New Jersey non-compete law: the Solari and Whitmyer test for recruiters

New Jersey enforces employee non-competes that a court finds reasonable, under a test the state Supreme Court set in the 1970s rather than a statute: the covenant must protect the employer's legitimate interests, impose no undue hardship on the employee and not injure the public, and a court may enforce an overbroad covenant in part. As of October 2026 there is still no general non-compete statute, though S1407 and A1829, introduced in January 2026, would ban most non-competes if passed. The one statute that already limits restrictive clauses hits staffing agencies directly: N.J.S.A. 34:8D-7 bars temp firms from stopping covered temporary workers from taking permanent jobs with clients.

For a recruiter, that means two separate checks in New Jersey: the candidate's own agreement with their employer, and, if you place temps, your own contracts with workers and clients. The general screen is in non-compete questions for candidates, and the agency-side clauses are in non-solicitation clauses for recruiters.

What test do New Jersey courts use?

New Jersey's rule is court-made. In Solari Industries, Inc. v. Malady (1970), the New Jersey Supreme Court moved away from all-or-nothing enforcement and held that a court may enforce a restrictive covenant to the extent it is reasonable. In Whitmyer Bros., Inc. v. Doyle (1971), it set out the three-part test still used: a covenant is reasonable if it simply protects the legitimate interests of the employer, imposes no undue hardship on the employee, and is not injurious to the public.

• Legitimate interests are things like trade secrets, confidential business information and customer relationships. Keeping out a competitor, or stopping someone using general skills, is not enough.
• Undue hardship looks at the employee's ability to earn a living in their field.
• Public interest weighs most heavily where the public needs the service, as with doctors.

New Jersey has no salary threshold, no advance-notice rule and no statutory list of covered occupations. Those would arrive only if the pending bills pass.

Can a New Jersey court narrow an overbroad covenant?

Yes. Solari is the reason New Jersey courts can "partially enforce" a covenant: a two-year, nationwide restriction might be cut to a shorter period, a smaller area or the clients the employee actually served, and then enforced. For recruiting, that has the same consequence as in Texas or Michigan: a clause that looks too broad can still keep a candidate away from certain customers or work for a period. Telling a client "it's overbroad, so it's void" is not accurate in New Jersey.

Example only: an account executive in Newark signed a 24-month covenant covering "any competitor in the United States." A court applying Solari might enforce it for 12 months as to the clients the executive handled. The candidate is still restricted, more narrowly.

What about physicians and other health care workers?

New Jersey has no statute banning physician non-competes. In Community Hospital Group, Inc. v. More (2005), the New Jersey Supreme Court reviewed a neurosurgeon's covenant with a hospital under the Solari/Whitmyer test, weighing the public's interest in access to care, rather than treating physician covenants as unenforceable per se. Healthcare recruiters should therefore expect a physician's covenant to be weighed, and possibly enforced in part, rather than ignored.

What does New Jersey's temp worker law say about restrictive clauses?

Section 7 of the Temporary Workers' Bill of Rights, P.L.2023, c.10, codified at N.J.S.A. 34:8D-7, says no temporary help service firm shall restrict a temporary laborer in a designated classification placement from accepting a permanent position with a third party client they were referred to, restrict the client from offering employment, or restrict the laborer from accepting a permanent position "for any other employment."

• Who is covered. The act defines "designated classification placement" by Bureau of Labor Statistics occupation groups, including food preparation and serving, building and grounds cleaning and maintenance, personal care and service, construction laborers and helpers, installation, maintenance and repair, production, and transportation and material moving.
• The placement fee cap. The firm may charge the client a placement fee no greater than the total daily commission rate it would have received over 60 days, reduced by the daily commission rate for each day the laborer worked for the firm in the preceding 12 months, and must show the maximum fee on the worker's wage payment and notice form.

If your firm places covered temps in New Jersey, a client agreement that blocks conversion, or a worker agreement that bars taking a client job, conflicts with the statute. The arithmetic is worked through in temp-to-perm conversion fees, and certification is covered in the New Jersey staffing agency license guide.

Is New Jersey about to ban non-competes?

Bills have been introduced in successive sessions without becoming law. For the 2026–2027 session, the Legislature's records show:

As introduced, S1407 would bar employers from seeking, accepting or enforcing a non-compete with any worker who is not a "senior executive," including existing clauses, and require written notice within 30 business days that old clauses will not be enforced. For senior executives (a policy-making position and total compensation of at least $151,164), existing clauses would have to meet limits including a 12-month cap and garden-leave pay. It would also declare no-poach agreements void, exempt non-competes made in a bona fide sale of a business, and take effect immediately. None of that is law unless the bill passes; check the bill pages before relying on it.

New Jersey non-compete rules at a glance

What should a recruiter ask a New Jersey candidate?

NEW JERSEY CANDIDATE — restrictive agreements

1. "Have you signed a non-compete, a customer or employee non-solicit,
    or a confidentiality agreement with your current or a past employer?"
2. "How long does it last after you leave, and what area, clients or
    type of work does it cover?"
3. "Which clients did you personally work with?"
4. "Does it say which state's law applies or where disputes go?"
5. If placed as a temp: "Did the staffing firm ask you to agree not to
    take a permanent job with a client?"
6. "Has your employer said anything about enforcing it?"
Always: "We don't want any confidential information, documents or
client lists from your current employer."

• Do not tell a candidate "New Jersey is banning these." It has not, as of October 2026.
• Do not ask about current or past pay to judge a covenant; New Jersey's salary history rules apply. See the New Jersey salary history ban guide.
• Do record facts, such as "12-month non-compete, northern New Jersey clients, signed 2022," not opinions.

What is the risk to the hiring company?

Because New Jersey courts can enforce a covenant in part, the realistic outcome of a dispute is an injunction that keeps the new hire away from certain clients or work for a period. Former employers sometimes also name the new employer, for example alleging interference with the contract or misuse of confidential information; how that plays out depends on what the new employer knew and did, which is for its counsel. Tell the client before final interviews, let its counsel read the agreement before the offer, and confirm at the offer call that the company wants no confidential information. New York candidates commuting into New Jersey may have agreements governed by New York law; compare New York non-compete law and Pennsylvania non-compete law.

Where does the federal FTC rule stand?

It does not apply. The FTC's Noncompete Rule page notes the August 20, 2024 court order; on September 5, 2025 the Commission voted 3-1 to accede to the vacatur; and a February 12, 2026 Federal Register notice removed it from the Code of Federal Regulations. New Jersey law governs New Jersey covenants.

A New Jersey checklist

• Restrictive-agreement question asked of every candidate, in the same words.
• Facts recorded: type, length, area or clients, governing-law clause, date signed.
• Temp placements: worker and client agreements checked against N.J.S.A. 34:8D-7; fee cap shown on the wage notice.
• No opinion on enforceability given; candidate pointed to their own lawyer.
• Client told before final interviews; counsel reviews before the offer.
• S1407 and A1829 status re-checked; more on New Jersey hiring in hiring employees in New Jersey.