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Jesse M. Coleman

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The FTC’s recently issued Final Rule banning non-competes for most workers prohibits an employer from (1) threatening to enforce a non-compete against a worker, (2) advising the worker that, due to a non-compete, they should not pursue a particular job opportunity, or (3) telling the worker that the worker is subject to a non-compete.[1] The FTC asserts that these…

Continue Reading The FTC’s “Good Faith” Exception to the Non-Compete Ban: Pending Legal Challenges Are Not a Basis for Non-Compliance

Are nonprofit health care entities exempt from the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) Final Rule banning non-competes in worker agreements? The answer is not cut and dry. While the FTC’s authority generally stops at the doors of nonprofit entities, the FTC has warned in its Final Rule that it intends to vigorously enforce the ban wherever it can claim jurisdiction. The…

Continue Reading FTC Signals Its Intent To Pursue Nonprofit Health Care Entities With Its Non-Compete Ban Whenever Possible

While the two federal actions in Texas challenging the FTC’s non-compete ban have garnered much of the attention to date, a challenge of the FTC’s rule brought by a small tree trimming business in Pennsylvania is now in the spot light as the federal court there has indicated that it will issue a ruling by July 23rd.

Earlier this…

Continue Reading Pennsylvania Federal Court to Issue Decision On FTC Non-Compete Ban Challenge By July 23

The FTC’s Final Rule banning non-competes in worker agreements contains a noteworthy exception that its provisions “do not apply where a cause of action related to a non-compete clause accrued prior to the effective date.”[1] The “existing cause of actions” exception, codified as Section 910.3(b), is a new addition that was not included in the FTC’s proposed rule issued…

Continue Reading Cutting Off Claims – When Does the FTC Non-Compete Ban Allow for Accrued Actions?

The district court in the Northern District of Texas recently set the briefing schedule on Plaintiff Ryan’s Motion to Stay the FTC Non-Compete Ban and Preliminary Injunction:

  • The Court ORDERS Defendant FTC to file any opposition to Plaintiff Ryan’s Motion for Stay of Effective Date and Preliminary Injunction, by May 22, 2024.
  • The Court further ORDERS Plaintiff Ryan to file
… Continue Reading Federal District Court To Rule on Plaintiffs’ Motion for Stay of FTC Non-Compete Ban and Preliminary Injunction Most Likely By July 3rd

On May 3, 2024, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas entered an Order staying the proceedings in Chamber of Commerce v. FTC by granting the FTC’s motion to apply the first-to-file doctrine, in which a district court should generally order “stay, transfer, or dismissal” of a second-filed action that substantially overlaps with a pending, first-filed…

Continue Reading FTC Non-Compete Ban Lawsuits Update: Eastern District of Texas Stays Chamber of Commerce Suit in Favor of Ryan LLC as First-to-File

On April 23, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted in a 3 to 2 decision along party lines to adopt its Final Non-Compete Clause Rule (“Noncompete Rule”) banning post-employment non-compete clauses between employers and their workers. The Noncompete Rule is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on May 7, 2024, giving the rule an Effective Date of…

Continue Reading Analysis of FTC Non-Compete Ban Legal Challenges: Does the Ban Pass Constitutional Muster? (And Other Issues)

On April 23, 2024, the FTC announced its Final Non-Compete Clause Rule (“Final Rule”), which bans post-employment non-compete clauses between employers and their workers. The Final Rule becomes effective 120 days after being published in the Federal Register (Effective Date).[1] As of the date of this paper, the Final Rule has not been published in the Federal Register.

Key

… Continue Reading FTC Non-Compete Ban: What You Need to Know
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On April 18, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), Justice Department (“DOJ”), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) launched an online reporting portal, HealthyCompetition.gov, for the public to report potentially unfair and anticompetitive health care practices. The online reporting portal provides examples of unfair and anticompetitive health care practices under existing antitrust laws including:

  1. “consolidation,
… Continue Reading All Gas No Brakes – The FTC, DOJ, and HHS Unveil Online Reporting Portal as Latest Effort to Combat Unfair and Anticompetitive Health Care Practices

This afternoon, the FTC voted to adopt a proposed final rule banning most non-competes with workers in the United States. The final rule provides that it is an unfair method of competition—and therefore a violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act—for employers to enter into non-competes with workers. The Commission found that non-competes tend to negatively affect competitive conditions…

Continue Reading FTC Approves Rule Banning Non-Competes With Workers