re: Professional non-compete clauses

These threads always contain terrible legal advice.

"I talked to employment lawyers." I doubt it. I generally limit my practice to employers only, but sometimes I have to review someone else's non-compete (e.g. my client hired a person with a non-compete, or in one case, a plant manager's daughter had one). No lawyer will give any advise without seeing the agreement. Unless the employment is in a state that does not recognize them at all, the analysis would be very specific (e.g. not "no judge will enforce them).

You also have to look at the provisions for non-disclosure of proprietary information and non-solicitation of employees and/or customers.