Abstract

The regulation of covenants not to compete in Italy has seen case law play a leading role. Courts, in applying and interpreting the meagre legislative provision, have sought a balance between the opposing values of constitutional importance involved in such agreements. The arrangement found by our judges is quite far-reaching in terms of protecting employer’s interests, but scarcely attentive to the negative impact on competition, innovation, and economic growth that competition- restrictive pacts can cause. This article, after providing an account of the Italian regulatory framework, also in comparison to that present in the United Kingdom and the USA, highlights that, while in the latter countries the approach is being reconsidered, which is leading towards the prohibition of non competition pacts with a view to serving the public interest, in Italy the issue has received very little attention. Considering the trends emerging in the Anglo-Saxon countries, and the issues that have become evident with reference to the Italian framework, some proposals are therefore made for the revision of the rules on non-competes