Critically Evaluate the Law on Confidentiality and Restrictive Covenants. Is the Current Law Sufficiently Robust to Protect Business Interests?

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The law on confidentiality and restrictive covenants are in place to ensure that employer’s business interests are protected. Employers may rely on mechanisms such as the confidentiality clauses and restrictive covenants to protect their businesses from damaging competition, disclosure of trade secrets and confidential information. The objective of these provisions is to avoid employees from abusing they employer’s business interests when the employment has come to end. The degree of protection provided to employers differs if the employee has ended the contract of employment. The implied duty of fidelity protects business interests and imposes a obligation employee must not disclose any information or trade secrets of their employers business. Throughout the course of employment, an employer will obtain information, which may possibly be confidential information. If an employee’s position is highly ranked then there will be possibilities that the employer has acquired potential confidential business information that may be disclosed this type of situation will need to be addressed and employers will need protection. In Thomas v Farr plc. , the categories of information was sectioned out to address what type of information is not to be disclosed when the employment contract has ended. The different types of information was confirmed to be initially, any information accessible to the public which would not acquire to protection, following this there is information the employee would have obtained through the employment such as knowledge. The law allows ex-employees to use the knowledge and skill they have obtained through employment, this was confirmed in Stenhouse Australia . An employer can restrictive any knowledge gained from the employment. The final category of information is a business secret, which cannot be disclosed the law provides protection to

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