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Family Business

Family businesses are key to the local and global economy, driving the growth of private capital across the world.
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Hayden Bailey +44 (0) 20 7079 8235 View profile
Katie O’Callaghan +44 (0) 20 7079 8278 View profile
Clare Stirzaker +44 (0) 20 7079 8170 View profile

Boodle Hatfield has been a long-term strategic advisor to family businesses for generations, guiding families and their businesses to help achieve their commercial objectives. We provide a well-established private client legal practice serving some of the largest family businesses in the UK and internationally.

We are able to blend our private client advice seamlessly with our corporate and dispute expertise to help family businesses navigate the evolving private capital landscape.

With regulation around the world increasing for privately-owned businesses, corporate governance is now being balanced with the passion that drives a successful family business. Combined with an increased focus on ESG endeavours – particularly around philanthropy, and the day-to-day running of the business and managing the shareholder’s needs – a holistic approach across the family and the business is critical. Forward planning, innovative thinking and risk mitigation all executed efficiently is key.

Whether you are looking at how marriage and divorce could affect the family business, considering bringing in non-family senior executives or want to restructure your business alongside other family assets we are able to help.

Our family business group provides an all-encompassing legal service to family businesses and their shareholders, with a specific focus on legacy and succession. We specialise in providing joined up advice to both the shareholder and the business with a targeted focus on the needs of the family. We are proud of our ability to be the long-term strategic advisory partners for our clients, really understanding both their family and commercial objectives.

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A Legacy Intact: a guide to safeguarding your family business in the event of divorce

Written by Partner, Katie O’Callaghan the guide – A Legacy Intact: safeguarding your family business in the event of divorce, details the legal mechanisms that are available to family businesses to protect their assets and avoid them losing control in future. It covers pre- and post-nuptial agreements, using trusts and Family Investment Companies (‘FICs’) as vehicles for holding shares and corporate governance. These instruments can be employed to avoid the severe repercussions of divorce that in the worst case scenario can lead to the sale or transfer of shares, pensions and property. The guide highlights risks family businesses can face around loss of privacy, with the possibility of media access to financial proceedings and the measures that companies can consider to limit this exposure.

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Recommended reading

4 min read 27 Jul 2022 Boodle Hatfield publishes guide to help family businesses to survive the impact of divorce

Boodle Hatfield has today published a comprehensive legal guide to help family businesses manage the fallout of divorce. Written by Partner, Katie O’Callaghan the book – A Legacy Intact: safeguarding your family business in the event of divorce, will be distributed and made available online today, as part of the firm’s series of 300-year anniversary initiatives.

 Read more 3 min read 08 Mar 2023 International Women’s Day 2023

To mark IWD 2023, we spoke to a handful of staff and Partners from across the business to reflect on their experiences in the industry and how, together, we can forge an equitable and inclusive world.

 Read more 7 min read 03 Mar 2023 Challenges For Multi-Generational Families Over Succession

In Wealth Briefing, Private Wealth Partner, Hayden Bailey reflects on a recent case involving one of the world’s largest family-owned enterprises. Hayden reinforces that no business should underestimate the care that is required for a successful generational succession and that such blueprints will allow future generations to confidently choose their own path while safeguarding the family legacy.

 Read more 7 min read 02 Mar 2023 Ask an expert: Offshore trusts & trustee borrowing

In the Tax Journal, Senior Associate, Julie Howard considers the ways of funding distributions to beneficiaries from an offshore trust, some of whom are UK resident.

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