Unraveling the Concept of Garden Leave: Insights From Silicon Valley — Hiring to Firing Podcast
On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued its final rule banning non-compete provisions nationwide (the Rule). While the FTC contends that non-competes keep wages low, suppress new ideas and stifle the...more
As reported earlier, the FTC voted this week to approve its Final Non-Compete Clause Rule (the “Rule” or “Final Rule”), which outlaws almost all non-compete agreements between employees and employers throughout the country. ...more
In this episode of the Hiring to Firing Podcast, Partners Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs, along with Dan Sieck, a partner in the firm's Corporate practice group, discuss the hit TV show Silicon Valley and the concept of garden...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
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced a proposed rule that, if enacted, would amount to a near-total ban on the use of non-compete agreements nationwide. If enacted as written, the FTC’s proposed...more
For CPAs, restrictive covenants — in the form of non-competition and non-solicitation agreements — are part of life. Most firms, and most CPAs, understand that these restrictive covenants are enforceable to varying degrees....more
The District of Massachusetts recently held that garden leave payments, whereby a former employee subject to a restrictive covenant is paid by the former employer for the duration of the restrictive period, do not constitute...more
New Jersey recently joined a growing number of states that have taken legislative efforts to significantly limit the enforceability of post-employment restrictive covenant agreements – such as non-compete and non-solicitation...more
Last week, the New Jersey Assembly’s Labor Committee passed bill A3715, designed to sharply limit the available provisions, use, and enforceability of restrictive covenants in employment contracts by New Jersey employers....more
The landscape for restrictive covenants and confidentiality agreements is changing rapidly across the country. Notice periods, compensation thresholds, and consideration requirements are increasingly common, and the days...more
Oregon law on permitted covenants not to compete has been amended to void nonconforming agreements and limit such agreements to employees making at least $100,533, among other changes...more
In October 2018, businesses across the country braced for the effects of a noncompete law that was enacted in Massachusetts. The "garden leave" clause in Massachusetts' noncompete law dictated that during the period in which...more
With the new year fast approaching, employers with Washington-based workers should ensure—if they have not already—that they are prepared to comply with legal changes substantially limiting the enforcement of non-compete...more
The Delaware Superior Court has rejected the effort of a physician, bound by a noncompetition covenant with his former practice group, to argue that the covenant was unenforceable because the practice placed him on “garden...more
I have posted a few times here about using post-employment restrictions to preserve a manufacturer’s competitive advantage. See “Non-Compete Cautionary Tale” (Nov, 2, 2018); “I’m New – And It’s No [Trade] Secret” (Oct. 27,...more
Nationwide there has been continued hostility toward noncompetition agreements for employees. A noncompetition agreement is an agreement entered into by an employee by which the employee (during employment and after) agrees...more
After years of stalled efforts, Washington has joined the growing list of states imposing statutory restrictions on employers’ use of restrictive covenants. On May 8, 2019, Governor Inslee signed into law Engrossed Substitute...more
Last week, Washington signed into law two new employment laws that may have significant impacts on many Washington employers: a salary history ban and restrictions on non-compete covenants. Salary History Ban - On May...more
Finding that “workforce mobility is important to economic growth and development,” Washington just passed a new law that will significantly restrict noncompetition agreements with both employees and independent contractors....more
In the four months since the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act became effective, employers have learned the hard way that implementing the new rules is a lot harder than it seems....more
It has been just over a month since Massachusetts’ comprehensive noncompetition reform law took effect. We explained the key provisions of the law last summer. Since then, what have we learned and what questions remain?...more
One month into Massachusetts’ new non-competition law, employers throughout the Commonwealth are learning what many predicted from the beginning—there are a lot more questions than answers. As Fisher Phillips previously...more
Readers of our blog will recall that this summer, the Massachusetts legislature passed a non-compete reform bill after nearly a decade of fruitless attempts. The new law goes into effect today, meaning that any agreements...more
Massachusetts recently enacted a new statute that significantly changes the treatment of noncompetition agreements under Massachusetts law. The Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (the “Act”) is effective October 1,...more
Just two days after TSW’s inaugural post, we brought you news of Texas becoming the 48th state to enact some form of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act (UTSA)....more