webinar | Beck Reed Riden LLP

On Wednesday, August 7, from 4:00 to 6:00 PM ET, Beck Reed Riden LLP will be hosting a virtual expert roundtable to discuss the FTC’s looming ban on noncompete agreements.

The webinar will feature over 70 restrictive covenant / trade secrets / employee mobility lawyers from around the country. The speakers will conduct a virtual brainstorming session to help companies address the impact of rule and the current uncertainty.

To register for the webinar, send an email to register@beckreed.com. Please note that attendance is limited.

ompanies across the country will soon be facing a new reality if the FTC’s rule banning noncompete agreements goes into effect as planned on September 4, 2024.

By way of background, on April 23, the FTC issued a rule purporting to ban employee noncompetes nationwide.

The rule was immediately challenged in multiple cases. In Ryan, LLC v. FTC, a Texas court invalidated the rule and blocked its enforcement against the plaintiffs, but left it in place for others, creating uncertainty. Conversely, in ATS Tree Services, LLC v. FTC, a Pennsylvania court upheld the rule as likely valid, suggesting companies there must comply. A third challenge in Florida, Properties of the Villages, Inc. v. FTC, awaits a decision. The judge in Ryan is expected to issue a final ruling by August 30, possibly maintaining the initial decision’s limited scope or extending it more broadly, raising questions about including broader groups like the members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

In short, absent a ruling by a court vacating the noncompete rule with nationwide effect, companies will be in a quandary, facing conflicting case law in different courts. Can they ignore the rule? Can they partially comply with the rule? Should they sue the FTC? When will there be a final, nationwide ruling from the courts? What will happen to noncompetes that are deemed unenforceable under the rule on September 4, if the rule is subsequently vacated (whether by the Supreme Court or elsewhere)?

There are many open questions.

The roundtable discussion will discuss these open questions and address the following topics:

Update on what has happened.
Practical implications of the FTC’s noncompete rule.
- What agreements are at risk.
- Who will actually be affected and how.
Strategies for protecting trade secrets, customer relationships, and workforce integrity in light of the FTC’s rule:
- What to do about existing noncompetes, nonsolicitation agreements, no-recruit agreements, confidentiality agreements, and others.
- How to draft restrictive covenants going forward.
- Alternatives to traditional restrictive covenants.
- Other strategies for companies to consider.

For up-to-the-minute analysis of legal issues concerning trade secrets and non-compete agreements in Massachusetts and across the United States, read Russell Beck’s blog, Fair Competition Law.

eck Reed Riden LLP is among the leading authorities in trade secret, noncompete, and unfair competition law, and our experience handling these matters is backed by our extensive employment law and business litigation experience. Our hand-picked team combines attorneys with complementary expertise and practical experience.

The Wall Street Journal featured Beck Reed Riden LLP’s noncompete agreement experience. In 2016, the White House issued a report entitled, “Non-Compete Agreements: Analysis of the Usage, Potential Issues, and State Responses,” relying in part on Beck Reed Riden LLP’s research and analysis, including its 50 State Noncompete Survey.

Beck Reed Riden LLP is Boston’s innovative litigation boutique. Our lawyers have years of experience working with clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to start-ups and individuals. We focus on business litigation and employment.

We are experienced litigators and counselors, helping our clients as business partners to resolve issues and develop strategies that best meet our clients’ legal and business needs – before, during, and after litigation. We’re ready to roll up our sleeves and help you. Read more about us, the types of matters we handle, and what we can do for you here.

On Friday, November 17, from 1:00 to 3:00 PM ET, Beck Reed Riden LLP will be hosting a virtual roundtable to discuss California’s new, expanded, anti-restrictive covenant laws.

The webinar will feature about 50 restrictive covenant / trade secrets / employee mobility lawyers from around the country. The speakers will conduct a virtual brainstorming session to plan for California’s newly-enacted restrictive covenant laws.

To register for the webinar, send an email to register@beckreed.com. Please note that attendance is limited.

alifornia has a long history of regulating restrictive covenants. But its new laws have nationwide, retroactive effects on restrictive covenants.

As of January 1, 2024, California is expanding the scope of its anti-restrictive covenant policy, making clear that virtually all, if not all, restrictive covenants in whatever form they may take and wherever signed are prohibited, including even broad confidentiality agreements signed out of state by an out-of-state employee and an out-of-state employer and otherwise-lawful agreements that affect a non-party.
As of January 1, 2024, California is prioritizing its policy over all other states’ policies, and in so doing, purports to be creating a safe-haven for employees with otherwise-lawful and enforceable contracts to flee to California to avoid their lawful obligations.
By February 14, 2024, employers with employees in California must notify all of those employees that their restrictive covenants (if they have one) are void.

Given California’s effort to invalidate contracts that have no relationship to California, companies need to know how to protect their trade secrets, customer relationships, and workforces in light of this new reality.

The roundtable discussion will address the following topics:

Update on what has happened.
- Summary of California’s current law.
  - Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 16600 – 16602.5; and
  - Labor Code § 925
- Explanation of California’s new laws.
  - Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 16600 (amended)
  - Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 16600.1
  - Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 16600.5
- Brief summary of other developments this year and predictions for additional changes.
Practical implications of California’s changes.
- What agreements are at risk.
- Who will actually be affected and how.
Strategies for protecting trade secrets, customer relationships, and workforce integrity in light of California’s change:
- What to do about existing noncompetes, nonsolicitation agreements, no-recruit agreements, confidentiality agreements, and others.
- How to draft restrictive covenants going forward.
- Alternatives to traditional restrictive covenants.
- Other strategies for companies to consider.

For up-to-the-minute analysis of legal issues concerning trade secrets and non-compete agreements in Massachusetts and across the United States, read Russell Beck’s blog, Fair Competition Law.

We are nationally recognized for our work handling trade secret and noncompete matters.

Roundtable Discussion on the FTC’s Noncompete Ban

Roundtable on California’s New Sprawling Noncompete Ban