Nutter Partner David Rubin recently contributed an article to Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly that analyzed the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act. In the article, “Thorny Questions, Issues Emerging as Noncompete Act Takes Hold,” David addressed questions that have arisen since the legislation was enacted, including mutually agreed-upon consideration, employment relationships, non-exempt employees, termination cause, forfeiture for competition agreements, and separation agreements.
Last month, the Supreme Judicial Court dismissed a suit brought by a Massachusetts employer to enforce a non-compete on its California-based employee on the ground of forum non conveniens. The SJC held that the non-compete’s Massachusetts choice of law provision was unenforceable and that California substantive law should apply. Recall that even with the recent change in Massachusetts non-compete law, such restrictive covenants are still permissible, while in California, employee non-competes are subject to an outright ban.
This week, the Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act became effective. For employers, this means that all non-compete agreements entered into on or after October 1, 2018 must comply with the new law’s requirements. It is likely that most Massachusetts employers will have to revise their existing agreements.
In the early morning hours of August 1, 2018, the Massachusetts House and Senate passed long-awaited non-compete legislation. Assuming that Governor Baker signs the bill into law, the legislation will become prospectively effective October 1, 2018. The Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act (the “Noncompetition Act”) is many years in the making, as Massachusetts legislators have made numerous, but unsuccessful, attempts to enact a law addressing non-competes over the past several years.
In the early hours of this morning, the House and Senate advanced the non-compete legislation without any amendments. The legislation now moves to Governor Baker for approval. If enacted, the law would apply to all non-competes signed after October 1, 2018. In the coming days, we will report on what employers will now need to consider if Governor Baker signs the legislation.
On Wednesday, the Massachusetts Senate passed an Economic Development bill that revives the long-debated issue of non-compete legislation in the Commonwealth.
Over the past few years, we have reported on the Massachusetts Legislature’s unsuccessful attempts to alter non-compete law in the Commonwealth. In 2016, the Legislature was tantalizingly close to passing legislation before adjourning in July without reaching a compromise, and no fewer than six non-compete bills were introduced in 2017.
In the rapidly changing business world, protecting a company's human capital and proprietary information is critical to maintaining a competitive edge. On this blog, Nutter's experienced Business Litigation and Labor, Employment & Benefits attorneys offer news and insights on all aspects of restrictive covenants and trade secrets—from analyzing a rapidly evolving body of case law, to summarizing new legislation and legislative efforts, to providing other need-to-know updates and more.
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