You work for the same company for a few years and you would like a change of scenery. You want to stay in the same field though and so you apply to jobs that may be viewed as competitors for your current company. Your employer comes in saying that you cannot do this due to a non-compete agreement in your contract. What is a non-compete agreement and what does Illinois have to say about it?
A non-compete agreement is a contractual agreement that states that an employee cannot work for a competitor of their previous company for a set amount of time and a set geographic area. The times and areas tend to vary based on industry. Non-competes are often written into an employee’s initial employment contract.
In Illinois, for years, lawyers looked to general contract law and a case called Fifield v. Premier Dealer Services for guidance on the validity of a non-compete. The Appellate Court in Fifield ruled, among other things, that non-competes were not enforceable if the employee worked less than two years for his/her employer. Since neither the Illinois Legislature nor the Illinois Supreme Court addressed the Appellate Court’s conclusions in Fifield, the case’s enforceability remained a matter of debate.
