Estate Planning for Car Dealership Owners and Automotive Entrepreneurs

For many car dealership owners and automotive entrepreneurs, the dealership is both the family’s primary source of income and its largest asset. Ownership interests may span multiple entities and locations, and family members may play very different roles in the business. Effective estate planning for these clients requires a deep understanding of how dealerships operate—and how dealership ownership disputes arise.

DiTommaso Lubin, P.C. combines decades of experience representing car dealers in litigation, business-ownership disputes, and dealership transactions with focused estate planning for dealership owners and their families.

Planning for Succession and Control

Our work with dealership owners includes:

• Ownership and Control Structures. Coordinating wills and trusts with corporate and LLC structures so that voting control, economic interests, and management roles pass in a way that supports continued operation of the business.
• Active vs. Inactive Heirs. Designing estate plans that address children and family members who work in the business and those who do not, including the use of voting and non-voting interests, preferred and common equity, or other mechanisms to balance control and economics.
• Multi-Store and Group Structures. Addressing ownership in multiple rooftops, holding companies, and real-estate entities, including how those interests are allocated among heirs and managed by future fiduciaries.
• Liquidity and Estate-Tax Planning. Coordinating with tax and financial advisors to evaluate the need for liquidity to cover estate taxes or equalize inheritances, including life-insurance strategies and potential sales or redemptions of interests.

Integrating with Manufacturer and Lender Requirements

Dealership succession planning must also account for:

• Manufacturer Approval. Considering how proposed succession plans align with manufacturer requirements for dealer-principals, ownership thresholds, and management participation.
• Floor-Plan and Lender Issues. Addressing how changes in ownership and control may affect floor-plan and other lending relationships, and planning for communication and restructuring where needed.
• Buy-Sell and Operating Agreements. Updating or creating shareholder agreements, LLC operating agreements, and buy-sell agreements so that they work in harmony with the client’s personal estate plan.

Avoiding Future Family and Owner Disputes

Our attorneys have litigated shareholder and LLC-member disputes, derivative actions, and breach-of-fiduciary-duty cases involving dealerships and closely held businesses. That experience informs our estate planning work. We focus on:

• Identifying potential sources of conflict among family members and co-owners, including successor management, perceived fairness of inheritances, and roles for in-laws or non-family managers.
• Drafting clear documents that explain how and why business interests will be allocated and who will control the business after the owner’s death or incapacity.
• Selecting and structuring fiduciary roles—such as trustees, executors, and corporate fiduciaries—to provide appropriate oversight without unnecessary complexity.

Talk With Our Dealership Owner Estate Planning Team

If you own one or more car dealerships or automotive businesses and want to plan for succession, or if you are a family member or co-owner facing questions about a dealership owner’s estate plan, our attorneys can help.

Contact attorney Peter S. Lubin or attorney James V. DiTommaso for a free consultation.

Call 630-333-0333 or reach us through our online contact form.

This page is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Contacting us does not create an attorney–client relationship. Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.