K&L Gates Triage: Reading the Fine Print: A Closer Look at the Proposed Regulation over Arbitration Clauses in Long-Term Care Resident Agreements
As every employer in the U.S. is likely aware, the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) near-universal ban on non-competes nationwide, which the FTC voted to implement via regulatory rulemaking on April 23 of this year, has...more
Since it was first published in April, the fate of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) final non-compete rule has been, to put it mildly, less than certain. Now, about a month before the rule is scheduled to take effect, the...more
On July 23, 2024, a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied a motion for preliminary injunction seeking to stay the effective date of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) final...more
On July 23, 2024, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania issued a decision in ATS Tree Services, LLC v. FTC, which held that the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had the authority to issue its...more
A federal court in New Jersey recently granted a franchisor’s motion for a preliminary injunction, enjoining the former franchisee from using the franchisor’s marks and violating the franchise agreement’s noncompete clause,...more
At Dechert, we have been closely monitoring legal developments with respect to the use of non-competes and other restrictive covenants and have observed a growing trend in the United States, the United Kingdom and France...more
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed in part, and vacated in part, a district court’s issuance of an injunction preventing a franchisor’s enforcement of a noncompete covenant as written but allowing...more
Introduction - As we enter a new era of business landscape dynamics, Seyfarth Shaw is pleased to present the latest edition of our annual cornerstone publication. This comprehensive 50-State Non-Compete Desktop Reference,...more
You may have heard the half-serious joke that California acts as its own independent country. One example of this is California’s strong disfavor of non-compete agreements, which stands in contrast with the rest of the...more
A common example of a non-compete restriction is a new CPA who signs such an agreement as part of his or her onboarding paperwork. Years later, the CPA considers moving to another firm, or opening their own firm, but that...more
In order to seek enforcement of a noncompetition agreement in North Carolina, the plaintiff must show that it is protecting a legitimate business interest. What happens when the company seeking to enforce the agreement has...more
More than two years into the pandemic, most employers are familiar with many of the challenges raised by engaging remote employees. However, one often overlooked issue is whether noncompetition agreements vetted for in-state...more
Historically, employers have used noncompete agreements to prevent competition or dissemination of confidential information when an employee leaves a company. However, the last few years has seen the erosion of their...more
On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued an “Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy.” Notably, the order encourages the FTC to promulgate rules to “curtail the unfair use of non-compete clauses and...more
On August 13, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed into law a bill amending the Illinois Freedom to Work Act governing restrictive covenants and non-competition agreements. On May 30, 2021, the Illinois General Assembly passed a...more
Following a nationwide trend, Illinois has proposed significant legislation affecting employee restrictive covenants, such as non-compete agreements. While the proposed law does not dramatically change most aspects of the...more
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is expected to soon sign into law a bill that will make significant changes to the Illinois Freedom to Work Act and affect the enforceability of employee non-competition provisions. The General...more
Q: Are non-competes enforceable in Iowa? A: Yes, but with a whole lot of caveats. Enforceability depends a lot on how they are structured (too indefinite, poor definitions, the employee will starve because it prevents all...more
In light of the continued merger activity within the state, including the blockbuster SunTrust/BB&T merger, we’ve seen a renewed focus on the enforceability of non-compete provisions – from banks looking to hire, from banks...more
When Jay Baker, the vice president of Causin, L.L.C., quit to create a competing business, Causin sued to enforce Baker’s nonsolicitation/noncompetition agreement. Baker defended the claim in part by arguing the agreement’s...more
It is not uncommon for employers to ask existing employees to sign non-compete agreements. For example, new management may want to tighten up a company’s protections. Or, changes in the business may make the need for employee...more
No doubt, having a properly drafted agreement is critical if you wish to prevent a former employee from competing against you or soliciting your customers. But, simply having a clear and straight-forward agreement may not be...more
Employers have been using restrictive covenant agreements – contracts that contain non-compete, customer non-solicitation, employee non-solicitation, or non-disclosure of confidential information – with increasing frequency...more
The Indiana Court of Appeals recently issued a restrictive covenant ruling addressing several significant issues. On November 30, 2016, in Hannum Wagle & Cline Engineering, Inc. v. American Consulting, Inc., the Indiana Court...more
As we have previously discussed, if you want your electronic contracts to be enforceable, it is a best practice to require the counterparty to affirmatively accept the contract by checking a box or clicking a button. A recent...more