Restrictive Covenants in Employment Agreements: Navigating Your Career Safely
Understanding Your Employment AgreementIn the world of employment, contracts come in various forms, and they often contain restrictive covenants that can significantly impact your professional journey. Whether you're a high-level executive, a salesperson, or a technical expert, understanding the four primary types of covenants in your employment agreement is crucial. These terms may shape your future opportunities when you leave your job, for any reason.
Let's dive into the four most common types of restrictive covenants: Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure AgreementsAlmost every employment agreement includes provisions related to trade secrets and confidential information. Typically, these clauses state that employees must not use or disclose such information outside of their company. These restrictions are often broad in terms of duration and geographical scope. It's essential to know that even if you don't sign such an agreement, you still have a legal duty not to disclose your employer's trade secrets. What these agreements add is protection for your employer's confidential information that may not meet the legal definition of a trade secret. Examples include customer lists, pricing strategies, marketing plans, and certain methodologies.
Non Compete AgreementsA non-compete clause restricts you from working for a competitor for a specific period after your employment ends. Whether such clauses are enforceable depends on several factors. For agreements signed on or after October 1, 2018, Massachusetts law imposes very specific limitations on enforcement. Even for agreements signed earlier than that, the restriction must be reasonably necessary to protect a legitimate business interest of the employer. If you're asked to sign a non-compete agreement, it's wise to review it with an attorney before signing.
Intellectual Property and Work for Hire AgreementsIn jobs where you create content or products for your employer, you might encounter clauses related to intellectual property, assignment of inventions, or work-for-hire. These clauses ensure that the company owns the intellectual property related to the work you're paid to do. While these provisions are common and generally enforceable, there are situations where consulting an attorney before signing is advisable. For example, if you have inventions or creative work created outside of your employment, you'll want to protect your rights.
Non Solicit AgreementsMany employment contracts contain provisions that prohibit employees from soliciting either the company's customers or its employees. Such clauses aim to safeguard the employer's investment in its workforce and prevent an employee from taking an entire team to a competitor. Non-solicitation of customers is a milder form of non-compete, as it restricts you from doing business with customers you've built relationships with during your employment. These provisions vary in scope, with some merely prohibiting solicitation and others going further, restricting you from accepting business from former customers. Understanding the language in these clauses is essential to know what is permitted.
Enforcing Restrictive Covenants: SummaryRestrictive covenants are relatively common in employment agreements. Apart from clauses that entirely prohibit competition, businesses often can enforce these covenants. Even non-compete clauses can be enforced under specific circumstances. Therefore, if you're asked to sign an agreement with restrictions that extend beyond your employment, it's wise to consult with an employment attorney. They can provide insights into your rights, potential risks, and help you navigate your career safely.
|
We're Here to Help.OR
|
Meet Our Employment Lawyers
Emily Smith-Lee is the owner and founder of slnlaw. She is a 1996 graduate of Boston College Law School. She was previously a partner at the Boston office of a large international firm, where she worked for thirteen years before starting the firm that became slnlaw in 2009. She has been recognized as Massachusetts Superlawyer each year since 2013, and in 2018 earned recognition as one of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly's Lawyers of the Year. She has written a book on employment law: Rules of the Road, What You Need to Know About Employment Laws in Massachusetts. Along with the rest of the slnlaw team, she has helped hundreds of clients navigate, negotiate, or defend against the terms of their employment agreements, including non competes, non solicitation agreements, employment contracts with intellectual property provisions and other restrictive covenants, and executive employment agreements.
Rebecca Rogers: Rebecca is a 2006 graduate of Boston College Law School, and has worked with slnlaw since 2013. She previously worked as an intellectual property litigation attorney for Fish & Richardson in Boston, Massachusetts, and clerked for the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Rebecca has helped many clients understand and evaluate their non compete agreements and develop strategies for defending against non compete enforcement and negotiating resolution, and understand and navigate other employment contracts.
Jenna Ordway: Jenna is a 2013 graduate of Quinnipiac Law School, and also earned an LLM in Taxation from Boston University in 2015. She has been affiliated with slnlaw since 2011, first as a law clerk and then as an attorney. Jenna has been recognized since 2019 as a "Rising Star" by Massachusetts Superlawyers. Jenna works with employers to develop reasonable and enforceable employee agreements, including non competes, non solicitation agreements, executivev employment agreements and incentive agreements. She has also helped employees understand and evaluate their non compete agreements and develop strategies for defending against non compete and non solicitation enforcement and negotiating resolution.
Elijah Bresley: Eli is a 2014 graduate of Seton Hall Law school, and has worked with slnlaw since 2020. He previously worked for a boutique employment law firm outside of Boston, and then for the Labor and Employment department of a large Boston firm. He also spent a year clerking for the judges of the Superior Court in Hartford, Connecticut. Eli has helped clients both evaluate and negotiate their employment agreements, including non competes, non solicitation agreements, employment contracts with intellectual property provisions and other restrictive covenants, and agreements requiring employee payback of retention bonuses or training expenses. Eli has also defended claims against employees based on employment contracts in state and federal courts.
How We Can Help
Our team of experienced employment attorneys can provide you with invaluable insights and legal counsel to ensure you understand and protect your rights in employment agreements and restrictive covenants. 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.
|
|
|
|
|
