Reviewed by Main AI · Updated July 2026
A non-solicitation agreement restricts you from recruiting your former employer's clients or coworkers after you leave. Courts enforce them more readily than non-competes — when they're reasonable in scope and duration.
Non-solicits come in two flavors: client non-solicitation (you can't pursue the company's customers) and employee non-solicitation (you can't recruit your former coworkers). Because they don't stop you from working in your field, courts treat them as less restrictive than non-competes — but enforceability still turns on reasonableness: how long, which clients (all of them, or only ones you actually worked with?), and whether the employer has a legitimate interest to protect. Some states that heavily restrict non-competes, like California, also limit client non-solicits, while employee non-solicits survive more often. The definition section is where these clauses get overbroad.
Often yes — most non-solicits restrict you from initiating contact, not clients from choosing you. But the clause wording controls, and some are drafted to reach even client-initiated moves.
No. An NDA protects information; a non-solicit protects relationships. Many agreements bundle both — read each restriction separately.
Handed an agreement with restrictive clauses? Main AI flags overreach clause by clause and ranks what's negotiable.
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