Non-Compete Agreements: It Doesn’t Matter if the Employee Will Suffer

We frequently field questions from former employees about whether a non-compete is enforceable because it will financially burden him/her.  Recently, the Second District Court of Appeal, in Florida Digestive Health Specialists, LLP v. Colina, 40 Fla. L. Weekly D1801 (Fla. 2d DCA July 31, 2015), addressed the issue.  The former employee argued that an injunction should not be entered against him because it would be more burdensome for him than it would be to the former employer.  The trial court did not enter the injunction and the appellate court reversed, finding that the express language of § 542.335, Fla. Stat., prohibited the trial court from considering individual economic factors in determining whether to enforce the non-compete agreement.  Thus, for purposes of determining whether a non-compete agreement is enforceable, a former employee should be aware that a court is not going to considering the economic hardship that the former employee might face.

This article does not constitute legal advice or the formation of an attorney-client relationship, and is not for re-publication without express permission of the author.