Oftentimes, what happens to a business after an owner passes away, becomes incapacitated, or retires is forgotten until it becomes painfully relevant. However, with advanced planning and thoughtful consideration of your business’s needs, you can avoid drama and uncertainty.
Bringing a skilled business attorney into the discussion of your company’s future can make a difference in planning for unexpected outcomes. A San Antonio business succession planning lawyer could help you think through succession scenarios and options. At Begum Peláez-Prada LLC, our attorneys bring years of business experience, led by our managing partner, Sasha Begum, who has nearly 20 years working on business transactions of many kinds.
The first step in planning for business succession will be to think through your company’s structure. For instance, ask yourself:
An experienced business lawyer could help you make this initial evaluation and then develop options that work for you and your business. For example, a family-owned business may look to designate a younger family member if an older owner passes away, but that kind of succession may not apply to a business structured between unrelated partners.
As you start to consider your business from a succession planning perspective, you will be able to identify potential issues. Risks coming from succession can include:
Creating a viable succession plan can mitigate these risks, which is why retaining a San Antonio lawyer could deliver great value to your business.
The exact succession plan for your business will need to be tailored to what your business needs, but generally, they plan for the long-term and emergencies.
Long-term plans are more detailed and include getting involved in events that could be on the horizon, even when they are years down the line. Developing executive talent, designating a successor to a key owner (and reviewing that choice periodically), and developing crucial agreements with management and other owners can make your long-term plan for succession as smooth as possible.
An emergency succession plan can be implemented to prevent a sudden event, such as the unexpected death of the business’s primary owner. The plan may detail how legal ownership will shift and establish measures to continue the business as longer-term plans are developed. At a minimum, your business should have emergency steps to ensure that it does not immediately suffer.
Succession plans of any type will typically also have a strategic plan and a financial plan to keep things going in the direction envisioned before succession begins. Depending on how ownership is transferred to a successor, you might even need to consider tax issues. Fortunately, the experience of a well-practiced San Antonio business succession planning attorney, partnered with your knowledge of your business, could ensure that all your needs are met.
Preparing for the unexpected requires forethought and careful consideration. But the future of your business—and its impact on your and your family’s well-being—is worth the time and effort.
Enlisting the help of a San Antonio business succession planning lawyer allows you to work through the specifics of your business needs with the advice of an experienced professional. Our attorneys at Begum Peláez-Prada bring years of experience and collaboration to your succession planning. Call our office to make an appointment and get the process started.
