Non Compete or Non Solicitation Agreement in Hawaii
Question Details:
I signed a Non Compete Agreement with my previous company for 2 years. They are head quartered in CA, my branch and where i worked and signed the paperwork was in Hawaii. Many people tell me the Hawaii bans or doesn't favor Non Compete Agreements. Can you tell me if this is true or if I would be safe to talk to my previous customers? it has been over a year since my termination and the NCA was for 2 year term.
Hawaii permits noncompete agreements. To be enforceable they must be reasonable as to time, geographic restriction and scope. Because of Hawaii's unique geographic isolation, judges have remarked that the key is the reasonableness of the geographic restrictions. For example, a 10 mile limitation may be reasonable in California but may not be reasonable on Oahu because 10 miles would cover just about every place you could work on Oahu. The time limitation is also subject to a reasonableness standard. You need to read the exact wording of your noncompete clause to determine if simply contacting your previous customers would be a violation. A 2 year restriction is probably reasonable depending upon the nature of the field of work.
