There can be dire and far-reaching consequences when employees leave and take valuable IP knowledge with them or use the customer goodwill gained from their employment to compete or solicit away business opportunities. We make sure that our clients protect their valuable human assets, confidential and proprietary information and intellectual property.
Non-Competes
We leverage our deep knowledge of legal and business issues to offer a full range of strategies for non-compete disputes. Our experienced team of litigation and trial attorneys knows how to position and try cases, based on extensive knowledge of this particular area of the law built on collective experience (and cross-practice collaboration). We work on a daily basis with clients to identify operational risks around the business’s key protectable interests and then implement strategies or pursue/defend litigation to secure the greatest protection possible.
Strategies that Make Business Sense
The complex laws that protect employers and employees vary by state concerning what can be protected and how protection must be secured. When employees leave, we evaluate the issues and provide a holistic understanding of enforcement options and effective solutions that make business sense.
Protecting Valuable Competitive Assets
When disputes arise, we protect valuable competitive assets through offensive and defensive strategies. For example, we have defended cases involving international manufacturers of chemicals, photocopying equipment and metal coatings against allegations of hiring employees in violation of non-competition agreements and sharing stolen trade secrets and have sued former employees of insurance brokerage, trucking logistics and financial services companies for breach of contract, unfair competition and misappropriation of trade secrets. We defended individuals of newly formed companies against restrictive covenant and trade secret claims by former employers, and we have pursued claims around clients’ former employees who have unfairly sought to compete. On either side of the aisle, when executive disloyalty claims arise, our team is prepared to immediately pursue or defend the injunction proceedings and any related negotiations.
Restrictive Covenants
Our market-leading labor and employment litigation team offers in-depth knowledge of the business and intellectual property considerations that underlie restrictive covenants. We advise our clients on how to avoid, address or resolve restrictive covenant issues in state and federal courts nationwide.
Restrictive Covenant Litigation
We handle complex disputes involving non-compete, non-solicitation and confidential information agreements, leveraging our experience and litigation strengths to evaluate the risks and challenges of each case. We represent companies looking to hire employees subject to restrictive covenants, employers threatened by breaches of such agreements and individuals facing unfair competition claims, trade secret or intellectual property violations.
Broad Spectrum Experience
We are trial-savvy and litigation-averse, offering sage counsel tailored to our clients’ needs. We’ve achieved winning results in trade secrets and non-competition cases across sectors including the financial services, manufacturing, hospitality, retail, technology and technology industries. In one such case, we represented a hospitality company in a series of non-competition claims and counter-claims with its chief competitor alleging unfair competition practices. We negotiate for equitable settlements, fight for early dismissals and go to the wire to litigate trials to verdict and on appeal.