The Federal Trade Commission has issued a final rule that bans most noncompete agreements, with the exceptions of existing noncompetes for certain senior executivesand owners of a firm that is being acquired. If and when the rule becomes effective, employers must notify all other employees that their noncompetes will not be enforced. The rule is scheduled to take effect in August but has already been challenged in court.

Noncompete agreements are often included in ownership or shareholder agreements to prevent someone from taking employees, proprietary information, and clients with them if they leave the firm. They are also routinely used in acquisitions of other firms.

This rule could significantly impact business decisions related to M&A as well as firm owners and employees currently working under such agreements. ACEC is offering a special webinar to help you understand what the new rule means to your firm and steps you can take to protect proprietary information.

After attending this session, participants will:

• Understand what is in the FTC rule
• Learn about other restrictive covenants, such as non-solicit and non-disclosure agreements, that the FTC might consider the equivalent of a non-compete
• Understand the legal challenges to the rule
• Discuss approaches to protecting proprietary information and clients if the ban on noncompete agreements is upheld in court