Non-Competition Agreements Work and are a Powerful Business Tool

Expired

Program Number

3208

Program Date

2022-01-12

CLE Credits

There has been considerable talk in legal and government circles about regulating non-competition agreements. As a tool to maintain the confidentiality of a trade secrets, guard against unfair competition, maintain market share, retain corporate exclusivity, and solidify legacy client relationships, non-competes can be remarkably effective. Yet, many lawyers naively believe-and advise- that non-competes are “not worth the paper they are written on.” Those who do, however, fail to understand that a non-compete agreement is rarely enforced as written. Rather, it is merely a “ticket to the courtroom,” and that its written terms will be adjusted by a court to fit the facts. Greed and lack of credibility, however, are the enemies of non-compete enforcement. To be effective, a non-compete must be carefully and narrowly drafted. Well-meaning lawyers regularly include prohibitions that are ridiculously overbroad, both in time and geographical scope; their drafter’s failure to appreciate the fact that a litigator may one day have to seek the agreement’s emergency enforcement.

This webinar will review the state of the modern non-compete, efforts to regulate their application, drafting best-practices and tips for successful enforcement.