Non-competes in Connecticut: what employers can still enforce
By Nadia Okafor, Senior Associate
Few areas of employment law have seen as much attention in recent years as non-compete agreements. Federal proposals, state legislative sessions and a steady stream of court decisions have left many Connecticut employers unsure whether their agreements still work. The short answer is that well-drafted restrictive covenants remain enforceable in Connecticut, but agreements copied from another state or another decade often are not.
The five-factor reasonableness test
Connecticut courts evaluate non-competes under a reasonableness test that looks at five factors: the length of the restriction, the geographic area covered, the fairness of the protection given to the employer, the extent of the restraint on the employee's ability to earn a living, and the extent of interference with the public's interests.
No single factor is decisive. A two-year restriction may be reasonable for a senior executive with strategic knowledge and unreasonable for a sales coordinator.
Professions with statutory limits
Connecticut limits non-competes by statute for certain professions, including physicians, advanced practice registered nurses, physician assistants, broadcast employees and certain security guards. Healthcare employers in particular should review agreements against the specific duration, geography and termination rules in the statutes.
Consider narrower tools first
A full non-compete is not always necessary. Narrower covenants are easier to enforce and often protect what matters most:
- Customer non-solicitation limited to clients the employee actually served
- Employee non-solicitation for a defined period
- Confidentiality agreements covering trade secrets and pricing
- Garden leave clauses that pay the employee during the restricted period
The covenant a court will enforce is worth more than the one that looks strongest on paper.
Consideration for current employees
Asking an existing employee to sign a new restrictive covenant raises the question of consideration. Connecticut courts have generally accepted continued employment as sufficient, but the safer practice is to tie a new covenant to something of value, such as a promotion, raise, bonus or equity grant.
Enforcement in practice
When a former employee breaches a covenant, speed matters. Courts are more receptive to temporary injunctions when the employer acts promptly and can show specific harm, such as customer contacts or downloaded files. Keep records of what confidential information each employee accessed and how customer relationships were developed.
If your agreements have not been reviewed in the last two years, or if you hire employees who work remotely in other states, a review is worthwhile. We typically update restrictive covenant templates as a fixed-fee project alongside the employee handbook.
This article is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change; talk to a lawyer about your specific situation. Learn more about our employment law practice.