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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Posts
    1

    Default Getting Out of Non Compete

    I am an IT professional, (in a right-to-work state, WV) who is in a company with no advancement potential. When I first started with the company I had no idea that almost 2 years later I would have received no increase in salary, benefits, nothing. I have been offered an opportunity with another IT company that is located in a different city/county, but does work in the city/county of my current company. Below is my noncompete clause I signed when I first began my employment. Can I get out of this non compete?

    Employee agrees that he will not on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person, firm, corporation, association or other entity, either directly or indirectly, compete with Employer by engaging in the sale or provision of nay service or product offered b Employer. Employee agrees that, in the event that Employees employment relationship is terminated for any reason by either party, this duty not to compete shall continue for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of the termination of his employment. Employee and Employer agree that, at present, this geographical limited to that area in which Employer does business at the time Employee leaves employment. Employee and Employer agree that, at present, this geographical area is composed of the counties of Kanawha, Putnam, Logan, Monongalia, and Wood, in the State of West Virginia. Employee and Employer both contemplate and expect that the geographical area in which employer offices products and services will grow int the future and agree that employee will o compete in that area into which Employer expands in the future.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2007
    Location
    Il.(near StL,Mo.)
    Posts
    5,252

    Default Re: Getting Out of Non Compete

    I believe you mean at-will employment state. Right to work just means you can't be required to join a union in order to be employed.

    WV courts generally recognize non-compete agreements if they are reasonable. You will need to take the non-compete agreement to an employment or contract attorney in your area for his opinion & advice.

  3. #3

    Default Re: Getting Out of Non Compete

    Quote Quoting valo
    View Post
    I am an IT professional, (in a right-to-work state, WV) who is in a company with no advancement potential. When I first started with the company I had no idea that almost 2 years later I would have received no increase in salary, benefits, nothing. I have been offered an opportunity with another IT company that is located in a different city/county, but does work in the city/county of my current company. Below is my noncompete clause I signed when I first began my employment. Can I get out of this non compete?

    Employee agrees that he will not on his own behalf or on behalf of any other person, firm, corporation, association or other entity, either directly or indirectly, compete with Employer by engaging in the sale or provision of nay service or product offered b Employer. Employee agrees that, in the event that Employees employment relationship is terminated for any reason by either party, this duty not to compete shall continue for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of the termination of his employment. Employee and Employer agree that, at present, this geographical limited to that area in which Employer does business at the time Employee leaves employment. Employee and Employer agree that, at present, this geographical area is composed of the counties of Kanawha, Putnam, Logan, Monongalia, and Wood, in the State of West Virginia. Employee and Employer both contemplate and expect that the geographical area in which employer offices products and services will grow int the future and agree that employee will o compete in that area into which Employer expands in the future.
    Wow, while this is a bit out of bounds I personally believe they all violate the Sherman Act period as it is very clear on the contracts for this area...

    http://www.justice.gov/atr/foia/divisionmanual/ch2.htm

    http://www.justice.gov/atr/foia/divi...ual/ch2.htm#a1

    ...and of course I have never heard of anybody fighting all the way up to courts who decide on whether the Sherman Act has been violated or not but the act itself reads so simple a Jr.highschool freshman should be able to understand it. Non compete does restraint trade in my humble opinion especially since a contract has been signed.

    In my case here is what I foolishly signed in the state of Wyoming and in the last paragraph on page one of the contract...

    Programmer also agrees not to develop laboratory related software without the written consent of COMPANY NAME HERE inc., including but not limited to any Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) product. This shall cover a period of three years from the date of all services completed.

    Oddly I was very excited about working for this puny little company as it was a Work Made For Hire Contract and I was working from home. I wanted to get in a comapny and advance my abilities for future possible employment with better companies. This guy lead me to believe that I would be paid an hourly rate verbally. This was done by repeating over and over how many dollars per hour each of his previous programmers were making per hour. Even though no workers comp, no unemployment, no SS, nothing other than a verbal 35 an hour like this. He said that he felt that 35,000 a year was good part time salary. Most of his programmers worked 10 to 20 hours per week. He continued over and over that I should get started a ASAP so that I could start earning those dollars really fast. He really pushed this fact. I was lead to believe that I needed to give a date for completion of each little programming item which was clearly stated in the contract. When I got ready to begin to develop in his enviroment he told me to STOP. He said I MUST give him a dollar bid on each individual programming item and bid was never mentioned verbally and was not mentioned anywhere in the contract. I was so mad about this change in payment that I packed up his CD and all of his paperwork and returned it to him via SIGNED FED EX delivery. I uninstalled his entire software package and code from my computer. I even stated in the local paper in the legal notices that I quit doing anything for him. No moneys were ever paid by him to me ever, I never wrote a single line of code for him, and in fact I probably was his shortest term programmer ever since I never ever really started other than signing contracts and installing his software and code on my PC. Words exchanged repeated over and over via emails for a few days with him threatening me with major lawsuits if I ever gave out his code but of course I returned his disk and papers and I also removed any of it from my computer completely.

    Mine is for (((3 years))) and it will end in less than 15 months from now but geeeee, 3 years and after looking at the options of making other types of lab software especially looking at the medical industry with tons of lab work sure does take me out of 20 to 40 percent of the entire computer programming market depending on the area. 15 months left on this trap for me. In 15 months just to spite this guy I would like to develop some very high quality lab software. Then sale it at a very very very low price. His software is very very high priced. I dought that I will waste my time on that but this event is still stuck in my craw so bad that I have thought of it frequently over the past 17 months.

    My situation is also sad.

    EliteComputerProgrammer

  4. #4

    Default Re: Getting Out of Non Compete

    oops

    Fixed

    EliteComputerProgrammer

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