How to keep trusted advisors at the centre of a transition
By Mehmood Rajoka3 min readUpdated 2026-07-16
Trusted accountants, solicitors and specialist advisers should remain central to a considered transition, with clear confidentiality, roles and decision points agreed before detailed information is shared.
Written by Mehmood Rajoka, Founder of Mantle Partners. This is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.
The trusted relationship is an asset
An accountant or solicitor often understands the owner’s history, the business structure and the questions that have taken years to form. A serious transition process should make room for that relationship rather than treating it as an obstacle to speed.
The owner decides who is involved and when. In many cases, an advisor can help frame the first conversation, identify the information that should remain confidential and bring the right specialist advice in at the right point.
Agree the working rules early
A helpful early conversation can set out:
- who may receive information and under what confidentiality arrangements;
- which questions need the accountant, solicitor or another specialist;
- how the owner wants updates and decisions recorded; and
- what would cause the conversation to pause or stop.
Respect boundaries
No advisory firm should replace the owner’s appointed professionals or give advice outside its competence. Legal, tax, regulatory and transaction documents require the appropriate qualified advisers. The benefit of a well-run process is not that fewer people are involved; it is that the right people are involved at the right time.
Owners should feel able to slow down, ask for independent advice or decide that the timing is not right. A private conversation remains useful even when it does not become a transaction.