Estate Planning for Business Owners

Business owners who do not have an estate plan in place run the risk of undermining a lifetime of hard work.

Whether you are creating an estate plan from scratch or revising an existing one, it is vital that you seek specialist legal advice to ensure your legacy is protected.

At Biscoes, we have a specialist team dedicated to estate planning for business owners. We provide commercially minded advice to individuals looking to organise their estates and provide for their future. Our aim is to help you protect and manage your estate in a tax-efficient manner, ready to be passed on in whatever way you believe is best suited.

We can advise on the smaller details of your estate, down to the individual assets, host meetings, facilitate communication, and take a broader perspective on your overall portfolio. We recognise the importance of protecting your hard work, and our estate planning strategies can both ensure safe succession of your business interests, whilst simultaneously reducing your liability to Inheritance Tax, thus ensuring that more of your estate is safeguarded for the next generation.

Specifically, our estate planning for business owners’ expertise includes:  

• Business succession planning
• Minimising estate and Inheritance Taxes
• Asset protection
• Coordinating personal and business estate planning

Speak to our estate planning for business owners’ solicitors today

If you would like to contact one of our estate planning for business owners’ solicitors in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, please call 02392 660261. Alternatively, please fill out this simple contact form, and we will respond promptly.

Why work with our estate planning for business owners’ solicitors?

At Biscoes, we understand the immense dedication and hard work you have put into building your business or acquiring shares over the years. That's why we are committed to providing comprehensive support and personalised legal solutions to protect your legacy.

Having the right plans in place for your estate will mean that you can safeguard your business and ensure that it is passed on to capable individuals who can preserve its value and drive its continued success. It’s vital that you don’t leave your business's future to chance - take the necessary steps today to protect what you have built.

Our team includes members of STEP (Society for Trust and Estate Practitioners), a global professional body comprising of lawyers, accountants, trustees, and other professionals who help individuals and families to plan for their futures. This further highlights our expertise and ability to provide the highest standard of advice to business owners seeking to secure the best outcome for their estate.

As a firm, we proudly hold the prestigious Lexcel accreditation, a testament to our excellence in legal practice management and outstanding client care.

Our estate planning services for business owners

Business succession planning

Without a professionally drawn-up Will, there is a risk that your hard-earned business assets will be inherited by someone who may lack the necessary skills to manage them effectively.

Furthermore, the absence of a Will can lead to disagreements and conflicts amongst interested parties regarding the future direction and management of the business. For instance, if your spouse were to inherit along with other business owners, conflicting ideas about running the business could arise, creating potential complications.

Likewise, if minor children were to inherit your business, it could pose significant challenges to its continuity. Having a Will becomes crucial in ensuring fair treatment and the smooth operation of your family business.

In addition, when it comes to passing on your business or shares, it is crucial to consider all aspects of your estate plan to avoid any conflicts with your company's legal documents, such as a shareholders agreement.

Our estate planning solicitors can ensure your Will corresponds with your existing company arrangements and establish a clear succession plan for your business, giving you peace of mind that everything will be taken care of in your absence.

Minimising estate and Inheritance Taxes

In most cases, a key step to effective estate planning is transferring wealth in good time and in advance of your death to trusted family members of beneficiaries to avoid paying excessive Inheritance Tax (IHT).

Our team can advise on the most effective methods for minimising Inheritance Tax, including using Business Relief where appropriate.

We also have specialist expertise in handling tax when planning for your estate by making the most of the financial gifts method — you can read more about it in our blog post about Financial Gifts and Inheritance Tax. We understand exactly how to divide and organise estates in order to preserve wealth across generations, including your business and all of the associated assets.

Asset protection

Asset protection can take the form of legal structures intended to shield assets from liabilities and risks. There are many methods for our solicitors to improve your estate structure, such as:

• Setting up Discretionary Trusts, Family Trusts, and Asset Protection trusts, all of which work in unique ways to protect assets and preserve business wealth for future generations
• Creating a Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) specifically for business protection
• Structuring ownership in a way that minimises risk
• Advising on tax-efficient succession planning

Biscoes’ expert solicitors can advise you on all of your options, prioritising a protective planning method as part of our risk anticipation and safeguarding efforts. Each structure will be tailored to you, your successors, and your business needs, finished with the provision of resolute legal documentation that will hold up under scrutiny.

Coordinating personal and business estate planning

We recognise that business owners are often under pressure to balance business estate planning with personal and familial matters, securing their legacy while also managing family dynamics and potentially competing needs. Without meticulous coordination, your business interests may become liable to excessive taxes, operational uncertainty that disrupts function, and legal disputes from business partners or families alike.

Biscoes can assist in coordinating personal and business estate planning by finding the perfect balance between commercially minded advice and sympathetic legal counsel.

Members of our firm are part of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (STEP), who work across the country to advise families across generations, preserving and encouraging family bonds wherever possible.

No matter how specific your hopes for family and business union are or how contentious matters have already become, our experts can help you to navigate difficult conversations and find common ground. We will use all the estate planning tools and structures available to you to protect your commercial and family wellbeing, using one to reinforce the other wherever possible and advising on personal wealth.

Frequently asked questions about our estate planning for business owners’ services

Why is estate planning for business owners important?

Estate planning in business plays a crucial role in the smooth transition of a commercial enterprise from one generation to another without diminishing its assets and whilst safeguarding the family’s financial future. Structuring an effective estate plan can prevent business disruption, disputes amongst family members and business partners, and unexpected tax burdens.

What are the main estate planning tools for business owners?

When it comes to estate planning in business, there are a few tools that your solicitor can explain to you for your consideration, including:

• A Will ensures that your assets are distributed according to your wishes and protects you from intestacy laws
• Trusts, with which you can pass business assets on more tax-efficiently
• Succession planning, which is the process of identifying and preparing one or more successors to take over a business with minimal disruption, and;
• A buy-sell agreement details what you want to happen to your business share if you retire, exit, or die.

What is a buy-sell agreement, and why is it important?

A buy-sell agreement is a legal document that enforces how a business owner’s share of a company will be passed on under set circumstances, such as their retirement, exit from the company, or their death. Businesses with multiple owners absolutely must implement buy-sell agreements to ensure that should a partial owner exit, their share will not end up being passed on to family members with no interest in running a business or no relevant experience.

How often should business owners update their estate plan?

Any major life change should trigger a re-examination of the documentation in place for estate planning companies, including their principal plan and organisation. This might include major financial events, such as the selling or acquisition of critical assets, family changes, such as marriages or children, or changes in the business structure.

You should also keep an eye on changes in tax laws as they frequently shift and can impact business succession planning. This is a lot to consider, and you are advised to consult a professional who can keep an eye on this aspect of the company on your behalf, allowing you to focus on reaching your goals.

Who benefits most from estate planning?

Estate planning typically benefits everyone involved in the company as it ensures the smooth transition of partial or full ownership, making sure that carefully selected individuals are placed in a position of power with oversight from the previous owner.

For business owners, this protects their assets in accordance with their wishes and simultaneously benefits their beneficiaries and family members as it prevents tax burdens and uncertainty and hopefully lessens the likelihood of disputes arising.

Business partners will benefit from the open discussion and clarification on ownership disruption, and as a result, employees are likely to enjoy continuity in the business and no sudden changes to operations.

Speak to our estate planning for business owners’ solicitors today

If you would like to contact one of our estate planning for business owners’ solicitors in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, please call 02392 660261. Alternatively, please fill out this simple contact form, and we will respond promptly.