This morning (September 24, 2008), Rep. Kevin Levitas and Sen. Judson Hill from the Georgia Legislature convened the first meeting of a legislative study committee reviewing the law of Georgia with respect to restrictive covenants in employment and business relationships. The House Committee is chaired by Representative Kevin Levitas, and includes the following members: Representative Tim Bearden; Representative Butch Parrish; Representative Richard Smith; Representative Brian Thomas; and Representative Al Williams. As Representative Levitas previously remarked,

“It is time that the legislature studied this issue in depth and provided clear guidance to the courts regarding the sustainability of these private agreements between private contracting parties and how to make them fair to all parties. . . .

 “It is imperative that we carefully examine all aspects of this important issue so that both employer and employee can know their rights and duties after employment has ended.

“Both parties need to know with certainty what they can and cannot do, and that is why legislation in this area is so important. In addition to providing certainty to the parties, clarifying the law will have a significant impact on Georgia’s economy and the ability of the state to attract businesses to this state and to keep them here.”

Levitas noted th[at] he expects that the committee will hear from a diversity of witnesses with differing viewpoints on the subject. Levitas said that he intends for the committee “to bring together all necessary points of view and to gather all of the facts so that we can, once and for all, clearly define and bring certainty to this important area of the law.”

Erika Birg, a partner with Seyfarth Shaw’s Trade Secrets, Non-Competes, and Computer Fraud team, led off the morning’s testimony, highlighting the background of restrictive covenant law in Georgia. A lively question-and-answer session followed between the committee members and Ms. Birg. The committee’s questions, although varied in substance, primarily involved how a court or a legislature would determine whether a covenant is “reasonable,” as well as how the legislature might craft legislation (and a constitutional amendment if needed) that would address the concerns of both Georgia employers and their valued employees. 

J. Henry Walker IV, a partner with the litigation group of Kilpatrick Stockton and former in-house litigation counsel for BellSouth, spoke, representing the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Walker noted the Chamber’s support for the committee’s work directed towards re-vamping Georgia’s law to provide certainty for both employers and employees. Mr. Walker also discussed BellSouth v. Forsee, 265 Ga. App. 589 (2004), a case in which BellSouth lost the ability to enforce a non-compete for a high-level executive because of Georgia court’s prohibition on enforcing a non-compete that is not certain at the time of execution of the agreement. He highlighted that certainty in the law benefited all concerned – employers and employees alike. 

The committee then heard from R. Samuel Snider, Vice President and Lead Acquisition Counsel for LexisNexis, a subsidiary of Reed Elsevier, regarding the effect of Georgia’s admittedly confusing law on the company’s decision to relocate to Georgia following its acquisition of ChoicePoint. Mr. Snider focused on the needs of technology companies to protect both intangible intellectual property but also protect the companies’ investments in highly compensated and sought-after personnel. He noted that in such instances, restrictive covenants may be part of a negotiated employment arrangement.

The study committee is set to meet again this fall, before the Legislature reconvenes in January. As the date and time are set, we will post the information here.