Was working with a nice couple yesterday. They've spent years building a successful business. One of their children works with the business and much of the growth has been attributed to that child. The couple wanted to make sure that this particular child inherited the business, and that their remaining assets would be divided among all their children in a certain proportion.
Their business is owned by their LLC (limited liability company). Sounds pretty simple. Leave the LLC to that one child, and split up everything else.
However, they run their business out of a warehouse. What they failed to mention - until the very end of our discussion - was that the warehouse is owned by another LLC. In order to accomplish their objectives of leaving all the business assets to their child, we have to structure their Wills so that both LLC's are bequeathed to this particular child, with everything else being divided among the children.
We also talked about gifting small percentage interests of the business to the son annually to avoid estate tax - but that's another story.
Bottom line - if you are going to leave a business to someone in your will, make sure you structure the bequest so that it includes not only the name of the entity, but any other business assets that you may own individually or that you may own in another entity.
We can help. If you live in Louisiana and need help with estate planning for the succession of your business, give me a call at 225-329-2450, or shoot me an email at paul@rabalaislaw.com. Be happy to chat with you about it.
Paul Rabalais
My name is Nicolas Travers. I found your very well laid out and informative site through Google. I am English, but I know Tennessee well, and am writing a novel set in Tennessee in 1890. One of the central characters is Lucille Blampied, the beautiful 15 year old child of a Tennessee planter, Hector Blampied, and his quadroon mistress. Hector Blampied's wife Eleanor evicts Lucille and her mother when Hector dies. Lucille's mother dies of a broken heart, and Lucille is taken into an orphanage. Hector has a very wealthy bachelor brother, Ercole Desrieux Blampied, living in Louisiana. Ercole is elderly, and likely to die. He knows of Lucille's existence, but had never paid heed to her. He sends a lawyer to Tennessee to find out about her, and to bring her to him if she is presentable. Lucille travels to Lousiana, and Ercole both adopts her and leaves her all his possessions. Would such an adoption and bequest have been feasible, given that Lucille is an octoroon?
Posted by: Nicolas Travers | March 22, 2010 at 09:37 AM