Many people consider Oregon to be the nation’s most entrepreneurial state. Thousands upon thousands of small businesses start up every year, and the continuing trend is for these ventures to be organized as limited liability companies. If you’re thinking of forming an Oregon LLC, one of the first things you’ll need is a name, so you can register your business with the state. The name should be accurate for your line of work and easy to remember, and it also must conform to Oregon law. A key point is that your LLC must have a unique name that distinguishes it from every other existing Oregon business.
Once you choose the name you’d like, you have to make sure it’s unique in Oregon. If you try to file Articles of Organization with an existing name, the Oregon Secretary of State will reject it. However, there’s more than Oregon regulations to worry about. If your name is too similar to an existing name, even if it’s allowed in Oregon, you may engender confusion among your potential customers. You may even find yourself in court if some other business thinks you’re trading on their reputation.
Fortunately, it’s not hard to discover all the business entity names that are similar to the one you want. The Oregon Secretary of State maintains an online business entity search screen that’s easy to use, and it’s free.
Oregon has general entity naming guidelines as well as rules specific to LLCs.
The Secretary of State has no discretion in applying the rules; any name that meets the minimum requirement for being distinguishable will be accepted. However, just because a name is available in Oregon and you can register it, that doesn’t mean you can safely use it. An existing company can still pursue legal channels if they perceive that you are infringing on their name.
Your entity search begins at the Oregon Secretary of State Find a Business page.
Enter the business name you’ve chosen and click the Search button. There’s an Advanced Search with additional filtering, but the basic search is fine. Then view the list of business names on the results page. Below is a partial list from a search for the name “Acme.”
The Entity Type describes the business type. DLLC and FLLC are domestic and foreign (i.e. out-of-state) LLCs. ABN is an assumed business name, and DBC is a domestic corporation. Click the header for a complete guide to abbreviations.
Status includes ACT for active, INA for inactive, DEL for deleted. Again, click the header for a complete list.
Click Registry Number or Name for more information about the company.
As previously stated, Oregon has liberal rules about how close to an existing name your new name can be. However, registering a name doesn’t mean it’s safe or wise to start using it. For example, McDonnald’s (spelled differently) is an available name, but you won’t last long if you start doing business under that name.
Even if you find an available name you like, you should take some more steps before you use it.
There are several steps you should consider when you’ve found a suitable name:
If you’re not quite ready to start doing business, you can lock the name down so no one else can take it. Download the Application for Name Reservation and send it in. The fee is $100, and the hold is valid for 120 days and can be renewed.
If the name you want is trademarked in Oregon, it will show up in your entity search. However, trademarks are also at the national level, and if anyone in the country has trademarked your chosen name, you may be committing an infringement if you use it. You can check existing trademarks with the U.S Patent and Trademark Office.
If you build a business website, you might want a domain name that’s the same as or similar to your legal name. However, if someone else has already registered it, you’ll be out of luck. Use a tool such as GoDaddy to see whether the name you want is taken.
Some companies choose to do business under a name that’s different from their registered name. They may have started a new line of business within the company. They may choose to append a city name to a new location. This name is also called a Doing Business As (DBA) name or a trade name. The Assumed Business Name Registration page explains how to register an assumed name in Oregon.
Once you have your name all set and are ready to start your business, file with the Oregon Business Registry. The fee is $100 at startup and for annual renewal.
An LLC name should be easy to remember and accurately describe the business. It should be unique, not only meeting Oregon standards for distinguishability but also being different enough from other business names to avoid customer confusion and possible legal problems. The Oregon Secretary of State provides an online facility where you can find all businesses that have names similar to yours.
To file LLC Articles of Organization, you need a name that’s different from every other existing business name in Oregon. A search will show you all businesses with a name similar to the one you’ve chosen.
Search using the Oregon Secretary of State Find a Business page.
Cost is $100. It’s valid for 120 days and can be renewed.
Yes. You can do this at the Oregon Assumed Business Name Registration page.
There are general business rules and LLC rules. The name must explicitly state that the business is an LLC. The name cannot imply it’s something it’s not, such as a corporation, a limited partnership, or a government agency. The name must meet Oregon standards for being distinguishable.
You cannot use that name and will have to choose another. This will be easier if you have several names in mind before your start.
This portion of our website is for informational purposes only. Tailor Brands is not a law firm, and none of the information on this website constitutes or is intended to convey legal advice. All statements, opinions, recommendations, and conclusions are solely the expression of the author and provided on an as-is basis. Accordingly, Tailor Brands is not responsible for the information and/or its accuracy or completeness. It also does not indicate any affiliation between Tailor Brands and any other brands, services or logos.
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