Certus Pest, Inc., the Tampa-based pest control roll-up backed by Imperial Capital, has been named in two notable lawsuits since its 2019 founding: a 2022 breach-of-contract action brought by Rentokil North America in Florida federal court, and a 2024 California labor case brought under the Private Attorneys General Act that settled for $850,000 in December 2025. Neither case produced a public finding of wrongdoing, and both ended in settlement.
Rentokil’s Breach-of-Contract Suit in Florida
In October 2022, Rentokil North America filed suit against Certus Pest and nine individual defendants in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The case, Rentokil North America, Inc. v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al. (Case No. 8:22-cv-02311), was docketed as a breach-of-contract action under diversity jurisdiction and sought both damages and injunctive relief.1PACER Monitor. Rentokil North America, Inc. v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al.
The individual defendants were David S. Bradford, San Juan Esquivel, Robert Clark Hall, Dawn Hammond, Catherine E. House, John Judge, Rodney Ritter, Arcadio Ricardo Yabut III, and Cintya Zamora-Avery. Dave Bradford is Certus’s CEO. The specific contractual provisions at issue are not detailed in available court records, but the shape of the complaint, naming a direct competitor along with multiple individuals, is consistent with the non-compete and employee-solicitation disputes that recur throughout the pest control industry.1PACER Monitor. Rentokil North America, Inc. v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al.
The litigation lasted roughly four months. Rentokil filed a notice of resolution in January 2023, and on February 17, 2023 the parties stipulated to dismissal without prejudice. Each side bore its own costs and attorney fees, and the court declined to retain jurisdiction over the settlement agreement. The settlement terms were not made public.1PACER Monitor. Rentokil North America, Inc. v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al.
The $850,000 California PAGA Settlement
In May 2024, two Certus employees, Isaiah Morales and Jose Smith, sued the company in Los Angeles County Superior Court (Case No. 24STCV11212) under California’s Private Attorneys General Act. PAGA lets workers pursue penalties on behalf of themselves and other employees for alleged violations of the state labor code, with a share of any recovery going to the state.2CABIA. Isaiah Morales and Jose Smith v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al.
The case settled in December 2025 for a gross amount of $850,000. The specific labor code violations alleged are not detailed in the settlement record. The allocation breaks down as:
- Attorney fees: $283,333
- Litigation expenses: $50,000
- PAGA penalties: $40,000, including a $10,000 individual PAGA payment
- Plaintiff awards: $20,000
- Settlement administrator fees: $7,950
The remaining balance was set aside for affected workers. The total number of eligible employees was not specified in available records.2CABIA. Isaiah Morales and Jose Smith v. Certus Pest, Inc. et al.
The Non-Compete Backdrop in Pest Control
The Rentokil complaint against Certus fits a pattern that has drawn active regulatory attention. On April 15, 2026, the Federal Trade Commission ordered Rollins, Inc., the parent of Orkin, HomeTeam, and Critter Control, to stop enforcing non-compete clauses against more than 18,000 employees. Rollins had applied these agreements to nearly all staff regardless of position, barring pest control work within 75 miles of any of its roughly 700 locations for at least two years after separation.3Parsons Behle. FTC Issues Order to Pest Control Company: Stop Enforcing Noncompete Agreements
The FTC simultaneously sent warning letters to 13 additional pest control companies. Whether Certus was among the recipients is not publicly known.3Parsons Behle. FTC Issues Order to Pest Control Company: Stop Enforcing Noncompete Agreements FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson and Commissioner Mark R. Meador described blanket non-competes covering pest control technicians and customer service representatives as conduct that “cries out for scrutiny under the antitrust laws.” The agency rejected arguments that training costs or protection of confidential information justified such broad restrictions and pointed instead to narrower confidentiality and non-solicitation provisions. Washington state banned non-compete agreements outright in March 2026.4BCLP Law. Bugged by Non-Competes? FTC Calls the Exterminator on Rollins, Inc.
Who Certus Pest Is
Certus Pest was launched in mid-2019 by Imperial Capital, a Toronto-based private equity firm, as a platform investment led by CEO Dave Bradford.5Imperial Capital. Certus Pest The company grows by acquiring regional pest control operators, often keeping their local brands while integrating them onto a shared operational platform. Liberty Mutual Investments joined as a capital partner in May 2024 to fund a faster acquisition pace.6Certus Pest. Certus Pest Control to Accelerate Growth and Acquisitions With New Capital Investment
By mid-2026, Certus had completed 47 acquisitions, identified by one industry tracker as the most active U.S. pest control acquirer of 2024 by deal count.7PitchBook. Certus Pest Company Profile8CT Acquisitions. Pest Control PE Rollup Tracker 2026 The company reports 21 branches across Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho, approximately 500 employees, and 26 subsidiaries.6Certus Pest. Certus Pest Control to Accelerate Growth and Acquisitions With New Capital Investment That growth model, which routinely involves employees moving between pest control employers, sits directly in the path of the labor and competition disputes that both of Certus’s known lawsuits reflect.