A LLC type company must choose one designation (his name), qualified in the legal framework as its official name. The founding partners can freely determine this, provided they comply with a certain number of rules. Foundation-company-ricard presents them in this publication dedicated to the company name of the LLC.
Usefulness of the commercial designation of an LLC
La commercial designation chosen by a SARL allows to'identify the legal person. It is as important as the first name for a natural person. In other words, this characteristic of a commercial company must enable it to distinguish itself from other LLCs.
La commercial designation is a piece of data that must imperatively appear in the statutes of the LLC, as well as several other information (the head office, social object, capital, longer term,...).
In all documents drawn up and distributed by the SARL, the commercial designation must be clearly visible, just after the legal form (SARL “commercial designation”).
Attention, the commercial designation of a SARL must be differentiated:
- Its trade name (this is the name given to the business);
- And a possible sign (it is a sign which makes it possible to identify one or more establishments of the company).
What is a corporate name for an LLC?
There are two main points to consider when it comes to choosing the corporate name for the SARL. She must be :
- Legal and meet the standards in force;
- Free of use (no protection or trademark registration).
It is advisable to contact the National Institute of Industrial Property to verify that there are no protection devices associated with your choice.
As for the rest, the associates have the possibility of selecting the company name of an LLC according to their freedom ; the words chosen can come from a French or foreign language and do not have to be related to the activity of the company. It is even possible to include the name of one or more associates.
However, it is necessary to take precautions when it comes to companies that do not meet the criteria required to carry out a regulated activity: they cannot use terms related to the latter. The same rules apply to terms relating to a public body or official institution.
Register the name of the SARL with the RCS
Once validated, the name of the LLC must be registered in the file of commercial enterprises: the trade and companies register (RCS). This will appear on theKbis extract of the service. At the time of creation of the LLC, a complete file must be sent to the business formalities center (CFE) or to the registry of the commercial court (TC).
It is important to note that the name of the LLC is definitely not him assigned only once registered. It is at this precise moment that it can prohibit third parties from using it, under certain conditions.
Changing the name of an LLC
The name chosen when setting up the SARL is not final. It is possible to change during its lifetime. However, important formalities must be observed:
- Holding of an extraordinary general meeting,
- Decision taken by all the partners,
- Drafting of the minutes of the extraordinary general meeting,
- Modification of the statutes of the SARL,
- Publication of a legal notice of change of corporate name,
- Update of the information appearing in the RCS (sending of a file to the registry or to the CFE).
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