Janitorial Franchiser Told to Register Business

The state Department of Corporations said Friday that it has ordered a Santa Ana company to refrain from offering or selling janitorial franchises until it registers its business with the state agency.

According to Melinda Brun, senior trial counsel for the Department of Corporations, Eugene Koeltz and Yogi Trivedi of Maintain U.S. of L.A. Inc. have been selling janitorial service franchises in Orange and San Diego counties for at least a year without being registered.

Brun said the matter came to her attention when some of the franchisees complained about the company. She declined to say what the complaints were about but added that “further inquiry into their books, records and activities are ongoing.”

Maurice Mandel II, an Irvine attorney representing Koeltz and Trivedi, said Friday, “We are talking about a formality here. We intend to cooperate fully with the Department of Corporations to resolve any disputes that presently exist.”

Mandel emphasized that in issuing the cease and desist order, the department “has not said that anyone has been defrauded or that any individual has lost money.”

The Department of Corporations has jurisdiction over the offer and sale of franchises in California under the Franchise Investment Law.