Business Succession

Any business concerned about the long-term, needs an effective succession plan, whether they’re a family business or non-family business.

But just as no two businesses are the same, no two business succession plans should be the same either. Instead, every plan should be informed by the way your business works, your commercial objectives and, of course, the people involved.

When you work with our business succession team, we’ll take time to properly understand the commercial and human framework you’re operating in, as well as the legal one. Then we’ll help you develop a business succession plan that gives you the best opportunity for a seamless transition.

We’re experts in:

• Helping non-family businesses develop a succession plan that aligns with their business objectives, using devices such as tailored business owner agreements, key person insurance, restructuring arrangements, licensing and leasing key assets and more.

• Structuring tax effective arrangements using insurance to fund an equity buyout between owners (known as a ‘buy/sell agreement’) or to protect you from the impact of key people leaving.

• Helping family businesses maximise the chance of passing on the business to the next generation.

• Helping develop family business succession plans that take into account the complexities of modern family structures and dynamics and minimise the chances of a dispute.

• Advising on strategies that take into account the inter-relationship between family business succession planning and personal estate planning.

• Retaining key staff and keeping them productive by drafting employment contracts that link their incentives to your business objectives.

• Transitioning equity ownership and developing incentive plans that will keep the business functioning and productive.

• Defining the ongoing rights and duties of current and future business owners in a way that continues to give your business the best chances of success.

• Structuring successful management buyouts, trade sales and strategic private equity transactions.

• Advising you on successfully taking a private business to IPO and public ownership.

• Protecting key business assets through planning, structuring and restructuring.

• Developing long-term management succession plans that take advantage of the skills of your staff to meet your business objectives.

• Advising on how to achieve your business succession objectives through tax-effective personal estate planning.

• Showing you how to protect your business even if relationships break down.

• Using effective tax planning to help achieve your business succession goals.