Estate Planning

Tucson Business and Succession Planning

On of the greatest joys of building your own business is knowing that you have created something bigger than yourself. Your company can last for generations, providing a good living for your loved ones and enriching your customer’s lives by providing products or services at a fair price. Your company can only accomplish this, though, if you take the right steps to make sure you have a succession plan in place.

Smart business planning should start from day one so your company can grow and thrive. You need to make strategic choices at every phase of growing your company, including when you get ready to pass it on to the next generation.

What is Involved in Business Planning?

The business planning process involves developing a strategic plan for your company, making use of legal tools that protect your business, and considering each decisions in light of where you want to take your organization.

Smart planning should start when your company is born.

As you begin to build your business, you should choose the right entity. Incorporation or formation of an LLC are options to consider for liability protection, and it is important to understand the different tax benefits and logistical issues that each type of business structure creates.

Creating the right contracts with co-owners and employees, like buy/sell agreements and non-disclosure agreements, is also essential.

A detailed business plan should also be created when your company starts, which can help to drum up interest from investors and can serve as your guide to turning your company into a profitable entity.

As your company grows, you need to make countless additional decisions to protect the interests of your organization and to make certain you grow your brand and customer base. Through it all, you need to know where your legal vulnerabilities are and how to make the law work for you. Involving an experienced attorney in the business planning process can help you to consider all of your planning decisions from different angles so you can make the best choices. 

Why is Succession Planning So Important?

Business planning doesn’t just involve thinking about the here-and-now.

You need to consider the long-term, including the very long-term involving survival of your company once you are gone.

Your business can be a lasting legacy, and can continue to have a strong place in the world for generations after you have passed on.  To make sure your company has its own independent life, you need to work with a business planning lawyer to create a business succession plan.

A business succession plan should take into account when and how the company transfers; to whom it can transferred; and how to ensure that the transfer happens in a timely manner. You want to ensure there is no delay during the probate process where ownership of your company is in limbo and there’s no owner at the helm to make important decisions.

You also need to consider the impact of your ownership stake in the business on the estate tax that could be assessed. An ownership interest in a company could result in your entire estate exceeding the threshold and taxes being charged that cause significant financial hardship. In some cases, businesses even end up being sold as a result of insufficient funds to pay estate tax after a death.  You don’t want this to be the fate of your company. 

How Can a Tucson Business Planning and Succession Planning Lawyer Help?

Kinghorn Law can provide help with business planning for businesses at all phases of development.

Our legal team also assists you in making a plan for the future of your business after you are gone. Contact a Tucson business succession planning lawyer today to find out more about the ways in which an experienced attorney can help you.