New Jersey may be next up to join the growing number of states that significantly restrict the use of non-competition agreements in employment. As we discussed back in December 2017, a bill proposed in New Jersey at the time, Senate Bill 3518, would “impose significant restrictions and limitations” on the use of restrictive covenants
New Jersey
New Jersey Court Offers A Reminder That The Duty Of Loyalty Is Thicker Than Ink
Do employees in New Jersey owe a duty of loyalty to employers, even without a written employment agreement? Eliminating any possible doubt, the New Jersey Appellate Division answered, emphatically, yes.
In Technology Dynamics, Inc. d/b/a Nova Battery Systems v. Emerging Power, Inc. et al., Docket No. A-0952-17T3 (N.J. Sup. Ct. – App. Div. Feb.…
State Attorneys General Step Up Antitrust Probes of Franchise Industry Hiring Practices
In the midst of a federal effort to ramp up antitrust prosecutions of companies agreeing not to recruit or hire each other’s employees (see previous articles dated November 9, 2016, January 25, 2018, April 25, 2018 and July 17, 2018), special scrutiny – and criticism – has been directed toward the use…
New Jersey Bill Would Limit Non-Compete Agreements
A bill in the New Jersey Senate, Senate Bill 3518 (“SB 3518”), and an identical companion bill in the New Jersey Assembly (Assembly Bill 5261), would significantly curtail the use of non-compete agreements in New Jersey. In an article posted on our website, Cliff Atlas, Kevin Miller and Colin Thakkar analyze SB 3518 and…
Company Pays For Taking Short Cuts to Start New Business
A New Jersey state court judge has allowed a $10 million jury verdict to stand in favor of biotech firm GenScript USA in its trade secret and employee piracy claims against competitor, Genewiz, Inc. In October 2014, the jury had entered a multi-million dollar verdict in GenScript’s favor following a six-week trial. The jury found…
Delay Leads to Denial of Request for Injunctive Relief in New Jersey Lawsuit
A recent decision from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey highlights the perils of delay before applying for injunctive relief. In PTT, LLC v. Gimme Games, et al. No. 13-7161 (JLL/JAD), PTT, a slot machine developer, sued competitor Gimme Games and former PTT executives who started Gimme Games, for misappropriation,…
Criminal Prosecution for Employee Theft of Employer’s Documents May Proceed, New Jersey Court Rules
Our colleague Jason C. Gavejian has written about an interesting case in New Jersey involving the criminal prosecution of an employee who took highly confidential documents from her employer to support her employment discrimination suit. The decision distinguishes a 2010 New Jersey Supreme Court ruling in which the court held that an employee who copied…
New Jersey Federal Court Allows Non-Party to Employment/Non-Compete Agreement to Invoke Arbitration Clause
A New Jersey federal court recently granted a defendant-company’s motion to compel arbitration pursuant to a non-compete agreement between the plaintiff-company and two former employees who had discontinued employment with the plaintiff and went to work for the defendant. The case is Precision Funding Group, LLC v. National Fidelity Mortgage, Civ. No. 12-5054 (RMB/JS),…
Bill in New Jersey Legislature Would Invalidate Restrictive Covenants
An article recently posted on the Jackson Lewis website describes a bill introduced in the New Jersey State Assembly that would invalidate non-compete, non-disclosure, and non-solicitation agreements for former employees who are eligible for unemployment benefits. A similar proposal is under consideration in Maryland. We will continue to monitor this topic.