A colleague and myself are considering setting up a practice. He is a qualified architect, and I am commencing Part II. Therefore, there will only be one registered architect in the practice, but is it possible under the ARB protection of function rules to call the practice, for example, 'XXX Architects' (plural)? The other options would be 'XXX Architect' - suggesting a one man show, and sounds a little odd; or 'XXX Architecture' which suggest that the practice may comprise non-architects i.e. architectural designers/assistants/technicians. Surely actually being qualified should allow the practice to have the edge over non qualified competitors, without having to look around for another qualified partner in order to use the plural?
Sarah O'Sullivan
If there is only one of you qualified (and registered) then you can only use the singular.
If you're going in as equal partners then I think you should choose a name that reflects this. 'XXX Architect' suggests he is employing you.
As for 'XXX Architecture' suggesting 'non-architects', you are a 'non-architect' until you qualify and register with the ARB.