You’ll need a Maryland LLC search before you create your own limited liability company. This is a business structure that shields its owners, who are called members, from liability. This means that if the company is sued, only the business assets will be used to cover any debts. Personal assets such as accounts, real estate and cars cannot be taken by creditors.

What Is Maryland LLC

In addition to protecting the personal assets of members, a Maryland LLC can be used to manage a business. It has the additional function of keeping assets which may include:

  • Boats
  • Vehicles
  • Airplanes
  • Real estate

Choosing a name for your business should be done before any paperwork is filed with the Corporations Division. It is essential to find a name that has not been used by another business and is permitted to use. This means that you should do a name search in the state’s database to see if your name is not already used among existing businesses.

Maryland regulations require the business name that is “distinguishable upon the records.” This means that regular people should be able to tell your business name apart from others.

To set up a business officially as an LLC, there must be the right letters after the business name. Permitted designators include:

  • LLC (this is the most common)
  • L.C.
  • L.L.C.
  • LC
  • Limited Liability Company

The name of your company should not have a word that gives the impression that it is in a different category. For instance, you should not call your business “Corporation” or “Incorporated.” There is no need to have your website address match the name of your Maryland LLC, but it may be convenient to do so. You will want domain privacy so people don’t get access to your personal address or phone number.

The letters after a company name showing the business entity is called a designator. A different designator does not mean the name of a company is necessarily unique. For instance, if someone has a company called Flores, Inc., coming up with Flores L.L.C is not considered distinct. In addition, use of singular and plural forms or possessives do not make your business name distinguishable. If there is a business called Walkers, L.L.C. you should not name your company Walker’s L.L.C.

There are other factors that do not create distinguishability, including:

  • Conjunctions such as “and” or “or”
  • Articles such as “A” or “An”
  • Hyphens and dashes
  • Periods and commas
  • Ampersands
  • Etc
  • Differences in Arabic or written numerals

In addition, it is usually not permitted to use names that are too similar. If you want to give the name Fit Rite to your company, and there is already one called Super Fit Rite, it is best to find another name. Search for a name of a company without the designator at the end and do not consider punctuation or capital letters. If your chosen company name is not available, you may have to use some imagination to come up with another one.

If you do a name search and the words “no results” come up, that is a sign that the title you have chosen is free to use. It is a good idea not to confine your business location by using names for a certain street, town or state. Come up with a name that potential customers can spell easily so they can find you. Also, keep business names short they will be simple to remember.

Your company name should give customers a sense of what it is you are selling. In addition to helping people imagine your product, you should also include a core value of your company in its name. There should also be a positive feeling associated with your company’s name. When you look on the Maryland database, you will find various status updates for searches.

Begin the process of searching for a business entity by going to the Maryland business search website. When you get there:

  • Select name or department ID from the drop-down tab
  • Type in the number or name of the entity in the empty box

You should see a list of entities that fit the criteria. If the data isn’t sufficient, go to “General Info.” You may also see “Amendments” by clicking on the tab and can find “Personal Property” if it is available for the business. This will allow you to see personal property filings, mailing address and other data points.

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