Corporate names rules for Federal Corporations in Canada are listed in Part 3 of the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Regulations (SOR/2011-223):

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Regulations Part 3: Corporate Names

Interpretation

• 42 (1) The following definitions apply in this Part.

  corporate name means the name of a corporation. (Version anglaise seulement)

  distinctive, in relation to a trade-name, considered as a whole and by its separate elements, means a trade-name that distinguishes the activities in association with which it is used or intended to be used by its owner from any other activities or that is adapted to so distinguish them. (distinctive)

  official mark means an official mark referred to in subparagraph 9(1)(n)(iii) of the Trade-marks Act. (marque officielle)

  trade-mark means a trade-mark as defined in section 2 of the Trade-marks Act. (marque de commerce)

  trade-name means a name that has been reserved by the Director under subsection 12(1) of the Act, or the name under which activities are carried on, or intended to be carried on, whether it is a corporate name or the name of a body corporate, trust, partnership, sole proprietorship or individual. (dénomination commerciale)

  use means the actual use by a person that carries on activities in Canada or elsewhere. (emploi)

• (2) For greater certainty, this Part applies to the corporate name of an amalgamated corporation.

Confusing Names

43 A corporate name is confusing with

• (a) a trade-mark or an official mark if it is the same as that trade-mark or official mark or if the use of both the corporate name and either the trade-mark or the official mark, as the case may be, is likely to lead to the inference that the activities carried on or intended to be carried on under the corporate name and the activities connected with the trade-mark or the official mark, as the case may be, are the activities of one organization, whether or not the nature of those activities is generally the same; or

• (b) a trade-name if it is the same as that trade-name or if the use of both names is likely to lead to the inference that the activities carried on or intended to be carried on under the corporate name and the activities carried on under the trade-name are the activities of one organization, whether or not the nature of those activities is generally the same.

44 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if its use causes confusion with a trade-mark, official mark or trade-name, having regard to the circumstances, including

• (a) the inherent distinctiveness of the whole or any element of the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name and the extent to which it has become known;

• (b) the length of time the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name has been in use;

• (c) the nature of the goods, services or activities with which the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name is associated;

• (d) the nature of the trade with which the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name is associated;

• (e) the degree of resemblance between the proposed corporate name and the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name in appearance or sound or in the ideas suggested by them; and

• (f) the geographical area in Canada in which the trade-name or proposed corporate name is likely to be used.

45 Despite section 44, a corporate name that is confusing with the name of a body corporate that has not carried on activities in the two years immediately before the day on which the Director receives the documents referred to in section 9 or 201 or subsection 208(4), 211(5), 215(5), 216(6) or 219(3) of the Act or a request to reserve a name under subsection 12(1) of the Act is not prohibited for that reason alone if

• (a) the body corporate has been dissolved; or

• (b) in the case of a body corporate that has not been dissolved, it consents in writing to the use of the name and undertakes in writing to dissolve immediately or to change its name before the corporation that proposes to use the name begins using it.

46 Despite section 44, if a word in a corporate name is confusing with the distinctive element of a trade-mark, official mark or trade-name, the corporate name is not prohibited for that reason alone if the person who owns the trade-mark, official mark or trade-name consents in writing to the use of the corporate name.

• 47 (1) Despite section 44, a corporate name that is confusing with the name of a body corporate is not prohibited for that reason alone if

  • (a) the corporate name is the name of an existing or a proposed corporation that is the successor to the activities of the body corporate and the body corporate has ceased or will, in the immediate future, cease to carry on activities under that corporate name and undertakes in writing to dissolve or to change its corporate name before the successor corporation begins carrying on activities under that corporate name; and

  • (b) the corporate name of the existing or proposed corporation sets out in numerals the year of incorporation, or the year of the most recent amendment to the corporate name, in parentheses.

• (2) If a corporate name is changed so that the reference to the year of incorporation or the year of the most recent amendment to the corporate name is deleted at least two years after it is introduced, it is not prohibited for that reason alone.

48 Despite section 44, if the corporate name of an amalgamated corporation is the same as the name of one of the amalgamating corporations, it is not prohibited for that reason alone.

• 49 (1) Despite section 44, the corporate name of an existing corporation that is the same as the name of an affiliated body corporate from which the existing corporation has acquired or will, in the immediate future, acquire all or substantially all of the property of the body corporate is not prohibited for that reason alone if the body corporate undertakes in writing to dissolve, or to change its name, before the corporation begins using the corporate name.

• (2) Despite section 44, if the corporate name of a proposed corporation is the same as the name of a body corporate that is to be an affiliate of the proposed corporation from which the proposed corporation will, in the immediate future, acquire all or substantially all of the property of the body corporate, the corporate name is not prohibited for that reason alone if the body corporate undertakes in writing to dissolve, or to change its name, before the proposed corporation begins using the corporate name.

50 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if it is confusing with a corporate name that is reserved by the Director for another person, unless written consent has been obtained from the person for whom the corporate name was reserved.

General Prohibitions

51 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if the name contains any of the following elements:

• (a) “cooperative”, “coopérative”, “co-op” or “pool” when it connotes a cooperative venture;

• (b) “Parliament Hill” or “Colline du Parlement”;

• (c) “Royal Canadian Mounted Police”, “Gendarmerie royale du Canada”, “RCMP” or “GRC”; and

• (d) “United Nations”, “Nations Unies”, “UN” or “ONU” when it connotes a relationship to the United Nations.

52 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited when it connotes that the corporation

• (a) carries on its activities under royal, vice-regal or governmental patronage, approval or authority, unless Her Majesty or a person, society, authority or organization referred to in paragraph 9(2)(a) of the Trade-marks Act consents in writing to the use of the name;

• (b) is sponsored or controlled by or is connected with the Government of Canada, the government of a province, the government of a country other than Canada or a political subdivision or agency of any such government, unless the appropriate government, political subdivision or agency consents in writing to the use of the name;

• (c) is sponsored or controlled by or is connected with a university or an association of accountants, architects, engineers, lawyers, physicians or surgeons or another professional association recognized by the laws of Canada or a province, unless the appropriate university or professional association consents in writing to the use of the name;

• (d) carries on the business of a bank, loan company, insurance company, trust company or another financial intermediary that is regulated by the laws of Canada, unless the Superintendent of Financial Institutions consents in writing to the use of the name; or

• (e) carries on the business of a stock exchange that is regulated by the laws of a province, unless the relevant provincial securities regulator consents in writing to the use of the name.

53 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if it contains a word or phrase, or connotes an activity, that is obscene.

54 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if an element of the name is the family name of an individual, whether or not preceded by their given name or initials, unless the individual or their heir or personal representative consents in writing to the use of their name and the individual has or had a personal or other connection to the corporation.

55 For greater certainty, a corporate name is not prohibited only because it contains alphabetic or numeric characters, initials, punctuation marks or any combination of those elements.

Non-distinctive Names

• 56 (1) For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if it

  • (a) is only descriptive, in any language, of the activities of the corporation, of the goods and services in which the corporation deals or intends to deal, or of the quality, function or other characteristic of those goods and services;

  • (b) is primarily or only the name or family name, used alone, of an individual who is living or has died within 30 years before the day on which the Director receives any of the documents referred to in section 9 or 201 or subsection 208(4), 211(5), 215(5), 216(6) or 219(3) of the Act or a request to reserve a name under subsection 12(1) of the Act; or

  • (c) is primarily or only a geographic name that is used alone.

• (2) Subsection (1) does not apply if a person proposing to use the corporate name establishes that it has been used in Canada or elsewhere by them or by their predecessors so as to have become distinctive in Canada on the day referred to in paragraph (1)(b).

Deceptively Misdescriptive Names

57 For the purpose of subsection 13(1) of the Act, a corporate name is prohibited if it is likely to mislead the public, in any language, with respect to any of the following:

• (a) the activities, goods or services in association with which it is proposed to be used;

• (b) the conditions under which the goods or services will be produced or supplied or the persons to be employed in the production or supply of the goods or services; and

• (c) the place of origin of the goods or services.

General

• 58 (1) For the purpose of subsection 12(1) of the Act, the prescribed period for a reserved name is 90 days.

• (2) For the purpose of subsection 12(2) of the Act, the prescribed term is one of the following: “Association”, “Center”, “Centre”, “Fondation”, “Foundation”, “Institut”, “Institute” or “Society”.

59 For the purposes of subsections 13(5) and 296(8) of the Act, the prescribed period is 60 days.

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