Non-compete obligations are generally used to protect trade secrets or proprietary company information. If you have not had access to this information or if you have not been exposed to it in your position, you can argue that the non-compete obligation should not be applied because there is no legitimate commercial interest to be protected. There are at least eight different points where you can challenge a non-competition clause with a high potential for waiver or agreement that it will not be enforced by the employer. Your employer will let you know that you are bound by your non-compete obligation when you leave. The reality is that most employees don`t have the will or resources to fight them. Many workers believe that just because an employer forced them to sign the agreement or be fired does not mean that they are not bound by a non-compete obligation. This is simply not true. Maintaining employment is a valid consideration for a non-compete obligation in Florida. Florida laws assume that non-compete obligations apply. That doesn`t mean you can`t get out of yours if you`re ready to fight. If you can prove that the employer has not complied with all the conditions of your employment contract, it is very unlikely that you will be obliged to comply with the non-compete obligation you have signed with that employer. For example, suppose your employer wrongly withholds sales commissions or does not provide agreed compensation or performance after you meet certain benchmarks.
Or suppose your employer fires you in violation of a termination provision ”for cause” of your employment contract. Depending on the details of the situation, such actions may constitute a material breach that exempts you from your non-compete obligations. What is the effect of these agreements? A typical non-compete obligation prohibits an employee from working in a competing company after leaving the company. The agreement generally specifies a period after the employee`s departure and a geographic area in which the employee must abstain from competition. It may contain other restrictions. Jack`s agreement prohibits him from working for a year at a competing lawn care company within 100 miles of his former employer`s office. When you were hired, you may have been asked to sign a non-compete agreement. This agreement prohibits you from working with competing companies in the same company or industry after leaving your current employer, for a certain period of time and in a specific geographical area. [1] X Trusted Source Fairness in the Workplace Nonprofit organization that focuses on educating the public and advocating on labour and employment law issues At the source When you signed the agreement, you may not have thought much about it. After all, you`ve recently started a new job – you probably haven`t thought about leaving yet. However, if you decide it`s time to move on, a non-compete clause can seriously limit your options when looking for a new position.
For this reason, many states have strict laws limiting the scope of non-compete obligations and judges are reluctant to enforce them, making it less difficult for you to get out of a non-compete clause you`ve signed. [2] X Research Source [3] X Research Source Courts do not always rule consistently on this point, but if you are part of a mass dismissal or if you have been fired and have done nothing wrong, any non-compete agreement you sign may be considered null and void. The lesson here is to keep a careful record of all working documents and, if in doubt, ask your employer for your complete personnel file. If the employer cannot spit out a validly enforced non-compete obligation, he does not have the right to restrict you. A non-compete obligation is a contract between two parties, an employer and an employee. Both parties have a duty to respect their part of the agreement. In general, if one party materially violates a contract, the other party is free from any liability and has no other obligations under the agreement. Employers sometimes forget this point.
The applicability of a non-compete obligation only comes into play if your employer sues you for breach of contract. Courts tend to disapprove of non-compete obligations and treat them as a labour restriction, but that doesn`t mean your non-compete obligation is automatically deemed unenforceable. It`s always a very good idea to ask a lawyer to analyze your contract to assess your reputation. Proving that the agreement is not linked to a legitimate commercial interest is the most effective way out of a non-compete obligation. The purpose of any non-compete obligation is the protection of trade secrets. If you can prove that you did not have to access trade secrets in your previous role, you should be able to accept a job at any company. The greatest concern of the court hearing a non-compete obligation is whether the terms of the contract are appropriate. The court takes into account five points: the non-compete obligation must be limited in scope.
This is often the geographic scope of the restriction. An appropriate restriction could prohibit an employee from competing within a few miles, depending on the region and population density. An inappropriate (and therefore unenforceable) clause could prevent the employee from competing across the state. For example, a non-compete clause signed in Chicago that restricts competition within a 5-mile radius may not be appropriate, while the same scope might be considered acceptable in a more rural area. If the former employer insists on enforcing the agreement, hire an employment lawyer to write a letter to the employer. You will probably be released from the agreement at that time. If not, you may have to go to court. The final point of the test is whether the application of the non-compete obligation would be detrimental to the public.
This involves a thorough examination of aspects such as the impact of law enforcement on the availability of goods or services in the employer`s industry and business investment in long-term research and development programmes […].