Law practice focuses on designing estate and exit plans
An interview with Michael G. Stuart, JD, CPA — Member/Manager
Q: Describe your business. What do you do?
A: We are committed to the ‘Design of Estate and Exit Plans That Work.’ Our law practice is limited exclusively to estate, business, exit and asset protection planning. We work with individuals and businesses to design fully funded estate, asset protection and business exit plans customized and maintained to meet their needs. We provide creative solutions to help families achieve their dreams using client centered, cutting edge estate and exit planning methods. We assist clients with the funding of their plans to help ensure those plans will work as designed.
Q: What made you start your business?
My Dad died when I was 11 years old and I saw what my Mom went through trying to retrofit her life and raise two young children — she was really at a loss. I saw the need in the marketplace to help families make sure that they had the assistance they needed when a family crisis occurred. Too often, families are torn apart when life events affect an estate or business. By properly structuring business and estate plans and communicating values and family histories to those impacted, the family is better able to deal with the issues that arise.
Q: What has been the most difficult obstacle in running or starting a small business?
Trying to stay on top of everything and make sure the process runs smoothly and efficiently. It takes having the right team of people working with you and understanding the responsibility we have to our clients to take care of families.
Q: What do you enjoy most about operating your business?
I enjoy the people we work with, the clients and seeing the peace of mind they get when we have developed a plan with them that works for them and their families. They tell us about their families, we teach them about the law as it applies to their families and together we build a plan that makes sense for their family. In addition, we have family meetings so we can discuss topics that may not otherwise be talked about.
Q: Is this what you pictured yourself doing when you were young? When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I think when I was young I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. It wasn’t until I graduated college and was thinking about graduate school that a close friend suggested law school. The thing that really sold me was the flexibility that law school offered — that I could work for a law or CPA firm, in real estate, for a corporation, for government, or, if I didn’t like any of those, strike out on my own and start my own firm.
Q: What keeps you up at night?
That I’m taking care of my kids and my family. I want to leave my kids a legacy they can look up to and be proud of. That’s a big responsibility. And I guess the second thing is feeling that something wasn’t done or that there was something more that I could have done. We try to implement procedures to cover all the contingencies, but you still sometimes wonder if it all got done.
Q: You could give one tip to a rookie business owner, what would it be?
Know your skills, constantly strive to learn more and better, learn from your mistakes and most of all, as Winston Churchill said — “Never, Never, Never give up.” Perseverance is the key in my mind. You have to keep going in the face of adversity and surround yourself with positive people and just keep going, moving toward your goal. Always have a goal in mind that you strive for and that motivates you. That will change over time and course corrections are inevitable, but with the proper people around you lending support and a good team behind you, you will do well in anything you put your mind to.
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The Stuart Legacy Alliance LLC
Address: 3701 Algonquin Road, Suite 150, Rolling Meadows, IL 60008
Year company started: 2009 (has been in operation since 1981)
Employees: 3
Web address: www.sla-law.com