organization
Let an agent handle organisations by legal form, identity, governance and relationships, as the parent kind for companies, agencies, schools and more.
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
written by Claude from model knowledge without web access - no source was read, every claim is a lead to verify
Researched by: Claude
Purpose and description
Let an agent handle organisations by legal form, identity, governance and relationships, as the parent kind for companies, agencies, schools and more.
A social entity with a collective goal, a structure of roles and some form of membership or governance, such as a company, association, public body, charity or network.
What it is for: Coordinating people and resources toward shared goals.
It can be found, register and dissolve it; identify it, by registry numbers; contract with it, through authorised representatives; hold it to account, under its legal form.
Distinguishing features
A collective, with identity separate from its members
Legal forms differ: companies, associations, public bodies
Some are legal persons; informal groups are not
Structure includes governance, roles and membership
What it looks like
No single appearance; offices, logos, websites, registers and people acting for it.
How it is recognised
Registered name and number
Logos and trading names, which can differ from the legal name
Legal form suffixes such as Ltd, GmbH, S.A.
Related models
has kind - specialised organisations
is a - when registered under a legal form
employs - staff and members
is confused with - a brand is a name, not the organisation
In practice
Families and kinds
companies and firms
non-profit associations and charities
public bodies and agencies
international organisations
informal groups and networks
Identifiers
LEI 20 characters, ISO 17442 global legal entity identifier
company registration number jurisdiction-specific national registry
VAT or tax number jurisdiction-specific tax identity
Standards and regulation
Company and association law by jurisdiction
ISO 17442 LEI
Beneficial ownership registers and anti-money-laundering law
Failure modes and hazards
Confusing trading names with legal entities
Impersonation and fake organisations
Stale registry data after dissolution or merger
Where this came from
wikidata · CC0 1.0
Also registered as vr.tr.organization-act
Drafted structure
Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 4 bundles · 8 layers · 8 findings · 16 questions.
Identity Which organisation.
Registries, not names, identify organisations.
Registration
Registry and number.
Registration
Registry details.
- In which registry is it registered, under which number? provenance
- Is it active, dissolved or merged? boundary
Names
Legal and trading names.
Names
Names used.
- What are its legal and trading names? definition
- Could it be confused with a similar name? boundary
Form and governance How it is constituted.
Legal form decides liability and rules.
Legal form
Company, association, public body.
Legal form
The legal form.
- What is its legal form? definition
- What obligations follow from it? boundary
Governance
Board, officers, owners.
Governance
Who controls it.
- Who governs and owns it? provenance
- Who may sign for it? boundary
Relations Parents, subsidiaries, partners.
Organisations sit in networks that change liability and control.
Group structure
Parents and subsidiaries.
Group
The group structure.
- Is it part of a group, and who is the ultimate parent? provenance
- Which subsidiaries does it control? provenance
Membership
Members and affiliations.
Affiliations
Memberships and affiliations.
- Which associations or networks does it belong to? provenance
- Who are its members? definition
Trust Is it genuine and in good standing.
Checks protect against fraud.
Verification
Checking legitimacy.
Verification
How legitimacy is checked.
- How can this organisation legitimacy be verified? action
- Are there warnings about it from regulators? boundary
Filings
Accounts and reports.
Filings
Published filings.
- Are its accounts and reports up to date? provenance
- What do they show? measurement
What the second pass must settle
- How should the registry separate legal entities from brands and groups?
- Which identifiers should be required?
- How should informal organisations be recorded?