Over the past several years, our firm has prepared non-solicitation agreements and non-competition agreements for our clients to use when hiring employees.
Effective January 1, 2026, several amendments to the Illinois Workplace Transparency Act will go into effect. These amendments require that all new non-solicitation agreements, non-competition agreements, and severance agreements between employers and employees contain certain specific provisions. Any agreement that does not include all newly required provisions will be void upon execution and unenforceable.
In addition, employees who successfully challenge the enforceability of their agreements will be entitled to recover both their attorneys’ fees and any consequential damages they may have suffered. These changes represent a significant rebalancing of the power dynamic in favor of employees with respect to employment agreements.
Accordingly, it is imperative that employers discontinue use of any existing forms of non-solicitation or non-competition agreements. If you still wish to continue using restrictive covenant agreements with certain new employees, please contact us so we can prepare new agreements that comply with the requirements of the amended statute.