Family business · Wealth · Legacy
Family
Protocol
Andorra · Barcelona · Madrid · Toulouse
Design and structuring of the family protocol for businesses and large estates. We plan the coexistence between family and business, the transmission of the legacy and the protection of wealth built over generations, with absolute discretion and a long-term vision.
4
Jurisdictions
2
Profiles: business and wealth
∞
Absolute discretion
Family business
Corporate governance, agreements between heirs, succession of management and transmission of business ownership.
Large estates
Succession planning, family foundations, family office and the structuring of personal and financial wealth.
Multi-jurisdictional
Estates and businesses with a presence in Andorra, Spain and France. Integrated tax and legal coordination.
Discretion and confidentiality
The family protocol touches the most sensitive aspects of a family. Maximum confidentiality from first contact.
Our approach
A legacy is not
improvised:
it is designed in advance
Most family conflicts around wealth or business do not stem from anyone’s bad intentions, but from the absence of clear rules agreed in advance. The family protocol is precisely that: a family agreement drafted when relationships are good, so that they remain so when the difficult moments arrive.
At Jurisserv we support business families and large estates in the design of their protocol, combining sensitivity to the human dimension with the technical rigour necessary for the document to be legally robust across all jurisdictions involved.
Start a confidential conversation“When someone calls us to talk about a family protocol, the first meeting is never a lawyers’ meeting. It is a conversation about what they want for their family 20 years from now.”
Wealth and Family team · Jurisserv
Designed when relationships are good
Multi-jurisdictional legal and tax coordination
Sensitivity to the personal and family dimension
Absolute discretion from first contact
Periodic review and updating
Two profiles, the same rigour
Family business
and large estates
The family protocol contains different content depending on whether it concerns a business family or a large personal estate. Both require the same level of technical precision and human sensitivity.
Family business
Families that share the ownership or management of one or several companies. The protocol governs the relationship between the family and the business, the governance mechanisms, the transmission of ownership and succession in management.
Corporate governance tailored to the family business
Succession in the ownership of the shares
Succession in the management of the company
Agreements between heirs and spouses
Access of new generations to the business
Mechanisms for resolving internal conflicts
Dividend policy and family remuneration
Restrictions on the transfer of shares to third parties
Large estates
Families with significant personal wealth, made up of financial, real estate, business or mixed assets, distributed across one or several jurisdictions. The protocol organises succession planning, wealth management and its transmission.
Multi-jurisdictional succession planning
Structuring of the family wealth: holding, SCI, foundation
Family office: organisation of wealth management
Lifetime gifts and transfers with tax optimisation
Matrimonial regimes and prenuptial agreements
International wills and coordination between jurisdictions
Family foundations and fiduciary vehicles
Protection of wealth against third parties
Specific services
Six areas
of action
01
Drafting of the Family Protocol
Framework document governing the relationships between family members in connection with the business or the wealth. Legally robust and tailored to the specific circumstances of each family.
Prior family diagnosis: current situation and objectives
Participatory drafting with all members involved
Coordination with articles of association, shareholders’ agreements and wills
Multi-jurisdictional adaptation
Periodic review and updating
02
Family Corporate Governance
Design of the governance bodies of the family business: board of directors, family council, management committee and decision-making mechanisms that balance ownership and management.
Board of directors with independent members
Family council: family representation body
Protocol for access to executive positions
Remuneration and dividend policy
Conflict resolution mechanisms
03
Succession planning
Comprehensive design of the transmission of wealth and the business to the next generation, with tax optimisation coordinated across every jurisdiction involved.
International wills and cross-jurisdictional coordination
Lifetime gifts with tax optimisation
Succession pacts where the law allows
Coordination with double-taxation treaties on inheritance
Fiducias and trusts in the jurisdictions that recognise them
04
Wealth structuring
Design and incorporation of the most efficient legal vehicles to organise, protect and transmit family wealth: holdings, SCI, foundations and family office.
Family wealth holding
SCI (Société Civile Immobilière) for assets in France
Family foundation: protection and legacy
Family office: organisation of wealth management
Protection of wealth against third-party claims
05
Matrimonial regime and prenuptial agreements
Advice on the most appropriate matrimonial financial regime to protect family and business wealth in the event of separation or divorce.
Analysis of the current matrimonial regime
Pre-nuptial and post-nuptial agreements
Separation of property versus community of property
Protection of the family business against divorce
Coordination of regimes in international couples
06
Mediation and family disputes
Where conflict already exists, we accompany the search for negotiated solutions that preserve both the wealth and the family relationships.
Family mediation with professional facilitation
Renegotiation of the protocol in a conflict context
Orderly exit of family shareholders
Valuation and buy-out of shares
Representation in court proceedings if necessary
How we work
A confidential
and participative process
01
First conversation
Confidential meeting to understand the family situation, the structure and the long-term objectives.
02
Diagnosis
Legal, tax and wealth analysis of the current situation across all jurisdictions involved.
03
Draft and discussion
First protocol proposal, discussed with all family members in a participative process.
04
Final drafting
Definitive document coordinated with the articles of association, shareholders’ agreements, wills and wealth structures.
05
Follow-up
Periodic review of the protocol and updates in response to family, business or regulatory changes.
FAQ
Frequently
asked questions
First confidential consultation with no obligation.
Confidential consultationWhen is the ideal moment to draft a family protocol?
+
The ideal moment is when everything is going well. The family protocol is much easier to design and agree when there is no active conflict, when the founders are still active in the business and when the heirs are young. Waiting until there is a problem usually makes the process more difficult and more costly. A good rule of thumb: if there are more than two family shareholders or if the next generation is already involved in the business, it is time to address it.
Does the family protocol have legal validity?
+
The family protocol as a global document is not always a legally binding contract in itself, but its commitments can be incorporated into documents with full legal force: articles of association, shareholders’ agreements, wills, marriage agreements and share purchase contracts. The key is the coordination between the protocol and the legal instruments that implement it.
What is the difference between a family protocol and a shareholders’ agreement?
+
The shareholders’ agreement governs the relationships between the shareholders of a company in their capacity as shareholders (transfer of shares, corporate governance, exit). The family protocol is broader: it includes the relationship between family members regardless of their status as shareholders, covering aspects such as succession, the family’s values, the access of new generations to the business and the resolution of family disputes. Both documents must be coordinated.
Can you advise on estates spread across several jurisdictions?
+
Yes. It is one of our main strengths. For estates with assets in Andorra, Spain and France, we coordinate the teams of our four offices from a single point of contact. This is particularly relevant in succession planning, where the differences between the legal systems of each country can create unexpected situations if they are not planned for in advance.
What is a family office and when does it make sense to set one up?
+
A family office is a private structure for managing family wealth that centralises the administration of investments, taxation, succession and other wealth-related matters. It makes sense above a certain level of wealth (usually starting from several million euros in assets) or where management complexity justifies a dedicated structure. It can be a single family office or a stake in a shared multi-family office.
Confidential contact
A confidential
conversation
with no obligation
The first meeting is not a lawyers’ meeting: it is a conversation about the family, the objectives and the legacy you want to build. No forms or prior documentation required.
First confidential conversation
Absolute discretion · No obligation
Related services
Services that
complement the protocol
Shareholders’ Agreements
Coordination of the protocol with the shareholders’ agreement: corporate governance and transfer of shares.
View service →
Tax Planning
Tax optimisation of the transfer of wealth and the business across jurisdictions.
View service →
Corporate Structuring
Family holding, SCI and other vehicles to organise and protect the wealth.
View service →
M&A · Business transfer
Full or partial sale of the family business when the moment for generational handover arrives.
View service →