The smooth succession of a business requires a detailed plan that has been thoroughly strategized and well executed. All too often, business owners do not plan ahead. Crises such as serious illness, disability or death can create great upheaval and jeopardize a company and the people who own it. A carefully considered succession plan should be thought of as another kind of insurance policy essential to the continuation of any business, regardless of its size and structure. Consider these poignant facts:

• Only 40% of family owned businesses survive to the second generation, 12% to the third, and 3% to the fourth. (Boston Globe, May 4, 2003)
• By 2050, virtually all closely held and family owned businesses will lose their primary owner to death or retirement. Approximately $10.4 trillion of net worth will be transferred by the year 2040, with $4.8 trillion in the next 20 years. (Robert Avery, Cornell University, “The Ten Trillion Dollar Question: A Philanthropic Gameplan”)
• Nearly 40% of family businesses in America will be passing the reigns to the next generation over the next 5 years. (BusinessWeek, August 11, 2003)

Morris Law Group has significant experience serving the needs of closely-held businesses. We formulate plans for the transfer of ownership and control of the business from one generation to the next with the intent of minimizing taxes and preserving corporate assets. We prepare restrictive shareholder and partnership agreements and corporate reorganization plans, solve liquidity issues for tax obligations and structure stockholder buy-sell agreements. We also work with clients who have accumulated balances in their 401(k) and profit-sharing plans, as well as their Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs).