It’s especially important for small business owners to consider what will happen to their businesses when they’re no longer around. With that in mind, estate planning for business owners in California is crucial and doesn’t have to be overwhelming when knowing what steps to take. Essentially, the starting point is to fashion a basic estate plan from which other issues can be addressed, such as taxation and insurance.
Having estate planning documents that pertain to the business ensures that the wishes of the owner will be carried out as he or she intended. Thirty percent of all business owners don’t have an estate plan in place that speaks to their businesses, despite working hard to see they’re successful. Dying or becoming incapacitated is something no one really wants to think about, but business owners have to bite the bullet and do so if they want their businesses to thrive when they’re no longer at the helm.
A comprehensive estate plan that includes a business ensures a trustworthy individual will take over operations when the owner can’t. The wishes of an individual written in a legally binding estate plan also makes it much more easy on loved ones, should the time come. It’s likely that a business plays a large part in the net worth of an entrepreneur, so it makes sense to safeguard that asset with proper estate planning.
Getting together the best estate plan possible for a business will likely entail obtaining the help of a California attorney experienced in estate planning. A lawyer would be able to make recommendations on estate planning issues that affect entrepreneurs. Business people work hard to start, maintain and grow their businesses, so it would be unfortunate if plans weren’t in place when the owner is no longer able to oversee operations because of incapacity or death.