Please note: The text below is a translation of the original Norwegian Act. In any cases where doubt may arise, the Norwegian text of the Act is valid and binding.
The Act relating to the Exclusive Right to Business Names and other Business Distinguishing Characteristics etc. (the Business Name Act)
Latest update 5 September 2003, no. 91, from 1 March 2004
Chapter I. Introductory Provisions
§ 1-1. A person operating a business enterprise can have the exclusive right to a business name and any other business distinguishing characteristics pursuant to the provisions of this act.
The business name is the official name of a body corporate operating a business enterprise and the distinguishing characteristic of a sole proprietorship business enterprise. A body corporate shall be designated by this business name in legal proceedings and in dealings with the public authorities. For sole proprietorship business enterprises, the surname of the owner shall be used. The right to the business name is attained when it is taken into use for the business enterprise or is registered, cf. section 3-1.
Business enterprises may also employ other distinguishing characteristics (secondary business distinguishing characteristics) for their operations. The right to a secondary distinguishing characteristic is attained when it is accepted in general use. It is seen to be accepted in general use when, and for as long as, it is recognized as a distinguishing business characteristic for a business enterprise within the business area here in the realm . The provisions in this act, with the exception of section 2-2 and section 3-1, apply in a corresponding way to secondary distinguishing characteristics.
Chapter II. Requirements for Business Names. Registration
§ 2-1. A business name must not be identical to a business name that is or will be registered pursuant to a notification already submitted to the Register of Business Enterprises, unless the owner of the business name in question consents to this. A business name must as a minimum consist of a combination of three letters from the Norwegian alphabet.
The name of countries, counties or municipalities may not be used as a business name.
§ 2-2. The business name for sole-proprietorship business enterprises shall include the surname of the owner.
The business name for liable general partnerships shall include the words "ansvarlig selskap" [liable general partnership] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation ANS. If participants in the general partnership have shared liability for the enterprise's obligations, the business name shall include the phrase "selskap med delt ansvar" [partnership with limited liability] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "DA".
The business name for limited partnerships shall include the words "kommandittselskap" [limited partnership] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "KS".
The business name for limited companies shall include the word "aksjeselskap" [limited company] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "AS".
The business name for public limited companies shall include the word "allmennaksjeselskap" [public limited company] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "ASA".
The business name for other business enterprises with limited participant liability and for associations with financial objectives shall, unless otherwise specified in special legislation, include the words "selskap med begrenset ansvar" [company with limited liability] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "BA".
The business name for a foundation operating a business enterprise shall include the word "stiftelse" [foundation] or the words "selveiende institusjon" [private institution].
The business name for a public corporation operating a business enterprise shall include the word "statsforetak" [public corporation] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation "SF".
The business name for an intermunicipal company shall include the words "interkommunalt selskap" [intermunicipal company] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation IKS.
The business name for a municipal business enterprise shall include the words "kommunalt foretak" [municipal business enterprise] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation KF, and the business name of a county-municipal business enterprise shall include the words "fylkeskommunalt foretak" [county-municipal business enterprise] or the [Norwegian] abbreviation FKF, and an indication of which municipality or county-municipality the business enterprise is a part of.
The business name of a business enterprise must not include any enterprise designation other than that which indicates the enterprise's own form of liability. The King may give more detailed regulations governing the formulation of business names.
§ 2-3. A business name must not be of such a nature that it could be easily misleading.
§ 2-4. The business name for sole proprietorship business enterprises or liable partnerships must not include other surnames than those of the owner or participant.
If a fully liable participant resigns from a general or limited partnership, or if a business name is transferred together with the business enterprise itself, cf. section 4-1, the name of the previous participant or owner may be retained in the business name provided the owner of the right gives his or her consent and the business name is not of such a nature that it could be easily misleading.
§ 2-5. A business name must not violate any law nor must it be liable to cause offence.
§ 2-6. Unless there is consent from the owner of the right to it, a business name must not:
1. include anything liable to be perceived as another's name, artist name or similar, unless it obviously refers to someone long deceased;
2. include anything liable to be perceived as a commonly known name of a foundation, charitable association or similar organization;
3. include anything liable to be perceived as the characteristic title of someone else's copyrighted literary or artistic work, or as a special name created in such works, if the name has become commonly known;
4. lend itself to be mistaken for a trademark that pursuant to the act dated 3 March 1961 no. 4 relating to trademarks or the act dated 3 March 1961 no. 5 relating to joint trademarks has protection through an earlier right, or for a business name or secondary business distinguishing characteristic that is protected by this act;
5. include a name characteristic of the real property of another, or anything that may be mistaken for it.
§ 2-7. A business name cannot be registered in the Register of Business Enterprises if it violates sections 2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 2-4 or 2-5 of this act. The keeper of the register does not check whether the business name for which registration has been applied violates any rights pursuant to section 2-6.
For case processing by the keeper of the register the provisions in the act dated 21 June 1985 no. 78 relating to the registration of business enterprises apply.
Chapter III. Protection of Business Names. Administrative review.
§ 3-1. The right to a business name is secured from the day the business name is taken into use, or from the day the registration notification arrives at the Register of Business Enterprises, provided that the business name is taken into use within one year.
The right to a business name pursuant to the first paragraph has the effect that nobody may use or register an identical business name.
The right to a business name is terminated from the day actual use is terminated. For registered business enterprises the proprietary right to the business name is always terminated when the business enterprise is struck off the Register, unless the business name and the business enterprise are taken over by others, cf. section 4-1, or if the business enterprise is registered again within six months after it has been struck off the Register, pursuant to section 7-3 third paragraph, second sentence, of the act dated 21 June 1985 no. 78 relating to the registration of business enterprises.
§ 3-2. If a business name is to have protection against similar business names or business distinguishing characteristics, the business name must satisfy the requirements for distinguishing characteristics that apply pursuant to section 13 of the act dated 3 March 1961 no. 4 relating to trademarks.
The right to a business name pursuant to the first paragraph has the effect that nobody but the owner may without due authorization use a business name, or business distinguishing characteristic that is so similar to the business name (characteristic similarity), that it could easily be mistaken for this in general business activities, cf. section 3-3.
§ 3-3. In this act, the same business name is understood to be easily mistaken for another if it is used or is expected to be used for the same or similar type of business activity (branch similarity).
Business names which are similar shall nevertheless be understood to be easily mistaken even if they are not used or are not expected to be used for the same or similar type of business activity if the business name which has the oldest right is so well known and has such goodwill in the realm that it would mean an unreasonable exploitation or degradation of this goodwill if the other business name were used for another business activity.
§ 3-4. If several claims are made separately for the right to a business name, the oldest of the rights to the name shall have the pre-emptive right to the claim, if the provision in section 3-5 does not apply.
§ 3-5. A younger business name can, without impedance from the provisions in this chapter, coexist with an older business name if the owner of the older right has not taken steps within a reasonable period of time to prevent use of the younger business name.
To avoid the risk of the names being misleading in cases as mentioned in the first paragraph, the court may decide that, in the future, one or both business names may only be used in special ways, as for example by appending the name of the location or making other clarifying additions.
§ 3-6. Any person who finds that a registered business name infringes on his or her rights pursuant to section 2-6 may demand that the registration be cancelled by administrative review. The demand must be filed within three years from the time the registration decision was made.
Any demand for an administrative review must be submitted in writing to the Norwegian Patent Office and must include
1. the name and address of the person filing the demand,
2. the business name for which the administrative review is demanded (including the business registration number),
3. the grounds for the demand,
4. necessary documentation of matters invoked to support the demand.
The stipulated fee must be paid.
If the demand for administrative review does not satisfy the conditions in the second paragraph, the Norwegian Patent Office shall stipulate a suitable time limit in which to respond and, where applicable, to make any necessary corrections. If the corrections have not been made within the established time limit, the demand shall be dismissed if the Norwegian Patent Office does not find that a new deadline should be set for corrections.
The Norwegian Patent Office shall notify the holder of the registered business name against which the demand is filed of the notification of the demand and give a reasonable time limit to make a statement.
If two or more demands for an administrative review have been filed against the same registration, the Norwegian Patent Office may combine the cases into one if no well-founded objection against this is made.
The Norwegian Patent Office may consider matters outside the scope of the demand for administrative review.
All parties and the public in general may demand insight into the documents in a case concerning administrative review. Information relating to business secrets may be excluded if the concerned party so demands. When such a demand has been filed, the information may not be disclosed to the public before the demand has been finally rejected. Any documents the Norwegian Patent Office has drawn up for its internal case preparation may be excluded from public disclosure.
If the Norwegian Patent Office finds that a business name has been registered in violation of section 2-6 of the act and that the registration impediment still exists, it shall make a decision to cancel the registration of the business name. Section 7-1, rectifying errors, of the act dated 21 June 1985 no. 78 relating to registration of business enterprises applies in a corresponding way.
If the demand for administrative review is accepted, this shall be registered in the Register of Business Enterprises as soon as the option of appealing the decision pursuant to section 3-7 has been exhausted or the deadline for appeals has expired.
§ 3-7. Any decision pursuant to section § 3-6, including in any case relating to insight pursuant to section 3-6 paragraph eight, may be appealed to the second instance department by the party that has been ruled against in the decision. An appeal must be filed with the Patent Office within two months, dating from the day the notification of the decision was sent to the party concerned. The appeal must include
1. the name and address of the complainant,
2. the decision being appealed,
3. the requested changes in decision,
4. the grounds for the appeal.
The stipulated fee for appeals must be paid.
Other parties in the case must without undue delay be notified about the appeal with a reasonable time limit for making a statement.
If the conditions for processing the appeal have been met, the first instance department of the Patent Office may reverse or change the decision if it finds clearly that there are reasonable grounds for the appeal. If no such decision is made, the case documents shall be forwarded to the second instance department of the Patent Office. If the first instance department of the Patent Office makes a statement to the second instance department, a copy must be sent to the parties.
If the conditions for processing the appeal have not been met the applicant shall be given a suitable time limit in which to make a statement and, where applicable, to make any necessary corrections. If the corrections are not made within the expiry of the time limit, the appeal shall be rejected if the second instance department of the Patent Office does not find that a new time limit should be established for making corrections.
If the appeal is accepted for processing, the second instance department of the Patent Office may initiate any inquiries justified by the appeal. Matters that are not touched upon by the appeal may be considered.
The provisions relating to insight into the documents in paragraph eight of section 3-6 apply in a corresponding way to the documents in the appeals case.
§ 3-8. If a suit has been filed pursuant to section 5-1, the Patent Office shall suspend the processing of an administrative review case until the suit has received a final judgement.
The party filing a demand for administrative review cannot file a suit pursuant to section 5-1 while the case is being processed by the Patent Office.
A decision by the Patent Office to dismiss or reject a demand for administrative review, or any appeal of such a decision, may not be brought before the courts.
A decision by the Patent Office to cancel the registration of a business name pursuant to section 3-6 may be brought before the courts by the holder if the right to appeal pursuant to section 3-7 has been used and the second instance department of the Patent Office has decided the appeal. A suit must be filed within two months from the date notification of the decision was sent to the holder. No relief can be given from the consequences of having failed to meet the deadline for lodging the appeal, which must be stated in the notification about the decision.
Chapter IV. Transfer of Business Names
§ 4-1. A business name may be transferred along with the business activity the business enterprise runs or with the major part of this.
With a transfer of the business activity or the major part of this the right to the business name is transferred to the new owner provided nothing else has been agreed upon. If, however, the business name includes the name of the transferor, the right to the business name will be transferred to the transferee only if there is a special agreement to do so.
§ 4-2. The right to a business name cannot be subjected to attachment or other separate enforcement proceedings.
In the event of a winding up, the right to the business name is transferred to the wound-up company/bankrupt estate. If the business name includes the name of a person, this applies only to the rest of the business name unless the person in question is deceased, or the business name has a strong market position, or the person in question has no reasonable grounds to oppose the bankrupt estate/wound-up company having control of the business name. A business name which does not belong to the bankrupt estate/wound-up company may nevertheless be used for the duration of the period of time the enterprise continues to operate at the expense of the estate/wound-up company.
Chapter V. The Use of Business Names in Contravention of the Act, Right of Action etc.
§ 5-1. If a business name is used or registered in the Register of Business Enterprises in contravention of this act, anyone with a legal interest and also the Ministry [Ministry of Industry and Energy] may take legal action to have the name declared unlawful. Such legal action may also be taken if the use of the name initially was legal, but later has become misleading or liable to cause offence.
§ 5-2. In connection with legal action, the court may, pursuant to sections 5-1, 6-1 or 6-2, or in pursuance of legal action taken independently, take those measures necessary to prevent continued use of the business name in an unchanged form. Thus it may be ruled that signs, advertising material etc. shall be changed, destroyed, or in accordance with a claim from the aggrieved party, be handed over to said party with or without compensation in accordance with the appraisal of the court.
Chapter VI. Penalties and Compensation
§ 6-1. Whosoever wilfully uses a business name in contravention of this act will be liable to fines or imprisonment for a period of time up to three - 3 - months, provided that stricter penal provisions shall not be applied. Criminal proceedings will only be instituted if the aggrieved party so demands.
§ 6-2. Whosoever wilfully or through negligence has used a business name in contravention of the right of another person is liable to pay compensatory damages. These compensatory damages may be reduced or dropped in their entirety when the injury has been of a minor nature.
If the business name has been used in good faith, the court may, to an extent found reasonable, order the user to compensate for the injury, however, not beyond the benefit that must be assumed to have been gained.
Chapter VII. General Provisions
§ 7-1. Designation of a business name in documents shall occur by writing the full business name of the business enterprise in clear and legible writing, imprinting it with a stamp or similar and, moreover, the person or persons empowered to sign for the business enterprise must sign their names in their own hand.
If a body corporate enters into liquidation, or if debt settlement proceedings, or liquidation proceedings are filed against the holder of a business name, then an addendum to the business name so stating shall be appended when the business name is signed, cf. section 10-2 of the Norwegian act relating to business enterprise registration of 21 June 1985, no. 78.
Chapter VIII. Entry into Force and Transitional Provisions
§ 8-1. The act enters into force from the time stipulated by the King.
§ 8-2. With the exception of the provisions in section 2-2, the act applies to business names taken into use before the act entered into force. Sections 6-1 and 6-2 shall only apply to the use of business names after the act entered into force.
Chapter IX. Change of Other Acts
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