For the purposes of this subchapter:

(1) “Business” means business as defined in § 47-2851.01(1) [now § 47-2851.01(1B)].

(2) “Department” means the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.

(3) “Director” means the Director of the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.

(4)(A) “Entity” means:

(i) A business corporation;

(ii) A nonprofit corporation;

(iii) A general partnership, including a limited liability partnership;

(iv) A limited partnership, including a limited liability limited partnership;

(v) A limited liability company;

(vi) A general cooperative association;

(vii) A limited cooperative association;

(viii) An unincorporated nonprofit association;

(ix) A statutory trust, business trust, or common-law business trust; or

(x) Any other person that has a legal existence separate from any interest holder of that person or the power to acquire an interest in real property in its own name.

(B) The term “entity” does not include:

(i) An individual;

(ii) A testamentary or inter vivos trust with a predominately donative purpose, or a charitable trust;

(iii) An association or relationship that is not a partnership under the rules set forth in § 29-602.02(c) or a similar provision of the law of another jurisdiction;

(iv) A decedent’s estate; or

(v) A government or a governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality.

(5) “Executed” means the signing of a document by a person under penalties of perjury and in an official and authorized capacity on behalf of the person submitting the document to the Department.

(6) “Person” means an individual, estate, business or nonprofit entity, public corporation, government or governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal entity.

(7) “Trade name” means a word or name, or any combination of a word or name, used by a person to identify the person’s business which:

(A) Is not, or does not include, the true and real name of all persons conducting the business; or

(B) Includes words which suggest additional parties of interest such as “company”, “and sons”, or “and associates”.

(8) “True and real name” means:

(A) The surname of an individual coupled with one or more of the individual’s other names, one or more of the individual’s initials, or any combination thereof;

(B) The designation or appellation by which an individual is best known and called in the business community where that individual transacts business, if this is used as that individual’s legal signature;

(C) The registered corporate name of a domestic corporation as filed with the Mayor;

(D) The registered company name of a domestic and foreign limited liability company as filed by the Mayor;

(E) The registered partnership name of a domestic limited partnership as filed with the Mayor;

(F) The registered partnership name of a domestic and foreign limited liability partnership as filed by the Mayor;

(G) The name of a general partnership which includes in its name the true and real names, as defined in subparagraphs (A) through (F) of this paragraph, of each general partner as required in § 47-2855.03;

(H) The registered name of a domestic and foreign statutory trust as filed by the Mayor;

(I) The registered name of a domestic and foreign limited cooperative association as filed by the Mayor; or

(J) The registered name of a domestic and foreign general cooperative association as filed by the Mayor.

(Apr. 20, 1999, D.C. Law 12-261, § 2005(b), 46 DCR 3142; Mar. 5, 2013, D.C. Law 19-210, § 4(b), 59 DCR 13171.)

1981 Ed., § 47-2855.1.

The 2013 amendment by D.C. Law 19-210 rewrote the section.

Short title of title II of Law 12-261: Section 2001 of D.C. Law 12-261 provided that title II of the act may be cited as the “Business Regulatory Reform Act of 1998.”

Application of Law 19-210: Section 7 of D.C. Law 19-210 provided that the act shall apply as of January 1, 2012.