Guidelines for selecting a LLC Name Selecting a name for your LLC is one of the first steps in organizing your LLC. The California Secretary of State, will first check to make sure that your selected name is not currently in active use by another California LLC. In the State of California, LLC and Corporation names are distinctly separate. For example, it is possible to have similar names that only differ by the corporate identifer. There can be a name of 'Company Name, LLC' and 'Company Name, Inc.'. Many states would consider the two previous examples as deceptively similar, but not the California Secretary of State. Likely to Deceive The State of California will not file any document that is deceptively similar, has a possibility to decieve the public, or too closely resembles that of another company. Government Affiliation Your selected name must not imply Governmental affiliation. Excluded Words Your name cannot include the words "bank," "trust," "trustee," "incorporated," "inc.," "corporation," or "corp.", "insurer","insurance company". Required Endings All LLCs must end with an approved ending identifier. Your LLC must end in one of the following "Limited Liability Company", "Ltd. Liability Co." or the abbreviation "LLC" or "L.L.C." Checking availability of California LLC Names It is possible to easily search for California names using the internet. Simply go to the California SOS web site and lookup your selected names. If you find that your selecting name is available, you can choose to either register your LLC or simply reserve the name for a period of 60 days. |
