New Restrictions on Non-Compete Agreements – And Burdens on Employers – in California

It is well-known in the business community that non-compete agreements are largely unenforceable in California unless specific, narrowly tailored exceptions apply. Section 16600 of the California Business and Professions Code broadly prohibits “every contract by which anyone is restrained from engaging in a lawful profession, trade, or business of any kind.” In short, if a contract or agreement seeks to restrain, through a non-compete provision, a former employee from engaging in a lawful profession, that provision will be void under California law.