NANCYFALLON-HOULE,P.C.-VelocityLaw.docVIP

Nancy Fallon-Houle, P.C. Attorney At Law 5449 bending oaks place downers grove, illinois 60515-4456 nfallon@ 630-963-0439 x 22 ? Nancy Fallon-Houle, 1998-2006 Business Name Search Selection Checklist (Search Requirements Apply to Business Names, Tag Lines, and Product Names) Ownership of Intellectual Property: The Company Name Intellectual property is a key asset of a business. The business name, and the brand identity established around it, is an important item of intellectual property. Before forming the business, confirm that the name you select is legally available for use under common law. Even if the name is available on the Secretary of State website, a similar name with a slightly different spelling might be in use by someone. Or the exact name might be in use by someone in a different state where you might be doing business. One must establish the legal rights to the name, to own and use the name selected. Without legal rights to use, the business risks potential lawsuits over name use in the future. The corporation or LLC cannot be formed until name selection is finalized and name is clear in the industry in which the business will be conducted. Allow sufficient time to research names, and review similar names already in use by others in your industry, or similar industries. Allow time to rethink name selection, because first choice is rarely available. The time-consumption and delay caused by thinking through multiple name choices, when your first choice is unavailable, is indeed frustrating. (Plan ahead on the corporate formation.) However, thorough name search and selection before forming the business is immensely more productive than the alternative of changing the name after forming the business. Post-incorporation name change is costly, time-consuming, and inefficient, stalls business momentum and erases brand identity. Current Climate for Name Availa