Judge Strikes Down FTC Ban on Noncompete Agreements

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said the ruling protects American business interests against government interference.
Judge Strikes Down FTC Ban on Noncompete Agreements
The Federal Trade Commission building in Washington, on Sept. 19, 2006. Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images
|Updated:
0:00

A federal judge ruled against a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ban on noncompete agreements, set to go into effect next month, saying that the rule was “unreasonably overbroad without a reasonable explanation.”

A noncompete agreement is an employment contract stating that workers must not compete with their employer after their job contracts end, such as by working for a competitor or in a specific market. The FTC estimates that roughly 20 percent of U.S. workers, or about 30 million people, have signed such agreements.

Naveen Athrappully
Naveen Athrappully
Author
Naveen Athrappully is a news reporter covering business and world events at The Epoch Times.