What was the date of the settlement agreement between Aerus Enterprise Solutions, LLC and Enviro Professionals, LLC?
Aerus Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
l District of South Carolina
Our affiliate Aerus Enterprise Solutions, LLC ("AES"), Joseph P. Urso and Kevin Hickey were named as defendants in a lawsuit filed by a former distributor of AES products, Enviro Professionals, LLC ("EnviroPro"). EnviroPro's claims included, among others: (1) civil conspiracy; (2) violation of the South Carolina Trademarks and Service Marks Act; (3) violation of the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act; (4) breach of contract; (5) breach of contract accompanied by fraudulent act; (6) violation of the South Carolina Trade Secrets Act; (7) tortious interference with contractual relations; and (8) breach of fiduciary duty. AES disputed these claims and has sought to consolidate this South Carolina lawsuit with an arbitration proceeding related to the same set of facts pending with the American Arbitration Association in Dallas County, Texas. The damages sought by the plaintiff included injunctive relief, money damages, and attorneys' fees. The disputed issues largely center on (1) termination of the distributor relationship between AES and EnviroPro, (2) whether EnviroPro is entitled to recover any unpaid commissions and (3) the parties' respective rights to use certain trademarks. By agreement, dated June 5, 2019, the parties settled this case, as well as all arbitration proceedings. The settlement agreement provided, among other things, that (a) AES pay $350,000 to one of the owners of EnviroPro, (b) EnviroPro agreed to sell AES all rights to all intellectual property (e.g., trademarks, trade names, Internet domain names) owned or controlled by EnviroPro and relating to its business, and (c) one of EnviroPro's owners agreed to enter into a non-compete agreement that would prohibit him from, among other things, selling, marketing and distributing air purification, water purification and laundry treatment products, in exchange for a payment from AES. The case wa
Source: Item 3 — Litigation (FDD pages 16–17)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Aerus's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, a settlement agreement was reached on June 5, 2019, between Aerus Enterprise Solutions, LLC (AES) and Enviro Professionals, LLC. The lawsuit included claims such as civil conspiracy, trademark violations, unfair trade practices, breach of contract, and trade secret violations. AES disputed these claims and sought to consolidate the lawsuit with a related arbitration proceeding.
The settlement agreement addressed the termination of the distributor relationship between AES and EnviroPro, unpaid commissions, and trademark rights. As part of the agreement, AES was to pay $350,000 to one of EnviroPro's owners. In return, EnviroPro agreed to sell all rights to its intellectual property related to its business to AES. Additionally, one of EnviroPro's owners entered into a non-compete agreement, restricting them from selling air purification, water purification, and laundry treatment products.
The case was officially dismissed on June 17, 2019. This resolution provides clarity on the legal matters involving Aerus's affiliate and a former distributor, potentially reducing concerns for prospective franchisees about ongoing litigation. It also highlights the importance of understanding the terms and conditions of distributor relationships and intellectual property rights within the Aerus franchise system.