Recently, Excel Sports Management filed a lawsuit in New York Supreme Court against Klutch Sports Group and a former employee who joined the rival agency, seeking a restraining order, preventing him from working for the rival agency for the duration of his non-compete agreement. At issue was an eight month non-compete agreement Excel claims its former agent had agreed to that prevents him from working for the agency’s primary competitors, including Klutch. Excel asked the judge for injunctive relief, saying the move harms Excel’s business interests and likely will harm its goodwill with brand partner relationships. However, the judge refused to issue a court order preventing Klutch from hiring Excel’s former agent. The judge stated that noncompete agreements “should only be enforced to prevent direct client poaching,” and further finding that the “extraordinary remedy” of a preliminary injunction is “not warranted given the facts at hand.”

If you have an issue with a non-compete agreement, contact one of our attorneys at (708) 576-1624 or [email protected]