Articles Posted in Non-Compete Agreements

The defenses of unclean hands and in pari delicto are useful in commercial and business disputes.  These are similar defenses that arise when the party bringing the lawsuit possesses a level of fault or guilt. Unclean hands and in pari delicto can be applied in business disputes under certain circumstances to prevent an actor from…

Restrictive covenants, such as non-solicitation and non-compete agreements, are important tools for businesses to protect their business interests. Restrictive covenants are enforceable if they are reasonable in time, geographic area, line of business, and supported by a “legitimate business interest.” Fla. Stat. § 542.335. Florida Statutes section 542.335 contains a non-exhaustive list of legitimate business…

A lawsuit is generally considered over once a litigant obtains judgment in its favor assuming no appeal is taken and no post-judgment collection issues exist. However, the losing party is often left unsatisfied. Therefore, the loser may try to “re-do” the lawsuit by suing the defendant again using slightly different claims or lodging the lawsuit…

Businesses commonly enter into restrictive covenants with their employees to prohibit them from unfairly competing with the business during and after employment. Restrictive covenants include contracts that restrict competition, such as non-compete agreements, non-disclosure agreements, and confidentiality agreements. When preparing a restrictive covenant, what provisions should be included? Typically, a business should include provisions that…

The Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) rule banning most non-compete agreements continues to produce legal developments. Conflicting opinions were previously issued by a court in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas and by a court in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. In Ryan LLC v. FTC, Case…

Developments regarding the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) prohibition of non-compete agreements continue. Recently, a court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania denied a motion for preliminary injunction to prevent enforcement of the ban in ATS Tree Services, LLC v. FTC, Case No. 2:24-CV-01743, 2024 WL 3511630 (E.D. Pa., July 23, 2024). This decision conflicts with…

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) controversially issued a final rule banning most non-compete agreements. This rule severely impedes the ability of businesses to protect their legitimate business interests such as customer relationships, goodwill, confidential business information, and trade secrets. However, the FTC’s rule is facing legal challenges from different directions. Last week we wrote about…

Non-compete agreements have been a standard business practice for many years. Businesses use non-compete agreements to protect their interests like proprietary business information, trade secrets, customer, goodwill, staff, and others. However, on April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) upended this long-standing business practice by issuing a rule banning most non-compete agreements. See 16…

Under Florida law, enforcement of a non-compete agreement requires requires proof of at least one “legitimate business interest.” Fla. Stat. § 542.335 (“The person seeking enforcement of a restrictive covenant shall plead and prove the existence of one or more legitimate business interests justifying the restrictive covenant.”). A failure to plead or prove the existence…

A third-party can enforce a contract even though it is not a party to that contract if the contracting parties expressly intended to primarily and directly benefit the third-party. Bochese v. Town of Ponce Inlet, 405 F.3d 964 (11th Cir. 2005) (“Under Florida law, a third party is an intended beneficiary of a contract between…