Category Archives: Executive contracts

Cardinal/Astros Hack: Earth-Shaking in Baseball, Business as Usual in the C-Suite

Posted on June 23, 2015 by Joe Ahmad

The recent hack into the Houston Astros’ Ground Control database may be unprecedented in sports, but it has echoes of countless trade secret theft cases in the business world. And even if the culprit turns out to be just one or two “rogue elements” within the Cardinals’ front office, it also offers lessons to high-level executives who change jobs. Continue reading →

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Do Texas Execs Get Paid for Unused Vacation Time? It Depends

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Joe Ahmad

A recent study revealed that 41 percent of American workers don’t plan to use all of their paid time off. Given the level of competitiveness in the C-suite, it stands to reason that an even higher percentage of executives leave a significant amount of vacation on the table each year. Not only is this a bad idea – taking time away from work can pay off exponentially in more refreshed, focused workers at every level of the company – but it also means that executives who leave their employers may be walking away from a portion of their compensation. Continue reading →

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When a Secret Shouldn’t Remain a Secret

Posted on May 14, 2015 by Joe Ahmad

Companies are right to secure their confidential information and take steps to ensure that it remains confidential. But there’s one significant asterisk to that notion: an employer can’t do anything to discourage or retaliate against an employee who provides information (including confidential information) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as part of an investigation into possible securities law violations. Continue reading →

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Jimmy John’s Non-Compete a Non-Starter in Texas

Posted on October 22, 2014 by Joe Ahmad

Executives are used to signing Covenants Not to Compete, and unless they’re overly broad, they’re often enforceable in Texas. Executives, after all, typically receive a fair amount of consideration in exchange for the potential future restraint of trade: they’re often highly paid, privy to a wealth of confidential information about their employers, and often receive specialized training.

The same cannot be said about the person who makes or delivers sandwiches. Not unless sandwich-making got a lot more complicated and well-paid in the last few years (and something tells me it hasn’t). Continue reading →

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Non-Compete Tips for New Texas Executives

Posted on August 11, 2014 by Joe Ahmad

Every few weeks, there’s some new story about businesses large and small relocating from California to Texas. So if you’re an executive at one of those companies, welcome to Texas! While you’re learning how to say things like “y’all” and … Continue reading →

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Texas Monthly v. New York Times: Where are the damages?

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Joe Ahmad

The Texas journalism world has been abuzz over a lawsuit filed by Texas Monthly magazine against The New York Times, over The Times‘ luring away of Texas Monthly editor in chief Jake Silverstein to serve as editor of The Times … Continue reading →

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Leaving But Not Yet Gone: Notes from the ABA’s Labor & Employment Midwinter Meeting

Posted on March 27, 2014 by Joe Ahmad

One of the perennial issues executive employment lawyers handle is what to do when an executive has accepted a job offer at a competitor but hasn’t left his or her current employer yet. As I found out last weekend when … Continue reading →

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Would Doc Rivers’ Non-Compete Fly in Texas?

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Joe Ahmad

The NBA just approved the trade of Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers to the Los Angeles Clippers in return for Boston’s getting a first-round draft pick in 2015. This is obviously big news in the basketball world—Rivers is now reported … Continue reading →

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Trade Secret Theft Just As Problematic in Asia

Posted on November 5, 2012 by Joe Ahmad

The trade secret theft issues that plague U.S. companies are apparently just as bad in other countries, as a recently filed Japanese lawsuit illustrates. On October 25, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp. sued its South Korean rival, Posco, and … Continue reading →

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Avoiding IP Theft On The Job

Posted on October 18, 2012 by Joe Ahmad

Most executives would never dream of stealing from their employers, but many put themselves at risk of being accused of that very thing in the course of their workday. Most such actions—such as emailing files to their personal email address … Continue reading →

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