Name Considerations When Creating a Company

Name of Corporation

Before drafting articles of incorporation or filing the articles, determine the name ofthe corporation. Different jurisdictions have different naming requirements or prohibitions.

The CBCA (Canada Business Corporations Act) requires that the name contain one of the words as an ending, "Limited", limitée", "Incorporated", "incorporée", "Corporation" or "société par action de régime fédérale", or one of the abbreviations, "Ltd.", "ltée", "Inc.", "Corp." or "S.A.R.F." (section 10(1), CBCA).

Canada Business Corporations Regulations, 2001 prohibits a corporation from using a corporate name that suggests that the corporation carries on the business of a bank, loan company, insurance company, trust company or other financial intermediary regulated under federal law without the written consent of the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions.

Before filing incorporation documents, obtain a computer-generated NUANS name search report (NUANS Report) to help see if the proposed corporate name is available (unless the corporations will take the number name assigned to it by the Director). The NUANS Report is a necessary requirement to incorporate under a chosen name under the CBCA, but it cannot be relied on as exhaustive or determinative that the proposed corporate name is available. Errors can occur in the NUANS Report. The NUANS Report also captures registered trade-marks and trade-mark applications containing potentially confusing word marks.

It is often a good idea to have backup name choices in case a name is already taken or rejected. If you are in a rush and the time to clear a corporate name is limited, then the corporation can first be incorporated under a number, which can be changed to a name as soon as the new name is cleared.

Any name that is available on the date of the NUANS Report is automatically reserved for 90 days.

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