Erika Birg Quoted in the Fulton County Daily Report
"Judges May Be Given 'Blue-Pencil' Power"

Erika Birg was quoted in the January 19, 2010 article, "Judges May Be Given 'Blue-Pencil' Power," published by the Fulton County Daily Report. The article reported on the debate over Georgia's House Resolution 178, a bill that determines which employees can sign contracts that include restrictive covenants, which types of covenants can be included in contracts and how courts should evaluate covenants.

Erika described a case where two telecommunications companies battled over a top executive as a way to illustrate why HR 178 should be passed and sent to voters for approval as an amendment to the Georgia Constitution. She observed that the case showed one company's clear intention to restrict the ability of an executive, who possessed strategic information about the business, to work for a competitor. The company's inability to write an employment contract to achieve that goal highlights why Georgia law needs to be changed. Erika remarked, “There is a lot of confusion among judges and lawyers about when these arrangements are enforceable.” 

Erika explained, “Right now, I have to read hundreds of cases to know what I'm supposed to do [in drafting a restrictive covenant], to make sure that I've checked all the boxes." She further explained that "every time a Georgia court issues an opinion, it can render existing agreements unenforceable.”