You’re here because you have a Virginia non-compete agreement.

 So why not check out our book, How to Beat Your Virginia Non-Compete? We answer common questions about Virginia non-compete law, including recommendations for employees and business owners. 

Could we have called the book, “Non-Compete for Dummies”? No way. You’re no dummy (lots of people have signed non-competes without even realizing it). And non-compete contracts are tricky.

We lay out the basics:

- What are my rights as a Virginia at-will employee?

- How can I request a copy of my employment contract?

- How can I leave my job, take my clients, and not get sued?

Here’s how you can order a free copy of our guide to Virginia non-compete agreements.

To order a free copy:

Call  us at (540) 985-0098 and ask our office manager, Mary Ann Spencer, to send you a copy by mail.

Or, maybe you’d like an eBook copy for the treadmill or the train home from work:

Go online at Amazon.com to order an eBook of “How to Beat Your Virginia Non-Compete”.

It’s not “non-competes for dummies” – it’s our guide to empower employees and small businesses. Better yet, “Non-Competes for Smart Business (and the Employees Who Work There).”

The post Book: “How to Beat Your Virginia Non-Compete” appeared first on Virginia Non-Compete Lawyer |.

What kind of company? What kind of clients? What kind of services? Do you hope to stay in the same business you are in now? Serve the same clients or customers? Use your years of experience to start a better business?

If your plan is to stay in the same business you are in now and serve the same customers you serve now, you may be violating Virginia law by starting your own company.

Before we cover tips for departing employees, consider for a second the following: lawyers are the only profession that bans non-compete agreements, or so the American Bar Association has implied. Isn’t that crazy?

Lawyers can take all their clients with them to open a new office. Happens all the time. No one cares and typically, everyone is just fine at the end of the day with clients getting to pick where their business goes.

But ironically, non-compete agreements exist in almost every other industry.

Sales. Medicine. Personal Service. Retail. Manufacturing. Development. You name it. And you are bound by contractual rules that prohibit you from serving clients, customers, etc. in the area you live, in the business you know.

Here are some simple rules you should know before you try to start your own business:

Every state law is different. So you need to read your contract and see what state law applies. About 90% of all contracts provide for some kind of choice of law – or state what state law applies.

Plan ahead. It is always better to know your options and obligations before you start that new company. After all, what happens if you start the company and get sued?

Your contract is enforceable until a judge says otherwise. And getting your contract before a judge is expensive. So you need to operate under the assumption its reasonable and binding.

Have a lawyer look at it, someone who actually knows your state law on non-competes – and not your cousin’s boyfriend who is in law school.

Life isn’t always fair. Sometimes you may be bound by a contract, or silly rules that don’t  make sense. So do yourself a favor by knowing what the rules / laws are before you leave your job and start a new company.

The post Hey, Virginia Employee! Look Before You Leap appeared first on Virginia Non-Compete Lawyer |.

He can’t because he signed a contract that says for a period of time he will not open a business, or work for a competitor within 15 miles of his current office.

He could (a) create jobs; (b) feed his family; and, (c) serve the public – all of this without harming his old employer or using their secret or trade secret information. So really, isn’t capitalism in favor of this kind of growth? Isn’t our unsteady economy reliant on it? 

According to the Washington Post:

Slowly but surely, small businesses are starting to accelerate their pace of hiring, helping drive down the overall unemployment rate to a four-year low last month.

Small business owners increased employment by an average of 0.14 workers per company in April, according to the latest report from the National Federation of Independent Business. That’s still slow growth by historic standards, but it marks the fifth consecutive month of gains after a topsy turvy year in 2012.

So again, I ask you is it good, bad, right or wrong that he can’t open this business? Who benefits from his bargain? Only his old employer. Not his county. Not the citizens. Not the economy.

But what if he is fired from his old job, and STILL PROHIBITED from starting this new business? Does that seem right? Legal? Ethical?

Sadly, under current Virginia law, the fact you are let go has no bearing on whether your non-competition or non-solicitation is valid and enforceable when you leave. You can be fired, have the time and talent to open a new business, hire employees and improve lives, and you may not be able to.

How is that for economic recovery?

The post Small Business Owners Fuel Economy – But What About Non-Competes? appeared first on Virginia Non-Compete Lawyer |.