Competition clauses in employment agreements : Review of the legality requirement in section 38 of Avtalslagen in the light of the new and old competition clause of Svenskt Näringslivs agreements

The Swedish regulation of competition clauses has since 1969 partly been made in a collective agreement from Svenskt Näringsliv ” Överenskommelse angående begränsning av användningsområdet för och innehållet i s.k. konkurrensklausuler i tjänsteavtal”. The collective agreement has had a strong influence on the Swedish market, on the Labour Court and in law. In 2015 Svenskt Näringsliv signed a new agreement ”Avtal om användning av konkurrensklausuler i anställningsavtal.” The new agreement from 2015 brings a broader area of application of competition clauses to employment agreements. Through the study of law as well as the two collective agreements this paper intends to establish when competition clauses in employment contracts can be used in accordance with 38§ Lag (1915:218) om avtal och andra rättshandlingar på förmögenhetsrättens område (avtalslagen). The paper will also examine if the agreement from 2015 is to be considered reasonable in light of 38§ avtalslagen. The study will be fulfilled with support of the following research questions; To what extent is it possible to use competition clauses according to ”Svenskt Näringslivs avtal om användning av konkurrensklausuler” and 38§ avtalslagen? Does the content of ”Svenskt Näringslivs avtal om användning av konkurrensklausuler” fulfill the fairness requirements in 38§ avtalslagen