Business Succession Planning

A significant part of our corporate practice involves analyzing business ownership structures and designing and implementing methods to transition ownership to the next generation, existing partners or to third parties.  This process frequently requires drafting shareholder, operating and buy-sell agreements as well as alternative forms of equity participation agreements such as stock option plans, stock appreciation rights, profit interests and phantom stock plans.  Coordination with tax and estate planning advisors as well as insurance professionals is often critical to choosing the best structure and avoiding potential adverse tax consequences.