Business Structure, Tax & Succession Planning

BACK TO Estates & Trusts

We have decades of experience helping clients design and implement effective family business ownership structures and succession plans. As a family’s assets and businesses grow, the ownership structure becomes more complex. The objective of business organization planning is to create a structure that is simple but provides powerful business, tax and estate planning benefits. A major benefit of business entity planning is that it can provide the ability to maintain family control of assets and protect against dissipation. Family assets are typically dissipated through taxes, excessive spending and attacks by creditors.

Objectives of an Estate and Business Ownership Structure:

Maintain ownership and control of assets in the hands of desired family members
Create a family investment plan
Minimize and avoid estate and gift tax
Minimize income taxes
Minimize loss of assets to risk arising from business operations
Protect assets
Facilitate family budgeting (a.k.a. protect assets from family / excessive spending)
Pool assets to meet investment manager minimums and minimize management fees
Pool assets to allocate among asset classes
Allow transfer of membership interests in entities that own family assets rather than the assets themselves.
Irrevocable Trusts
Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)
S Corporations
C Corporations

The backbone of a family ownership structure is the use of trust and business entities. Of these entities, irrevocable trusts and limited liability companies are the most effective to protect assets and minimize taxes. Assets owned by an irrevocable trust are generally not included in a beneficiary’s estate and are effective to keep assets within the family. Assets owned by a limited liability company are also effective to control and protect assets.