Non-compete Agreements in Business

Protect your business by having Paul J. Burkhart create a business agreement that covers all bases and will stand up in a court of law to minimize the chance of encountering any problems with former employees down the road.

What is a Non-Compete Agreement?

A non-compete agreement is created to protect your business. One party (usually an employee) agrees not to enter into or start a similar profession or trade in competition against another party. (usually the employer) Non-compete agreements can also be used when one or both business partners are terminating a business arrangement.

Sometimes business relationships end on a sour note and non-compete agreements are enforced to prevent a former employee from working for a competing company or starting a similar business for a determined length of time.

Non-Compete Agreements and Florida Law

California, North Dakota Oklahoma, and Montana ban non-compete agreements outright. In Florida, non-compete agreements and other restrictive covenants are permitted by Florida’s non-compete statuteFla. Stat. § 542.335, so long as the restriction is supported by legitimate business interest, otherwise an agreement may be found to be void and unenforceable by a court.

What Your Non-Compete Agreement Needs:

  • Names and addresses of all parties included in the agreement including the party requesting the contract and the party that is prohibited from working for a competing business.
  • The reason the non-compete agreement is being created. Is the employee prohibited from soliciting specific customers or clients? Are they unable to share business secrets? Do you want to prevent them from selling the same type of product offered by your business? How are you trying to protect your business?
  • The period the employee or business partner is prohibited from working as or for a competitor.
  • The geographic area the employee or business partner is prohibited from working for a competitor and can be written regarding a particular state or a certain amount of miles.
  • The non-competing party must be paid an amount of money or the agreement to be enforceable. The amount can be paid as a lump sum or in multiple payments over a certain amount of time.

Special Provisions To Consider When Drafting a Non-Compete Agreement

  • If you ask an employee to sign a non-compete agreement, consider how much training you provided your employee. Are they so valuable that they will damage your business if they provide information to a competitor?
  • The agreement you draft must be reasonable to hold up in a court of law, and a judge will not enforce it if the verbiage sounds to broad.  Courts will also narrow the restrictions to make them more reasonable when appropriate.

Business Attorney Palm Beach Gardens

 Paul J. Burkhart

Paul J. Burkhart has experience creating and ensuring the non-compete agreement you need will be enforced in a court of law to protect your business interests.  If you are an employee, we can also help you defend against the enforcement of non-compete agreements or counsel you on how you may be able to go ahead with a particular business plan without violating your existing non-compete agreement.

Our team assists both individuals, and business clients with all their legal needs, including business and Corporate Transactions, Business/Commercial and Civil Litigation, Real Estate, Intellectual Property, Family Law, and Estate Planning matters. We are a full-service private law firm ready to assist you with any request, large or small. Call 561-880-0155 or visit our website.

 

Law Offices of Paul J Burkhart, PL
Business litigation and business contracts

800 Village Square Crossing
Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410

Phone: (561) 880-0155

 

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