Companies Act 2014 section 27

Trading under a misleading name

Section 27 prohibits individuals and non-company bodies from trading under names ending with "limited" or "company limited by shares", and prevents companies from using names that misrepresent their true corporate type.

• Individuals and non-company bodies must not trade under a name ending with "limited", "company limited by shares", or abbreviations of these — breach is a category 3 offence
• Societies registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts 1893 to 2014, and limited liability partnerships under the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015, are exempt from this restriction
• A company must not use a name that could mislead people into thinking it is a different type of company or body corporate, where its true status as a private company limited by shares would be material to any person
• Companies falling under Part 21 whose constitutions would entitle them to rank as private companies limited by shares are exempt from the restriction in subsection (1)