Our Legal Service for Family Businesses
Strategic Legal Advice for Family-Owned and Owner-Managed Businesses
Family businesses are the backbone of the UK economy. They represent entrepreneurial ambition, long-term stewardship and generational legacy. These businesses often require the expertise of family business solicitors to navigate legal complexities.
However, when business, wealth and family relationships intersect, the legal and commercial challenges can become complex. We offer dedicated support to address the legal issues that may arise.
At Myerson, our Corporate solicitors provide strategic, commercially focused legal advice to family-owned and owner-managed businesses.
Working closely with our Private Wealth and Family Law teams, we deliver joined-up advice that protects both your commercial interests and your family’s long-term legacy. Our law firm is renowned for its expert advice and practical solutions.
Whether you are growing, restructuring, planning succession or navigating family change, we help you protect what you have built and plan confidently for the future. Future success often depends on having the best legal support.
How We Support Family Businesses
Our family business lawyer team is dedicated to providing exceptional services with pragmatic, discreet advice tailored to the unique dynamics of family enterprises.
We advise founders, shareholders, next-generation leaders and family investment structures across a wide range of sectors, including manufacturing, professional services, property, agriculture and private wealth.
Business Structuring and Governance
Strong governance is essential in a family business, particularly as ownership evolves across generations.
Our family business advisers offer guidance on governance challenges and can help define roles and establish clear policies.
Clear structures reduce the risk of misunderstandings, protect interests and provide certainty during periods of change.
Our solicitors provide the legal advice needed to manage such transitions effectively.
We advise on:
- Incorporation and structuring
- Shareholder agreements and bespoke constitutional arrangements
- Alphabet share structures, dividend planning and priorities on capital
- Family charters and governance frameworks
- Directors’ duties and minority shareholder protections
- Dispute prevention and deadlock resolution mechanisms
Early strategic planning helps avoid costly disputes and safeguards long-term stability. This approach offers the best protection against legal challenges.
Succession
Succession is often the most sensitive and critical stage in the life of a family business.
Without careful planning, transitions can create conflicts, lead to tax inefficiencies, and cause operational disruption. Our law firm is dedicated to offering solutions that ensure a smooth transition.
Working alongside our Private Wealth team, we provide integrated advice on:
- Ownership transition strategies
- Phased transfers and management buy-outs
- Family investment companies
- Trust structures and estate planning
- Inheritance Tax planning and Business Property Relief
- Lifetime gifting and share reorganisations
Our focus is to ensure continuity, preserve wealth and protect family harmony while maintaining commercial momentum. We ensure that our services align with your expectations.
Growth, Investment and Exit
As family businesses mature, external investment, a partial exit, or a full sale may become part of the long-term strategy. We assist with assessments to explore options.
We advise on:
- Private equity investment
- Corporate reorganisations prior to sale
- Strategic acquisitions
- Due diligence preparation
- Trade sales and management buy-outs
- Post-transaction planning
- Comprehensive services ensure a seamless exit process
We understand the personal dimension involved in selling or diluting a family business and provide commercial guidance at every stage.
Divorce and Family Law Risk
Our solicitors are experts in addressing these challenges.
Relationship breakdown can pose a significant risk to business stability and ownership control.
Legal expertise is critical in guiding businesses through these periods of instability.
Our Corporate team works closely with Myerson’s highly regarded Family Law solicitors to mitigate risk and protect business interests where divorce or separation arises.
Offering preventive strategies to manage risks is key.
- We advise on protecting business assets through shareholder agreements and offer legal support to manage partnerships during transitions.
- Divorce and financial remedy proceedings affecting business owners or their spouses.
- Advising directors and shareholders on their obligations in relation to financial disclosure within divorce proceedings
- Managing a spouse’s exit from the business on divorce and advising on payments of salary, dividends and benefits.
- Whether it is appropriate to value the assets of the business together with the business itself within divorce proceedings, and managing that process
- Wealth management strategiessuch as whether a nuptial agreement should be put in place prior to marriage and during the marriage. Nuptial agreements should be considered in a family business following a restructuring or the creation of a Family Investment Company.
Proactive planning is essential. Taking preventative steps before issues arise can significantly reduce disruption, reputational risk and financial exposure.
Family Business Disputes
As partners in your journey, we offer solutions to maintain family harmony. Disputes within family businesses are often emotionally charged and commercially damaging.
We provide pragmatic, solutions-focused advice on legal issues such as:
- Shareholder and director disputes
- Deadlock situations
- Unfair prejudice petitions
- Breach of fiduciary duty claims
- Partnership disputes
- Nuptial Agreements
- Negotiated exits and consequential restructuring
- Through mediation and other legal services, we protect your interests
Where appropriate, we promote alternative dispute resolution to preserve relationships and minimise impact on the underlying business.
A Fully Integrated Approach
What differentiates Myerson is our ability to provide seamless advice across Corporate, Private Wealth and Family Law under one roof.
Clients benefit from a holistic view of their family and commercial interests.
Our integrated approach ensures that every decision is considered strategically, not in isolation.
Solutions that integrate all aspects of your business and family interests is our primary focus.
Why Choose Myerson's Family Business Lawyers?
- Ranked Top Tier by The Legal 500 for seven consecutive years
- Private Wealth team ranked Band 2 in the Chambers High Net Worth Guide
- Corporate Team of the Year (Cheshire) – North West Rainmaker Awards 2025 and Corporate Team of the Year 2021 – Manchester Legal Awards
- Family team recognised by The Legal 500 and shortlisted at the LexisNexis Family Law Awards
- Recognised leaders in Private Wealth, including nationally ranked individuals
- A truly integrated Corporate, Family and Private Wealth offering
- Specialist expertise in succession planning, divorce risk mitigation, trusts, family investment companies and shareholder protection
- Partner-led service with direct access to senior lawyers
- City-quality advice delivered with regional cost efficiency
- Transparent pricing with clear estimates and ongoing updates
- Commercially pragmatic, strategic and solutions-focused
- Full-service firm operating from a single-site office, ensuring seamless internal collaboration
- Strong sector experience across owner-managed and multi-generational businesses
- Efficient use of technology and AI to deliver responsive, streamlined service
- International capability through MSI Global Alliance (100+ countries)
- Trusted advisers to family businesses across Manchester, Cheshire and beyond
Testimonials
Mr Preston
Chris Moss's advice and support was exceptional. I would highly recommend.
Mr. Maitland, VendiTech
Myerson has been exceptional to work with, combining a high level of professionalism with a pragmatic, commercially minded approach. Communication is always clear, timely, and responsive, which gives us real confidence when navigating complex decisions. Chris, Charlotte and Richard provided invaluable support across multiple areas of our business. Their guidance has been instrumental to our continued success and has played a key role in giving us strong confidence around compliance as we scale and evolve.
Gary Johnson, CDL
The strength that Myerson brings to CDL and its group companies is an intimate understanding of our products and services and how they are utilised in the various sectors of our evolving marketplace. CDL and Myerson have worked together for over 10 years and in that time CDL have been fortunate to attract, court and secure many new contracts including large banking and global organisations.
Tim Webb, RTA Claim Solutions
Myerson have been hugely professional and supportive in providing expert legal advice to the business. For us, their quality of service and expert knowledge of commercial business was equally as important as their undoubted legal capabilities. We hope to be able to continue to work with them over the long term.
Tony Sampson , J2 Retail Ltd
Unphased by the ‘big names’ and frequently head to head with much larger firms, they have always worked effectively on our behalf as both a business and as shareholders, and have represented us extremely well in many complex and difficult situations. Myerson partners and lawyers have an excellent grasp of the commercial realities of our business – something that is equally as important as their undoubted capabilities as lawyers.
David Hibbert, Stax Trade Centres PLC
We were introduced to Myerson back in 1986 with a view to them advising us on our MBO. Myerson have always been there with clear, easily presented counsel as to how to deal with every aspect of business life. We respect their honesty and integrity and have no qualms in recommending them to any up and coming entrepreneurs.
Mr. Roberts, Communications Plus Ltd.
Chris Moss, Melisa Chaplow and Charlotte Peers have been exceptional. Thank you.
Mike Forsyth - Founder and Chairman, Safer Sphere
Myerson Solicitors acted for us in a complicated Management Buy-Out transaction. Akeel, Palma, Simon, Andrew, and the team supported completion in a tight time frame with the utmost professionalism and diligence. They coordinated and cooperated seamlessly with the wider advisors and stakeholders, ensuring full protection and compliance with the transaction. We have worked with Myerson on a number of legal aspects for over 5 years, and would highly recommend their services.
Colin
Supported my business from the outset. Always there when needed. Superb integrity and pricing. Always gets the job done effectively with open dialogue and communication at every point. Yes I highly recommend.
Chambers UK Guide 2026
The Corporate team at Myerson is the perfect size for a balance between expertise and personal service.
Chambers UK Guide 2026
Myerson's Corporate team is attentive, available and technically knowledgeable.
Chambers UK Guide 2026
Myerson's Corporate Team were good to deal with and we worked well together.
Legal 500, 2024
Responsive, always willing to provide some direction, guidance and support, even at short notice, and, due to the familiarity of the business across the team, there are multiple contact points which means there is always somebody to speak to who understands our company and objectives.
Legal 500, 2024
The whole team is responsive and highly approachable, taking time to understand the business and framing legal matters in a manner understandable to the audience – working with a range of people across our business.
Legal 500, 2024
They have always looked at the whole picture and taken time to understand my business, so advice is tailored. No time-wasting and treated like I am their only client.
Legal 500, 2024
Well resourced and able team that expertly and adequately handle whatever we throw at them as our retained commercial lawyers.
Legal 500, 2024
Smaller boutique corporate team who are very responsive, professional and add value to corporate transactions.
Meet Our Family Business Solicitors
Contact Our Experts
You can contact our lawyers below if you have any more questions or want more information:
0161 941 4000
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