Can Current Employer Enforce Non-Compete if I Leave and Work for Their Client
My question involves labor and employment law for the state of: Arkansas
I'm currently working for a company that provides online merchandising services to car dealerships; I go to different dealerships, take pictures of their cars, and upload them to their website.
One of the dealerships I service has offered me to work for them as their internet marketing coordinator (website, advertising and social media). But part of that job would be taking photos of cars, which is what the company I currently work for does. The dealership had been thinking for some time now to fire the company I work for and do their photos in-house, that's why they reached out to me knowing I would be able to help them.
My problem is, I signed a non-compete agreement with the company I work for now. I've been doing photography even before I worked for this company, and I've only been with them for 3 months if that makes a difference.
These are the statements on the non-compete that concerns me:
"will not provide services, directly or indirectly, to any Conflicting Organization in connection with the marketing, sale, promotion, production, or distribution of any Conflicting Product in any Conflicting Territory. "
"My agreement “not to solicit” means that I will not, either directly or indirectly, during my employment and for a period of one year after the termination of my employment for any reason, initiate any contact or communication with any Restricted Client for the purpose of soliciting, inviting, encouraging, recommending or requesting any Restricted Client to do business with a Conflicting Organization in connection with a Conflicting Product or to otherwise discontinue, in whole or in part, its patronage and business relationship with **company name**."
My question is, if I leave and start working for the Dealership and take photos of cars as part of the job, will the company be able to enforce the non-compete? How about if the dealership discontinues their relationship with the company even before I accept the job?
What do I have to do to be able to accept the job without risking getting sued?
I appreciate any advise or insight anyone can give on this matter.
Re: Can Current Employer Enforce Non-Compete if I Leave and Work for Their Client
It is to prevent you from doing exactly that that an employer asks you to sign a non-compete in the first place.
However, whether the non-compete is enforceable is not something that a message board can tell you. You need to take the entire agreement (not just a few isolated statements, which for all we know are modified by language not shown) to an attorney in your state.