HB352 Alabama 2015 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Chris EnglandRepresentative

Democrat

Session

Regular Session 2015

Title

Contracts, use of restrictive covenants clarified, Sec. 8-1-1 repealed

Summary

HB352 clarifies Alabama's rules on restrictive covenants in contracts and repeals the old 8-1-1 law.

What This Bill Does

It narrows and clarifies what kinds of non-compete and non-solicit agreements are allowed and how they must be limited in time and area. It defines what counts as a protectable interest like trade secrets, confidential information, customer relationships, goodwill, and certain training, and requires covenants to be in writing with consideration. It also gives courts power to reform overly broad restraints or void them if they don’t fit the allowed exceptions, and it specifies remedies for breaches.

Who It Affects

• Businesses and employers wanting to protect trade secrets, confidential information, customer relationships, goodwill, and other protectable interests.
• Employees, agents, buyers of goodwill, and partners who sign or are bound by restrictive covenants (including non-compete, non-solicit, and dissolution provisions).

Key Provisions

• The act lists allowed restraints and sets presumptive reasonable durations for certain covenants (e.g., up to 1 year for goodwill non‑competes; up to 2 years for employee restraints; up to 18 months for customer solicitations or longer with post‑separation pay; dissolution covenants for partners).
• Protectable interests are defined (trade secrets, confidential information, customer or vendor relationships, goodwill, and specialized training with written consideration); job skills alone are not protectable; covenants must be written and supported by consideration; courts can reform or void restraints that are too broad or outside the allowed exceptions.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Contracts