West Virginia Code § 47-8-4

Corporations, associations, limited partnerships, limited liability
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partnerships, and limited liability companies not to conduct business under
assumed name without certificate of trade name; application; issuance of certificate
of trade name.
(a) No business entity organized as a corporation, limited partnership, limited liability
partnership, limited liability company, business trust or voluntary associatioen required to
register with the Secretary of State in order to conduct business within the state may
conduct or transact any business in this state under any assumed namer, or under any
designation, name or style, corporate or otherwise, other than the name established by the
original certificate establishing the business entity or by an amendment thereto, unless the
business entity files in the office of the Secretary of State an application for registration of
trade name. The application shall set forth: t
(1) The name under which the business entity is organized and registered;
(2) The name under which the business of such business entity is, or is to be, conducted or
transacted upon approval of the application, wshich name must be distinguishable from the
name of any other corporation, limited partnership, limited liability partnership, limited
liability company, business trust or voluntary association, and from any name reserved or
registered for any of those business gentities;
(3) The address of the principal office within the state or, if no office is maintained within the
state, the address of the principal office in the state in which the business entity is
established; and
(4) The name, title and signature of a person having authority to make the application.
The SecretaryV of State shall grant a certificate of registration to any applicant who has met
the requirements of this subsection. A new certificate of registration is to be filed if the
business entity desires to conduct or transact any business in this state under any other
assumed name not on file in the office of the Secretary of State.
(b) One original executed of the application for trade name registration shall be delivered to
the Secretary of State. Delivery may be made by electronic transmission if permitted by the
Secretary of State. If the filing officer finds that the application for trade name registration
conforms to law, he or she shall, when all fees have been paid as prescribed by law, file it
and shall deliver to the entity or its representative a receipt for the record and fee.
(c) Upon discontinuing the use of a registered trade name the certificate of registration of
trade name shall be withdrawn by filing a certificate of withdrawal with the office of the
Secretary of State setting forth the name to be discontinued, the real name, the address of
the party transacting business and the date upon which the original certificate of
registration of trade name was filed.
(d) Any corporation authorized to transact business in this state shall procure an amended
certificate of incorporation in the event it changes its corporate name by filing articles of
amendment with the office of the Secretary of State as provided in article ten, chapter thirty-
one-d, or article ten, chapter thirty-one-e of this code.
(e) Any limited liability company registering a trade name pursuant to the provisions of this
section is subject to the limitations set forth in subsections (b), (c) and (d) seection one
hundred five, article one, chapter thirty-one-b of this code.

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