How Reasonable Non-Compete Clauses Can Protect Your Practice

The report states that, because of the potential issues presented by some non-competes, there is a growing movement at the state level to limit the misuse of the agreements, and several states ban the agreements outright for certain sectors and occupations.

This year, Hawaii banned non-compete agreements for technology jobs, and New Mexico banned them for healthcare jobs. Others have taken steps to limit the scope of non-competes. Oregon recently banned agreements longer than 18 months, while Utah limited the agreements to one year.

Additionally, some states either completely ban or limit their applicability:

• California: Usually not enforceable, with narrow exceptions.
• Montana: Only permitted in certain statutorily enumerated circumstances.
• North Dakota: Not likely to be enforceable.
• Oklahoma: Not enforceable.
• Oregon: Only permitted in certain statutorily enumerated circumstances and are void unless in strict compliance with statutory requirements.