If the Name is Available, Register It

If the Name is Available, Register It
The final links in the process of naming your business are to: 1. find out if the name(s) on
your list are available for use. – and - 2. file your DBA or your Certificate of
Incorporation.
• If you are a sole proprietor or a partnership, you should check with the
county in which your business will be located. All businesses operating under a
fictitious name are required to submit a Fictitious Name Statement to register
their DBA (Doing Business As) business name. The county will have a record
of all DBAs that have been filed and are current.
If a business has already registered the name that you were planning to use, you
cannot use the same name. Go to the second name on your list and check that
out – and so on – until you arrive at the name that is both appropriate and
available.
The next step is to go ahead and file your DBA to gain ownership of your
business name. Be aware that you will have to name a location for your business
in the process. (For more information, see Chapter 9 – Register Your Fictitious
Name (DBA.).
• If your business is a corporation, you will need to check out the
availability of your corporate name at the state level. Generally there will be an
office under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of State that is responsible for the
registration of businesses incorporated within the state, registration of out-ofstate
corporations qualified to do business within the state, and names registered
or reserved by other corporations.
If the name you have selected is available, you can use it when you file your
certificate of incorporation. A charter will not be issued until the state
determines that the name is available, the certificate has been executed, and
there has been no violation of state law.