Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: Can another company register with my companies name in a different state

The answer to your question is YES, corporations with identical names can be and are formed in different states. It happens all the time. I would say if you were to select a rather common name, perhaps "Economy Plumbing, Inc." you would find one in more than half the states.

Further, in California you will find numerous examples of corporations and LLCs sharing the exact same name except for the different ending, "Inc." or "Corp." vs. "LLC."

To make matters even more complicated, California now apparently allows a newly-formed corporation to use the name of a prior California corporation that is suspended (as opposed to dissolved). Don't quote me on this, but I do believe it's happening.

I find that clients frequently misinterpret the role of the Secretary of State (S/S). The role of the S/S is pretty much limited to making sure that each active California corporation has a name that is distinguishable, without major danger of confusion, from the name of every other active California corporation.

The S/S does not inquire into what your product line is, and therefore cannot make any determination whether a trademark conflict might arise from a corporation's use of its name in commerce.

Re: Can another company register with my companies name in a different state

You need more information in the post. What does the NH corp do? Are you in the same field? Chances are your name is good for California, but not for NH, and vice-versa for the NH corp. The legal structure of the company makes no difference in trademark issues.

Re: Can another company register with my companies name in a different state

The CA Secretary of State doesn't do trademark searches. That's your job.