ACG Western Michigan will hold an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) half-day, educational seminar on October 15, 2008 at the Gillett Auditorium in the Fifth Third Building at 111 Lyon Street from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

The seminar is planned for CEOs, CFOs and HR executives in response to overwhelming demand from ACG members and guests, who attended a sold-out informational meeting on the same topic in February, 2008.

"Employee ownership is a corporate finance strategy that's gaining in popularity, in particular, among entrepreneurs with small- to mid-sized or closely-held companies," said Vernon Saper, partner at Warner Norcross & Judd and ESOP seminar moderator. "Business owners looking to cash out, engage in succession planning or transition company leadership to the next generation are looking to ESOPs as a way of shilfting ownership without having to relinquish control."

An ESOP typically doubles as an investment in the employer's stock and a company-funded retirement plan for employees. Under an ESOP, companies can make tax-deductible payments to a trust fund designed to purchase its own stock from existing owners. "An ESOP is a great way for employees to own shares of the company they work for. Stock can be allocated to employees and held in a trust until the worker retire or leaves the company," said Saper.

Led by veteran ESOP attorney, Vernon Saper (partner, Warner Norcross & Judd), a panel of experienced professionals including Leslie Lauer (ESOP Advisory Group at UBS), Christine Baker (Rehmann Consulting) and David Bosch (Watkins, Ross & Co.) will explore:

• The rules for shareholder sale to an ESOP
• How shareholders can avoid tax on the sale of stock and retain control
• How the employees can acquire a part or all of the company with no out-of-pocket expense
• How the corporation can finance the entire transaction with totally tax deductible loan payments (pricipal and interest)

The total number of American workers currently participating in an ESOP is about 11,000,000 and West Michigan has the largest number of ESOPs per capita in the United States. As Western Michigan entrepreneurs prepare to move on and begin to groom their furture successors, establishing an ESOP can produce a funded plan to fluidly transition to the next pahse in a company's development while simmultaneously decreasing the company's income tax liability.

To register for the ESOP seminar, call 616-732-7149 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . ACG Western Michigan is the local chapter of an international organization that helps businesses expand and build corporate value through networking and shared expertise. For more information, please contact Julie Metsker, ACG Western Michigan Chapter at 616-732-7149.

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