For example, in California, an agreement is not legal which states a former employee will not compete with a former employer. In fact, in that state, an employer trying to enforce such an agreement might be sued for restraint of trade. In any state, the courts are likely to look on such a non-competition agreement with skepticism and it will have to meet several tests. Likely for an agreement to pass, it will have to be limited in time and scope. An agreement which says you cannot open your own massage therapy business anywhere in the United States forever will certainly be invalid. You will have to check with your state if you have a non-competition agreement to see if it is binding and to what degree you may be held accountable.

There is a story about Warren Buffett, the third richest man in the country. Buffett has always admired an elderly Russian woman who ran a fantastically profitable furniture store in his home town of Omaha. Eventually he bought her out but he didn't get a non-competition agreement.

A couple of years later, she got irritated with the way her old store was being run so she opened up another one across the street--very successfully, draining a lot of business from the old store. Buffett eventually bought her out again! (This time she signed a non-competition agreement. She lived to be 103.) Even the big players can make mistakes, apparently.

One way a former employer can limit you is if you signed a proprietary information agreement. Proprietary information might cover a unique treatment method, a product or even special types of advertising which could be considered the excusive domain of the former employer. Anything considered proprietary information, however, should have been spelled out in an agreement.

Sometimes an employee who plans to open their own business is tempted to hand out business cards or contact regular clients so they may find them at their new location. Their employer could sue them for theft if they attempted to move clients to the new business while still employed in the old. Copying down contact information from client records could be construed by the owner as theft as well. The owner has spent a good deal for advertising, rent etc. to get the clients. For a former employee to obtain and use that information at no cost is likely actionable.

If the employee meets the client after they have left employment and wants to offer them their new business information, there is no problem, presuming a non-competition agreement doesn’t apply. If an employee tells a client they are leaving which sort of invites the client to ask where, this may be actionable. However, it may only result in the employee being fired. In any case, it is not a good idea.

Your present employer may be generous. They may allow you to tell your clients where you’re going. They may even tell inquirers where you’re after you’re gone. Telling an employer that you’re leaving to open your own business may seem a bit awkward but the smart employer knows you’re leaving anyway and will try to make the best of it. It would be unwise for them to let petty resentment sever a connection. It is a good idea for business owners to align themselves with others in the field.

However, be aware that it is the policy of some businesses, as soon as they know someone is leaving, to confiscate their keys and terminate them immediately. This prevents the employee from moving clients. This practice may not be as common in the massage industry. If you have been working for your employer for some time, chances are you have a pretty good idea what to expect.

Perhaps you and your employer may be able to work something out where both of you benefit from referring.

Some businesses combine their advertisement budgets to make a greater impact, although this is usually between related fields, not exactly the same field. In any case, these are decisions that are best firmed up after you’ve left, because things may be clearer to you and your ex-employer after you’re gone. You may decide on a complete detachment once you’ve settled into your new place.