Why do you need to do a business entity search?

A business entity search will show you whether a name is available for your LLC. You can check whether another Mississippi business is already using the name (or a similar one).

Should your Mississippi business entity search show that a name is already being used, you’ll likely need to find another name for your LLC.

Using an existing business name can lead to legal conflicts, confusion among customers, and potential trademark infringement issues.

Mississippi Naming Guidelines for LLCs

Mississippi has specific naming guidelines that all LLCs must adhere to when choosing a business name. These are more like rules than guidelines.

The specific Mississippi naming guidelines for LLCs are:

• LLC Designation: Assuming you’re starting an LLC, then the name must include “Limited Liability Company,” “LLC,” or “L.L.C.” For example, if your business name is “Smith Enterprises,” it must be registered as “Smith Enterprises, LLC.”
• Personal Names: The name may be the name of a business owner, member or manager involved in the LLC, but it doesn’t have to.
• Uniqueness: The name must be distinguishable from other registered business names in Mississippi. For instance, if “Smith Consulting, LLC” is already registered, you cannot use “Smith Consultants, LLC.”
• Government Agencies: The name cannot imply that the LLC is affiliated with a government agency, nor can you use a name that’d be confused with a federal or state government agency. For example, names like “State Department” or “FBI” are not allowed. The same could be true of local government agencies like “PD” for police department, and this also applies to any abbreviations you might use through a DBA.
• Restricted Terms: Restricted words like “bank” or “university” usually require additional approvals or licenses. You can only use terms like these if you qualify.
• Misleading Terms: The name should not mislead the public about the nature of the business. For example, an LLC selling medical products should not use the term “Law” in its name.

The statute governing business names in Mississippi is MS Code § 79-29-109 (2020).

Conducting a business name search in Mississippi: Step-by-step guide with tips

Mississippi makes a searchable database you can use to check whether a specific business name is available. This is generally the best way to check your business’s potential name, but there are a couple of particular details you’ll want to be aware of. Here’s how to go about conducting a business search in Mississippi.

Step 1: Access the Business Name Database

You can access the business name database through the Mississippi Secretary of State’s website. This is the official database of businesses registered in the state.

Step 2: Choose “Business Name” search

Select “Business Name” from the top of the form. The other options (i.e. Business ID, Officer Name, Registered Agent) aren’t relevant for these purposes.

Step 3: Search your business name twice

There are several ways to search business names. The two that are most helpful are “Exact Match” and “Sounds Like.” You’ll want to conduct at least two searches using these different options:

1. Exact Name Search: Start with an “Exact Match” search of your business name.
2. Other Exact Name Searches: If applicable, conduct other “Exact Match” searches for potentially similar names. This is important to do if you use a plural (e.g. Consultants), a word that could be shortened (e.g. Joesph’s), or a word with a similar spelling (e.g. Theatre). In these cases, it’d be best to search for the singular, short/long version, or alternative spelling.
3. Sounds Like Search: Conduct a search using “Sounds Like” with your business name. This search will likely yield a number of irrelevant results. For example, “computer” may return “Campeteers LLC,” “Campitelli Law PLLC,” “CannaFtures DBA,” and many other names that aren’t an issue. It could also show a business that is indeed similar to the name you want to use, and would be potentially confusing to customers

Be sure to do both other Exact Name searches and a Sounds Like search. They show quite different results.

Step 4: Review Results

Results are returned on the same page, directly below the search options. How many of the results you review depends on which type of search you’re doing.

Check all of the results pages for the Exact Name searches. The Sounds Like search will probably have many pages; any relevant results will most likely be in the first 1-3 pages.

Fictitious name (DBA) search

There isn’t a separate search for fictitious names (commonly “DBAs”). Any relevant DBAs will be included in the results, along with the LLCs and other business entities.

What can you do once you have an available business name?

Once you’ve checked that a name is available, you can register it for your business. There are a few other things that you might want to do, too.

• Register your LLC name: Provide the name when registering your LLC. In Mississippi, LLCs are registered online through the Secretary of State’s portal (account required). The cost of registering an LLC in Mississippi is $50.
• Reserve your LLC name: If you aren’t ready to register your LLC just yet, you can reserve the business name by completing an online form. The fee for reserving a business name is $25. Your reservation will last for 120 days, and you can’t renew the registration for 60 days once the 120-day reservation expires.
• Consider trademarking your name: To better protect your business name and brand identity, consider registering a trademark at the state or federal level. A trademark provides legal protection against unauthorized use of your business name by others. This is more expensive and complex, but can add important protections for large or well-known businesses.
• Register a website domain: Register a website domain that matches, or at least is similar to, your business name. There’s a good chance an exact match is already taken. You should be able to find a domain that’s similar and available, though.

Conclusion

You’ll know when you find a great name for your new LLC. If you don’t yet have a name yet, there are many ways to brainstorm potential names.

Once you have chosen a name, make sure to check that it’s not already taken. If available, register your LLC or reserve the name. After that, you’re ready to take the next step. And we can help in establishing your free LLC in Mississippi (+state fees) or take advantage of one of paid plans that include compliance services, registered agent services and much more.

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