Running your own business is certainly not for the faint of heart. When you are able to build up a successful business, that usually means many years of dedication, heart, time and energy that you have sacrificed to get to where you are. Have you ever thought about what would happen to your business if you were no longer able to run it? Or what that would mean for your family, or your employees and their families? In the same way that people will put off having a personal estate plan made, it is not uncommon for business owners to not even think about creating an estate plan for their business. But there are several things to consider when you run your own business and would certainly want to avoid if something were to happen to you. So, in today’s blog, we are going to talk about three things to think about as a business owner, when it comes to planning your estate.
1) Leadership
Running your business takes a very specific skill set. If you have a family member who is highly involved in the business, it may make sense for them to carry on in your place. But, what if no one in the family has the skills, time, or interest in running your business? Maybe they are willing and interested, but just don’t have the skills. If that’s the case, it would be a benefit to have a plan for who would have the skills and ability to lead the business if you are no longer there to do it. You also will want to create a transition plan for that person and make sure that if they are positioned to take leadership, they would also have access to bank accounts, online accounts, financial information, and technical information about the business, etc.
2) Ownership
Your spouse or family can still own the business while you have someone else appointed to lead the business. But if that is not as beneficial to your family as a one-time payment would be, then you might want to consider other options. If you have business partners, they may be interested in buying your portion of the business from your family. It is a smart idea for business partners to have life insurance policies on each other so that if one of them were to pass, there would be funds available for the buyout. If you do not have partners but still believe your family would want to sell the business, then it’s a good idea to have information regarding valuation and other important information that would make transfer of ownership more feasible. That transition plan we talked about can help tremendously if you think selling the business would be the best option at that point.
3) Taxes and Probate
Unfortunately, the tax liability that comes upon a business when the owner dies also comes with a deadline. It is very sad when businesses have to liquidate in order to pay the tax burden on time. You don’t want your business to end that way, so if you would rather your family or business partners have a chance to run your business rather than it coming to an end, then talk to your estate planning attorney at Lake of the Ozarks about an estate plan for your business.
Our business law attorneys at Lake of the Ozarks know that an estate plan is one of the last things of business owners thinking about when they’re building up their business. But we also know how important it is. So, if you have any question at all, feel free to take advantage of a free initial consultation with our lawyers in Lake Ozark. It is as simple as giving us a call and getting on the schedule. We can make the process of estate planning for your business in mid-Missouri easy and effective for you. We can also help you with other legal matters as well. For more helpful information and legal tips from our law office in Lake Ozark, we invite you to use the links below to follow us on social media.
Remember, your initial consultation with Gibbons Law Firm is always free.
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