As a business, your employees are one of your greatest resources. When those employees move on to new opportunities, though, they don’t just take their skills and their labor with them—they also take the knowledge they have built while working for your company. Your competitors may try to hire your employees to gain an edge over your business by knowing your sales, marketing or new products that have not yet entered the market.
One of the best ways to prevent your competition from protecting your business from the competition is through a non-compete agreement, but you must ensure that this agreement is enforceable. How can you ensure that you can legally enforce your agreement?
When can noncompete agreements be enforced?
Your noncompete agreement must meet specific standards for the court to consider it valid. The agreement must offer the employee something of value in exchange for the agreement, such as a position at the company or a bonus. It must also include the period in which employees cannot work for competitors and the geographic area that it covers.
Under Florida law, you can only enforce your noncompete agreement if the agreement is “reasonable.” A noncompete agreement might be unreasonable if it limits a person’s employment opportunities for a long period of time or covers a very large geographic area.
If you want to craft a noncompete agreement that protects your business in and out of court, speak to an attorney with business law experience. They can review your contract to ensure that your agreement keeps your company competitive in your market.