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Introduction to Employment Agreements: Key Terms and Drafting Considerations

Determining When to Use Restrictive Covenants; Jurisdictional Concerns; Risks of Using Boilerplate Language

Recording of a 60-minute CLE video webinar


Conducted on Tuesday, June 4, 2024

Recorded event now available

or call 1-800-926-7926

This CLE webinar will provide an introduction to drafting employment agreements on behalf of an employer. The panel will discuss pre-drafting considerations and the provisions that should be included in the agreement. The panel will also provide an overview of the use of restrictive covenants in employment agreements, and based on current federal and state law, discuss under what circumstances these may be used.

Description

Employment agreements define the legal relationship between the employer and employee, describe the terms and conditions of employment, and offer the employer certain protections. Therefore, creating an employment agreement requires more than simply using a template with boilerplate language.

Counsel should understand pre-drafting considerations related to jurisdictional concerns and position-specific requirements. Counsel should also know what terms should be included in the agreement to best protect their clients' interests and how to craft these based on the position. Additionally, given the state of restrictive covenant law at the federal and state levels, counsel should be able to determine when restrictive covenants should be used to protect employer interests while mitigating the risk of enforcement actions.

Listen as our expert panel guides new attorneys through the basics of drafting employment agreements to protect employer interests while remaining legally compliant. The panel will discuss provisions that should generally be included in employment agreements and other provisions that may be included depending on the employee position and jurisdictional considerations.

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Outline

  1. Introduction to employment agreements
    1. Purpose
    2. Pre-drafting considerations
  2. Overview of key terms
    1. Position and job responsibilities
    2. Obligations to the company
    3. Term and termination of employment (including at-will language)
    4. Compensation and benefits
    5. Work for hire, intellectual property assignment
    6. Restrictive covenants
      1. Types of restrictive covenants (nondisclosure, noncompete, nonsolicitation)
      2. Status of restrictive covenant law (federal and state)
      3. When to use restrictive covenants
    7. No prior contracts
    8. Remedies and dispute resolution
    9. Other standard terms (e.g. governing law, choice of forum, merger clause)
  3. Practitioner takeaways

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key considerations:

  • What are the pre-drafting issues that counsel should consider and how do these affect the terms of the agreement?
  • What provisions are required for employment agreements generally? What provisions may be optional depending on the employee's position and jurisdiction?
  • When should counsel consider using restrictive covenants? What jurisdictional considerations should be made?
  • What are the dangers of using boilerplate clauses?

Faculty

Fosse, J. Marc
J. Marc Fosse

Partner
Seyfarth Shaw

Mr. Fosse focuses on all the tax, securities, corporate and accounting issues related to executive and equity...  |  Read More

Koss, Natalie
Natalie M. Koss

Managing Partner
Potomac Legal Group

Ms. Koss actively litigates both commercial and employment cases and has successfully negotiated settlement agreements...  |  Read More

Prokott, Daniel
Daniel G. Prokott

Partner
Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath

Mr. Prokott advises businesses regarding complex workplace matters. He represents employers of all sizes, including...  |  Read More

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Strafford will process CLE credit for one person on each recording. All formats include course handouts.

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