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Non-Compete Agreements › Blue Pencil Contract Modification › Unenforceable Contract Terms

Non-Compete Agreements are contracts, typically formed in employment or business purchase contexts, where one party agrees to refrain from engaging in a particular line of work or pursuing business within a... more +
Non-Compete Agreements are contracts, typically formed in employment or business purchase contexts, where one party agrees to refrain from engaging in a particular line of work or pursuing business within a certain industry or locale. The purpose of these agreements is to protect employers or business purchasers from competition stemming from former employees or former owners of a business. less -
Morrison & Foerster LLP

Kodiak Two Years Later: Is Delaware’s Blue Pencil Turning Red for Non-Competes?

Morrison & Foerster LLP on

October 6, 2024 marks the two-year anniversary of Kodiak Building Partners, LLC v. Adams—the case in which the Delaware Chancery Court refused to enforce a sale-of-business non-compete against an executive who received $1...more

Epstein Becker & Green

Red Pencil, Blue Pencil, or Something In Between? Ohio Court of Appeals Declines to Modify Overbroad Non-Competition Agreement

Epstein Becker & Green on

Ohio has long recognized the enforceability of non-compete agreements. Broadly speaking, a court can do one of three things with an unenforceable non-compete agreement: (1) the court can apply the “red pencil” doctrine and...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Wyoming Supreme Court Eliminates the Blue Pencil Rule for Noncompete Agreements

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on

On February 25, 2022, the Wyoming Supreme Court issued a decision prohibiting courts from revising, or “blue penciling,” noncompete agreements to be reasonable and enforceable under the law. The decision overrules the Wyoming...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Georgia Courts Cannot Toll Duration of Noncompete Agreement, Even Against Willful Violator

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on

Since the passage of the Georgia Restrictive Covenants Act (O.C.G.A. § 13-8-50 et seq.) in May 2011, there has been some level of uncertainty regarding the extent to which a court may “blue pencil” or modify an otherwise...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

The Silver State Grips the Blue Pencil

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As we have previously blogged about, in 2016 the Nevada Supreme Court refused to adopt the “blue pencil” doctrine and held that Nevada courts could not modify over-broad restrictive covenants. The following year, we alerted...more

Fisher Phillips

Nevada Supreme Court Changes Course on “Blue-Penciling” Non-Competition Agreements

Fisher Phillips on

The Nevada Supreme Court recently addressed the question of whether lower courts may blue-pencil an otherwise unenforceable noncompetition agreement pursuant to a provision in the agreement that allows for court modification...more

Littler

Nevada Supreme Court Rules Courts May Blue-Pencil Unreasonable Noncompetition Agreements if the Agreement Includes Modification...

Littler on

On December 31, 2020, the Nevada Supreme Court issued an opinion addressing and clarifying several issues relating to the power of the court to reform or modify an unreasonable noncompetition agreement often referred to as...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

North Carolina Courts Defeat Another ‘Overbroad' Noncompete

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP on

In recent years, North Carolina courts have become increasingly resistant to enforcing noncompetition and non-solicitation restrictions they view as insufficiently narrowed to the specific competitive threat presented by the...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

New Developments In Non-Competes

Womble Bond Dickinson on

...In an industry so focused on the development and promotion of personalities and distinguishing its information and entertainment from the competition, talent non-competition agreements can be critical. But, as the saying...more

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck

Nevada Redefines Non-Compete Standards; Employers Should Promptly Review Their Agreements

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck on

The Nevada Legislature recently passed, and the governor approved, a new law addressing employee non-compete agreements, which went into effect on June 3, 2017. The law expressly defines the standards for enforceable...more

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace

Nevada Codifies Amendments For Non-Competes and Other Forms of Restrictive Covenants – Adopts “Blue Pencil” Standard, Imposes...

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace on

Nevada’s Assembly Bill 276, which became effective on June 3, 2017 (the “NV Law”), articulates new rules and requirements for employee restrictive covenants, some of which fundamentally alter the State’s prior practices. The...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Nevada Enacts New Non-Compete Law

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

On June 3, 2017, Governor Sandoval signed Assembly Bill 276 into law, amending Nevada Revised Statute 613, which governs non-competition agreements. Notably, the law adds requirements to the enforceability and validity of...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

What Does it Mean to “Modify” an Unenforceable Non-Competition Covenant Under Georgia’s Restrictive Covenants Act?

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Although Georgia’s Restrictive Covenants Act has been on the books since the spring of 2011, no judge has decided the exact scope of Georgia courts’ blue-penciling abilities – until now....more

Dickinson Wright

New Rules for Nevada Noncompetes

Dickinson Wright on

Nevada Companies Must Review Their Noncompete Agreements - The Nevada Supreme Court recently has injected substantial uncertainty into any Nevada contract that contains a noncompete agreement, and companies need to...more

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP

Recent Decisions Highlight Courts’ Reluctance to Modify Overbroad Non-Compete Provisions

Nutter McClennen & Fish LLP on

In what may be a trend, several courts around the country this year have embraced strict interpretations of non-compete agreements, refusing to blue pencil or equitably reform overbroad or unreasonable clauses in non-compete...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Poachers Beware: Wisconsin Court Rules That Restrictions on Employee Solicitation Are Subject to Law Governing Noncompetes

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on

In a case of first impression, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals held that anti-poaching provisions in post-employment restrictive covenants are subject to the statutory regulations that govern noncompete agreements in...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Don't Use Form Non-Compete with North Carolina Employees

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP on

Most states allow judges to “reform” provisions of employee non-competition agreements deemed overbroad. For example, if the court believes that a 100-mile territorial restriction is too broad, it can reduce the radius to 50...more

Littler

Nevada Supreme Court Rules that Overly Broad Non-Compete Agreements are Wholly Unenforceable

Littler on

In July 2016, the Nevada Supreme Court held that when a non-compete agreement extends beyond what is necessary to protect the employer’s interest, the agreement is wholly unenforceable and courts may not modify or “blue...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

All or Nothing: Nevada Supreme Court Refuses to Adopt “Blue Pencil” Doctrine for Non-Compete Agreements

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

In a recent opinion, the Supreme Court of Nevada refused to adopt the “blue pencil” doctrine when it ruled that an unreasonable provision in a non-compete agreement rendered the entire agreement unenforceable. “Blue...more

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck

Nevada Supreme Court Confirms That Overbroad Non-Compete Agreements Will Be Invalidated, Not Modified

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck on

The Nevada Supreme Court recently held that it is improper for Nevada courts to modify overbroad non-compete agreements. The Court emphasized that it was not creating new law with this ruling, but rather clarifying existing...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Nevada Confirms Its Restrictive Covenant Law, But Rejects Blue Penciling

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

In the first decision to reach the Nevada Supreme Court on whether state district courts may modify or “blue pencil” non-competition agreements, the high court has concluded that doing so would violate Nevada law. Golden Road...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Bring Out the Body Bags: Seller’s Covenant, In Asset Sales Agreement, Not To Compete Within 150 Miles For 10 Years Unenforceable

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Palmetto bought the assets of Knight Systems’ mortuary transport business. The agreement of purchase and sale included (a) Palmetto’s commitment to buy body bags, at specified discounted prices, exclusively from Knight...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

NC Supreme Court Reaffirms Strict Blue Pencil Doctrine for Restrictive Covenants

Womble Bond Dickinson on

The North Carolina Supreme Court recently reaffirmed that the power of North Carolina courts to “blue pencil” restrictive covenants is extremely limited, even when an agreement purports to give a court express authority to...more

Poyner Spruill LLP

Draft Carefully: North Carolina Supreme Court Affirms Strict Blue Pencil Doctrine Still Applies to Non-Competes

Poyner Spruill LLP on

North Carolina courts traditionally recognized their limited power in amending terms of unenforceable non-compete agreements. The “blue pencil” rule permits a court to enforce restrictions that are reasonable, while striking...more

Brooks Pierce

North Carolina Supreme Court Re-Affirms Classic View of "Blue-Pencil Doctrine" for Non-Competition Agreements

Brooks Pierce on

The North Carolina Supreme Court, in a long-awaited decision, reaffirmed the Court's historic view on the "blue-pencil" doctrine in North Carolina as it relates to non-competition agreements. In Beverage Systems Of The...more

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