Law School Toolbox Podcast Episode 292: Listen and Learn -- The Erie Doctrine (Civ Pro)
Bar Exam Toolbox Podcast Episode 126: Listen and Learn -- The Erie Doctrine
Just in time for grilling season in the Midwest, Hormel Foods Corporation (“Hormel”) filed a federal lawsuit in the District of Minnesota against its competitor, Johnsonville, LLC (“Johnsonville”), and two former Hormel...more
On February 3, 2025, the California First District Court of Appeal held that a party to an arbitration agreement cannot rely on a choice-of-law provision to wire around the federal Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault...more
Employers in Ohio may soon need to reexamine employment agreements and internal policies if a proposed non-compete ban becomes law. A state Senate bill was recently introduced aiming to prohibit agreements that restrict a...more
Last month, in DraftKings Inc. v. Hermalyn, the First Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision concerning the application of California’s non-compete ban to agreements formed outside the state. Broadly, the decision...more
In the first known case to challenge California's legislative attempt to void noncompete agreements even for employees who do not live or work in California, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the application of...more
Against a growing trend of legislation and broader efforts seeking to limit or eliminate post-employment noncompetition restrictions, recent Massachusetts and First Circuit decisions in a dispute between DraftKings and one of...more
On September 26, 2024, a Boston-based federal appeals court refused to extend California’s sweeping noncompete ban to agreements that were signed outside the state and governed by another state’s law....more
The ongoing battle between DraftKings Inc. and its former executive, Michael Hermalyn, remains contentious, with the District of Massachusetts’ decision to enforce Hermalyn’s non-compete now appealed and argued to the First...more
In a recent ruling, a California appeals court found an arbitration agreement with an eyewear store employee that was presented on a take-it-or-leave-it basis required an arbitrator to apply the laws of another state,...more
Washington Governor Jay Inslee recently signed Senate Bill 5935 into law, amending and expanding Washington’s statute restricting the enforceability of noncompetition covenants (Revised Code of Washington 49.2). The amended...more
The 2024 Washington State Legislature passed Substitute Senate Bill (S.S.B.) 5935 in February 2024, and Governor Jay Inslee signed the bill into law on March 13, 2024, updating and clarifying Washington law regarding...more
It’s 4:45 p.m. on Friday. The human resources (HR) director calls and tells you that your company—or if you are outside counsel, your client—is finally expanding their sales operation to the West Coast. As part of that...more
On September 6, 2023, the Georgia Supreme Court reaffirmed that Georgia courts must first determine whether a restrictive covenant is enforceable under Georgia law before applying a foreign choice-of-law provision....more
Historically, Georgia courts have declined to apply another state’s law to determine whether to enforce restrictive covenants against a Georgia employee, regardless of whether the agreement stated that another state’s law...more
It is no hidden secret that many employers use various restrictive covenants to protect their trade secrets, confidential information, goodwill, and customer relationships. For example, employers often use non-compete...more
The New Jersey legislature is currently considering legislation that would add the state to the growing list of jurisdictions that have significantly limited the scope and enforceability of non-competition agreements and...more
Our business clients tell us everyday what we are all seeing in the headlines on a regular basis: employees are hard to hire and retain. Some commentators have coined the term “the great resignation” to aptly describe the...more
DePuy Synthes Sales Inc. v. Howmedica Osteonics Corp., 28 F.4th 956 (9th Cir. 2022) - Summary: Motion to transfer venue was properly denied where forum-selection clause in employment agreement was void under California...more
In novel and important decision, DePy Synthes Sales v. Howmedica Ostionic’s, Ninth Cir. Case No. 21-55126, on March 14, 2022, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court’s decisions to prevent a former employer...more
The landscape for restrictive covenants and confidentiality agreements is changing rapidly across the country. Notice periods, compensation thresholds, and consideration requirements are increasingly common, and the days...more
Colorado law is not particularly friendly to noncompete agreements. A Colorado statute prohibits all such agreements unless they fall within one of four specific exemptions....more
Last week a California Employer secured a victory when the California Court of Appeal held that the employer’s general California choice-of-law provision in its employment agreement did not entitle the employee to pursue...more
Choice of law and choice of forum clauses in employment agreements are tricky business. Even though a Delaware LLC employer may think they have strong, iron-clad selection provisions in their employment agreements, the...more
Employment agreements with restrictive covenants typically contain both a forum selection clause, which determines the forum where a dispute must be heard, and a choice of law clause, which determines the law that applies to...more
Paramount to obtaining an often necessary preliminary injunction pursuant to Article 63 of New York’s Civil Practice Law and Rules (“CPLR”) is the movant’s obligation to establish a likelihood of success on the merits. A...more