By Michael Wexler and Marcus Mintz 

Seyfarth Synopsis: Delaware has long been favored by businesses for many reasons, including its courts’ deference to parties’ ability to contract. Recently, however, the Delaware Chancery Court was seemingly less deferential to restrictive covenant agreements in circumstances outside of the traditional employment agreement context.

In Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. v. Ainslie, the

Continue Reading Delaware Supreme Court Curbs Erosion of Forfeiture-for-Competition Protections

By Laurence Harvey Wood and Georgina Hatch 

Seyfarth Synopsis: The short answer is no, not yet, but their future looks uncertain. In this update we have a look at developments affecting restrictive covenants across various jurisdictions around the globe and what multinational employers should know.

Non-competition clauses (otherwise known as “non-competes” or restraints of trade) are clauses

Continue Reading Are Restrictive Covenants a Thing of the Past?

By Alex Meier

Seyfarth Synopsis: Last week, in connection with a House Oversight hearing, Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) introduced legislation to restrict confidentiality provisions from covering claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. The “Accountability for Workplace Misconduct Act,” H.R. 8146, appears to be a federal effort to expedite the state-level trend to exempt discrimination, harassment, and retaliation information
Continue Reading House Introduces Legislation Restricting Confidentiality Provisions in Settlement Agreements

By Jesse M. Coleman and Owen Wolfe

A federal court in Texas recently provided useful insights on what constitutes “solicitation” by a former employee under that employee’s restrictive covenant with his former employer, and the court provided further insights on what inferences courts will, and will not, draw in favor of a plaintiff seeking a preliminary injunction based on alleged
Continue Reading Federal Court Provides Insight on Meaning of “Solicitation” and Plaintiff’s Burden on Motion for Preliminary Injunction

By Justin K. Beyer

Seyfarth Synopsis: The ongoing saga of DC’s controversial Ban on Non-Compete Agreements Amendment Act of 2020 (the “Act”) logged another chapter last week when the DC Council passed a further amendment delaying the effective date of the Act from April 1, 2022, until October 1, 2022.

The Act, which was originally passed in December 2020,
Continue Reading The Effective Date of DC’s Non-Compete Ban Delayed Yet Again