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California Corporations Code Section 201

Legal Research Home > California Laws > Corporations Code > California Corporations Code Section 201

201.  (a) The Secretary of State shall not file articles setting
forth a name in which "bank," " trust," "trustee" or related words
appear, unless the certificate of approval of the Commissioner of
Financial Institutions is attached thereto. This subdivision does not
apply to the articles of any corporation subject to the Banking Law
on which is endorsed the approval of the Commissioner of Financial
Institutions.
   (b) The Secretary of State shall not file articles which set forth
a name which is likely to mislead the public or which is the same
as, or resembles so closely as to tend to deceive, the name of a
domestic corporation, the name of a foreign corporation which is
authorized to transact intrastate business or has registered its name
pursuant to Section 2101, a name which a foreign corporation has
assumed under subdivision (b) of Section 2106, a name which will
become the record name of a domestic or foreign corporation upon the
effective date of a filed corporate instrument where there is a
delayed effective date pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 110 or
subdivision (c) of Section 5008, or a name which is under reservation
for another corporation pursuant to this title, except that a
corporation may adopt a name that is substantially the same as an
existing domestic corporation or foreign corporation which is
authorized to transact intrastate business or has registered its name
pursuant to Section 2101, upon proof of consent by such domestic or
foreign corporation and a finding by the Secretary of State that
under the circumstances the public is not likely to be misled.
   The use by a corporation of a name in violation of this section
may be enjoined notwithstanding the filing of its articles by the
Secretary of State.
   (c) Any applicant may, upon payment of the fee prescribed therefor
in the Government Code, obtain from the Secretary of State a
certificate of reservation of any name not prohibited by subdivision
(b), and upon the issuance of the certificate the name stated therein
shall be reserved for a period of 60 days. The Secretary of State
shall not, however, issue certificates reserving the same name for
two or more consecutive 60-day periods to the same applicant or for
the use or benefit of the same person, partnership, firm or
corporation; nor shall consecutive reservations be made by or for the
use or benefit of the same person, partnership, firm or corporation
of names so similar as to fall within the prohibitions of subdivision
(b).

Last modified: February 22, 2013