BUSINESS OWNERS

Estate Planning for Business Owners in Georgia

You built a business. Without a succession plan, your family may not be able to access or run it when you are gone.

A business changes every part of your estate plan. Your LLC or corporation needs a successor. Your family needs authority to step in. And your estate needs a structure that keeps the business running — or winds it down cleanly.

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Your Business Creates Planning Gaps a Standard Plan Cannot Fill

Most estate plans are designed for people with bank accounts, a house, and a retirement fund. If you own a business, your situation is different. Your ownership interest needs to be inside a trust or it goes through probate — potentially freezing the business for 18 months while your family waits for a court to release it.

Incapacity is the more immediate risk. If you are hospitalized or cannot make decisions, someone needs legal authority to sign contracts, make payroll, and access your business accounts. Without a durable financial power of attorney and updated entity documents, no one has that authority. The business can become unmanageable within 72 hours.

Succession is the long-term question. Who takes over? Under what terms? Is the business sold, transferred to a family member, or wound down? Without a succession plan, those questions get answered by default — usually in ways that cost your family money and create conflict.

The Hive Law builds estate plans that account for your business. We review your entity documents, update your operating agreement to name a successor, transfer your ownership interest into a trust, and make sure the people you trust have the legal authority to act when they need to.

For a full breakdown of which tools apply to your entity type, how S-Corp trust eligibility rules work, and what each option costs, see the complete guide to estate planning for Georgia business owners.

$50,000+ Average Cost When A Business Owner Dies Without A Plan That money comes out of the business itself, right when clients and employees need stability most.
72 Hours How Fast A Business Can Become Unmanageable That's how little time your family may have before payroll and contracts stall without you.
Locked What Happens To Accounts Without A Power Of Attorney Your family can't pay a vendor or make payroll until a court grants someone that authority.

Keep the Business Running

Succession planning determines who is in charge and under what terms.

SUCCESSION PLANNING Business Succession Plan See How It Works SUCCESSION PLANNING Buy-Sell Agreement Review See How It Works SUCCESSION PLANNING Key Person Planning See How It Works

Protect the Structure

Your entity documents and ownership interests must be connected to your estate plan.

BUSINESS STRUCTURE Operating Agreement and Bylaws Review See How It Works BUSINESS STRUCTURE Transferring Business Interests Into a Trust See How It Works

Plan for More Than Death

Incapacity happens more often than death. These documents keep your business running if it does.

INCAPACITY PLANNING Durable Financial Power of Attorney See How It Works INCAPACITY PLANNING Healthcare Directive and Living Will See How It Works

Protect What You Own

Your trust and pour-over will work together to control what happens to your business and assets.

ASSET PROTECTION Revocable Living Trust See How It Works ASSET PROTECTION Pour-Over Will See How It Works

What Happens Without a Plan

What Georgia law does to your business when you have no succession plan.

THE PROBLEM What Happens to a Georgia Business When the Owner Dies See How It Works LLC What Happens to a Georgia LLC When the Owner Dies See How It Works S-CORP What Happens to a Georgia S-Corp When the Owner Dies See How It Works C-CORP What Happens to a Georgia C-Corp When the Owner Dies See How It Works

What Happens During Probate

How probate affects your business operations, employees, contracts, and debt.

PROBATE What Happens to a Georgia Business During Probate See How It Works EMPLOYEES What Happens to Employees When a Georgia Business Owner Dies See How It Works CONTRACTS What Happens to Business Contracts When the Owner Dies in Georgia See How It Works DEBT What Happens to Business Debt When the Owner Dies in Georgia See How It Works

Buy-Sell Agreements

How buy-sell agreements work, what goes wrong, and what a funded agreement requires.

BASICS What Is a Buy-Sell Agreement in Georgia See How It Works FUNDING Funded vs. Unfunded Buy-Sell Agreement in Georgia See How It Works PROBLEMS Problems With Buy-Sell Agreements in Georgia See How It Works STRUCTURE Cross-Purchase vs. Entity Redemption Buy-Sell Agreement in Georgia See How It Works

Problems and Mistakes

Why most Georgia business succession plans fail and what the failures cost.

PROBLEMS Problems With Business Succession Plans in Georgia See How It Works FAILURE Why Most Georgia Business Succession Plans Fail See How It Works MISTAKES Common Mistakes Georgia Business Owners Make With Estate Planning See How It Works COST What It Costs to Die Without a Business Succession Plan in Georgia See How It Works

Best Strategies

The right structures, documents, and timing for protecting your business.

OVERVIEW Best Estate Planning for Business Owners in Georgia See How It Works LLC STRATEGY Best Succession Planning Strategy for a Georgia LLC See How It Works TRUST Best Type of Trust for a Small Business Owner in Georgia See How It Works COMPLETE PLAN What a Complete Business Succession Plan Should Include in Georgia See How It Works

Operating Agreements and Structure

How your LLC structure and operating agreement affect your succession plan.

LLC VS S-CORP LLC vs. S-Corp for Estate Planning Purposes in Georgia See How It Works OPERATING AGREEMENT How an LLC Operating Agreement Protects a Georgia Business Owner See How It Works TRUST VS WILL Revocable Trust vs. Will for a Georgia Business Owner See How It Works UPDATE How to Update Your LLC Operating Agreement for Succession in Georgia See How It Works

Planning by Business Type

Succession planning for solo owners, partners, professionals, and sellers.

SOLO Estate Planning for Solo Business Owners in Georgia See How It Works PARTNERS Estate Planning for Business Partners in Georgia See How It Works PROFESSIONALS Estate Planning for Georgia Professional Service Providers See How It Works SELLING Estate Planning for Georgia Business Owners Planning to Sell See How It Works

Find the Right Attorney

How to evaluate and hire a business succession attorney in Georgia.

COMPARE Business Succession Attorney vs. General Practice Attorney in Georgia See How It Works EVALUATE How to Evaluate a Georgia Business Succession Attorney See How It Works QUESTIONS Questions to Ask a Georgia Business Succession Attorney Before You Hire See How It Works DOCUMENTS What Documents Does a Georgia Business Owner Need to Protect Their Family See How It Works
Melissa Breyer

Melissa Breyer

Georgia Estate Planning Attorney

Melissa Breyer is a Georgia estate planning attorney who works exclusively on trust-based estate planning and LLC formation. She personally designs every plan at The Hive Law and handles every client consultation herself. Every plan is built from scratch for your specific family, your specific assets, and your specific wishes.

110+ Five-Star Google Reviews

What Our Clients Say

After my father passed away, my mother had to rely on my father's employer to navigate the estate. It was a disaster. After this experience, I knew I needed a plan. I turned to The Hive Law to set up a trust. I no longer have to worry about my wife and children going through a difficult process if something happens to me. I highly recommend The Hive Law!

Nicholas Google Review

My biggest fear was that if I died first, my wife would have no idea how to navigate the estate and legal system. I reached out to The Hive Law and they put my mind at ease immediately. Their process is easy to follow and they took care of everything. The Hive Law is the best decision I've made for my family's future.

Tristen Pursley Google Review

Working with Melissa Breyer to set up our Living Trust was a wonderful experience. She and her entire team were knowledgeable, professional, and made the whole process easy to understand. I highly recommend The Hive Law for all your estate planning needs!

Sharon Palmer Google Review

We highly recommend Hive Law. They were extremely helpful and professional in guiding us through the process of creating a Revocable Living Trust. Melissa and Shawn were thorough, answered all our questions, and made a potentially confusing process easy to understand.

Daryl Clever Google Review

The Hive Law made the entire estate planning and trust process easy to understand and stress-free. Melissa and Shawn walked us through every step and answered all of our questions. We feel confident that our family is protected. Highly recommend!

The Schmitty Family Google Review

My mom chose The Hive firm to help with estate planning after my father passed away. They were very thorough in explaining every step of the process. They made a difficult time much easier to navigate. I highly recommend The Hive Law for anyone needing estate planning services.

Ed Udvadia Google Review

I used The Hive Law to help me create a trust for my family. The process was straightforward and Melissa and Shawn made sure I understood each step. They were responsive to all of my questions. I feel much more confident about my family's future now. Highly recommend!

Nate Tabler Google Review

Working with Shawn and Melissa at The Hive Law has been a great experience. They are very knowledgeable and took the time to explain all of our options. They made the process of setting up a trust simple and stress-free. I would highly recommend them to anyone needing estate planning.

Kyle Haynie Google Review

The Hive Law Firm, and specifically Melissa, has been wonderful to work with during our estate planning process. She is knowledgeable, patient, and thorough. She answered all of our questions and made the process easy to understand. I highly recommend The Hive Law!

Teresa Overstreet Google Review

Shawn and Melissa were amazing to work with! My partner and I recently bought a house and wanted to get important things like wills, healthcare directives, etc. set up. They were incredible at answering all our questions and working with us to make sure we felt confident in all of the legal aspects. Having tried to do this online before with one of the DIY tools, it was just an amazing experience to get to talk through what we wanted with a knowledgeable human and have them take care of the details.

Denali Pray Google Review

Hive Law was awesome to work with! Melissa and Shawn explained everything, kept things stress-free, and were always quick to respond to my questions. They made the whole process simple and smooth from start to finish. Highly recommend if you want a team that's knowledgeable but also easy to work with.

Ryan Rollins Google Review

I lost my father in February of this year without any estate planning in place. The process of dealing with the probate court has been overwhelming and expensive. After this experience, I contacted The Hive Law to set up a trust so my children never have to go through what I've been through. Melissa and Shawn were compassionate, knowledgeable, and made the entire process simple. I highly recommend The Hive Law!

Rachel Shannon Google Review

I used to know the bare minimum about probate and trust. I first encountered Shawn Breyer on Facebook. He was offering a webinar that I watched. That gave me a better understanding of probate versus trust. I was impressed enough to have him and his wife represent me. I had my initial one on one interview with Melissa Breyer, it went smoothly and she made everything clear. We are now proceeding with getting a revocable trust in place.

Jer Udvadia Google Review

The Hive Law has been amazing throughout the process of setting up our trust. Every detail is considered and no stone is left unturned. They have been easy and enjoyable to work with. I would absolutely recommend them! Don't let your estate be turned over to Probate!!

Christy Evans Google Review

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