On Tuesday, President-Elect Trump named Andrew Ferguson as incoming Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair. After earning his law degree from the University of Virginia, Mr. Ferguson clerked on the DC Circuit and for Supreme...more
On August 20, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, in Ryan LLC et al. v. Federal Trade Commission, granted Ryan LLC and the US Chamber of Commerce’s motion for summary judgment and barred...more
8/22/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Arbitrary and Capricious ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Injunctions ,
Lack of Authority ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Set-Asides ,
Statutory Authority ,
Texas
FTC Votes in Favor of Issuing Final Rule.
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) voted in favor of issuing its final rule which essentially bans all noncompetes going forward and invalidates most...more
4/26/2024
/ Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Exemptions ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Section 5 ,
Unfair Competition
On December 13, 2023, Variety reported that Luke Combs stated he was “sick to [his] stomach” to learn he won a $250K judgment in Illinois federal court against a Florida woman who earned $380, selling 18 handmade Luke...more
12/15/2023
/ Electronic Communications ,
Email ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
Florida ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Illinois ,
Personal Services ,
Settlement ,
Summary Judgment ,
Trademark Litigation ,
Voluntary Dismissals ,
Without Prejudice Privilege
United States District Court Acquits all Defendants in US v. Patel -
On April 28, 2023, the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut acquitted the defendants in US v. Patel of the charges of conspiring...more
The DOJ Loses Jury Trial on No-Poach Conspiracy Charges.
In the wake of the Federal Trade Commission’s attack on non-competes, the Department of Justice (DOJ) lost its most recent fight in its related battle against...more
Recently, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) hosted another public forum on its proposed rule to ban noncompetition agreements (noncompetes). While the public forum provided opportunity to those for and against noncompetes to...more
On January 11, 2023, Elizabeth Wilkins, the Federal Trade Commission’s Director of the Office of Planning and lead staffer for the FTC’s newly proposed ban on non-competes, provided comments and answered questions about the...more
The FTC Breaks its Silence Following Biden’s Executive Order -
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a sweeping new rule which, if enacted in its draft form, would ban virtually all...more
1/9/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Competition ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
New Rules ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Popular ,
Proposed Rules ,
Restrictive Covenants
Parties in Criminal No-Poach Case Reach Pre-Trial Resolution -
Recently, the parties in United States v. Hee notified District Court Judge Boulware of the District of Nevada that they reached a preliminary plea deal. The...more
7/13/2022
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employees ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Employment Litigation ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Hiring & Firing ,
No-Poaching ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Pleas ,
Restraint of Trade ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Sherman Act
Juries Acquit Criminal Antitrust Defendants of All Charges -
This month, federal juries acquitted defendants facing criminal antitrust convictions in two trials against employers accused of improperly restraining trade in...more
4/27/2022
/ Acquittals ,
Criminal Conspiracy ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Hiring & Firing ,
No-Poaching ,
Price-Fixing ,
Restraint of Trade ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Sherman Act ,
Wage and Hour
Aggressive Attacks on Employers’ Post-Employment Restrictions Continue -
Employers beware. The Department of Justice’s attack on employee restrictions has gotten a new boost in a no-poach antitrust case alleging that...more