Market Analyst Non Compete Unenforceable
Paul was an analyst for a market research company in Massachusetts. He did primarily back office work collecting and analyzing data. He did not interact with customers or prospective customers. His work also did not involve trade secrets or a proprietary methodology. Nonetheless, the company had him sign a non compete restricting his activities for a year after termination of his employment for any reason.
Paul was offered a job by a company in California that provided similar services in a similar market. The Massachusetts company sent a cease and desist letter to him and his new employer. The letter threatened to sue both of them to enforce the non compete. Paul worked with the new employer to craft a compromise that was intended to protect the Massachusetts company from any legitimate concerns, but the Massachusetts company refused to cooperate. This left Paul in limbo- he had already left the old employer, but could not start the new job until the dispute was resolved. Non competes are only enforceable in Massachusetts if they are necessary to protect a legitimate business interest of the employer. Below is an example of a non compete case we defended because the restrictive covenants did not protect a legitimate interest.
Unenforceable Non-Compete Case Study: BackgroundNon Compete SolutionPaul contacted us after he received the cease and desist letter. We reviewed his documents and interviewed him. Based on this review, we concluded that he did not have any customer relationships that would impact the employer's goodwill.
It also did not appear that the work he did was informed by any confidential methodologies. Instead, the analysis he did was based on established data analysis techniques and his own experience. In addition, the new job was for a California employer. California had recently passed a law refusing to enforce non competes unless necessary to protect trade secrets. When the former employer continued to refuse to engage in a good faith compromise, Paul was forced to take action. We filed a complaint seeking a declaratory judgment that the non compete was unenforceable. We argued that the agreement was unenforceable under California law. We also argued that it was unreasonably restrictive given the absence of a legitimate business interest to protect. Paul did not have any meaningful customer relationships. He also was not privy to trade secrets or confidential information that would justify an enforceable non compete agreement. Once the former employer realized they had to defend a lawsuit, we reached a resolution. Paul was released from his non compete with certain reasonable restrictions, and started his new job with the California company. |
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Postscript
Paul's freedom to take the job he wanted only came about because he was willing to pursue his rights in court, and had representation allowing him to do so.
If you are in a similar situation, remember that you don't necessarily have to wait for your employer to sue you. Sometimes it is to your advantage to be the first one to go to court, as it was in this case. Also remember that just because you receive a cease and desist letter, that does not mean that you will be blocked from taking a new job
If you are in a similar situation, remember that you don't necessarily have to wait for your employer to sue you. Sometimes it is to your advantage to be the first one to go to court, as it was in this case. Also remember that just because you receive a cease and desist letter, that does not mean that you will be blocked from taking a new job
How We Can Help
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We have years of experience representing people in non compete lawsuits in Massachusetts state and federal courts, as well as responding to cease and desist letters, and we would be happy to help. You can use the button below to schedule a call back from a member of our team, or give us a call at 781-784-2322.
