Just over a month ago, employers throughout the United States breathed a sigh of relief after Judge Ada Brown in the Northern District of Texas issued a summary judgment ruling in the Ryan v. FTC litigation setting aside the FTC’s rule banning the vast majority of non-competes (the “Rule”). In that decision, Judge Brown reasoned—just ..read more

Jimmy Buffett once eloquently said that “without geography, you’re nowhere.”  But how does that insight apply to restrictive covenants that lack explicit geographic limitations in Georgia? While Jimmy never got to find out, we now have some much-needed clarity from the Georgia Supreme Court. For many years, most Georgia litigants, individuals, and businesses operated under ..read more

By Michael Tamvakologos & Ian Neil SC This post has been cross-posted from Seyfarth’s Workplace Law & Strategy blog, and discusses Australian law on non-competes. It seems like death by a thousand cuts. In August last year, Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers announced a Competition Review to examine competition laws, policies and institutions to focus on reforms that would increase ..read more

Once again surprising the country by acting ten days before her own self-appointed deadline, a federal judge in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a ruling on August 20 in the Ryan v. FTC case setting aside the FTC Rule banning non-competes, and held (quoting Fifth Circuit precedent) that ..read more

This just in: Judge Ada Brown ruled today on the parties’ dueling summary judgment motions – 10 days before her self-imposed deadline to do so – in Ryan LLC v. FTC. Judge Brown granted the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment while denying the FTC’s motion, determining that the FTC’s rule banning non-competes is an unlawful ..read more

As we recently reported, in its Final Rule banning most worker non-competes, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) previously warned of its intent to vigorously enforce its non-compete ban wherever possible, which may include self-styled nonprofit and not-for-profit entities.  This warning threw most hospital systems in America, which are non-profit, into the chaos of unsettled expectations ..read more

Yesterday, a third court weighed in on the FTC’s proposed ban on non-competes, set to go into effect on September 4, 2024. Judge Corrigan of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida granted the plaintiff Properties of the Villages, Inc.’s (“POV”) motion to stay the effective date of the rule and ..read more

Yesterday, the Court in the ATS Tree Services v. FTC case denied Plaintiff ATS Tree’s Motion to Stay and Enjoin the FTC’s recent ban on non-compete agreements (the “Final Rule”), because, the Court held, ATS Tree failed to establish irreparable harm and a likelihood of success on the merits. This puts this court’s ruling in ..read more

On Tuesday, July 18, Chris DeMeo, serving as moderator, led a distinguished virtual panel featuring Jesse Coleman, alongside Tanzeela Ahmad (Senior Employment Counsel, Stryker), Robin Rogers (General Counsel & Chief Privacy Officer, CoventBridge), and Victor Wright (Vice President, Global Labor & Employment Law, Baker Hughes). They presented insights during a webinar hosted by the ACC on the timely topic of Navigating the FTC’s Non-Compete Ban: Implications and Strategies for Businesses and Organizations, focusing on labor markets, mergers and acquisitions, employee benefits, and beyon ..read more

In a rapid-fire response, the Ryan Court in the Northern District of Texas this morning denied Plaintiff and Plaintiff-Intervenors’ Expedited Motion for Limited Reconsideration of the Scope of Preliminary Relief, and Plaintiff and Plaintiff-Intervenors’ Motion for Expedited Consideration of their Motion for Limited Reconsideration of the Scope of Preliminary Relief (for more on these motions, see here). In a three-sentence Order, the Court provided no explanation except that Plaintiff and Plaintiff-Intervenors “have not shown themselves entitled to the respective relief requested” and denied t ..read more