I find that many small business owners would benefit if they could think through in advance many of the issues that confront the management of the business. I routinely present a questionnaire in order to provide some focus, particularly if there is more than one person in the small business. The first is management---who are the decision makers, what percentage vote is necessary for certain major transactions, who decides whether there is additional capital required for the entity, are there any special tax allocations & distributions of profits ---the second is voluntary transfers of equity during lifetime---can owners transfer their equity, is there a requirement to offer first to the business, or others in the business, terms of such purchase, and buy-sell agreements in general---and third, involuntary transfers in case of death or disability---what happens to the deceased’s equity, is it sold back to the other parties--in some cases, the economic interest is transferred to the surviving family, but no management rights are transferred. In some cases, the company will have purchased a key person life insurance policy as well.