What’s The Best Way To Pass Down Your Business To Your Successors?

There are countless numbers of small businesses in New York, and the majority of owners of those businesses want to pass them on to their families. However, while small business owners may be great at what it is they do for a living, actually making a plan on how to pass the family business to others is one of the most complex legal and tax matters, meaning that it is not a process that you should try to attempt without guidance. Hiring a New York estate attorney who also understands business will mean that all of the things that would contribute to successfully passing on your business will be accomplished.

Passing on a business is a combination of estate law, tax law, accounting and even family politics. Failing to plan or planning incorrectly can end up creating major financial and even emotional issues for your family after you pass away. In some cases, the end result could be that the business that you worked so hard to build could be destroyed. There are many layers of things you can plan when it comes to business succession. On one end of the spectrum would be having no plan and no will, meaning that the status of your business could be in limbo after you die. On the other end of the spectrum would be a well thought out plan, which includes your choice of who will take over, ownership rights of the company and plans for the company’s finances in the days after you die.

In fact, there are dozens of different choices when it comes to passing along your business, and much of what needs to be done could depend on how much your business is worth and how the structure of that business is set up. Because of this, if you have a business, even if you are young or don’t see an issue with succession at this time, you should contact a new York estate lawyer and put a plan in place immediately so that you family is covered if the worst happens.

The type of business ownership, avoiding any estate taxes, choosing the best person to take over your business, setting up trusts for some family members to get income from the business or even allowing someone close to you to make business decisions for you in the case of becoming incapacitated are all things that you need to keep in mind when you are planning for how to pass your business to the next generation. Not only will a well thought out plan end up saving your business for future generations, but if there is a solid plan in place that takes care of many of the potential issues, it will go a long way towards eliminating infighting between family members over ownership rights. Make sure that you have a solid business succession plan in place and call a New York estate attorney today at (212) 233-1233.