Any person, corporation, or limited liability company that engages in business in North Dakota under a trade name must register that trade name with the Secretary of State. The registration of the trade name is mandated by law and may be required in order to obtain certain licenses or permits, or to obtain certain privileges such as bank accounts in the trade name.
The trade name registration provides protection of the name in North Dakota. A trade name filed with the Secretary of State prevents the filing of a trademark or another name that is the same as or deceptively similar by any corporation, limited liability company, any other trade name, fictitious partnership name, limited liability partnership, limited liability limited partnership or limited partnership. In the event that a name is used, which is deemed to be the same as or deceptively similar to a trade name that is registered, the registrant of such trade name may institute a civil suit prohibiting the further use of the name.