Naturally, as you form a dental practice, you are going to be looking for the perfect dental clinic name. Although you may have some great ideas, if they aren’t following the proper codes for your dental corporation, you could be in for trouble later.

Many dental practitioners in California opt to start their own dental clinics in the form of a dental professional corporation. This is the usual form of business being followed aside from dental partnership because LLC (Limited Liability Company) is not allowed for this profession.

Like many other medical professional corporations, dental clinics are mandated by law to use dental name ideas that are required by the California Corporations Code, Business and Professions Code, the California Code of Regulations, and the State Regulatory Agency, which issues the dental license of these dental practitioners.

Because we know the importance of following the legal process and paperwork for a dental professional corporation, we have listed down these name requirements to help you gather more information about starting a dental clinic in California.  

Rules for Choosing Dental Clinic Names in California 

What Must Your Dental Clinic Name Contain as a Dental Professional Corporation in California? 

Just like medical professional corporations, dental clinics or businesses’ legal names must contain the name or last name of one or any of the present or former shareholders of the corporation. It must also contain the words “dental corporation” or have abbreviations such as “Inc” or “Corp.” to indicate corporate existence.

A good example is a legal business name from one of our business clients called Hermano Dental Corporation with Hermano Dental Clinic as its operating business name. Most corporations have different legal names and operating names. Often, the legal business name sounds very formal while the operating names are easy to remember and have a marketing touch that gives a sense of familiarity to their target clients or market. The other term for this is DBA or “Doing Business As”. 

What if You Want a Different Business Name (or a DBA) for Your Dental Clinic?  

If for instance, a business owner wants to use a different business name or DBA for their professional dental corporation, a fictitious name permit is to be accomplished as a form of requirement from the Dental Board after the dental corporation has been created. So, this means you will still need to come up with and file the required names a dental corporation must contain. Once this is approved and issued by the state regulatory agencies, you are now allowed to change it to your desired name through the fictitious name permit. Once the fictitious name is approved by the Dental Board, the new name is then registered as a fictitious name in the county clerk’s office. 

What Happens If You Do Not Comply with the Name Requirements for Your Dental Business in California?  

The state regulatory agencies that mandate the name requirements for dental business names in California are very strict when it comes to compliance with these rules. While it is true that many dental practitioners in California still do not follow these mandates, there is an existing penalty and fine for any business owner who is found to have not followed the name requirements of their professional corporation.

We take the example of traffic violations. There are and will be many people who will violate basic traffic rules and may get away with it. However, it doesn’t lose the fact that these traffic regulations still exist and anyone who is caught by the police violating the traffic rules will be fined and penalized accordingly.

The same applies to dental professional corporations. Any dental clinic that is caught has not followed the legal name requirements of their business will be fined and penalized accordingly or worse, lose their business. This also means not following the name requirements will result in the redrafting of the articles of incorporation of the business. In conclusion, it is much wiser to might as well follow the legal regulations and paperwork with regard to coming up with dental business name ideas. 

Jumpstart Your Dental Clinic by Fulfilling the Right Name Requirements for your Business in California 

Our team of expert corporate attorneys has really exceeded their services by providing specific legal assistance with regard to opening up a dental professional corporation in California. In this case, our corporate attorneys can help you comply with the right name requirements for your dental clinic.

We have gone through the process countless times and we are here to provide you with fast solutions to jumpstart your business as soon as possible and in the right way. There is no more need to worry about going through all the paperwork when we got it under control for you.  

Whether you are a dentist who has an existing corporate business but are unsure if you are following the legal name requirements of your business, or if you are still in the works to put up your own dental clinic, we are ready to provide our legal services to you at any point in your process (preferably at the beginning to get it right).

We also offer all other legal services in relation to the formation of a professional corporation. You can contact us at +1 (714) 634-4838 and consult with our corporate attorneys for your name requirement concerns for your dental business. We are also happy to cater to other queries concerning dental professional corporations. Jumpstart your business the right way minus the hassle by giving us a call today!