On April 23, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted to adopt a new rule that bans noncompete agreements that prevent employees from working for competitors or starting a competing business after they end employment.

The FTC’s final rule would ban new noncompete agreements for all workers across the country. As a result, under the new FTC rule, existing noncompete agreements for most employees will be unenforceable, although the rule provides that noncompetes may remain in effect for senior executives.

The final rule would also require companies to inform current and former employees that they will not enforce noncompetes. The FTC has included model language in its final rule that employers can use to communicate to workers that they will not enforce existing noncompete agreements.

The new FTC rule is not yet effective — the new rule will be effective in 120 days after it is published in the Federal Register. Nonetheless, it is likely that companies and organizations opposing the rule will seek an injunction to stop the new rule from being enforced.