Estate & Wealth Advisory

The Estate and Wealth Advisory Group at Lawson Lundell assists clients develop tailored strategies to preserve and transition their personal and business assets. The team works closely with clients and their professional advisors, including accountants, financial advisors, insurance specialists, and family enterprise advisors, to create and implement solutions that address each client’s unique circumstances.

The group supports the creation and administration of trusts, advises on wealth preservation strategies in the event of incapacity or death, and provides succession planning advice for privately owned businesses. The team has extensive experience advising on a wide range of trust structures, including family trusts, joint partner trusts, alter ego trusts, disability trusts, and testamentary trusts. Assistance is provided for the creation, funding, and administration of trusts, as well as in planning for their use to achieve tax efficiency, business succession, and family planning goals, including balancing the interests of blended families.

With strong cross-border capabilities, the group regularly collaborates with cross-border advisors, including U.S. legal and tax specialists, to support Canadian clients with U.S.-based assets and American clients with Canadian holdings. This cross-border expertise, supported by a team of in-house tax lawyers, ensures that estate and business succession plans are structured to address complex international considerations effectively.

The group also advises on business succession planning for privately owned businesses, assisting with the design and implementation of trusts, specialized corporate structures, tax-deferred reorganizations, and shareholder agreements. Whether the succession strategy involves retaining control, transitioning ownership to the next generation, transferring ownership to key employees, or preparing for a third-party sale, plans are structured to meet client objectives while maintaining flexibility to adapt to future changes in business needs, tax status, or family circumstances.

The team also provides strategic planning surrounding the death of shareholders, including the use of insurance proceeds and capital gains strategies, and advises on corporate governance matters, including the drafting of shareholders’ agreements and the implementation of income-splitting structures.