Restrains Of Trade: Confidentiality And The Protectable Interest – Key Ingredients To Effective Enforcement

Restraints of trade have become an almost automatic inclusion in many agreements. The driver behind this is the protection of commercially sensitive and confidential information. Furthermore, to prevent any unlawful competition or an unfair advantage being leveraged in the market. With that being said, a recent labour appeal court case has made us question its true effectiveness.

The case: North Safety Products v Naidoo and Another (D943/19) [2019] ZALCD 7 (10 September 2019)

The Employer sought to enforce a restraint and confidentiality for 12 months within the geographical area of Richards Bay. The Employer's business concerns the design, manufacture and...