RSA 349:1. Registration; Generally.

I. Every sole proprietor doing business in this state under any name other than the sole proprietor's own name, and every partnership, trust or association doing business in this state shall register the trade name of such business, trust or association in the manner provided in RSA 349:5 and 349:6. II. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to corporations organized under RSA 292, 293-A, 301 and 301-A, foreign corporations registered under RSA 292, 293-A, 301 and 301-A, foreign partnerships registered under RSA 305-A, limited liability companies and foreign limited liability companies registered under RSA 304-C, registered limited liability partnerships or foreign registered liability partnerships registered under RSA 304-A, limited partnerships or foreign limited partnerships registered under RSA 304-B or New Hampshire investment trusts registered under RSA 293-B except as such holders of the registrations as described in this paragraph may be doing business under trade names other than the names under which they are registered. III. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to rating organizations or insurers which engage in joint underwriting or joint reinsurance which are referred to in, and subject to, the provisions of RSA 413. IV. (a) Except as authorized by subparagraphs (b) and (c), a trade name, based upon the records of the secretary of state, shall be distinguishable from, and not the same as: (1) The name of an entity incorporated, authorized, formed, or registered to do business in this state under RSA 292, RSA 293-A, RSA 293-B, RSA 294-A, RSA 301, RSA 301-A, RSA 304-A, RSA 304-B, RSA 304-C, RSA 305-A, RSA 349, or RSA 564-F. (2) A name reserved under RSA 293-A, RSA 293-B, RSA 304-A, RSA 304-B, RSA 304-C, or RSA 564-F. (3) The fictitious name of another foreign corporation authorized to transact business in this state. (4) The name of an agency or instrumentality of the United States or this state or a subdivision thereof, including names reserved pursuant to RSA 53-E. (5) The name of any political party recognized under RSA 652:11, unless written consent is obtained from the authorized representative of the political organization. (a-1) Except as authorized by subparagraphs (b) and (c), a trade name, based upon the records of the secretary of state, is not distinguishable upon the record if the only distinguishing factor to the trade name is: (1) An article. (2) Plural forms of the same word. (3) Phonetic spelling of the same name or word. (4) An abbreviation in place of a complete spelling of the name. (5) A suffix or prefix added to a word or any other deviation from or derivative of the same word, excluding antonyms and opposites. (6) A change in a word or name indicating entity status. (7) The addition of a numeric designation, unless consent is granted by the current name holder. (8) Differences in punctuation or special characters, unless it changes the clear meaning of the word. (9) Differences in whether letters or numbers immediately follow each other or are separated by one or more spaces. (10) An Arabic numeral representing a number, a Roman numeral representing the same number, or a word representing the same number appearing in the same position within otherwise identical names. (b) An applicant may apply to the secretary of state for authorization to use a name that is not distinguishable from, or is the same as, one or more of the names described in subparagraph (a), as determined from review of the records of the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall authorize use of the name applied for if: (1) The holder or holders of the name as described in subparagraph (a) gives written consent to use the name that is not distinguishable from the name of the applying trade name; or if the name is the same, one or more words are added to the name to make the new name distinguishable from the other name; or (2) The other entity consents to the use in writing and submits an undertaking in a form satisfactory to the secretary of state to change its name to a name that is distinguishable from, and not the same as, the name of the applying trade name; or (3) The applicant delivers to the secretary of state a certified copy of the final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction establishing the applicant's right to use the name applied for in this state. (c) An applicant may use the name, including the fictitious name, of another domestic or foreign entity that is used in this state if the other entity is incorporated, authorized, formed, or registered to transact business in this state and the proposed user corporation has acquired all or substantially all of the assets, including the name, of the other entity. (d) No person shall use the term "farmers' market" in a trade name unless such use conforms to the definition in RSA 21:34-a, V. A person having a lawfully registered trade name including the term "farmers' market" on the effective date of this subparagraph shall be exempt from the prohibition established in this subparagraph. Source: Source. GS 106:1. GL 117:1. PS 121:1. 1919, 57:1. PL 155:1. RL 186:1. 1949, 119:1. RSA 349:1, 2. 1955, 284:1, par. 1. 1991, 67:6. 1996, 212:12. 2003, 150:12. 2004, 248:60. 2007, 210:1, eff. Aug. 24, 2007. 2015, 188:21, 22, eff. Jan. 1, 2016. 2017, 257:58, eff. Oct. 1, 2017. 2018, 221:11, eff. Jan. 1, 2019. 2019, 316:15, eff. Oct. 1, 2019.