It&#x27;s a bullying tactic that makes it difficult for employees to either go out on their own or go to other companies.<p>Would you be willing to go to court to find out?<p>I used to work with a guy who came up with a fairly good product idea (in his own time and at his own cost).  He brought it to mgmt and they were not interested (wasn&#x27;t in our space).  So he tried to go out on his own with it and immediately received a Cease &amp; Desist order.  His lawyer said if he went to court could easily cost him up to $50K to defend successfully.  So he gave up &amp; complied.<p>Can you imagine the outrage if a plumbing business tried to enforce a non-compete (e.g. &quot;you can&#x27;t work as a plumber for 2 years&quot;).  Well ... unions.<p>Mass. would do well to outlaw them, but sadly the state legislature is easily bought so I don&#x27;t expect it to happen anytime soon.