Special Issue: Family Firms and the Law

June 17, 2024 - Issue #120

Family Firms May Need More Legal Advice Than They Think Families are often reluctant to anticipate and plan for the day when an unexpected transition might upend their business. The costs of inaction are high.

How To Know When You Need a Lawyer (and How To Find the Right One) Here are nine situations when a lawyer is a must, guidelines for getting the most from your legal budget, and steps for finding the right advisor.

Divorce Can Hollow out a Family Business — But it Doesn’t Have to It’s surprising how many business-owning families fail to properly plan for this worst case scenario. Here's advice from two experts about protecting the business.

'I’ll See You in Court?' There’s a Better Way for Businesses Alternative Dispute Resolution helps businesses resolve legal matters outside of litigation, allowing the parties to voluntarily reach a compromise.

What the Bob Ross Fight Can Teach Business Owners The fight over the beloved TV artist's estate is a cautionary tale for any business. How to protect your business and your heirs well before you die.

5 Ways to Keep Your Kids From Fighting Over Your Will Communicate early and often, get input, be fair and detailed about your plans, and write a letter to your children explaining your choices.

Beyond Succession: Family Firms Need a Legacy Plan Too A family venture can thrive if its values are passed along to the next generation. Defining those values is the first challenge.

Non-Competes Are a Double-Edged Sword While non-competes are often viewed as low-cost insurance policies, they can have hidden costs. Here's how to tell if they're right for your venture.

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Persuasive Communication for Crucial Conversations

How Well are Business Owners Preparing for Succession and Transition?

12 Strategies to Get Customers to Buy Your Product

A New Way to Resolve Extreme Conflict in Family Businesses

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Financing, revenue, profits

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Recent

Merging With Another Family Firm is Safer and Smarter

by Francesco Chirico, Robert E Hoskisson, Seemantini Pathak, and Massimo Baù / Research Insight

Family business mergers enjoy greater harmony and better financial performance than mergers involving non-family firms. Read more...

Unready and Unadvised: The Silent Crisis in Family Wealth Transfer

by Srbuhi Avetisyan / Practice Insight

A study of 13,500 family firms shows that nearly half of heirs don’t know where the assets are -- and 3 in 5 wouldn’t know what to do if the founder died suddenly. Read more...

AI Adoption in Family Business: Balancing Trust and Tech

by Doug Gray, PhD / Practice Insight

Using AI can be risky in settings where confidentiality is key, but it can be indispensable in developing innovative services that clients expect. Here's how to harness it safely. Read more...

A Family Council Can Help Larger Families Stay Connected

by Kimberly Eddleston / Interviews

Consider one if your family business has 15 or more relatives involved, or multiple generations. Read more...

by Ritch Sorenson

Consumers Love Local Brands. That's Good News For Family Businesses

by Philipp Jaufenthaler, Andreas Kallmuenzer, Sascha Kraus, and Alfredo De Massis

Retirement Options and their Consequences for Small Business Owners

by Valeria Alterman and Ariane Froidevaux

Outside Leadership Can Save the Family Business

by Robert Sher

Business Families Must Get Real About Growth and Payouts

by Joseph Astrachan and George Manners