On May 11, 2011, Georgia’s Governor, Nathan Deal, signed House Bill 30. House Bill 30 reenacts House Bill 173 with some minor modifications. With Governor Deal having signed the legislation, House Bill 30 is now in effect.
As discussed in prior blog entries, House Bill 173 was passed by the Georgia legislature in 2009 to reform Georgia’s non-compete law and was intended to go into effect following the passage of Amendment One on last November’s ballot. The legislature introduced House Bill 30 because of a potential constitutional infirmity concerning the effective date of House Bill 173.
House Bill 30 is substantially the same as House Bill 173, which drastically changed Georgia law with respect to non-competes and other restrictive covenants. The new law makes it significantly easier for Georgia employers to enforce non-competes, as well as other restrictive covenants against former employees.
Please see our April 19, 2011 blog entry for a discussion of how House Bill 30 modifies House Bill 173.
Benjamin Fink is known for his work in noncompete, trade secret and competition-related disputes. A shareholder at Berman Fink Van Horn, Ben concentrates his practice in business and employment litigation.
