Business-Minded Legal Solutions

Selling A Business And Planning For Succession

Selling your business may be the largest transaction of your lifetime.  Crafting the deal structure and a plan to transfer control must be done with awareness of multiple factors and include appropriate protections for the future.

At Stephenson Fournier, our Texas lawyers have decades of experience in dispositions ranging from complex, middle market strategic sales to brokered dispositions of family-owned businesses. In all deals, simple or complex, larger or smaller, we apply our  business sense to appropriately protect our clients’ interests and get deals closed effectively. We have a proven track record of helping business owners reach their goals — and that includes their goals for stepping away from the business through a strategic sale or succession arrangement.

Stock Purchase Agreements, Asset Purchase Agreements, And other Change Of Control Agreements

We handle the full spectrum of business sale transactions, including asset sales, equity sales and management buyouts, as well as succession planning within families through gift, devise and other mechanisms. Our clients benefit from experience drafting and negotiating our capabilities to optimize structures to keep taxes to a minimum, and our extensive knowledge of state and federal laws and regulations affecting these types of transactions. Among other things, these laws and regulations address tax matters, environmental issues, ERISA, and other areas of concern relevant to sellers.

Getting to the finish line of a deal to sell a business requires no shortage of subtlety. It includes the ability to manage multiple stakeholders such as lenders, other creditors and third-party contracts that may require consent to a sale. Tax considerations are another key element, among the many conditions required for a complex deal.

Our firm has the knowledge and practical orientation to bring it all together. We are also well-aware of the unique dynamics of particular industries and what to look out for. We have represented selling clients in a wide range of businesses, many of which are highly regulated.

No matter what the specifics are, we will guide you confidently in moving forward to accomplish your goals.

Effective Succession Planning

In conjunction with the firm’s estate planning practice, our attorneys also offer personalized business succession planning services designed to protect each client’s interests, achieve his or her personal and business goals, and ensure smooth transitions with minimal disruption of business operations.

Taking Action

Contact Stephenson Fournier online or at 713-629-9494.