Birmingham Business Journal Quotes Adam Israel on Potential Impacts of Noncompete Rule

Adam Israel, partner in the firm’s Birmingham office and member of the Litigation Practice, shared his perspective in an interview with the Birmingham Business Journal regarding how a new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rule prohibiting noncompete agreements could impact the workforce in the state of Alabama. 

In the article published May 13, Adam pointed out that the rule is already encountering legal challenges. 

“As expected, on April 24, 2024, business groups led by the US Chamber of Commerce filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (Case No. 6:24-cv-00148-JCB) challenging the FTC’s new noncompete rule,” Adam was quoted as saying. 

Adam explained that in Alabama, non-compete agreements are already invalid for "professionals," a group that according to Alabama Supreme Court precedent encompasses doctors, lawyers, accountants, and other similar professions. This means that many blue-collar, entry-level, and other non-professional roles could still be affected by a ban on noncompete agreements. 

“I think the FTC’s aim was to make more workers more mobile in the marketplace,” Adam was quoted as saying.

In his interview, Adam noted that he has received numerous inquiries from both employees and employers regarding whether the time is right to hire or seek new employment, who will be impacted, and when changes might take effect.

“The answer is this. This rule has not taken effect yet,” Adam was quoted as saying. “It does not take effect by its terms for 120 days. And, like I said earlier, depending on what happens in the court cases, it may not take effect for a long time — if ever. So the thing to do is really just to continue on with business as usual and monitor what's going on in the courts with regard to this rule.” 

Adam focuses on complex business litigation, including in the areas of business torts and unfair competition. A substantial portion of Adam’s practice is devoted to representing businesses and individuals in non-compete, non-solicitation, and theft of trade secrets cases in trial and appellate courts. 

Adam was recognized by the Birmingham Business Journal as a “Top 40 Under 40” in 2021 and “Rising Star Lawyer” in 2016. He is listed among The Best Lawyers in America^® “Ones to Watch,” Benchmark Litigation’s “Under 40 Hot List” and by Mid-South Super Lawyers as a “Rising Star” in the Business Litigation practice area.