Part 1: Companies House Reform Company names Section 15: Objections to company’s registered name
Section 69 of the Companies Act 2006 sets out how objections to a company name are to be considered by the company names adjudicator established under section 70 of the Act. Section 16 amends section 69 in a number of ways.
	First, Section 16(2) extends eligible objections to those where the applicant asserts that another company’s ("the respondent’s") use of a name in any jurisdiction is likely to mislead the public in any such jurisdiction into thinking the respondent’s company has a link to the applicant’s company.
	Secondly, this section provides that those individuals who were either members or directors of the respondent company when it was registered under the name the subject of the objection can be joined with the company itself in the adjudication proceedings.
	At present, section 69(4) provides for circumstances in which, if one or more condition is met, an objection application will not to be upheld. Section 16 removes a set of circumstances around current, planned or past operation of the respondent company. The effect is that the respondent will no longer be able to rely on those factors in defending the objection against its use of a name.