All business owners must carefully consider succession planning, namely, what will happen to the business upon the occurrence of certain events affecting an owner. The main objective in succession planning is to ensure that in the event of an owner’s death, total disability, retirement or desire to sell or retire, that his or her family is fairly compensated for the ownership interest while providing the remaining owners a seamless transition without interference from the family of the selling owner. A typical buy-sell agreement will result in the remaining owners (or perhaps if the business has but one owner, a key employee) purchasing the interest in a selling owner based upon an agreed upon price or formula which values the business based upon its financial performance. There are a variety of types of buy-sell agreements depending on the type of entity involved and the nature of the ownership structure. Failure to properly establish a succession plan through the use of such an agreement can lead to disharmony and disruption of the business if a remaining owner is forced to become business partners with the family members of a deceased or totally disabled owner. We have significant experience in succession planning as well as knowledge of the tax issues relating to each type of agreement and are happy to assist in discussing and drafting an agreement tailored to meet your needs.