Our 50-state (plus DC) chart of noncompete laws has been updated and is available here.
While most people reading this blog will know that California has a statute that bans noncompetes, it may come as a surprise that employers have dealt with that prohibition by turning to trade secret law for protection as far back as 1913 — even for low-level employees.
D.C.’s upcoming noncompete law says that it will apply as of October 1, 2022. But it is not scheduled to become “effective” until November 10, 2022. Where does that leave us?
Although five noncompete bills were pending before the Massachusetts legislature this year, none has passed.
Just as the D.C. Council was poised to walk back its 2021 unfunded noncompete ban and permit noncompetes for most people earning over $150,000, the D.C. Council amended the amendment to exempt broadcast industry employees, regardless of how much they earn. The final amendment is now with the Mayor.
Our 50-state (plus DC) chart of noncompete laws has been updated for recent developments in Hawai‘i. It is available here.
In 2015, Hawai‘i passed legislation that banned the use of noncompetes and no-recruit agreements for employees of technology businesses. Seven years later, the Hawai‘i Supreme Court decided more changes were appropriate. See what it did.
The day an employee shows up for their first day of work is often the day they learn that a noncompete is a requirement of the job. But, according to a 2015 study by Professors Evan Starr, J.J. Prescott, and Norm Bishara, providing advance notice that a noncompete will be required actually leads to 11% more training and 6.6% more job satisfaction.
The Supreme Judicial Court’s seminal 1922 case, Sherman v. Pfefferkorn, remains relevant even today, despite being partially negated by statute.
D.C. is on the verge of walking back its noncompete ban, and putting in place a $150,000 wage threshold. The change is likely to be final in the next month and take effect October 1, 2022. Are you ready? You have some time, but you won’t want to miss the deadline.
In case you were wondering what states have changed their noncompete laws in the past decade or so, we have created a list with links to more information about each of the changes.
Our 50-state (plus DC) chart of noncompete laws has been updated for recent developments. It is available here.
The day an employee shows up for their first day of work is often the day they learn that a noncompete is a requirement of the job. But, according to a 2015 study by Professors Evan Starr, J.J. Prescott, and Norm Bishara, providing advance notice that a noncompete will be required actually leads to 11% more training and 6.6% more job satisfaction.
Eleven states now have wage thresholds or other criteria that must be satisfied before a noncompete can be used. Are your noncompetes compliant?
Newly updated criminal penalties for a violation of noncompete law are not enough for Colorado — or maybe they’re too much. Colorado has made sweeping changes to its noncompete law, while scaling back (or at least cleared up ambiguity around) potential criminal liability for using unenforceable noncompetes.
There has been a lot of legislative, regulatory, and judicial activity around noncompetes over the past two months or so. Here is a summary.
Our updated graph of noncompete and trade secrets decisions is now available. Noncompete decisions remain level, while trade secret decisions continue to trend up.
With one month left and no agreed-upon fix to D.C.’s problematic noncompete law, the D.C. Council has voted to postpone the law’s effective date until October 1, 2022.
Over 50 percent of employees admit stealing company information when they leave for a new job. It’s this “insider threat” that keeps us up at night. To help combat it, we have updated and reissued our training, Protecting Trade Secrets While Working From Home, with improved audio and additional substance.
Ten states now have wage thresholds or other criteria that must be satisfied before a noncompete can be used. Are your noncompetes ready?
Legislative activity is picking up again, and therefore so are we. This year, there have been a total of 67 noncompete bills in 22 states,1 plus four pending federal noncompete bills and a bill t...
As you will recall, 37 states — i.e., more than 3/4 of all states — have been taking a hard look at their noncompete laws in the past several years, with 24 states, plus D.C., making changes....
You hired someone from a competitor. You’re excited. They’re excited. But you may have bought yourself a lawsuit. Can you avoid it? Maybe.
Once again, we have resounding unanimity on the issues and recommendations to the FTC and DOJ, as they consider whether to regulate (and if so, how) noncompetes, nondisclosure agreements, and other restrictive covenants. 70 lawyers who practice extensively in the area of trade secret and restrictive covenant law agree: federal regulation is likely inappropriate, definitely premature, and, in any event, should be limited.