Michael Elkon Published in Fulton County Daily Report
“Non-Compete Law Won’t Create Indentured Servitude”

Michael Elkon’s article, “Non-Compete Law Won’t Create Indentured Servitude,” was published in the June 24, 2010 Fulton County Daily Report. Michael’s article debates the comments put forth in a previous Daily Report article, which attacks Georgia’s new non-compete law and claims it will create “indentured servants in the state.” In contrast, Michael’s stand is that the new statute sets forth a basic framework for evaluating restrictive covenants and will place Georgia’s new non-compete law in line with that of the majority of the other states.

According to his article, it is difficult to enforce a restrictive covenant in Georgia and it requires a bevy of decisions from the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court. He explains that Georgia’s anti-enforcement regime is the product of a thicket of case law. Thus, Michael points out that one advantage of the new non-compete statute will be that Georgia’s rules on restrictive covenants will be clear and easily accessible to attorneys and laypeople who are not specialists in the area.

Michael explains that the non-compete legislation was considered with care and vetted by a bipartisan collection of legislators. He points out that the statute strikes a balance between the rights of employees to move between jobs, the interests of Georgia businesses to protect their relationships and confidential information, and the ability of those same businesses to hire new talent. In closing, he adds that the new non-compete statute will simply normalize Georgia’s law on the subject.