Andrew N. Karlen, Esq.

Attorney Andrew Karlen helps business owners make important decisions and navigate key transitions in their business and personal lifecycles, often working collaboratively with advisors from other professional disciplines.

He began his career as an attorney for the Securities and Exchange Commission. He then practiced in Westchester County, New York as an associate and partner at several law firms.

However, Mr. Karlen was searching for a practice model that emphasized the counsellor at law side of being an attorney, that included collaboration with professional advisors from other disciplines; and could lead to deeper and more meaningful client relationships.

At a legal seminar in 1996, he became aware that the multi-disciplinary and collaborative model he was searching for was being employed by advisors to family-owned businesses. He shifted the focus of his practice to family owned and other closely held businesses.

Today, Mr. Karlen’s practice, and passion, is Exit Planning, a multi-disciplinary process for creating and executing a strategy for an owner to transition out of their business on their own terms, i.e.:

• At the time they choose
• With the cash to support their chosen post-business lifestyle
• With the business in the hands of their chosen successor(s)
• With their “value-based” goals achieved, e.g., keeping the business in the community

The need for Exit Planning grows exponentially as the Baby Boomer owners retire at a near breakneck pace, However, they face a dilemma.  They know that like all owners, they will leave their business someday.  They also know that departure will be the largest and most critically important transaction of their life. The company is likely their largest asset so the way they exit will profoundly affect them, their family, the business and its employees. 

Mr. Karlen’s accomplishments include:

• Family Business Advisor with Fellow Status designation by the Family Firm Institute (“FFI”) an international organization most of whose members come from the various professional disciplines that serve family-owned businesses.
• President of Attorneys for Family-Held Enterprises (“AFHE) a national organization of attorneys and other professional advisors, who provide multi-disciplinary legal counsel and advice to privately held enterprises, their owner-managers, and family members.
• Certified Exit Planner (CExP) from the Business Enterprise Institute (“BEI”)
• Certified Exit Planner (“CEPA”) awarded by the Exit Planning Institute
• Presenter at AFHE, FFI, and BEI annual conferences, as well as for continuing education programs for attorneys, CPAs and financial planners in the New York metropolitan area

Licensed to practice law in New York and Connecticut, Mr. Karlen earned a JD from New York Law School and an LLM (Corporation Law) from the New York University School of Law, as well as a BS in accounting from the University of Bridgeport. He resides in Greenwich, Connecticut with his wife, Shelley.