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Employer Disaster Plan: What To Do When an Employee Has Stolen Trade Secrets and There Is No Non-Compete Agreement

By Appeals, Business Law, Civil Litigation, Covenants Not to Compete, Hiring and Firing, Litigation, Noncompete Agreements, Recent Cases, Tips & News, Trade Secrets
Trade secrets are the kind of information that, if end up in the hands of a competitor, could spell disaster for your business. A common example is the Coca Cola recipe. Other examples include customer lists, pricing information, and business strategies. Under Texas law, it is illegal for an employee…
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Employers: No Noncompete? Buy “Loyalty” Instead

By Appeals, Business Law, Civil Litigation, Covenants Not to Compete, Litigation, Noncompete Agreements, Recent Cases, Texas Supreme Court, Tips & News
In April, I wrote about the enforceability of forfeiture clauses in an article published in Texas Lawyer and reprinted with permission here. A forfeiture clause requires an employee to forfeit his right to compensation if he engages in activity detrimental to the company, such as working for a competitor. In…
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Forfeiture Clauses: When Are These “Bad Boys” Enforceable?

By Appeals, Business Law, Civil Litigation, Covenants Not to Compete, Litigation, Noncompete Agreements, Recent Cases, Severance Agreements, Texas Supreme Court
Executive employment contracts and severance agreements often include a forfeiture clause. These so-called "bad boy" clauses require the employee to forfeit his right to compensation if he engages in activity deemed detrimental to the company, such as working for a competitor. A case pending before the Texas Supreme Court could…
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Arbitration Clause in English Signed by Spanish-Speaking Employee: Enforceable?

By Appeals, Arbitration, Employment Policies, Recent Cases, Retaliation, Texas Supreme Court, Tips & News
Here’s a recent arbitration case that will interest employers with Spanish-speaking employees. In Delfingen US-Texas L.P. v Valenzuela, the employee sued the employer for workers’ compensation retaliation. Because the employee had signed an arbitration agreement, the employer filed a motion to compel arbitration. Arguing that the arbitration agreement was procedurally…
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Appellate Court Judgments & the TAACA

By Appeals, Tips & News
I want to thank the Texas Association of Appellate Court Attorneys (TAACA) for having me and my colleague Marc Knisely speak on appellate court judgments at their conference today. What a talented group of lawyers! They asked thoughtful questions and provided suggestions as to how appellate practitioners can better assist appellate…
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