Succession in the family business

Succession in a family business – prevention

Family businesses are not only profitable businesses, but they are guided by such values as stability, business continuity and its further development. After the death of the entrepreneur, it is significantly more difficult for family members to continue their business activity in the existing economic relations. Every entrepreneur running a sole proprietorship should take care of the future of his company by appointing a succession manager in the event of his death.

Succession trustee

The establishment of a succession management board allows the administrator to start running the business immediately after the death of the entrepreneur. Contracts concluded before the entrepreneur
with employees and contractors remain in force, the VAT payer is not deregistered, the company continues the current method of taxation, and previously issued permits, licenses and concessions do not expire. In addition to the economic advantages of such a solution, the appointment of a succession administrator will reduce the risk of conflict between the heirs who would like to make decisions related to
with running a business, which could lead to antagonizing conflicts between loved ones, a rift in the company and in the family.

Appointment of a successor administrator

The succession administrator may be appointed by the entrepreneur during his lifetime or by his heirs within 2 months of his death. In the first case, the entrepreneur must appoint a succession administrator in the form of a written statement, who also agrees in writing to be the successor administrator after the death of the entrepreneur. Then, the establishment of succession management in the company should be reported to the Central Register of Information on Economic Activity. In the second case, the so-called under the emergency mechanism, the establishment of a succession management board by the heirs of the entrepreneur or the spouse who is a co-owner of the company must be notarized for validity and then reported to CEIDG. The procedure for entering the succession board of a company is free of charge, it can be carried out in paper form and online.

Succession manager – rights and obligations

The succession administrator exercises the rights and obligations of the deceased entrepreneur, acting on behalf of the heirs, for a maximum period of 2 years. The succession administrator uses his own data, as well as the company of the deceased entrepreneur with the additional designation – “inheritance”. Until the expiry of the established management board, the succession manager is a party to administrative, court and tax proceedings. The manager is successively not liable with his personal assets for the company’s obligations, acts on behalf of the heirs and pays the profit in proportion to their share in the inheritance.

 

The performance of the function of a succession manager may be free of charge or, on the basis of a separate agreement, the manager may be entitled to remuneration. The administrator’s task, apart from conducting business activity, is to draw up and submit an inventory of the inherited enterprise to the notary public, including the components of the inherited enterprise, specifying their value as at
and prices at the time of the entrepreneur’s death and inheritance debts related to the entrepreneur’s activity.
Succession management is temporary and expires at the moment of division of the inheritance covering the enterprise. From the moment of division of the inheritance, the specific heir is obliged to manage the affairs of the enterprise. It should be noted that the management board also expires when, within two months of the testator’s death, none of the entrepreneur’s heirs accepted the inheritance.

The succession manager may be dismissed from his function by the heirs or resign at any time.