Family Business

Family businesses’ owners and managers face the challenge of adapting government and property structures to the constant evolution of the family and enterprise subsystems. This adaptation requires considering the interests of the different people involved, as well as the tensions that naturally arise between each interest group.

Companies and corporate families operate in a legal environment. The design and implementation of governance and property systems for each stage of the family and the company evolution should consider the current corporate, contractual, inheritance, family and tax law, and the ways in which the impact of such regulations can be minimized.

At Beccar Varela, we have a team of professionals specialized in Family Business, trained to assist business families and business owners throughout the different stages of their evolution, either preventively, to plan the required changes and implement them according to the plan outlined, or to handle the conflicts that arise when preventive work is insufficient.

We advise our clients on:

Business Family Governance
• Action plan diagnosis and design.
• Process of definition or redefinition of common values, mission and vision.
• Organization and operation of the family council.
• Negotiation and implementation of the rules related to the interaction between the company and the family, such as family incorporation to the business, evaluation and compensation of family members, access and disposition of the company’s property, etc.
• Drafting of Family Protocols in which the pre-agreed rules are expressed.

Family Business Governance
• Negotiation and implementation of shareholder agreements that reflect the shareholders agreement regarding governance and ownership of the family business according to the applicable regulations.
• Definition and implementation of customized corporate bylaws, which reflect the governance and ownership agreements previously reached.
• Organization and functioning of the Board of Directors according to the defined governance model.

Estate and inheritance planning
• Planning of the property anticipated transfer, the patrimonial regime of the marriage and the scheme to allocate the assets and income of the business family members.
• Instrumentation of the chosen patrimonial planning (to set up or reorganize companies, trusts or other vehicles and draft wills and gift or donation agreements).
• Advise on the planning, negotiation and implementation of exit schemes (including the sale of the business), either by one side or by all partners.

Conflict management
• Assistance and representation of clients in divorce and partner conflicts with impact on the family business, both in the negotiation and mediation phase, and eventually in the judicial instance.
• Drafting and implementation of the transaction agreements reached to resolve conflicts.