An Ohio Non-Compete Agreement is a legal document that protects confidential information, customer relationships, trade secrets, and proprietary information used to solicit the company’s customers. These are broad protections, showing Ohio takes its non-compete laws seriously.
Reasonable Uses and Objections
- Enforceable when terminated without cause? – Yes.
- Employee non-solicitation agreement permitted? – Yes.
- Customer non-solicitation agreements permitted? – Yes.
- Does continuing employment equal sufficient consideration? – Yes.
Legally Enforceable in Ohio?
Yes, Ohio employers can write and enforce executed non-compete agreements. However, the courts will ultimately decide whether individual agreements are written to give employers and employees reasonable rights and responsibilities.
As long as you keep time and geography limitations in mind, you should not run afoul of state rules governing non-compete clauses.
Here are a few considerations:
- Non-compete clauses do not bind certain healthcare workers.
- These agreements also cannot harm the public or pose undue hardships on individual employees.
Reasonable Use and Exemptions
In Ohio, reasonable use for non-compete includes a provision that employers should only include protections that safeguard their business interests. Considerations include whether the employee is the sole contact with specific customers and whether there is a limitation specified in the agreement for time or geographic location.
Courts also consider whether the benefit to the employer is more significant than the detriment to the employee and whether there are any other means of support for a terminated or separated employee.
Also, it matters where employees gain their knowledge and talent. If they learned their skills mainly from other employers, it’s more difficult for employers to defend their non-compete agreements.
Time Limitations
Ohio law imposes a standard of reasonability test to determine how long non-compete agreements can last.
Geographical Limitations
The Ohio law doesn’t recognize a specific limit to time and space. This means that courts will determine what is reasonable, given the circumstances. Take this into consideration when drafting non-compete agreements for your business.
Sample
Below, you can download an Ohio non-compete agreement PDF or Word format:
