Articles Posted in Non-Compete Agreements

The expiration of a non-compete period does not necessarily mean the covenant is unenforceable. A former employer may be able to enforce a non-compete against a former employee if the non-compete period expired and the non-compete period was tolled by the former employee’s violation of his restrictive covenant. Restrictive covenants, like non-compete agreements and non-solicitation…

Florida employers who have non-compete agreements may enforce the restrictive covenants based on the legitimate business interest of trade secrets under Florida Statutes Section 542.335(1)(b)(1). Employers may also sue for misappropriation of trade secrets. However, employers sometimes sue former employees for common law claims that are related to misappropriation of company trade secrets. Such common…

A former employee cannot avoid non-compete obligations by causing the demise of the business to whom he or she owes the obligation. Florida law requires the business that intends to enforce the restrictive covenant to establish a legitimate business interest justifying the restriction. Florida Statutes Section 542.335(c) states in pertinent part that, “[a] person seeking…

Under Florida law, restrictive covenants are generally unenforceable under Florida law as restraints on trade. Section 541.18, Florida Statutes, states that “[e]very contract, combination or conspiracy in restrain of trade or commerce in this state is unlawful.” Precedent from the Supreme Court of Florida in White v. Mederi Caretenders Visiting Servs. of Se. Fla, LLC,…

In Florida, an injunction is the generally favored remedy in cases of breach of a non-compete agreement. The Supreme Court of Florida in Miller Mechanical, Inc. v. Ruth, 300 So.2d 11 (Fla. 1974), explained that in cases of breach of a restrictive covenant, “[t]he Court may award damages for breach of contract but the normal…

Many non-compete agreements contain covenants asserting that the employer business has protectible trade secrets. A contractual provision where the parties agree, ex ante, that the employer will have (or actually has) a “trade secret” does not thereby mean the employer will have (or has) a trade secret in the future. As Florida’ Fourth District Court…

Businesses sometimes suffer from disloyal employees who misappropriate trade secrets and confidential information, diverting them to competitors. Such unfair competition can be addressed through contractual claims based on non-compete agreements as well as claims for trade secret misappropriation. Because Florida’s restrictive covenant statute, Florida Statutes Section 542.335, provides strong remedies for businesses, including obtaining a…

In Florida, it is common for shopping centers to have leases with “exclusivity covenants” allowing a commercial business the exclusive right to operate its type of business in the shopping center. For example, a shopping center may have a grocery store as an anchor tenant, i.e., a tenant that provides a benefit to the shopping…

Much of non-compete agreement litigation centers on the availability of obtaining a preliminary injunction barring competition. As the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit explained in United States v. Lambert, 695 F.2d 536 (11th Cir. 1983), a preliminary injunction is “an extraordinary and drastic remedy” that is “the exception rather than the…

Under Florida’s non-compete statute, Florida Statutes Section 542.335(1)(b), “[t]he person seeking enforcement of a restrictive covenant shall plead and prove the existence of one or more legitimate business interests justifying the restrictive covenant.” The term “legitimate business interest” includes trade secrets (as defined in Florida Statutes Section 688.002(4)) and “valuable confidential business or professional information.”…