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Is my non compete clause in my employee agreement valid?
Anonymous4 views1 answers
I am considered a temp W2 employee of a consulting firm. I am hourly based on contract with their client, which runs out 2/27/09. My company does not have any work for me now after the contract with their client expires and I want to be able to accept an offer with another firm if it should arise. My company provides third party implementation and consulting services to a software vendor. The agreement states that for a period of 6 months I can not work directly or indirectly for their client or the end client (which is who bought the vendor's software (client)).
I do not have access to the company's clients, nor any intellectual property or trade secretes or anything proprietary of theirs in any nature. I have not been trained or given any technical direction by my company. Basically, I already have the knowledge and skills to do the work, they find the clients, I only get paid for actual hours worked. The state in which controls the issue would be MA
State laws vary widely concerning the enforceability of restrictive covenants such as the non-complete clause to which you refer. It is my understanding that Maine has some statutes severely restricting the enforcement of non-compete clauses, particularly as regards the broadcasting industry. In addition, determining the validity of a non-compete can be extremely fact intensive: e.g., is it included in your employment agreement, or was it a separate document signed by you after you signed your employment agreement without additional consideration; is the clause reasonably limited as to geographical and temporal scope. You should at least consult with a local attorney as to the application of non-competes in your state. Another suggestion would be to talk to your employer and seek a written waiver of the non-compete - that may be a possibility given the economic climate. Give them the option of being told who is seeking your employ so that they will feel that they have a level of control over the situation. Sometimes you get more bees with honey than with vinegar!
