Legal Question in Business Law in California

A living trust is a device used to structure an inheritance, often to avoid probate. In this case, the assets pass to the beneficiary after the death of the person who created the trust. The trust does not help transfer the assets while the creator of the trust is still alive.

If you are talking about transferring the business during your lifetime, you will likely need to consult with a business attorney in your area to take care of the details. Among other things, you will need to contact each governmental entity and agency separately to see how they handle this type of transfer.

An LLC may or may not be a good idea. You need to consult with a business lawyer in your area, who can analyze your business and help you make that decision.

It would certainly expedite transferring the business to your son after you pass away to have the business be a properly structured LLC or perhaps an S-Corp. There may, however, be factors that come into play now or between now and when you might pass away that would make that undesirable. There just is no way to tell what is best in an internet Q&A. You should consult with an estate planning attorney who has experience and knowledge with inter-generational transfer of businesses and go over all the details of your business with them to get an answer you can rely on.

So long as you operate the business as a sole proprietorship, you can transfer the business assets and bank accounts ( as well as rights you may have in the name), but he will have to apply for his own permits, licenses, etc. These are usually issued to you personally, and are not transferable. If your professional business requires any type of license, he will need to be licensed ( ie contractors license, real estate license, lawyer, accountant or any other licensed professional.

It is easier to transfer a business in the form of an LLC, particularly if it is owned by one person and thus is a :disregarded entity" for tax purposes. But to transfer your business to this form you need, again, to get all your permits , licenses , etc in the name of the newly created entity.

You will also need to carefully review each contract applicable you your business. You will find that many do not allow you to transfer the contract to a new party or to a new entity like an LLC without consent.

You would also likely need changes to your business insurance coverage to make such a transfer

You really need to provide information on the type of business and the transfer intent ( as well as the business valuation) to counsel who has expertise on both estate planning and entity selection for business ventures.