Common Law Restraint of Trade Doctrine: Fundamental legal principle requiring restrictive covenants to be reasonable in scope, protect legitimate business interests, and not be wider than necessary for such protection
Competition Act 1998: Legislation ensuring restrictions don't create anti-competitive effects and must not breach Chapter I prohibition on anti-competitive agreements
Employment Rights Act 1996: Key legislation governing fundamental employment rights and protections, and their relationship with existing employment contracts
Human Rights Act 1998: Legislation protecting Article 8 (right to private life) and Article 11 (freedom of association) which must be considered in employment restrictions
Data Protection Act 2018 and UK GDPR: Legal framework governing the handling of personal data of employees or customers that may be relevant to the non-solicitation agreement
Contract Law Principles: Core legal principles including consideration requirements, clarity and certainty requirements, and reasonableness test under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977
Geographic Scope Requirement: Legal requirement that any geographic restrictions in the agreement must be reasonable and justifiable
Duration Requirement: Legal principle requiring that the time period of the non-solicitation restriction must be justifiable and reasonable
Restricted Activities Definition: Legal requirement that the scope of restricted activities must be clearly defined and not overly broad
Legitimate Business Interests: Legal principle that the agreement must only protect legitimate business interests and not extend beyond what is necessary
Right to Earn a Living: Legal principle that the agreement must not prevent the employee from earning a living in their chosen field
Consideration Requirement: Legal requirement that post-employment restrictions must be supported by adequate consideration to be enforceable
