“A dysfunctional family is any family with more than one person in it.” ~ Mary Karr
“All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” ~ Leo Tolstoy
“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” ~ Abraham Maslow
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. ~ Albert Einstein
Let’s put these four thoughts together, and apply them to family business succession, shall we?
If every family is dysfunctional, and each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way, then to fix them, we need to have more than one tool available.
And if the type of thinking that fixes problems is different than the type of thinking which created them, then to work with families on business succession we need to look for solutions in places that the families have not considered.
Welcome to family business succession. Sure, it is about corporate reorganizations, shareholders agreements, transitioning wealth, and saving taxes. But more importantly, it is about understanding how personal dynamics affect a family business and helping people work through personal issues to produce a plan that works for everyone.
All of this means that in this area of practice, lawyers need to bring more than just a hammer to the workshop. Being technically proficient is always a plus, but it will not be any use if documents never get signed because the instructions all came from Mom without figuring out where Dad and the next generation were coming from.
Nor do you want the type of litigator who sues first and asks questions later.
What you want is counsel who is emotionally intelligent, curious, and patient. Someone who can determine where the dysfunction is and how it can be eliminated, compensated for, countered, worked around, or tolerated.
But wait, there is more!
You also need a lawyer who recognizes that to do this type of work properly, there must be a team.
Within the law firm, the team may involve different areas of practice, such as Business Law, Tax, Wills, Estates and Trusts, Employment Law, and Secured Lending.
Resources from outside of the law firm may also be required – everything from accounting, and tax to facilitators with expertise in family dynamics, insurance experts, and private equity.
So, what type of lawyer do you need? Someone who can play nicely with the other experts in the sandbox, does not feel the need to prove that they are the smartest person in every room, and is not driven to always lead every parade, while still being capable of taking the lead where it makes sense to do that.
Business succession can be a rewarding area of legal practice. Maureen and I had most of our fun working in that area, and she still does. But it is a team sport. If you cannot play nicely with others, it is not for you. (Luckily, Maureen taught me how to do that.)
Next time – War stories from Maureen about Powers of Attorney.