Could this happen to you computer is my home desktop

I am addressing those of us who have been in business for several decades experiencing good times and bad times, but at the end of the day everything is working just fine. We all have families and some of our children and spouses have been encouraged to come and work in the family business. Sometimes that is the worst thing a parent can do which is to get the family to buy into the entrepreneurs dream which is generally not their own dream. Sometimes, however, it works out beyond great, where the next generation grows the business beyond believable bounds. All sounds great except for one thing, virtually nobody believes they are going to die or become disabled and therefore no planning has been done. Most of the families I have met have only part of the tax planning done to reduce taxes along the way and most families don't even have current wills or wills at all. I would like to take this opportunity to discuss a current case I am working on. You may identify with the following and if so, if also may cause you to go into action to preserve the future of the business, freeze current tax costs at death and empower the next generation calmly and strategically to continue to grow the business. Remember that there can only be one boss after you are gone. As the supreme leader, you must make that decision while you are healthy, vibrant and alive, otherwise you will be the cause of a major family feud (not the fun game on television).

CASE STUDY

Business Owner late 60s, very old will which probably doesn't reflect his current wishes and even some executors not currently alive

Wife, similar age

Son, age 40, married with 4 children, no will for either.

Sister, age 36, living common law, no prenup and no will

Business, very successful with literally no tax planning, large profits every year and lots of retained earnings.

Does the above sound familiar, I would bet on it.

Problems

1. the original wills of the parents are outdated and do not reflect their current wishes.
2. No estate planning has been done, no freezes, no planning whatsoever
3. The son, being the proposed beneficiary of the major part of the business has no will, his wife also doesn't have a will
4. The daughter is living common law without a prenup and no will
5. The companies have many millions in cash just sitting on deposit in the bank creating all kinds of tax problems like capital tax etc., lack of creditor-proofing and more, like the money isn't making any money.

The more I get to know the entire story, the more potential problems I am finding and the more solutions I must deal with.

Proposed Solutions

In order to do this case justice I had to build a team of specialists from top estate planning lawyers, top tax lawyers, tax accountants, appraisers and my team, the quarterback.

We are now working together to deliver the solution as follows:

1. collect all financial information for the past five years, including wills, if available, and any other relevant documents
2. This situation required a valuation before any freezing could be contemplated so we brought in a very well-known and dependable valuator who is currently working with the client
3. I immediately arranged for wills to be done for the son and his wife, the daughter and a prenup for the common-law spouse, all are completed and signed as of this time of writing
4. We have now proposed a very detailed estate plan which will be very clear as to who will be running the company in the future, the percentage of ownership in the Newco and also the percentage of ownership for the sister who is not involved in the family business
5. We are currently working on the parents wills which will reflect the estate planning and tax planning
6. We have created a plan to distribute retained earnings over time in a very effective tax strategy and at the same time creditor-proofing the assets of the business.
7. We are installing a new corporate structure that will save the company million/millions per year of tax, compliantly.

I'm sure there is more but at the end of the day, the entire family can go on with their lives knowing that they tried their best to make sure all that could be done was done and now they can sleep at night.

If this sounds like your situation, I would really enjoy adding value to your situation and help you as I have with this situation. Our first meeting is on us. We are not looking to have you change your professionals but to work with them to add value to your relationships. We don’t practice accounting.

Gordon Berger TEP