Comments on: Bill to End Non-Compete Agreements Filed on Beacon Hill

By: In the defense of employee non-compete agreements « Hype Cycles

In the defense of employee non-compete agreements « Hype Cycles — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 02:01:03 +0000

[...] recently, Wade Roush wrote in xonomy Boston that, “Massachusetts Representative Will Brownsberger filed a bill today calling on the state [...]

By: Christian Teubner

Christian Teubner — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 23:09:00 +0000

I need some advice as I just started a catering business that does the same thing as the last company I worked for. The issue is that the owner of that company was terrible with people, her employees and especially her clientel. Now her old clients want to go with me because I can give them a higher quality food at a cheaper price and offer more services. If they don’t like her and her way of doing business, that still means I could get sued if I sign a contract with them?

By: John

John — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 09:56:58 +0000

Hi I am currently in a non-compete situation. I am just a average blue collar worker with good experience in my field, but under the non-compete I can not go to any competitor to work for them unless they are a 100 miles away from my current employer. My question is “Why should I be held back to make my life better when I am not a officer of my current employer?

By: » Blog Archive » Massachusetts Legislator Files Bill to Outlaw Non-Compete Agreements

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 20:59:43 +0000

[...] January 12, 2009, Rep. Will Brownsberger filed a bill to ban non-compete agreements in Massachusetts. The text of the bill makes void and unenforceable any written or oral contract “arising out [...]

By: mike falkoff

mike falkoff — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 19:55:26 +0000

The legislation appears to be aimed at older or poorly drafted non-competition agreements that are not enforceable anyhow. It’s true that most agreements are of this type, over-reaching to some extent, and they do have a chilling effect on ex-employees. But Massachusetts has a well developed body of case law regarding what is a legitimate restraint. So rather than attempt to change the law without knowing what it is, perhaps the situation could be better addressed by requiring employers to hand out a notice that lists the employees basic rights- to practice their occupational skills, as well the obligations – to not disclose confidential or proprietary information of their former employer. Employers often use non-competition agreements simply because it is so difficult to actually determine whether an ex-employee has breached these other obligations.