Tampa Business Succession Planning Attorney
As a Tampa business owner, you spend most of your day focusing on operational matters and short-term planning. After all, your focus is understandably on growing your business and providing for your family. But what happens to your business when you are no longer around? What if you unexpectedly die or become incapacitated? Or what if you are simply looking to sell the business and retire a few years down the line?
It is important to start thinking about these questions now before something does happen and your business is left in the lurch. Our experienced Tampa business succession planning attorney can help. Knudsen Law is a dedicated Florida estate and probate law firm that understands the special legal and financial needs of business owners. Our team can sit down with you, review your business, and advise you in developing a strategy to ensure that all of your hard work is not lost someday.
How Does Business Succession Planning Work in Florida?
In its simplest form, a business succession plan focuses on replacing key leadership roles within an organization, such as the chief executive officer, chief financial officer, and chief operating officer. It also includes addressing questions related to the ownership of the business. Your actual business succession planning needs will therefore depend on the size of the organization and how it is structured as a legal entity.
For example, if a Florida business is structured as a multi-member limited liability company (LLC), the members should have an operating agreement in place that addresses succession planning. Such entities often adopt “buy-sell” agreements where upon the death of a member, the other members have the right to buy out the deceased member’s share from their estate for a specified price. This can minimize overall disruption to the LLC’s operations while ensuring the decedent’s heirs receive fair compensation.
In a smaller business, such as a sole proprietorship, business succession planning often means leaving directions for winding down the business and distributing its assets. Or it may involve identifying a potential successor who can take over the business when the owner decides to retire at a specified future date. This can also include making plans for transferring any clients, customers, and other forms of “goodwill” to another business.
Another consideration in business succession planning is the potential need for additional life insurance. In the case of a buy-sell agreement, for instance, it may be necessary for the business to take out insurance on its members or partners to ensure there is adequate liquidity to purchase their share after they die.
Contact a Tampa Business Succession Planning Attorney at Knudsen Law Today
It is often difficult in business to think past the next fiscal quarter, much less several years down the line when a succession plan may be necessary. But good succession planning now can help set your business up for success long after you retire or die. If you would like to speak with an experienced Tampa business succession attorney, contact Knudsen Law today at (727) 398-3600 to schedule a consultation.