"Official document proving a company's legal existence"
When a company is created, it gets a special document called a certificate of incorporation. This certificate is very important because it proves two things:
Firstly, it shows that the company has followed all the rules in the law about setting up a new company. These rules are written in section 13 of the Companies Act.
Secondly, the certificate tells you the exact date when the company officially became a real company under the law. From that date onwards, the company exists as a legal entity.
You can trust this certificate completely. It's the strongest proof that a company has been properly set up and is now operating under the Companies Act 1993.