I blogged week before last about at a legislative effort in Georgia that would drastically change the way courts there analyze and enforce non-competition agreements.
In most other states, one single court case could change the legal climate regarding these unique employment agreements.
Want to know if the agreement you signed 6 years ago is valid? Enforceable? You have a few options:
1. Have an attorney in the state where your contract is binding, review the agreement. Select someone who knows non-compete / employment law so you will not be paying their hourly fee to catch up.
2. Understand that attorney can only give an opinion on your agreement – he/she cannot state with any certainty whether it is valid.
3. Want to know definitely if it is valid? You can always ask the Court to declare whether it is. This option provides resolution, but has risks. Once your company has been named in a lawsuit, you may be asked to defend a counter-suit etc.
As Bob Dylan said – “the times, they are a-changin.” Well Bob, so are the laws across the United States on non-competition agreements, so make sure you know where you stand in today’s legal climate.