Trade secrets, noncompetes, and other restrictive covenants continued to make headlines in 2024. Most notably, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a final rule imposing a near total ban on employee noncompetes that...more
On October 7, Jennifer Abruzzo, General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), issued a memorandum reinforcing her stance that most post-employment noncompete agreements violate Section 7 of the National Labor...more
On August 20, the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas held that the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) final rule banning noncompetes is unlawful and “set aside” the rule. “The Rule shall not be enforced or...more
On July 3, the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a decision and order enjoining the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) from enforcing its final rule banning most noncompete agreements....more
On April 23, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted 3-2 to publish a final rule with sweeping effect, purporting to bar prospectively and invalidate retroactively most employee noncompete agreements....more
On April 30, the Federal Register announced that the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Non-Compete Clause Rule is scheduled to be published on May 7. The Rule becomes effective 120 days after publication, resulting in an...more
As discussed in our recent alerts, the final rule would bar employers from entering into and enforcing noncompetes with most workers.
ArentFox Schiff’s Trade Secrets, Noncompetes & Employee Mobility Team has been...more
4/30/2024
/ Audits ,
Confidential Information ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Nonprofits ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Trade Secrets
Today, the Federal Trade Commission adopted a final rule purporting to ban noncompete covenants for workers nationwide, which will become effective 120 days after publication in the Federal Register, unless first enjoined in...more
4/24/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Federal Bans ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
FTC Act ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
Non-Solicitation Agreements ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
U.S. Commerce Department
On April 16, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that it will hold a special Open Commission Meeting on Tuesday, April 23 at 2:00 p.m. ET, for purposes of voting on its proposed final rule banning noncompete...more
2023 was a banner year for trade secrets, non-competes, and other restrictive covenants. Employee non-competes continued to garner attention at the federal agency level, drawing commentary and action from the Federal Trade...more
3/13/2024
/ Competition ,
Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Cybersecurity ,
Damages ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employment Contract ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Former Employee ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
New Legislation ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
State Labor Laws ,
Trade Secrets
2023 was a pivotal year for the emerging companies, creating new categories of winners and losers across the board. Emerging companies incorporating artificial intelligence or that have clear line of sight to positive cash...more
2/20/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Corporate Executives ,
Corporate Transparency Act ,
Down Rounds ,
Early Stage Companies ,
Emerging Growth Companies ,
Entrepreneurs ,
Estate Planning ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financing ,
FinCEN ,
FTC Endorsement Guidelines ,
Funding ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Proposed Rules ,
Ransomware ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Social Media ,
Startups ,
The Copyright Act ,
Venture Capital ,
Wage and Hour ,
Websites
As we enter the final quarter of 2023, the ArentFox Schiff Hospitality Industry group has identified several opportunities and challenges that could impact the hospitality industry, including issues related to artificial...more
In a case involving government contracts, the Fourth Circuit held that a company could proceed with its claims against three former employees for actions they took as employees – through their newly formed company - to pursue...more
On February 16, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a public forum on its proposed rule that would, with limited exceptions, ban employers from using employee non-compete agreements and require rescission of...more
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a proposed rule that, with limited exceptions, would both ban post-termination non-compete covenants in employment agreements and require rescission of existing...more
On January 5, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a new rule that would ban employers from requiring workers to sign non-competes and require recission of existing non-competes. The FTC’s press release...more
On June 15, Lina Khan was sworn in as Chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal last week, Khan announced that the agency plans to use enforcement actions to curtail the use of...more
On July 9, 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14036, “Promoting Competition in the American Economy.” The Executive Order included 72 actions and recommendations to federal agencies designed to review and revise...more
As increasing scrutiny was cast at the state and federal level on noncompetition agreements and other restrictive covenants, companies were forced to assess their ability to safeguard trade secret information. Not to mention...more
3/8/2021
/ Anti-Raiding ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Intellectual Property Litigation ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Non-Disclosure Agreement ,
The Copyright Act ,
Trade Secrets
As noted in an earlier Alert, on January 9, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission held a public workshop and invited public comments on whether the FTC should issue a rule that would restrict or prohibit the use of non-competes...more
In short, the petitioners asked for a rule that non-competes are an unfair method of competition that is illegal per se under Section 5(a) of the Federal Trade Commission Act. Further, they asked that any employer presenting,...more
1/27/2020
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
Comment Period ,
Competition ,
Confidential Information ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employment Contract ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Former Employee ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Labor Regulations ,
Low-Wage Workers ,
Non-Compete Agreements ,
Public Comment ,
Public Workshops ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Rulemaking Process