Legal tips for family firms

LEGAL contracts and agreements are as important in family businesses as they are in general business, a Corporate Seminar in Galway was told yesterday.

Gerard Ryan of O’Donnell Sweeney, Solicitors, said there was a requirement for family run business in Ireland to put in place appropriate legal agreements and to formalise relationships prior to setting up in business or to taking on family members as staff or introducing them as shareholders.

“Setting up a family business as a private limited company allows for smooth succession in the case of a death in the business and flexibility in the transfer of assets to the next generation. However, attention must be given to areas of potential conflict so that measures can be put in place to deal with them before they arise,” he said.