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Articles Posted in Trade Secrets

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A Texas federal judge should decide the fate of the FTC noncompete rule today. So, let’s make this interesting….

Let’s play a game of “closest to the pin.” But first, here is a quick recap before I explain the rules of the game. In January 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a rule generally prohibiting employers from imposing noncompetes on their workers. In the following year and change, the federal agency…

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“Chevron” for non-lawyers

On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its 40-year-old decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which had lawyers buzzing and many others wondering what the big deal with Chevron is anyway. I’ll explain. What is Chevron? In Chevron, the Supreme Court had to decide whether the Clean Air Act…

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Your non-competes and non-solicits may violate ANOTHER federal law: the National Labor Relations Act

The Federal Trade Commission isn’t the only government agency gunning for your company’s noncompetes. Earlier this month, a National Labor Relations Board Administrative Law Judge ruled that a non-union employer violated the National Labor Relations Act by utilizing unlawful noncompete and nonsolicitation provisions in employment agreements. During their employment and…

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Here’s why the FTC thinks its non-compete rule will survive a legal challenge

Last week, the Federal Trade Commission responded to efforts by a Texas business and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to convince a Texas federal judge to block the Federal Trade Commission’s final Non-compete Rule, which would impose a comprehensive ban on new non-competes with all workers, including senior executives. The FTC’s brief is…

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The world’s largest HR organization does NOT support the FTC’s non-compete rule

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), with nearly 340,000 members in 180 countries (of which I am one), filed an amicus brief last week in a lawsuit pending in Texas in which it supported efforts to block the Federal Trade Commission’s final non-compete Rule. The FTC seeks to impose a comprehensive…

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Here’s why the Chamber of Commerce believes the FTC’s non-compete rule is unlawful

Earlier this week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce told a Texas federal judge to block the Federal Trade Commission’s final Noncompete Rule, which would impose a comprehensive ban on new noncompetes with all workers, including senior executives. Here is a link to the 40-page brief. But I’ll break it down for you in…

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See you on Zoom today at Noon ET to address the FTC’s noncompete ban and the DOL’s OT changes

You still have time to register (here) for The Employer Handbook Zoom Office Happy Hour, which returns today at Noon ET. My Pierson Ferdinand employment law partners, Ben Jacobs and Amy Epstein Gluck, will join me to discuss the FTC’s plan to ban most employee noncompetes and explore the Department of Labor’s proposed increase…

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Let’s have another Zoom on Monday, 4/29/24, at Noon ET to address the FTC’s noncompete ban and the DOL’s OT changes

What a week! On the same day that the Federal Trade Commission announced its plan to ban most employee noncompetes, the U.S. Department of Labor proposed increase to the salary level for EAP overtime exemptions. Employees are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act’s minimum wage and overtime protections if…

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It’s official. The feds plan to ban most employee noncompetes. But is this fire or smoke?

In January 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) proposed a rule generally prohibiting employers from imposing noncompetes on their workers. In the following year and change, the federal agency received more than 26,000 comments on the proposed rule, with over 25,000 comments supporting the FTC’s proposed ban on noncompetes. Yesterday,…

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Next week, the feds will vote on whether to ban most noncompetes

Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it would hold a “special open Commission meeting” on April 23 to vote on whether to issue a proposed final rule that would prevent most employers from enforcing noncompetes against workers. In January 2023, the FTC proposed a rule generally prohibiting employers from…