Private clients
Private wealth and family business succession
We advise families and founders on the governance and succession of family businesses and the structures through which family wealth is held.
Overview
For many families, the business is both the source of their wealth and an expression of their values and their name. In private wealth, we advise families and founders on keeping the family business strong across generations, and on structuring family wealth so that it is protected and passes as intended.
Succession in a family business is rarely only a legal question. It involves leadership, ownership, the relationships among family members and the expectations of the next generation. We help families address these questions deliberately, through family governance frameworks, carefully drafted shareholder and trust arrangements, and succession plans that are understood by those they affect.
This work is closely aligned with our trusts and estates, corporate and tax-aware structuring work, and with the family's own financial and tax advisers.
Services
What the work involves
Family business succession
We plan the transfer of ownership and leadership of family businesses, including the timing, the vehicles used and the arrangements for family members who are and are not involved in the business. A well-planned succession preserves both the business and the relationships within the family.
Family governance
We help families establish governance frameworks, such as family constitutions, family councils and clear policies on employment of family members, dividends and the admission of the next generation. Agreeing principles while relationships are good is the surest protection against later disputes.
Wealth-holding structures
We advise on the structures through which family wealth is held, including companies, trusts and offshore arrangements, with the family's tax advisers. We look at personal and business structures together, so that they support one another.
Next-generation preparation
We help families prepare the next generation for ownership responsibilities, including explaining structures, duties and rights in an accessible way. Informed beneficiaries and successors are better placed to preserve what earlier generations have built.
Liquidity events and wealth planning
We advise founders and families on the sale of a business or a partial liquidity event, and on structuring the proceeds. We plan the structure of the proceeds before the transaction completes.
Philanthropy and legacy
We advise on structures for charitable and community giving, so that a family's philanthropic intentions are given lasting form. We help families choose a structure suited to their objectives and their level of involvement.
Who we work with
Founders and entrepreneurs; families owning businesses across generations; family members preparing to inherit or lead; and families with significant assets held through companies and trusts.
How we work
Discretion
Family matters are handled with particular confidentiality and sensitivity.
Long horizon
We plan for generations, not only for the next transaction.
Working with the family's advisers
We coordinate with the family's financial and tax advisers.
Common questions
When should a family begin succession planning?
Ideally well before a transition is needed. Early planning allows the family to agree on principles while there is time, and to implement them gradually.
Technically sound. Commercially minded.
Advice that begins with technical precision and extends to the commercial and strategic judgement that founders, owners and executives rely on.