>Woman Gang-Raped by 7 Halliburton Employees "Signed Away" Her Right to Sue? How Justice Has Become the Privilege of Corporations
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>Access to justice – like access to elected office, let alone a pundit's perch – is becoming a perk just for the rich and powerful.
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>http://www.alternet.org/story/151452/woman_gang-raped_by_7_halliburton_employees_%22signed_away%22_her_right_to_sue_how_justice_has_become_the_privilege_of_corporations?akid=7190.272921.rkwtxd&rd=1&t=8

Not all rights can be signed away. Even if you sign it, it's not necessarily enforceable. A good example in our field is non-compete agreements. You have probably signed as many of those as I have. Some years ago I was a VP at a software company with about 40 employees reporting to me, most of them working as consultants at client sites. One of them left to go to work for a client, which was in direct contradiction of the agreement he had signed. The owner wanted to sue him. I talked to our company lawyer (independent, on retainer) and got an education on the enforceability of non-competes. Basically they have to be reasonable in terms of geography, industry, and time duration. So if they say the employee cannot take another job in the same area and industry for one year, that's enforceable. But if they say he/she cannot take a job for 5 years, or forever (which was the way ours was worded), anywhere in the world, forget it. There are also enforcement differences in different states. This guy was in California, which is famously reluctant to enforce non-competes.

The non-compete also has to be signed at the time of employment, not at some point when you are already on the job. This is because of the legal concept of Consideration, which is one of the four elements of a legally binding contract. It means both sides have to give something and receive something. "You get to keep your job," which is the tack some companies take, doesn't cut it legally.

One of the most pleasurable phone calls I had in that job was to call the guy up and say you're off the hook, don't sweat it. Good luck to you. He told me had in fact been sweating bullets, worrying about losing his savings and his house. The whole thing was so stupid. He was a good employee but not a crucial one. It just meant we were billing out one less guy. Who knows, maybe he's still there.