Landry’s Restaurants, the Houston-based company that owns more than 40 restaurant chains and 400 properties including restaurants, hotels and casinos, has sued a former employee for breaching a non-compete agreement. Last week, Landry’s filed suit against Tim Kohler, who formerly served as director of operations for Vic & Anthony’s Steakhouse, the highly-acclaimed steakhouse with locations … Continue reading
Fort Lauderdale-based MAKO Surgical Corporation has filed a lawsuit against a former employee, Jeffrey Gellman, and his new company, Blue Belt Technologies, Inc., alleging the parties conspired to steal MAKO’s confidential information and clients. MAKO is a company that is principally engaged in the design, manufacture and sale of robotic surgical systems. These systems use … Continue reading
It can be difficult to discuss trends in non-compete litigation, particularly from a national perspective, given that non-compete agreements are governed by state law. Although many states utilize similar tests for evaluating the enforceability of such agreements, there can be tremendous variation from one state to another. That said, a number of recent cases from … Continue reading
Need a NY or PA Non-Compete Lawyer? Call 954-332-2395. A recent case out of the Western District of New York raises a number of interesting non-compete issues, including Pennsylvania’s “worthless employee” doctrine. In 1983, Phillip Garrod began working as a salesman in the field of “elastometric precision products.” Let’s just call them EPPs. After seventeen … Continue reading
In the world of non-compete litigation, it is well-known that employee non-compete agreements are unenforceable under California law. As a result, when a non-compete dispute has any ties to California, we often witness the proverbial race to the courthouse. In essence, the former employee facing the possible lawsuit will seek to file first by bringing … Continue reading
Last week, the Texas Court of Appeals affirmed a trial court order finding a physician non-compete agreement unenforceable as against public policy. Although Texas has no outright ban on physician non-compete agreements (like Massachusetts or Alabama), the decision suggests that Texas courts may be willing to invalidate physician non-compete agreements where there is evidence of … Continue reading
Over the past few years, non-compete litigation in the broadcasting industry has become increasingly common. A recent case out of Birmingham, Alabama continues that trend. On Monday, Citadel Broadcasting (a subsidiary of Cumulus Media) filed a lawsuit against Ryan Haney, who formerly served as program director for Citadel’s Birmingham sports talk radio station, WJOX 94.5 … Continue reading
A recent North Carolina non-compete case has pitted one of the nation’s largest allergy clinics against one of North Carolina’s most respected physicians. Earlier this month, Charlotte-based Carolina Asthma and Allergy Center (CAAC) filed a lawsuit against one of its former doctors, Dr. Maeve O’Connor. Dr. O’Connor has joined the practice back in 2003 and … Continue reading
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD), one of the world’s largest manufacturers of computer graphics cards, has sued four former employees alleging a massive theft of company trade secrets. The case was filed last week in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. According to the complaint, former AMD executive Robert Feldstein was … Continue reading
A recent non-compete dispute in Florida raises questions about the concept of legitimate business interests under Florida law. Until October, prominent Florida chef Domenica Macchia ran the kitchen at a St. Petersburg restaurant called Three Birds Tavern. After leaving Three Birds last fall, Macchia became the chef at another local restaurant called Beak’s Old Florida. … Continue reading