Franchise No-Poach Agreements: Is Reform on The Horizon?

In 2016, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued Joint Guidance for Human Resource Professionals warning that no-poach agreements restricting employee hiring may violate the antitrust laws.[1] That guidance, along with pre-guidance litigation, has established some clear ground rules. Naked no-poach agreements are per se illegal under §1 of the Sherman Act,[2] while ancillary no-poach agreements, those related to legitimate, procompetitive joint ventures[3] and corporate acquisitions,[4] are subject to the rule of reason, which considers whether the agreement is, on balance, anticompetitive.

Yet, four years later, there remain stubborn pockets of disagreement—for example, no-poach clauses in franchise agreements. Federal courts are struggling to reach a consensus on how to analyze them under the antitrust laws. And there’s a lot at stake. Statistics show more than 8 million Americans work in the franchise sector. The stakes are high for employers too. If the rule of reason applies, private litigation may be financially impractical; the necessity of proving a relevant geographic market in applying the rule of reason makes it difficult, if not impossible, to certify sizable class actions.[5] If the per se rule applies, the Sherman Act’s treble damages and attorneys’ fees provisions can prove disastrous…

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