Restrictive covenants
Restrictive covenants is an area which is becoming increasingly recognised as a niche area within the wider employment law context and chambers are doing increasing amounts of this work acting for national estate agencies, media companies and the finance industry. Typical examples of this area of work include Luce v Jersey Trust (covenants applying in the financial sector) and Hamptons Estates Ltd v Smith (extent of restraints in the context of estate agents).
Our employment law barristers are experienced in dealing with such matters in the contexts of applications for interim and final injunctions and are used to dealing with issues that touch upon geographical and temporal restraints and also in relation to applications for springboard injunctions. Nicholas Baldock has done significant work in this area, specifically in the context of restrictive covenants which apply in the legal profession. Further Gordon Menzies was instructed in the case of Witmar v Earth Island Publishing and others [2013] EWHC 1881 (Ch) which touched upon the correct approach to dealing with ‘Linked In’ network groups operated by a former employee in the context of post termination restrictions.