The year 2020 left us little to celebrate and yet it wasn’t without silver linings. To point this out is not to make light of the extraordinary pain so many have suffered (and continue to suffer), but simply to acknowledge the few good things that 2020 left behind. One such example is that this year more Americans have found the courage to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams.
According to an analysis of US Census Bureau data conducted by the Wall Street Journal, new applications for a US employer ID “reached 1.1 million through mid-September, a 12% increase over the same period last year and the most since 2007.” This means that even amidst a global pandemic, optimism appears to still be a defining characteristic of the American spirit. Many folks who lost their jobs turned lemons into lemonade by using their newfound time to start the business they had always hoped to run. The next step, of course, is ensuring these projects find success.
Estate Planning is Essential to Business Longevity
Every adult needs an estate plan. For small business owners, this is doubly true. The reason? Despite common misconception, an estate plan is much more than a road map explaining how your assets will be distributed when you’re gone. It is a set of documents that ensure your finances and well-being are cared for should you become incapacitated; it is also a vehicle for saving your loved ones the cost and hassle of probate court; and, among other things, it is a method for organizing buy-sell agreements, key-person insurance, and a business succession plan.
Those legal tools which attend to all of these essential tasks ensure that when the time comes and your business is to be sold or passed on to your heirs, there is certainty concerning what needs to happen and funding available to get it done. Estate planning for a small business is not just about planning for the future, however. It is also a way to gain a clear understanding of your enterprise’s structure and thereby be prepared for the present.
Instituting a general financial plan that looks far down the road provides valuable guidance for how to set up and manage your current financial affairs. Drafting a buy-sell agreement that aligns with your business’s values grants a clear picture of what these are. Articulating the skills and know-how required of an heir who might inherit your work ensures successful hires along the way.
After drumming up the courage and putting in the labor needed to launch a small business, it only makes sense to use all tools available to ensure your success. Estate planning is one such tool and an experienced estate planning attorney is the person best-suited to show you the tricks of the trade.
Contact the Estate Planning Attorneys at Deliberato Law Center
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