O.C.G.A.
O.C.G.A.

O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1 (2019)

Contracts in partial restraint of trade

✓ O.C.G.A. (archive.org 2024 item): print volumes of 2004-2024, per-volume vintage; older volumes partly replaced by 2019 Release 73 text; no 2025 or 2026 Acts
Code text and O.C.G.A. statutory annotations on this page reflect the 2019 Official Code of Georgia Annotated (Public.Resource.Org Release 73, 2019-08-21; public domain per Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). The Syfert case-law annotations in Notes of Decisions, below, are current.
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section GA-LEGlegis.ga.gov (official) JustiaJustia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

Repealed by Ga. L. 2011, p. 399, § 3/HB 30, effective May 11, 2011.

Annotations

Editor’s notes. - Ga. L. 1990, p. 1676, § 2, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: ‘‘This Act takes effect on July 1, 1990. As a statement of public policy, this Act shall have general applicability to the fullest extent permitted by law. This Act shall further apply to all remedies sought or granted after the effective date with respect to the subject matter of this Act.’’

Law reviews. - For article, ‘‘Georgia Constitution May Restrict the 1990 Restrictive Covenant Law,’’ see 27 Ga. St. B.J. 82 (1990). For survey article on law relating to intellectual property, see 42 Mercer L. Rev. 295 (1990). For article, ‘‘Georgia Gets Competitive,’’ see 15 (No. 4) Ga. St. B.J. 13 (2009).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS Constitutionality. - O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1 is beyond the power of the General Assembly, and is unlawful and void, inasmuch as the law authorizes contracts and agreements which may have the effect of or which are intended to have the effect of defeating or lessening competition or encouraging monopoly. Jackson & Coker, Inc. v. Hart, 261 Ga. 371, 405 S.E.2d 253 (1991), but see Ferrero v. Associated Materials, Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1 violates the constitu-

tional provision against restraint of trade in Ga. Const. 1983, Art. III, Sec. VI, Para V(c). Rooney v. Jackson & Coker, Inc., 261 Ga. 533, 409 S.E.2d 522 (1991). Retroactive application. - O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1 is procedural, and uncodified section two of the statute strongly implies that the legislature wanted a retroactive application of the statute. Ferrero v. Associated Materials, Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). Retroactive application of O.C.G.A.

§ 13-8-2.1 does not violate Georgia statutory and constitutional provisions forbidding retroactive applications of statutes. Ferrero v. Associated Materials, Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). Noncompetition agreement alone not personal service contract. - While a noncompetition agreement joined with affirmative promises is a personal services contract which terminates upon the death of the promisor, a noncompetition agreement

standing alone, with no affirmative promises, is not. Mail & Media, Inc. v. Rotenberry, 213 Ga. App. 826, 446 S.E.2d 517 (1994). Injunctions are appropriate remedies and should issue except in limited cases. Ferrero v. Associated Materials, Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). Cited in Hamrick v. Kelley, 260 Ga. 307, 392 S.E.2d 518 (1990); Atlanta Bread Co. Int’l v. Lupton-Smith, 285 Ga. 587, 679 S.E.2d 722 (2009).

RESEARCH REFERENCES ALR. - Enforceability of agreement restricting right of attorney to compete with former law firm, 28 ALR5th 420.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 28 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1990–2023 · leading case: Jackson & Coker, Inc. v. Hart, 405 S.E.2d 253 (Ga. 1991).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Jackson & Coker, Inc. v. Hart, 405 S.E.2d 253 (Ga. 1991). · cites it 12× “They filed this action for declaratory judgment seeking a determination that the covenants not to compete in their employment contracts are unenforceable and that OCGA § 13-8-2.1 (the Act) is unconstitutional insofar as it relates to restrictive covenants ancillary to employment…”
Motorsports of Conyers, LLC v. Burbach, 892 S.E.2d 719 (Ga. 2023). · cites it 10× “” Former OCGA § 13-8-2.1 (a), enacted at Ga. L. 1990, pp.”
Ferrero v. Associated Materials Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). · cites it 10× “On June 18, 1990, the district court denied Ferrero’s motion for a preliminary injunction because Ga.Code Ann. § 13-8-2.1 (Supp.1990) was soon to become effective and would probably permit the retroactive reformation of covenants not to compete.”
Atlanta Bread Co. Int'l v. Lupton-Smith, 679 S.E.2d 722 (Ga. 2009). · cites it 6× “Hart, this Court considered the constitutionality of OCGA § 13-8-2.1 as it related to a restrictive covenant in an employment contract.”
Cox v. Altus Healthcare & Hospice, Inc., 706 S.E.2d 660 (Ga. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 4× “If it was, then Cox’s wrongful restraint claim is meritorious, and he may recover “such costs and damages,” OCGA § 9-11-65 (c), as he may have suffered during the period of the injunction’s enforcement — that is, from March 3 to September 30, 2010. Altus’s motion to dismiss is…”
Boone v. Corestaff Support Servs., Inc., 805 F. Supp. 2d 1362 (N.D. Ga. 2011). · cites it 10× “See O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1(a) and applicability date contained in Ga.”
Vortex Prot. Serv., Inc. v. Dempsey, 463 S.E.2d 67 (Ga. Ct. App. 1995). · cites it 6× “Vortex’s first enumeration of error contends the trial court erred “in determining that there was no distinction [between] a Covenant Not to Compete and a Covenant Not to Solicit.”
Hamrick v. Kelley, 392 S.E.2d 518 (Ga. 1990). · cites it 4× “, codified as OCGA § 13-8-2.1, effective July 1, 1990.”
Allen v. Hub Cap Heaven, Inc., 484 S.E.2d 259 (Ga. Ct. App. 1997). · cites it 2× “1 OCGA § 13-8-2.1, providing otherwise in certain situations, has been held unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Georgia.”
Bunker Hill Int'l, Ltd. v. Nationsbuilder Ins. Servs., Inc., 710 S.E.2d 662 (Ga. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 2× “1 Because the agreement at issue was entered into in 2008, we apply the law of restrictive covenants as it existed before the November 2010 ratification of an amendment to the Constitution of Georgia adopting OCGA § 13-8-2.1 (a) into law. See Cox v. Altus Healthcare &c.”
Gordon Document Prods., Inc. v. Serv. Tech., Inc., 708 S.E.2d 48 (Ga. Ct. App. 2011). · cites it 2× “See OCGA § 13-8-2.1 (a) and applicability date contained in Ga.”
RSN Props., Inc. v. Eng'g Consulting Servs., Ltd., 686 S.E.2d 853 (Ga. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 2× “Contracts deemed contrary to public policy include but are not limited to: (1) Contracts tending to corrupt legislation or the judiciary; (2) Contracts in general restraint of trade, as distinguished from contracts in partial restraint of trade as provided for in Code Section…”
Show all 28 citing cases →
13-8-2.1(a): 1 case
Boone v. Corestaff Support Servs., Inc., 805 F. Supp. 2d 1362 (N.D. Ga. 2011). “See O.C.G.A. § 13-8-2.1(a) and applicability date contained in Ga.”
13-8-2.1(f)(3): 1 case
Ferrero v. Associated Materials Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). “On June 18, 1990, the district court denied Ferrero’s motion for a preliminary injunction because Ga.Code Ann. § 13-8-2.1 (Supp.1990) was soon to become effective and would probably permit the retroactive reformation of covenants not to compete.”
13-8-2.1(g)(1): 3 cases
Jackson & Coker, Inc. v. Hart, 405 S.E.2d 253 (Ga. 1991). “They filed this action for declaratory judgment seeking a determination that the covenants not to compete in their employment contracts are unenforceable and that OCGA § 13-8-2.1 (the Act) is unconstitutional insofar as it relates to restrictive covenants ancillary to employment…”
Ferrero v. Associated Materials Inc., 923 F.2d 1441 (11th Cir. 1991). “On June 18, 1990, the district court denied Ferrero’s motion for a preliminary injunction because Ga.Code Ann. § 13-8-2.1 (Supp.1990) was soon to become effective and would probably permit the retroactive reformation of covenants not to compete.”
Crosby v. Hosp. Auth. of Valdosta, 873 F. Supp. 1568 (M.D. Ga. 1995).
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.