The FTC moved in 2025 to accede to court vacatur of its broad noncompete rule, and a 2026 Federal Register notice removed the rule from the Code of Federal Regulations. At the same time, the FTC has continued bringing case-specific enforcement actions against noncompete agreements it says harmed workers. The debate is whether noncompetes should be broadly banned, limited by wage level and role, handled through case-by-case enforcement, or left mostly to state law and contracts. A noncompete can protect a real business secret, but it can also trap ordinary workers. The rule should separate executives with confidential information from people just trying to get a better job.
How should the federal government handle noncompete agreements after the nationwide rule was removed?