Business Exit
The 18-month window: planning the business exit you actually want
Most owners start exit planning a year too late. Here's the 18-month window — and the tax decisions that get locked in early.
Scott Stevens · May 2026
Insights
Articles and guides on the transitions we navigate every day.
Organized by practice track, not by publication date.
Business Exit
QSBS, charitable trusts, and the tax decisions that move the most
Section 1202, charitable LLCs, and stacking strategies — what actually moves the needle on a $20M+ exit, and what just sounds good.
Scott Stevens · Apr 2026
Business Exit
Selling to a strategic vs. a financial buyer — what changes for your wallet
Different buyers, different deal structures, different post-close tax bills. A practical comparison from the seller's seat.
Scott Stevens · Mar 2026
Surviving Spouse
What to do in the first 90 days after losing a spouse
A short, sequenced list of decisions that should happen — and a longer list of the ones that absolutely shouldn't.
David Mendoza · May 2026
Surviving Spouse
Social Security survivor benefits — timing matters more than people realize
The election window is narrower than the SSA documents suggest. We walk through the breakeven math for three common scenarios.
David Mendoza · Apr 2026
Surviving Spouse
Adult children and money: how to talk about it without conflict
Inheritance conversations go better with structure. A short framework we use with families navigating a major transition.
David Mendoza · Mar 2026
Tech Equity
RSUs, ISOs, and the empty-nest retirement timeline
When concentrated company stock meets a real retirement date, the math changes. A framework for dual-income tech households at 55+.
Hannah Liang · May 2026
Tech Equity
10b5-1 plans explained — and when they actually help
What the rule does, what it doesn't, and the structure mistakes that cost meaningful tax dollars in year one.
Hannah Liang · Apr 2026
Tech Equity
The double-trigger acceleration scenario most planners miss
Pre-IPO RSU acceleration on a change of control: the modeling, the tax surprise, and the cash management problem nobody mentions.
Hannah Liang · Mar 2026
Events
Conversations organized around life's transitions.
Small-group sessions — in person at our offices and virtual — each focused on a single transition.
Sep 18, 2026
Selling Your Business: 18 Months Out
In person · San Diego · 6:00 PM
A working session for owners thinking about an exit in the next two years. What the runway changes, and what it doesn't.
Oct 9, 2026
Equity Comp Before You Vest
Virtual · 12:00 PM PT
RSUs, ISOs, ESPP, and 10b5-1 plans — the planning decisions that matter most in the year before a major vesting cliff.
Nov 6, 2026
Retiring From a 40-Year Career
In person · Brea · 5:30 PM
For households 3–5 years from retirement: drawdown, Social Security timing, and the tax window that closes at 73.
Dec 4, 2026
Navigating Widowhood: The First Year
Virtual · 10:00 AM PT
A small-group conversation about the financial sequencing of the first 12 months — what should happen, and what shouldn't.
Past events
- May 2026QSBS, Charitable Trusts & the Founder Exit
- Apr 2026Inheritance & the Adult-Child Conversation
- Mar 2026Roth Conversions in the Pre-RMD Window
- Feb 2026Divorce & the Financial Restart
- Jan 202610b5-1 Plans, Demystified
Quarterly letter