I reside in Indiana....
I formally worked at a dog daycare/grooming/boarding facility. After I had been there approx 4 months they had myself and 3 other employees sign a NCA. I worked there for another year and just quit 2 months ago to purse another path. I was just recently approached by a lady who would like to hire me to work in her new facility (grooming, daycare and boarding) as a groomer (I only worked the daycare part formerly). Is there a way to get out of the agreement or can it hold up in court?
I know for a fact employees who hired on after me have not signed a NCA.
Thank you all in advance!
Most states, including Indiana, are not fond of non-compete agreements, considering them a restraint on trade. Even so, courts in Indiana and elsewhere will enforce non-compete agreements if they are not too broad in scope and a legitimate business interest is being protected (e.g, trade secrets, customer relationships).
Like several other states, Indiana has taken non-compete agreements that have been challenged in court and "blue penciled" any portion of the non-competes considered overly broad in scope or overly restrictive. The courts would then let the rest of the non-compete stand. For example, if a court found a 50 mile geographic range too broad but the time restriction of 6 months reasonable, the 6 months could still be enforced but the geographic limit would be modified to make it reasonable and enforceable, or removed.
This appears to have changed in Indiana with a Court of Appeals Opinion in
Clark's Sales and Service, Inc. v. John D. Smith and Ferguson Enterprises, Inc.. There was no blue-penciling of unreasonable terms but rather a voiding of the entire non-compete due to some unreasonable terms. The voiding of the entire agreement is what other states are starting to do, as well - moving away from a court's blue-penciling. In other words, employers must now take more care when drafting their non-competes so that all terms are reasonable.
Here is a link to the Memorandum Decision, March 8, 2013:
http://www.in.gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/03081304ehf.pdf
It is
possible that the 2 year restriction in your non-compete, along with any restriction on doing work other than daycare for the same type of business, could make your entire non-compete unenforceable.
BUT, you will want and you will need to have the entire non-compete agreement personally reviewed by a professional in your area. You will want to determine, before taking another job with a competitor, if your non-compete agreement could be enforceable if your employer were to take you to court.
