Updated: May 14, 2025
Published: August 8, 2022
Check Company Information and Details with an Irish Company Register Search
The Companies Registration Office (CRO) operates under the aegis of the Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment and is the ‘…central repository of public statutory information on Irish companies and business names….’. Under the watchful gaze of the Company Registrar, the records held by the CRO form the fundamental underpinnings of good corporate governance and a broader trust-based commercial ecosystem.
Pursued through the obligatory publication of statutory register documents, offices such as the CRO aim to improve public trust, be that in the form of creditor and investor protections, meeting accountability and compliance standards, preventing fraud, and/or establishing formal legal recognitions.
However, beyond these basic tenets, the information held can also be repurposed for other needs such as market research, risk and liquidity assessments, fitness and probity checking, asset tracing, credit worthiness evaluations, and general corporate reputational matters.
All that being said, perhaps Ellis & Ellis is most commonly asked to produce reports used in conveyancing property for solicitors. To that end, this post has homed in on that facet of reporting.
Why should the purchasing solicitor search against a company when investigating title in a property/ right/ interest purchase?
In other words, why is finding company information so crucial in conveyancing?
If a company is the seller of a property, right, or interest in real estate, then a search on the CRO registers against the selling entity is essential. Primarily, such searches verify the legal existence of the company and should confirm its current status as ‘normal’.
Secondly, if the status is verified as ‘normal’, the next step is to ensure that the company and its assets are under the control of the appropriate selling parties, namely, its directors and/or shareholders. The search helps establish a company’s officers’ legal capacity to sell the property or interest. Naturally, if recorded as being in liquidation, under receivership, examinership, dissolved, or voluntary or involuntary strike-off listed, then this could affect a solicitor’s buying decisions.
Lastly, should searches disclose the presence of registered mortgages, charges, debentures, burdens, liens, or other encumbrances, those too may affect the subject property or rights. In the case of registered charges, while they may not directly impact the specific property being sold, they must still be reviewed, and any concerns can be raised with the vendor’s legal representatives.
What information will the Ellis & Ellis company search report show me?
Ellis & Ellis company search reports are tailored to support conveyancing professionals in forming their legal opinions, addressing many of the key questions (as set out above) that arise during property or interest transactions.
These reports check company details and provide comprehensive information on all mortgages, debentures, undertakings, and other charges registered against a company’s real property, including details on whether and when such charges have been satisfied.
In addition to listing current directors and company secretaries, the reports also include references to statutory filings submitted by Irish companies, i.e. annual returns, financial accounts, director appointments and resignations, and other relevant disclosures. Copies of these filings can be retrieved upon request.
Other CRO and Corporate Registers Used to Find Legal Entity Details
Depending on a client’s requirement, information searches can also be conducted against other official registers maintained by the Companies Registration Office (CRO), including the Register of Business Names, the Register of Friendly Societies, the Register of Beneficial Ownership, and the Register of Industrial and Provident Societies.
Again, depending on need, searches can also extend to other legal entities recorded on the registers held by the Central Bank of Ireland, such as Irish Collective Asset Management Vehicles (ICAVs), Credit Unions, and many more.
Looking for more details? A complete list of searchable registers maintained by the Central Bank is available below.
View the Full List
Worldwide: Ellis & Ellis also provides company searches in the UK and worldwide.
Use a Trusted Law Search Provider
Given the weighty consequences set out above of either not conducting a search at all or, worse, conducting an insufficient or inaccurate company search, it is vital that clients use a trusted law search provider such as Ellis & Ellis.
With our blend of a quick and easy-to-use ordering platform, over 135 years of professional know-how, and a quality after-sales experience, we provide clients with a superior searching service.
For added peace of mind, Ellis & Ellis provide Professional Indemnity Cover of €10 million.
Why not join the thousands of users who trust Ellis & Ellis to deliver them a competitive edge?
Did you find the above information to be of interest? Check out one of our other Ellis & Ellis explainers for some related searches below:
- Register of Business Names
- Register of Friendly Societies Searches for Registration Details
- Register of Beneficial Ownership Searches for companies and Industrial and Provident Societies
- Register of Industrial and Provident Societies