Unraveling the Concept of Garden Leave: Insights From Silicon Valley — Hiring to Firing Podcast
With the Federal Trade Commission’s non-compete ban out of the picture, the Supreme Court barring most universal injunctions, and the National Labor Relations’ Board directive identifying non-compete agreements as violating...more
As states across the country move to limit or ban non-compete agreements, Florida is taking a sharp turn in the opposite direction. Already a friendly jurisdiction for non-competes, the state is doubling down on employer...more
While states across the country, including Texas and Virginia, continue to enact laws that restrict or ban noncompete agreements, a new Florida law does the opposite. Effective July 1, 2025, the Contracts Honoring...more
Employers can relax and enjoy the Florida sunshine. Here is why: On April 24, 2025, the Florida Legislature passed the Florida Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth (CHOICE) Act. Not...more
Over the past several years, EmployNews has chronicled multiple legislative, regulatory, and judicial assaults on the use of noncompetition agreements with employees. These attacks have weakened or eliminated employers'...more
What is the CHOICE Act? On April 24, 2025, Florida state lawmakers passed the Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth Act or CHOICE Act. The CHOICE Act is a law reforming...more
As referenced in our blog post discussing notable noncompete changes nationwide, Florida lawmakers are changing how the Sunshine State views noncompete and garden leave agreements....more
The Florida House and Senate recently passed the Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth (CHOICE) Act by an overwhelming majority. The CHOICE Act will substantially reshape Florida...more
A bill recently passed by the Florida House and Senate and poised to become law effective July 1, 2025, will substantially change the noncompete landscape for employers doing business in Florida. If Gov. Ron DeSantis signs...more
In this episode of the Hiring to Firing Podcast, Partners Tracey Diamond and Evan Gibbs, along with Dan Sieck, a partner in the firm's Corporate practice group, discuss the hit TV show Silicon Valley and the concept of garden...more
A common example of a non-compete restriction is a new CPA who signs such an agreement as part of his or her onboarding paperwork. Years later, the CPA considers moving to another firm, or opening their own firm, but that...more
In October 2018, businesses across the country braced for the effects of a noncompete law that was enacted in Massachusetts. The "garden leave" clause in Massachusetts' noncompete law dictated that during the period in which...more
I have posted a few times here about using post-employment restrictions to preserve a manufacturer’s competitive advantage. See “Non-Compete Cautionary Tale” (Nov, 2, 2018); “I’m New – And It’s No [Trade] Secret” (Oct. 27,...more
It has been just over a month since Massachusetts’ comprehensive noncompetition reform law took effect. We explained the key provisions of the law last summer. Since then, what have we learned and what questions remain?...more
This week, Massachusetts’ Noncompetition Agreement Act became effective. For employers, this means that all non-compete agreements entered into on or after October 1, 2018 must comply with the new law’s requirements. It is...more
Readers of our blog will recall that this summer, the Massachusetts legislature passed a non-compete reform bill after nearly a decade of fruitless attempts. The new law goes into effect today, meaning that any agreements...more
California has long led the nation in its disdain for noncompetition agreements. Pressed by venture capitalists who believe that this gives California an advantage over other states, the Massachusetts legislature has finally...more
Q: My company is headquartered in Massachusetts. Does the new Massachusetts law on non-competes change how I structure non-compete agreements with employees? ...more