Business Succession Planning

Westmont Business Lawyers
Experienced Attorneys Helping Family Businesses

Once you've built a strong business, it's important that you take the time to protect it. One of the most important things you can do to protect your business is to contemplate the eventual transfer of ownership, and develop a strong business succession plan.

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At the law offices of Manetti & Griffith, Ltd. in Westmont, Illinois, we provide skilled legal representation for family businesses, to help business owners develop plans for succession as part of a comprehensive asset protection strategy.

Business owners rarely want to consider a time when they will no longer be in charge of the day-to-day operations and responsible for making essential decisions. The fact is though, you cannot run your business forever. After devoting a lifetime of work to growing and developing a business, you should be able to enjoy the rewards.

We will help you develop an appropriate strategy, based upon your interests and the business structure. The structure of your business will play an important role in guiding appropriate succession planning strategies, as will your intentions for the business. If you intend to bring a child in to run a family business, your plans will be different than if you are simply planning to sell the company.

If you are planning to sell the business, there are two primary ways a buy-sell arrangement can be structured: stock redemption or cross-purchase plans.

• Under a stock redemption plan, the company redeems stock owned by the departing shareholders in exchange for company property, which is generally cash. Sometimes this can be a lengthy process, as the company may need to raise the capital to buy out the departing stockholder.
• Under a cross-purchase plan, each company shareholder agrees in advance to buy the stock of a departing shareholder, and each departing shareholder agrees to sell the stock to the remaining shareholders.

If you are planning to bring a child in to run a family business, it is important to prepare this child to take over the business and also protect their ability to do so. We can help guide you through this process, and ensure that you are considering all of the relevant aspects of such a decision.

Contact our offices today to schedule a confidential consultation with one of our knowledgeable business lawyers.