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The Business Names Act 1962 (the Act), Business Names Regulations 1997 (the Regulations) and Business Names Direction 1999 create the framework for business name registration in Tasmania.
The purpose of the Business Names Act 1962 is to provide a public register from which the identity and other relevant details of persons who conduct business under business names may be established. It is not a purpose of the Act to provide a method of protecting names. Some people mistakenly believe that this is the purpose of the Act and they also mistakenly believe the Commissioner for Corporate Affairs is the authority to determine disputes arising between persons on the basis of contended similarities in business, product or service names. This is not a function of the Commissioner but a function of the Courts.
The Act also does not confer a right to use a particular business name. Generally the right to use a name, whether it be a business, product or service name, is established by adoption of that name prior to any other person using that name.
It is an offence to trade under a name other than a person's own personal name unless that name is registered. Significant penalties apply to those persons found guilty of trading under an unregistered name.
For the purposes of the Act a personal name is described as their surname plus their initials or their surname plus the first name. As an example it would not allow for a person to trade under the name 'Bob Smith Plumbing' without that name being registered. This is because the word 'plumbing' is not an initial, first name nor surname.
Further information on this subject is available on the following pages:
1. Registering a Business Name
2. Searching for Registered Business Name Details
4. Business Numbers - Australian Business Register (ABR)
6. Domain Names, Company Names and Trading Names
Printed copies of this legislation can be obtained from the Printing Authority of Tasmania on 03 6233 3289.
Business Names Act - Publications / Facts and Information Sheets
