27. Non-Competition Agreements

"When elephants fight, only the grass gets hurt."
Swahili Proverb

i. Before Signing

1. NL 1: “Non-Compete Non-Sense” – What to Do if Asked to Sign One
2. NL 2: “Your Best Time to Beat a Non-Compete”
3. NL 3: Injunction – Key Words & Phrases
4. NL 4: Non-Compete or Non-Solicit? Use “C.A.T.C.H.” to Understand It
5. NL 5: Restrictive Covenant – Key Words & Phrases
6. NL 6: You Must Protect Your “B.O.B.” (Book Of Business, That Is)
7. NL 7: “Employer Ask You to Sign an Agreement? Ask Your Employer to Pay Your Legal Cost”
8. QA 1: “Administrator in a Doctor’s Office. Told I must sign a Non-Compete Agreement. Anything I can do?”
9. QA 2: “Sign this Non-Competition Agreement, or Leave” – Is that Legal?
10. QA 3: Injunction – Key Words & Phrases
11. QA 4: Restrictive Covenant – Key Words & Phrases

ii. Is it Enforceable?

1. NL 1: Voluntary – Key Words & Phrases
2. QA 1: “Are my relatives and friends legally obligated by a non-compete agreement I signed?”
3. QA 2: “Are non-compete agreements binding on independent contractors?”
4. QA 3: “If I am not paid commissions due me, is my non-compete still valid?”
5. QA 4: “If tied to an unpaid bonus, is a non-compete enforceable?”
6. QA 5: “My former employer says he will waive my non-compete, but only if I repay him two months salary. Is this extortion?”
7. QA 6: “The Three Different Ways Non-Compete’s are Enforced”
8. QA 7: “Can I compete with my former employer without getting sued?”
9. QA 8: “If an employee’s position is eliminated is a non-compete still enforceable?”
10. QA 9: “Is a non-compete agreement enforceable after being let go without cause?”
11. QA 10: If I get nothing in return, is my non-compete enforceable?
12. QA 11: Voluntary – Key Words & Phrases
13. QA 12: “Must an employee be paid to sign a non-compete?”

iii. Non-Solicitation and Other Restrictions

1. NL 1: Non-Compete or Non-Solicit? Use “C.A.T.C.H.” to Understand It
2. QA 1: “Can I do work ‘on the side’ so long as it doesn’t violate the non-compete I signed?”
3. QA 2: “If my former employer closes, and opens a new company, is my non-compete (or other contracts) valid?”
4. QA 3: “Should non-solicit clauses be treated the same as non-compete clauses?”
5. QA 4: Prospective Customer or Client
6. QA 5: “Can an employer require you get its prior approval for a side job or a side business?”
7. QA 6: “Can I Work for a Licensee or Vendor of my Former Employer?”

iv. Garden Leave

1. QA 1: “No Non-compete? No Stolen Secrets? You are Free.”

v. General

1. NL 1: “Hidden Handcuffs” – Watch out for Buried and Disguised Non-Compete Agreements
2. NL 2: How to Defeat a Non-Compete: Ten Effective Defenses
3. NL 3: Non-Compete or Non-Solicit? Use “C.A.T.C.H.” to Understand It
4. NL 4: “I Am Not Restricted” Clause in Offer Letters – Potential Roadblock
5. NL 5: “Injunctive Relief” Clauses in Contracts – What Do They Mean?
6. QA 1: “Can a company selectively enforce non-compete agreements?”
7. QA 2: “Can a non-compete agreement require that New York law applies even if the company is not in New York?”
8. QA 3: “Can an employer pick and choose who must sign a non-compete?”
9. QA 4: “Can I fight a non-compete dispute in Court without an attorney?”
10. QA 5: “Can I sue my former employer for ‘interfering’ with my new job?”
11. QA 6: “How should an employer treat an employee who works for a competitor?”
12. QA 7: “Can I compete with my former employer without getting sued?”
13. QA 8: “Does leaving an employer, and then returning, relieve me from a non-compete agreement I signed the first time I was hired?”
14. QA 9: “Is there a way I can ‘get out of’ the non-compete agreement I signed?”
15. QA 10: In “Non-Competition,” What Constitutes “Competition?”
16. QA 11: “If I signed a non-compete / non-solicit agreement, does that stop me from working for a customer of my former employer?”