News & Analysis as of September 18, 2024

Non-Compete Agreements › Wage-Fixing

+ Follow

Non-Compete Agreements are contracts, typically formed in employment or business purchase contexts, where one party agrees to refrain from engaging in a particular line of work or pursuing business within a certain industry or locale. The purpose of these agreements is to protect employers or business purchasers from competition stemming from former employees or former owners of a business. less -

Antitrust Enforcers Are Increasingly Focused on Labor Markets, and Not Just in the Merger Context

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP on 3/26/2024

Labor markets have been a focus of antitrust regulators at the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) since the Obama administration. Indications are that enforcers will be even more aggressive across...more

CMA Hits Accelerator on Enforcement of UK Labour Markets

BCLP on 2/16/2024

Whilst not traditionally a focus of the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”), the UK’s labour markets now form one of the CMA’s strategic priorities, as outlined in its 2023 to 2024 Annual Plan....more

2023 Update on Antitrust Enforcement in Labor and Employment

Foley & Lardner LLP on 10/24/2023

The year 2023 will be remembered as a milestone for the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC, and, together with the DOJ, the “Agencies”) in their efforts to expand antitrust enforcement to labor...more

Restrictive Covenant Crackdown Poses New Challenges for M&A Deal Teams

Latham & Watkins LLP on 9/29/2023

Corporates and deal teams should pay careful attention to drafting non-competes and other restrictive arrangements as UK, EU, and US regulators step up enforcement. Regulators on both sides of the Atlantic are placing...more

Legal Insights for Manufacturing

Husch Blackwell LLP on 2/13/2023

We are pleased to announce that Husch Blackwell has published its inaugural “Legal Insights for Manufacturing” report, which provides a look ahead to 2023 and explores the key trends and issues that will shape the coming year...more

Competition authorities crackdown on employment markets: a new era for cartels

Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP on 2/8/2023

At the end of last year, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) secured a guilty plea for wage fixing, resulting in its first criminal conviction with Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter saying: “[t]oday’s guilty plea...more

FTC Proposes to Ban Employee Noncompete Agreements – January 31, 2023 Update

Lowenstein Sandler LLP on 1/31/2023

Updated as of January 31, 2023- The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) proposed a rule (the “Proposed Rule”) that would prohibit companies from imposing post-employment noncompete agreements. If enacted, the Proposed Rule...more

Are the Federal Antitrust Laws Now a Weapon for Employee Rights?

Amundsen Davis LLC on 5/19/2022

Perhaps flying under the radar of everyone except antitrust lawyers (and the employers who have been targeted), the Department of Justice (DOJ) has made a concerted push recently to use federal anti-trust laws as a tool to...more

King & Spalding Analysis: Enforcement of Labor Agreements

King & Spalding on 4/20/2022

Recent actions by the Biden administration, including the Treasury Department’s report on the State of Labor Market Competition in the U.S. Economy, the Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Labor (DOL) and...more

[Podcast] The Emerging New Era for Noncompetes and Trade Secrets: Nationalizing Competitiveness and Noncompete Law: Criminal...

BakerHostetler on 1/27/2022

Nationalizing Competitiveness and Noncompete Law: Criminal Antitrust and Federal Efforts to Curtail No-Poach and Noncompete Agreements is part five of BakerHostetler's six-part series, "The Emerging New Era for Noncompetes...more

HR and CCOs Watch Out!! — The Antitrust Division Doubles Down on Labor Market Criminal Cartel Activity

The Volkov Law Group on 10/4/2021

The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has targeted collusion in labor markets for criminal prosecution. This was not unexpected. Indeed, the Antitrust Division gave plenty of warning to companies that criminal...more

Opportunity Economy: Risks in Antitrust Enforcement

Womble Bond Dickinson on 9/2/2021

Takeaways - ..The Biden administration’s recent executive order takes a hard line on limits to employment mobility, such as non-compete agreements. ..No-poach agreements—companies agreeing not to recruit each other’s...more

New Biden Executive Order Places Increased Focus on Noncompete Agreements and Antitrust Enforcement

Jackson Walker on 7/28/2021

On July 9, 2021, as part of an executive order announced to promote competition and increase wages for workers, President Biden directed the Federal Trade Commission to consider two key areas affecting employers: first, “to...more

President Biden’s Executive Order on Competition Could Mean Broad Changes Across a Range of Industries

Foley & Lardner LLP on 7/15/2021

On Friday, July 9, 2021, President Biden issued a sweeping Executive Order that could have far-reaching implications for businesses across a broad spectrum of industries. The Executive Order takes a government-wide approach...more

Executive Order Restrains Use of No-Poach & Non-Compete Clauses

King & Spalding on 7/14/2021

As summarized in the July 9, 2021 King & Spalding Client Alert, President Biden issued an executive order on July 9, 2021 designed to enhance competition across multiple sectors of the U.S. economy. One of the order’s key...more

Biden Signs Sweeping Executive Order Designed to Expand Antitrust Regulation and Increase Enforcement

McGuireWoods LLP on 7/12/2021

On July 9, 2021 President Biden signed a sweeping executive order aimed at promoting competition in the United States by calling on federal agencies to promptly address what the administration views as “some of the most...more

Are Your Employment Practices Compliant With Antitrust and Non-Compete Laws?

BakerHostetler on 6/14/2021

Introduction - A recent confluence of federal antitrust enforcement, state legislation and the Biden administration’s focus on labor markets has prompted many companies to revisit both their antitrust and human resource (HR)...more

COVID-19 UPDATE: U.S. Antitrust Agencies Issue Joint Statement on COVID-19 and Competition in U.S. Labor Markets

BCLP on 4/30/2020

In a warning to businesses, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and Federal Trade Commission (“FTC,” collectively the “Agencies”) issued a joint statement announcing their continuing vigilance...more

The DOJ and FTC Issue Joint Statement on Competition in Labor Markets in Light of COVID-19: What Effect, If Any, Does This Have on...

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on 4/27/2020

On April 13, 2020, the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division and the Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Competition released a joint statement and press release regarding “competition in labor markets” and potential...more

DOJ Cracks Down on No-Poach Agreements

Smith Anderson on 4/19/2018

On April 3, 2018, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it had “reached a settlement with Knorr-Bremse AG and Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies Corporation, two of the world’s largest rail equipment suppliers, to...more

No-Poaching Agreements Under DOJ’s Microscope: Criminal Indictments May Be Next

Epstein Becker & Green on 3/15/2018

In October 2016, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the Federal Trade Commission jointly issued their Antitrust Guidance for Human Resource Professionals (“Guidance”). As stated in its...more

DOJ, FTC Announce Plans to Criminally Prosecute Employers That Enter into Wage-Fixing or No-Poaching Agreements

Franczek P.C. on 11/15/2016

In the fiercely competitive market for talent, human resources personnel and recruiters inevitably feel the competing pressures of offering compensation packages that are attractive to potential employees and keeping costs...more

DOJ Publishes Antitrust Guidance for HR Professionals Relating to No-Poaching and Wage-Fixing Agreements

FordHarrison on 11/11/2016

In a series of investigations and subsequent court actions, HR professionals have been identified as being potential targets for investigation of allegations of violations of antitrust laws related to employment practices,...more

Antitrust Division Threatens Criminal Prosecution for Employment Practices: Antitrust Agencies Issue Joint Guidance on Employment...

Troutman Pepper on 11/9/2016

Even in the absence of an agreement to fix compensation, simply exchanging competitively sensitive information could serve as evidence of an implicit illegal agreement. On October 20, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and...more

DOJ and FTC Release Antitrust Guidance for HR Professionals

Littler on 11/8/2016

Employment lawyers and human resources professionals, take note: In 2016, in addition to knowing the ins and outs of labor and employment law, the federal government and its enforcement entities expect that you have more...more

27 Results

View per page

Page: of 2

Non-Compete Agreements › Wage-Fixing

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"