Employers in litigation against their employees face the challenge of not only dealing with the claims made by those employees, but the threat of being left to pay the attorneys’ fees bill of their opponents. Employers can mitigate that risk, and sometimes even turn the tables and win their attorneys’ fees from their former employees,…
Continue reading ›A temporary injunction is an available remedy when a party establishes that it has a valid, enforceable non-compete agreement that was violated. Fla. Stat. § 542.335(1)(j). Subsections 542.335(1)(b) and (c) of the Florida Statutes, set the standard for enforcing non-compete agreements and require the party seeking enforcement to plead and prove: (1) the existence of…
Continue reading ›A forum-selection clause is a structural provision of a contract that addresses the procedural requirements for dispute resolution. In other words, the contracting parties may choose which forum, i.e. which federal or state court, for prospective disputes to be filed. Courts must enforce forum-selection agreements unless they are shown to be unreasonable or unjust. Peter…
Continue reading ›Any competition by a former employee may injure the business of the former employer. However, the former employer cannot restrain ordinary competition. To be entitled to protection, the former employer must show special facts over and above ordinary competition which show that the former employee would have an unfair advantage without the non-compete agreement. Peter…
Continue reading ›When disputes arise over which version of a non-compete agreement was the final version executed by and binding on the parties, discovery of pre-contract negotiations may become necessary. Parties often retain an attorney for those negotiations. If the attorney involved in the negotiations becomes a witness to the case, attorney-client communications may need to be…
Continue reading ›Non-compete provisions in employment contracts are not prohibited so long as such contracts are reasonable in time, area, and line of business. In any action concerning enforcement of a non-compete provision the court considers the terms of the contract as agreed to by the parties. If the non-compete period has expired, a court may not…
Continue reading ›When businesses are sold, the non-compete agreements the seller may have entered with its employees are likely to be assumed by the new owner. Non-compete contracts, however, do not automatically vest in favor of the new owner of the business. Section 542.335(f)(2) of the Florida Statutes permits enforcement of non-competition agreements by an assignee or…
Continue reading ›It has long been recognized that before injunctive relief can be granted a movant must show irreparable injury. Langford v. Rotech Oxygen & Medical Equipment, Inc., 541 So.2d 1267 (Fla. 5th DCA 1989). Many non-compete contracts will contain a provision that stipulates that a violation of the restrictive covenant not to compete would create an…
Continue reading ›Purchasers of businesses and business assets often protect their investment by requiring the seller to sign a non-compete agreement. If the seller continued to engage in the same services, there would be little to no incentive for customers to buy from the Purchasers. The contract must specify the type of services that are prohibited by…
Continue reading ›Florida employers often require employees to sign non-solicitation agreements to protect their business from having its employees poached. Non-solicitation agreements often fail to define the term “solicit.” Solicitation is defined in Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019), as “[t]he act or an instance of requesting or seeking to obtain something; a request or petition.” Cases…
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