LAS VEGAS — Attorney James M. Duggan will present a session dedicated to planning for an agency business transition at this year’s Agent Summit, organizers announced Friday. The event is scheduled for May 20–23, 2018, at the Venetian & Palazzo Resort Hotel Casinos in Las Vegas.

“Jim Duggan is a well-respected expert in this field and will clarify the path ahead for agency principals no matter what plans of transition are most suitable,” said Randy Crisorio, president and CEO of United Development Systems (UDS) and chair of the Agent Summit advisory board. “We are excited to bring this timely topic to this private session.”

Duggan’s session, “Preparing to Exit,” will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Monday, May 21, as part of the agent principals-only portion of the agenda. The speaker, who is a founding partner in the Chicago law firm of Duggan Bertsch LLC, is expected to cover transitions by way of gift, merger, outright sale or employee stock ownership program (ESOP) — all with a focus on benefiting the agent principal, regardless of the transition path.

“With record-high multiples for buyouts in the agency space, it is an important time for agency principals to assess their businesses as well as their ultimate succession planning goals,” Duggan said. “Exit planning is far more involved than just trying to extract the highest price. The participant will learn that proper exit planning involves steps to maximize value, ensure privacy, achieve asset protection, minimize income taxes, minimize estate taxes, and to guarantee a proper succession of the business.”

Registration for Agent Summit 2018, as well as a preliminary agenda and information about travel, networking and more, is now open at the event’s website. To discuss sponsorship and exhibition opportunities, contact David Gesualdo at 727-947-4027 or via email.