In family enterprise governance, a family assembly is the planned gathering of the collective family to fulfill various goals and activities needed to maintain the family and its enterprise. 

Family assemblies often have the following characteristics:

• Broad attendance by family members across multiple branches and generations of the family, defined by rules about who can attend, beginning at what age, and with what capacity to hear and/or make decisions about various types of information. 

• Agendas consisting of topics related to the family (e.g., education, legacy, family cohesion, family identity) and/or the enterprise (e.g., status of businesses or investments, changes in governance, operation of the family office).

• Activities including entertainment, family history, appreciation expressed for leadership or notable members, involvement of younger family members, and family traditions and rituals.

• Purposes including decision-making, information sharing, learning and education,  passing on traditions, managing conflicts, building relationships, and fostering leadership in current and future members.

Family assemblies may occur once or with regular frequency determined by the family, its bylaws, and special circumstances.  

In family governance, family assemblies typically represent all or most of the family while a family council is a smaller executive board, functioning on behalf of the entire family.