Step 1
Tomorrow’s backup is not someday’s buyer.
An illness or sudden absence raises operating questions long before it raises a sale. Who takes the calls? Who can act within approved authority? How are time-sensitive client issues handled?
Someone willing to buy your practice someday is not automatically authorized, or ready, to cover it tomorrow.
Plan for two cases: a temporary absence and a permanent inability to return. Define how each would be recognized, who makes the decisions, and which firm procedures apply.
Step 2
Map who does what, without creating a security risk.
| Responsibility | Document in approved systems | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Client service | Primary coverage role, backup and escalation process | Assuming everyone will call the same person |
| Operations | Authorized access and approved procedures | Shared passwords or uncontrolled client exports |
| Firm coordination | Compliance, platform and operational contacts | Treating informal permission as authorization |
| Business affairs | Professional contacts, agreements and where documents live | Expecting family members to give regulated advice |
| Communication | Who approves and sends factual updates | Unverified promises about service or future ownership |
This public worksheet records preparation tasks only. Keep actual credentials, client information, account records, and sensitive operational details in approved secure systems.
Step 4
Run a fire drill.
Pick a fictional scenario: an existing client calls with an urgent question while you are unavailable. Walk through how the request is received, assigned, handled and documented, using a simulation that discloses no client data and starts no transactions.
The drill will expose unclear responsibilities and missing approvals. Repeat it whenever staff, systems, affiliations or the coverage arrangement change. Record every open item and give each one an owner.
Find the gaps
Six things a coverage plan needs.
Continuity preparation worksheet
Check what you have prepared. Add practice-level notes only; do not enter client names or confidential information. Nothing is sent or saved. Reloading clears your answers.
Questions about emergency continuity
Is a buy-sell agreement enough?
An ownership arrangement may address some issues, but it does not by itself establish day-to-day service coverage, authorized access, communication, or operational readiness.
Can Morrowgate act as my emergency backup?
Do not assume any coverage exists. It would require a specific discussion of fit, authority, capacity, platform permissions, and documented arrangements before anyone could rely on it.
Should my family keep client passwords?
Do not use this worksheet to collect or share credentials. Work with your firm and relevant professionals on approved access, authority, and secure instructions.
Sources & scope
Morrowgate Private Wealth · October 23, 2026. These resources provide background; they do not endorse Morrowgate or establish the terms of any arrangement.
Worksheets, examples, and discussion prompts are educational preparation aids. Apply the requirements relevant to your business model with your firm and independent advisers.
Do not leave it to chance
Start the continuity conversation.
One private conversation about who could cover your clients and what that would take. Do not assume any coverage exists until it is documented. We may also be interested in serving your clients someday, so weigh what we say with that in mind, and we will tell you straight if we are not the right backup.
Start my continuity plan →Published by Morrowgate Private Wealth. Editorial standards. Educational preparation, not an appraisal or transaction advice.