11-09-2008, 05:09 PM
Apple may very well counter in a California court. A NY based non-compete will probably not be recognized in California. By IBM's definition, Papermeister wouldn't be allowed to work for any electronics company. This may be cause for the non-compete to be tossed. For someone with his background, it would be hard for him to get any work in his field. The other question is what was he offered in exchange for the non-compete. Non-competes that are signed as part of the terms of employment are one thing, but if he signed it after being an employee, IBM had to tie something tangible as compensation for signing the non-compete. This would include a bonus or other compensation tied to the signing of the agreement. This is one of the major reasons that non-competes are tossed from what an employment practices lawyer told me.