Legal Question in Business Law in California

Probably. The right to exclusive use of a business name is very much limited. The fact that there is a Joe's Bar in Cleveland does not prevent one from opening and using that name in Fresno, and in turn someone could probably open a Joe's Bar in Madera without calling it "Joe's Bar of Madera."

The right to exclusive use of a business name depends upon several factors, including Federal trademark law, common-law (non-stautory) trademark law, limitations on duplication of corporate names (if the businesses are incorporated), and laws relating to unfair competition. There is a well-known case where a family was not allowed to use their family name for a restaurant at Lake Tahoe because it was the same family name (but not the same family) that was used by a fairly famous Fisherman"s Wharf restaurant in San Fnancisco.

In choosing a business name, you need to take into consideration the likelihood that there will be public confusion over who you are and whether there is any connection between the two similarly-named or identically-named businesses. I cannot open a grocery named Safeway or peddle a soft drink named Coke anywhere, or almost. I wouldn't open a Joe's Bar, but that's because my name is Bryan, not because there is another Joe's Bar almost everywhere. Further, if I want to sell Coke in Guatemala, it won't help my case to call my company Coca-Cola de Guatemala; that would be infringing a famous trademark; but on the other hand, Joe doesn't need to call his salloon "Joe's Bar of Madera" to differentiate it from the one in Cleveland, nor, probably, Joe's in Fresno.

It all relates to the "likelihood of confusion." If in doubt, ask two dozen people at random if your proposed name suggests another business, and if more than one says yes, ask an intellectual-property attorney for advice on your proposed name.

Snyder's of San Diego Pretzels? Go for it.