One thought is that you may not go into it looking for trouble but it is amazing how unreasonable people can get when they are upset. Things happen even among friends. I would never sign the agreement with that non-compete clause. Even in cases where the former company or business associate is splitting hairs, the impact to you personally can be significant should a real dispute arise. I would think that the fact that they have chosen such a broad clause is definitely a concern.
What should you do? One possibility is to be very honest with them. You could assure them of your desire to protect their intellectual rights, but explain your concerns about the broad nature of the restrictions. Perhaps they would be willing to explain what they are trying to protect and whether they are willing to adjust the language to more specifically address their concerns in a way that is not unfair to you. If they are unreasonable in their response, they may be showing their true colors. Ray -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Mitch Amiano Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 12:18 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [Juglist] Contracting, Assignment of (all) Intellectual Property, and Non-Compete I don't know about Ohio; I think the contract would be under force of NY law, since that is where their firm is located. I'm not going into this looking for trouble, but better safe than sorry. - Mitch Chris Merrill wrote: > Andrew C. Oliver wrote: > >> pursued. However #2 is not reasonable. Unless you're hard up, I'd >> negotiate it. > > > I don't know the laws of NC, but in Ohio (which is a "right-to-work" > state, whatever > that means), these clauses do not hold up in court unless you go > straight to a > comptetitor and work on a directly competing product. In that case, > they still > have to prove that you "stole" IP of the first company...working for the > competitor > is not grounds for a conflict of interest lawsuit. A company cannot > prevent you for > working for their competitor, at least in Ohio. > > (of course, you should consult a lawyer regarding any of the above > statements) > _______________________________________________ Juglist mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://trijug.org/mailman/listinfo/juglist_trijug.org _______________________________________________ Juglist mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://trijug.org/mailman/listinfo/juglist_trijug.org
