facts differ
- Answer posts for the questions Richmond-area clients ask before they call
The estate planning guide shows why probate venue matters on these pages, and the family law guide covers the circuit court questions divorce clients raise. If you are weighing how many locality pages to build, read whether city pages still work for lawyers.
Common questions
Should a Richmond firm build separate pages for Henrico and Chesterfield?
If you take clients there, usually yes. Each is a separate locality with its own circuit court and clerk, so the pages carry different facts rather than a swapped place name.
Where is the Richmond Circuit Court?
The Virginia courts list it at the John Marshall Courts Building, 400 North Ninth Street, Richmond, in the 13th Judicial Circuit. Check the court's own page before publishing, since locations and hours can change.