BUSINESS SERVICES

Taking care of your estate plan also means taking care of your small business. Whether you have an ecommerce store on the side you want to make legal a bicentennial family farm, or you are self-employed and have your own employees, we can help make sure that you, your beneficiaries, your customers, and your employees are all properly situated.

Types of Business Services:

• Set up (and close) small businesses, which includes operating agreements and tax ID numbers.
• Draft small business succession plans
• Prepare rental agreements for buildings or agricultural
• Act as registered agent
• File annual reports and draft annual minutes or resolutions
• Prepare or review contracts and rental agreements
• Review your corporate record book for any “holes” or legal issues
• Provide general advice and counsel as needed

Why is a Business Succession Plan Necessary:

Without an estate plan that includes your business, during your incapacity or death:

• Your business may default on contracts and orders, resulting in financial liability
• Taxes may not be collected and paid on time, resulting in tax liabilities
• Your business may lose reputation and standing without your leadership
• Your beneficiaries may not be able to access business funds
• Your employees pay and benefits may not be paid on time
• And worst of all, your business may be subject to the time, costs, and headache of probate

Common Business Estate Planning Mistakes:

• Not planning for your business
  • A power of attorney and business succession plan are inexpensive ways to ensure your business will be covered if you die or lose capacity.
• Putting a transfer on death (TOD) designation on a business account
  • Even sophisticated business owners make this mistake. Your business can’t die, therefore the assets will never pass to your beneficiary – and therefore probate is required.
  • A proper business succession plan is inexpensive and addresses this issue.
• Relying upon insurance (or the wrong type of insurance) instead of getting an LLC
  • A landlord, general liability, or umbrella policies may not cover you in case of an issue. While insurance can be great, remember that they stay in business by not paying out claims.
• Not talking to an attorney early on
  • A mistake can be easy to fix when your business is young, but much more expensive to fix later.

Start With an Initial Consultation

This conversation should only take about an hour, but ultimately depends upon your needs. We estimate this cost to be approximately $250-300. This fee may be waived if you engage us for one of our packages. This fee is a legitimate business expense to claim on your business taxes.

There is no preparation necessary for this initial meeting, and you are not required to bring anything with you.  However, it will be very helpful to provide us with the following:

• Corporate record book (operating agreement/bylaws, articles of organization, stock certificates, etc.)
• Deeds for any real estate
• Insurance policies

By the end of the meeting, we should be able to tell you what the next steps are and estimate their costs.