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As startup companies in the cloud, internet, and technology industry grow, they must balance resources between innovating products and services and building their businesses. The BPM Business Ownership Transition sat down with the San Francisco Business Times to discuss the nuts and bolts of value creation for startups. Listen in for more about the implications of business structures, the policies and legal agreements to implement early, and the accounting best practices for both personal and business finances.

Independent directors can enhance a family business board in a variety of ways, including providing expertise in a range of subject matter areas, leadership development, and learning opportunities. They can also help owners expand diverse viewpoints, adapt to changing circumstances in the market, and help make decisions that are difficult for the family. If you’re ready to bring in outside experts to your board, there are three steps that can help you navigate the process.

Even the most well-run, retirement plans can be the target of an excessive fee claim, which can cost millions of dollars to defend and/or settle. Being prepared and taking the necessary steps—including obtaining fiduciary liability insurance—can help reduce the claims, mitigate the exposure, and protect against potentially devastating loss of personal assets.

Minority owners of a business face unique challenges. With limited or no control over the management and governance of a business, minority owners can be unfairly left in the cold or squeezed out. However, deliberate preparation and negotiation at the initial stages of the business can set up minority owners with the necessary tools and formation agreement to eliminate or reduce many of these difficulties and even avoid future conflict.

Unlike businesses with a single controlling owner or several owners, a 50/50 business by its very nature is ripe for disagreement between its owners. Owners of a 50/50 business will need to proactively consider how to handle disagreements when setting up their business venture and drafting their operating agreement, shareholders agreement, or partnership agreement. In a 50/50 arrangement, there are ways owners can negotiate and draft the company’s governing documents to anticipate four common areas of disagreement.

Year-end tax planning is always challenging, but the coronavirus pandemic has added a whole new layer of complexity to the equation for individuals, families, and businesses across the nation. The potential tax ramifications are significant. There are a number of tax developments to consider for the current tax year.

Year-end planning presents abundant opportunity to consider and optimize tax strategies. For the executives who have faced tremendous demand to lead companies through dynamic shifts during a year of historic change and disruption, it is important to be particularly mindful of tax implications that may arise from equity-linked compensation. As the year draws to a close, three top-of-mind questions are answered.

Business divorces are often messy. The reasons vary—personality-driven disputes, disagreements over business direction, or timing and distribution of earnings. When majority owners seek advice of the company’s attorney to formulate a plan to force out a minority owner, the company expects this advice to be covered by the attorney-client privilege. But in Illinois, minority members of LLCs may be able to obtain copies of communications between the LLC’s managers and its attorneys.