Estate planning checklist for business owners

The core documents

• An up-to-date will. A current will that deals specifically with the business, not just personal assets.
• Powers of attorney. For property and for personal care, so someone can act if you can't — critical when a business depends on you.
• Beneficiary designations. Registered accounts and insurance designations that match the plan and don't contradict the will.

The business

• Succession plan. Who runs and who owns the business after you — family, management, employees, or a sale.
• Shareholder agreement alignment. Buy-sell and departure terms that work on death or incapacity — see the shareholder agreement checklist.
• Insurance funding. Life insurance sized to fund a buyout or the tax bill, so the business doesn't have to be sold in a hurry.

Tax on death and transfer

• The deemed disposition. Understand the tax triggered on death (a deemed sale of your shares) and plan for it with your accountant.
• Capital gains exemption. Whether your shares qualify, and how to preserve access to the lifetime exemption.
• Estate freeze. Whether freezing today's value to the next generation makes sense for your situation.
• Family trusts. Whether a trust helps with control, tax, or protecting assets.

Family and continuity

• Fairness across children. A plan that's fair where not every child is in the business.
• Probate and administration. Structures that reduce estate administration tax and make administration simpler.
• Keep it current. A plan reviewed after major life or business changes — a stale plan is often worse than none.