Non-Compete Agreement In order to be enforceable, the non-compete agreement must contain a concept of offer, acceptance, legal consideration, capacity, legality of purpose, a reasonable amount of time and date, defined geographic area, and cannot prevent the use of the employee's professional skills.

"An offer is an expression of willingness to contract on certain terms, made with the intention that it shall become binding as soon as it is accepted by the person, the offeree" (Offer and Acceptance). The expression of the offer can take many forms, such as a letter, email, fax, or even, conduct. The intention of the offer is judged in courts as how a reasonable person would view the situation. The terms of the contract must be clearly defined in the contract offer to ensure their understandability. If a reasonable person cannot understand the terms, it could be unenforceable in a court of law.

The acceptance of the offer is a final and unqualified expression of accent that must be communicated (Offer and Acceptance). It can only be accepted by the offeree, meaning it cannot be accepted by one person on the behalf of another. It may also be implied from the construction of the contract. If the offer specifies a certain method of acceptance, the offer must be accepted by that method, such as a fax or a post. Silence cannot be construed as an acceptance. The "mirror image rule" states the offer must be accepted exactly without modifications.

Legal consideration means the contract has to offer something of value in return for the promise of the other party (Contract Consideration). To be enforceable, the consideration must be adequate, meaning the mutual exchange must involve a fair price in comparison to the promise made. The principles of adequate consideration include; in addition...

Past consideration is never adequate. If the parties agree on the consideration, it is still binding, even if it is not totally equal to the promise. And, consideration is not adequate if it involves an illusionary promise or the item is worthless. Malicious means cannot be involved in the consideration.
Contractual capacity is the minimum mental capacity required by law for a party to enter into a contract and be bound by it (Capacity, Legality, Assent, and Form). This means that any person engaging in a contract must have enough mental capacity to understand the contract terms and understand being bound by them according to law. Persons who have no capacity include minors under 18 years of age, mentally impaired or incompetent persons, or intoxicated persons. Contracts with persons in a licensed profession that do not hold a license is unenforceable by law.

The legality of purpose means the contract cannot break any laws. The terms of the contract must be made under confinement of law. If malicious contention is deemed in any part of a contract, it can become unenforceable by law. The intentions of the contract must uphold all laws and regulations involved in the agreement.

Non-compete agreements are part of employment contracts usually with intention of protecting the employer against unfair competition, or theft of valuable employees that could harm the business by telling competitors how the employer does business or the concepts that entail how the business is performed. The courts have set rules for non-compete agreements through previous court decisions in cases. The agreement must have something of value in compensation for the agreement not to work for a competitor for a…