Estate Planning Built Around Your Business
Your business is probably your largest asset. Most estate plans treat it as an afterthought. As a fee-only attorney, I work with small business owners to make sure their company structure, ownership, and estate plan all work together — not in different directions.
Why Small Business Owners Need a Different Kind of Estate Planning
Standard estate plans are designed around the assumption that your wealth sits in accounts and real estate. For a small business owner, the picture is more complicated. The value of your company may be tied to your personal involvement, your client relationships, or your professional license. Your business interest may be difficult to value, harder to transfer, and impossible to divide without a plan that accounts for how it actually works.
I help business owners think through questions that a general estate planning attorney may not ask: What happens to the business if you die or become incapacitated before you intended to step back? Who has authority to run it? Can your estate sell it, or will it collapse without you? Is the business structured to minimize estate and income tax on a future transfer? These aren't hypothetical questions — they're the ones your family will face if you don't answer them now.
What Small Business Estate Planning Actually Covers
The work varies by business type, ownership structure, and what you want to happen to the company. For most small business owner clients, the engagement includes some combination of the following:
Business structure review
Confirming that your entity type — LLC, S-corp, partnership, or otherwise — is aligned with your estate and tax planning goals, not just your operating preferences.
Ownership and titling
Ensuring business interests are held in a way that allows for efficient transfer, avoids probate where possible, and doesn't inadvertently trigger gift or estate tax.
Buy-sell agreement drafting or review
Establishing what happens to your ownership interest if you die, become disabled, or want to exit — and making sure the funding mechanism (life insurance, installment payments, or otherwise) is actually in place.
Key person and incapacity planning
Designating who has authority to manage the business if you can't, and documenting that authority in a way that banks and counterparties will recognize.
Valuation and gifting strategy
If you intend to transfer ownership to family members over time, structuring those transfers to take advantage of valuation discounts and annual exclusion gifting before the business grows further.
Integration with your personal estate plan
Making sure your will, revocable trust, and beneficiary designations reflect your business interests accurately — and that the plan for the business doesn't conflict with the plan for everything else.
Weintraub Law Group concentrates in three areas where the cost of the wrong attorney is highest: capital formation, business transactions, and securities litigation support.
An Integrated Approach to Business Estate Planning
I operate on a fee-only basis. I don't sell financial products, I don't earn commissions, and I don't have a referral arrangement with any insurance provider. When I recommend a buy-sell structure funded by life insurance, it's because that structure fits your situation — not because someone is paying me to recommend it.
Serving Small Business Owners in Virginia, Maryland, and Florida
Each state presents distinctive planning considerations for business owners.
Virginia's lack of a state estate tax and its favorable dynasty trust statute make it a strong environment for long-term wealth transfer planning. Maryland's estate tax — which applies to estates above an exemption threshold that has not kept pace with inflation for some time — creates meaningful urgency for business owners whose company value may push them over the threshold. Florida's combination of no state income tax on trusts and strong homestead protection offers planning opportunities that are worth building around before a liquidity event.
If your business operates across state lines or you have personal assets in more than one state, I can coordinate the planning across jurisdictions.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business Planning
Do I need a separate estate plan for my business?
Your personal estate plan may cover your business interest at death, but it may not address what happens if you become incapacitated, who has authority to run the business, or how a transfer is structured. A plan for a business owner often considers both sides.
What is a buy-sell agreement?
A buy-sell agreement is an arrangement between co-owners that sets what happens to an ownership interest if an owner dies, becomes disabled, or wants to exit. It can address who may buy the interest, at what price, and how the purchase is funded.
When should I start business estate planning?
Often before a liquidity event, a health event, or significant growth in the business. Waiting can limit the options available.
Are there special considerations for S-corporations?
Yes. S-corporations have rules about who can be a shareholder, and not every trust qualifies. The entity structure and the estate plan should be coordinated.
What if not all of my children are involved in the business?
This is a common question. There are different ways to approach fairness among children, and the right approach depends on the family, the business, and your goals.