Ownership & Succession

You spent decades building the business and almost none deciding how you leave it. Succession is where that catches up with owners.

Ownership and succession are about who controls a business, how that control passes, and what happens when partners or generations change. I help owners and co-owners set the terms before they are needed: how ownership is held, how a partner exits, how a buyout works, and how the business moves to the next owner or the next generation without tearing itself apart in the process.

I keep this work grounded in the business, not just the paperwork. Because I have run companies, I know these decisions are as much about people and money as about law, and I structure them so the plan actually functions when the moment comes. Where the work touches estate planning, tax, or valuation, I bring in the right estate planner, CPA, or financial advisor rather than working outside what I do well.

The point is to keep the decision in the owner’s hands, on the owner’s timeline, instead of leaving it to a dispute or a default.

You finish with ownership and transition set out in writing, the terms agreed while everyone is still at the table, and a clear path for what comes next.

A common question: We are partners who get along. Do we need this now? That is exactly when to do it. Terms are easy to set while the relationship is good and very hard to set once it is not.

Tell me what you are planning. If it is a fit, I will lay out the work and the fee in writing before anything begins.