Unlimited Opportunity, Inc. v. Waadah

Appellant, a franchisor of professional cleaning and maintenance services, granted Appellee a franchise in the Omaha, Nebraska area. After Appellant discovered that Appellee was diverting Appellant’s customers to his new business, Appellant terminated its relationship with Appellee. Appellant then filed this lawsuit against Appellee seeking to enforce and receive damages from the breach of the noncompete clause in the franchise agreement. The district court entered judgment for Appellee, concluding that the noncompete clause included an unreasonable restraint on competition. In so ruling, the court refused to sever the offending subpart from the larger noncompete clause. The Supreme Court affirmed after reaffirming its stance against severability of noncompete clauses, holding that the noncompete covenant was invalid and unenforceable and that the district court correctly refused to sever the offending subpart from the larger noncompete clause. View "Unlimited Opportunity, Inc. v. Waadah" on Justia Law