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Employee Rights Non-Compete Agreements Employment Litigation

Most countries provide some degree of workplace protection for employees and job applicants. Depending on the jurisdiction, these protections generally include safety precautions and policies, anti-discrimination... more +
Most countries provide some degree of workplace protection for employees and job applicants. Depending on the jurisdiction, these protections generally include safety precautions and policies, anti-discrimination policies, collective bargaining and unionizing rights, meal and rest requirements, minimum wage rules, and medical and family leave rights to name a few. In the United States, the federal framework for employee rights stem from statutes such as the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). In addition, employee rights statutes are implemented and enforced by regulatory authorities such as the EEOC, NLRB, OSHA, and the Department of Labor. Further, many state and local governments provide additional and localized protections for employees that are enforced by local regulatory entities. less -
Fennemore

Federal and California’s Shared Interest in Promoting Open Competition: Isn’t it Ironic?

Fennemore on

This article provides a brief history of California’s pro-competition law and describes the stalled federal initiative to extend a similar noncompete ban nationally, notwithstanding the overlapping policy interests expressed...more

ArentFox Schiff

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Ruling: Noncompetition Agreement Act Does Not Apply to Forfeiture Clauses

ArentFox Schiff on

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) recently clarified the scope of the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (MNAA). In Susan Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc., the SJC held the MNAA does not apply where a...more

Seward & Kissel LLP

Employment Litigation Roundup: June 2025

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In Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc., the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) held that the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act, G. L. c. 149, § 24L (the “Act”), which generally prohibits noncompete and...more

Conn Kavanaugh

It’s Confirmed: Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act Excludes Non-Solicitation Agreements

Conn Kavanaugh on

On June 13, 2025, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) issued a significant decision in Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc. (SJC-13697) confirming that the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (the “MNAA”) does...more

Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP

MA SJC Upholds Forfeiture for Employee Breaching Non-Solicitation Agreement

On June 13, 2025, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ruled in Susan Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc., that the Massachusetts Non-Competition Agreement Act (the “Act”) does not apply to a non-solicitation...more

Mintz - Employment Viewpoints

Top Massachusetts Court Clarifies That Non-Solicitation Covenants Fall Outside the State’s Non-Compete Law

In a closely watched decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc. clarified that the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (MNAA) (G.L. c. 149, § 24L) does not apply to...more

Hahn Loeser & Parks LLP

Florida Legislature Increases Employer Protections Through Non-Compete Agreements

On April 24, 2025, the Florida legislature passed the Florida Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth, or CHOICE, Act. The CHOICE Act goes into effect on July 1, 2025. The CHOICE...more

Shook, Hardy & Bacon L.L.P.

Massachusetts High Court Rules for Employer in Nonsolicitation Challenge

Although the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act expressly excludes nonsolicitation agreements from its definition of “noncompetition agreements,” the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) recently responded to a...more

Morgan, Brown & Joy, LLP

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Clarifies Scope of Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act

On Friday, June 13, 2025, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued its decision in Miele v. Foundation Medicine, Inc., SJC-13967, holding that forfeiture clauses tied to non-solicitation agreements were definitively...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

The Forfeited Equity Trap: Why Your Non-Compete Might Be Worthless

Farrell Fritz, P.C. on

Imagine you’re a private equity firm. You buy a company, and you want to retain and incentivize key employees, so you give them some equity in the form of incentive units.  You also want to prevent them from running off and...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Wolfspeed, Durham-Based Semiconductor Producer, Fighting Financial Peril in the Market and Employee Exits in the Courts

Fox Rothschild LLP on

Wolfspeed, a Durham-based silicon carbide semiconductor business, has plenty on its plate these days amid media reports of an impending bankruptcy reorganization. While such a filing would be aimed at a short(ish) judicial...more

Hendershot Cowart P.C.

Are Non-Compete Agreements Banned in Texas?

Last year in April, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published a rule to ban most non-compete agreements nationwide. Within hours the rule was challenged in courts across the country, and after months of federal litigation...more

Morris James LLP

Delaware Supreme Court Clarifies Enforcement of Forfeiture-for-Competition Provisions

Morris James LLP on

LKQ Corp. v. Rutledge, C.A. No. 110, 2024 (Del. Dec. 18, 2024) - In this en banc decision, the Delaware Supreme Court answered a certified question from the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit...more

Buchalter

Class Action Alert: “Conflict of Interest” Policies Are the Newest Trend for Class Action Lawsuits Against Employers in Washington...

Buchalter on

Following a recent Washington Supreme Court decision, plaintiffs’ attorneys in Washington are targeting a new type of class action claim against employers: alleged violations of Washington’s noncompetition statute based on...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

North Carolina Business Court Decision on Noncompetes and Trade Secrets Has Implications for Employers

Earlier this month, the North Carolina Business Court addressed important issues surrounding noncompete and nondisclosure agreements, providing valuable insights for employers navigating these complex areas of employment law....more

Jenner & Block

Delaware Supreme Court Reaffirms Reluctance to Blue-Pencil Overbroad Restrictive Covenants in Sunder v. Jackson

Jenner & Block on

The Delaware Supreme Court’s decision in Sunder Energy, LLV v. Jackson, No. 455, 2023, 2024 Del. LEXIS 407 (December 10, 2024) reaffirmed the courts’ limited willingness to modify or “blue-pencil” overbroad restrictive...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Feeling Competitive: The Reasonableness of Forfeiture-for-Competition Provisions

Troutman Pepper Locke on

In 2024, employers rushed to track the twists and turns of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) noncompete ban, which attempted to limit the enforceability of agreements that restrict employees from working for a competitor...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Washington Supreme Court Rejects Noncompete Provision Barring Employees Competitors

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

A recent Washington State Supreme Court decision addressed a simmering conflict between the statutory right of employees earning less than double minimum wage to work a second job, on the one hand, and employees’ duty of...more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

Wyoming Enacts Significant Restrictions on Noncompete Agreements

On March 19, 2025, Wyoming enacted a new law that considerably narrows the circumstances in which Wyoming employers can enter noncompete agreements. The law prohibits any covenant not to compete that restricts the right of...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

New York Legislature Proposes New Bill Banning Non-Compete Agreements

The New York Legislature is set to make another attempt to ban non-competes for all but highly compensated individuals. At the end of the 2023 legislative session, the New York Legislature passed a bill that would have banned...more

Bennett Jones LLP

BC Court of Appeal Confirms “No hire” Clause Not Intended to Injure Employees

Bennett Jones LLP on

In Latifi v The TDL Group Corp., 2025 BCCA 45, (Latifi) the BC Court of Appeal upheld the summary dismissal of a proposed class action against the Tim Hortons franchisor in Canada. The underlying dispute between the...more

Maynard Nexsen

Acting NLRB General Counsel Rescinds Several GC Memos, including Guidance on Restrictive Covenants

Maynard Nexsen on

On February 14, 2025, newly appointed National Labor Relations Board Acting General Counsel William Cowen issued a General Counsel memorandum rescinding several memoranda issued by prior NLRB GC Jennifer Abruzzo. Among of...more

Tannenbaum Helpern Syracuse & Hirschtritt LLP

Second Time’s a Charm? New York’s Latest Proposed Ban on Non-Competes

Once again, the New York State legislature has initiated legislation that would ban nearly all employee non-competes. Introduced on February 10, 2025, Senate Bill S4641A seeks to prohibit non-compete agreements for health...more

Morgan Lewis

New York State Senate Introduces Bill that Would Ban Non-Compete Agreements

Morgan Lewis on

At the end of the 2023 New York legislative session, Senator Paul Ryan introduced a bill to broadly ban non-compete agreements in the state. While the bill passed the New York State Senate and Assembly, Governor Kathy Hochul...more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

Acting General Counsel of NLRB Issues First GC Memorandum, Rescinding Controversial Pro-Labor Memoranda

On February 14, 2025, the Acting General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”) William B. Cowen issued his first General Counsel Memorandum (“GC Memo”) GC 25-05 rescinding nearly all of the Biden...more

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