Numbered corporations
Every corporation is assigned a corporate number when its articles of incorporation are processed. If no name is chosen, the assigned corporate number will act as the corporate name, and the corporation will be what is referred to as a “numbered company”.
Incorporating a numbered company may be faster than incorporating a named corporation as it is not necessary to search and reserve a corporate name.
Named corporations
A corporation cannot have a name that is identical to or confusingly similar with an existing name or trade-mark. In order to apply for a name, a current name search report which contains information on names and trade-marks that are similar to the proposed name of the corporation must be filed along with the articles of incorporation. Provinces will grant almost any name, provided it is not identical to another name registered in that same province. It is more difficult to get federal approval of a corporate name. Once granted, a federal corporate name provides greater legal protection for the corporate name than if the company is incorporated provincially, but still less than the protection guaranteed by a trade-mark.
Corporate names should accurately describe the business of the corporation. They cannot contain offensive terminology, wording that might be confused with a government institution or words such as engineering, college, university or institute.
A corporate name is generally made up of three parts: the distinctive element, the descriptive element, and a legal designator.
Take, for example, the corporate name Ottawa Construction Incorporated. The distinctive element “Ottawa” will make your corporate name distinct from other corporations. The descriptive element “Construction” will describe the main activities or type of business of the corporation. The legal designator “Incorporated” will distinguish the corporation from sole proprietorships and partnerships. Other legal designators that can be used are Limited, Ltd., Corporation, Corp., and Inc.
The legal designator should appear with the corporate name on all corporate documents (stationary, invoices, etc.) so that others are aware that they are doing business with a corporation and not with an individual or a group of individuals. This is particularly necessary if the owners of the business wish to avoid personal liability – they must notify others that they are dealing with a corporation and not with the individuals personally.