Blog : Non-Competes

Should you sign a noncompete proposed by your employer? The short answer is no. There are some good reasons not to sign an employee noncompete. I’ll cover those in another post. For now, I’ll just say that we should normalize saying “no” to employee noncompetes. There are exceptions, of course. Exception no. 1: It was part of the deal The first exception is when a noncompete was part of your deal. If the terms of the job offer included a noncompete, then it’s fair for the employer to include a noncompete in your employment agreement (sort of). Even then, it […]

On April 23, 2024, the FTC voted 3-2 to approve its final rule banning non-competes for U.S. workers. Unless the federal courts block the rule (more about that later), it will go into effect on September 4, 2024. (Update: The federal courts did block the rule. Sort of. See Texas Federal Court Enters Limited Preliminary Injunction Staying FTC’s Noncompete Clause Ban from my friends at Morgan Lewis.) My law practice focuses on defending non-compete and trade secret claims, so as you might imagine, that was a busy week for me. You can imagine the text messages from clients. “Hey, did […]

I recently saw the summer blockbuster Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, so new characters are on my mind. Nothing against Paula Payne and Dawn Davis, but I thought it was time to introduce some new characters to the FMLU (the Five Minute Law Universe). So, meet Bobby Bluecollar. Bobby works for Vinny’s Valves, which started as a mom-and-pop operation but now has offices throughout Texas and the Gulf Coast, providing equipment to hundreds of customers in the oilfield exploration and production industry. Vinny himself doesn’t work much anymore. His daughter Vanessa now runs the […]

Ok, I know what you’re thinking. “Don’t you have a vested interest in the answer, Wolfe?” Yes, clients often pay me for advice about non-competes. It would only be a slight exaggeration to say I’ve paid for my daughter’s college by charging people for advice about non-competes. So it would be somewhat self-serving for me to say “yes, of course, you should always get advice about a non-compete from an experienced attorney.” But look, I’m going to give it to you straight. And you might be surprised by my answer. As you’ll see, I’m going to explain why sometimes you […]

In the words of Joe Biden, the FTC’s proposed ban on employee non-competes is a big f***ing deal. (Spoiler alert: the FTC approved the rule on April 23, 2024.) Bear in mind, it is only a proposed rule, and it is sure to face constitutional challenges. I’m no con law scholar, but I have a hunch the conservative 6-3 majority on the Supreme Court is not going to be psyched about a Democratic administration sweeping aside state non-compete law with the stroke of an administrative pen. But just for grins, let’s put aside the original public meaning of the Sherman Act […]

As I write this, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. For a non-compete lawyer, that is. Part of my law practice is counseling people who have signed non-competes with their employers. I’ve done this dozens of times in the past five years alone. And I’ve learned a lot about what’s important in such cases. I know what you’re thinking. “The most important thing is to hire a lawyer to review the non-compete!” I mean, yes, that’s a good idea, but that’s not what I’m talking about. Or you’re thinking “is the non-compete enforceable?” Again, an important question. I […]

Checking in on our favorite non-compete fact pattern You might be wondering what happened to our friend Dawn Davis. Well, with the housing market booming, the window business is doing well. Dawn just had her best year of sales at Paula Payne Windows. But Dawn felt like she wasn’t getting a big enough cut of the profits. So she jumped ship and went to work for Real Cheap Windows. Trouble is, Dawn had a two-year non-compete with Payne, and Payne sued, asking for an injunction and damages. The judge denied the injunction, but the case is about to go to […]

Is the balance of hardships relevant in a non-compete lawsuit?

President Biden’s executive order directed the FTC to consider limitations on non-competes. Should Texas do the same?

Is a restriction on soliciting employees a non-compete subject to a reasonableness requirement?