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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to employment agreements; creating 2
part I of ch. 542, F.S., entitled the "Florida 3
Antitrust Act of 1980"; creating part II of ch. 542, 4
F.S., entitled the "Florida Contracts Honoring 5
Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic 6
Growth (CHOICE) Act"; creating s. 542.41, F.S.; 7
providing a short title; creating s. 542.42, F.S.; 8
providing legislative findings; creating s. 542.43, 9
F.S.; defining terms; creating s. 542.44, F.S.; 10
providing applicability; providing that certain 11
covered garden leave agreements are not a restraint of 12
trade or an attempt to monopolize trade or commerce; 13
providing notice requirements for covered garden leave 14
agreements; providing that a covered employer may 15
waive any portion of such notice requirements by 16
providing a specified amount of advance written notice 17
to the covered employee; providing that covered garden 18
leave agreements do not affect other agreements; 19
requiring a court to enter a preliminary injunction to 20
stop covered employees, businesses, entities, or 21
individuals if a breach of a covered garden leave 22
agreement is alleged; authorizing the court to modify 23
such an injunction if a covered employee, business, 24
entity, or individual establishes certain information 25
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by clear and convincing evidence; requiring t hat 26
certain information be provided to the court under 27
seal; providing that a prevailing covered employer is 28
entitled to recover all available monetary damages for 29
all available claims; providing that a prevailing 30
party is entitled to reasonable attorney f ees and 31
costs; authorizing a covered employer to reduce the 32
salary or benefits of a covered employee if he or she 33
engages in gross misconduct; providing that such a 34
reduction is not a breach of the covered garden leave 35
agreement; creating s. 542.45, F.S.; providing 36
applicability; providing that certain covered 37
noncompete agreements are not a restraint of trade or 38
an attempt to monopolize trade or commerce; providing 39
notice requirements for covered noncompete agreements; 40
providing that covered noncompete agr eements do not 41
affect other agreements; requiring a court to enter a 42
preliminary injunction to stop covered employees, 43
businesses, entities, or individuals if a breach of a 44
covered noncompete agreement is alleged; authorizing 45
the court to modify such an in junction if a covered 46
employee, business, entity, or individual establishes 47
certain information by clear and convincing evidence; 48
requiring that certain information be provided to the 49
court under seal; providing that a prevailing covered 50
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employer is entitled to recover all available monetary 51
damages for all available claims; providing that a 52
prevailing party is entitled to reasonable attorney 53
fees and costs; authorizing a covered employer to 54
reduce the salary or benefits of a covered employee if 55
he or she engages in gross misconduct; providing that 56
such a reduction is not a breach of the covered 57
noncompete agreement; providing construction regarding 58
a restrictive covenant that does not meet the 59
definition of a covered garden leave agreement or a 60
covered noncompete agreement; amending ss. 542.15, 61
542.16, 542.17, 542.20, 542.22, 542.23, 542.235, 62
542.24, 542.25, 542.26, 542.27, 542.28, 542.29, 63
542.30, 542.31, 542.32, 542.33, 542.35, and 542.36, 64
F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the 65
act; providing an effective date. 66
67
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 68
69
Section 1. Part I of chapter 542, Florida Statutes, 70
consisting of ss. 542.15 -542.36, Florida Statutes, is created 71
and entitled the "Florida Antitrust Act of 1980." 72
Section 2. Part II of chapter 542, Florida Statutes, 73
consisting of ss. 542.41 -542.45, Florida Statutes, is created 74
and entitled the "Florida Contracts Honoring Opportunity, 75
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Investment, Confidentiality, and Economic Growth (CHOICE) Act." 76
542.41 Short title.—This part may be cited as the "Florida 77
Contracts Honoring Opportunity, Investment, Confidentiality, and 78
Economic Growth (CHOICE) Act." 79
542.42 Legislative findings. —The Legislature finds that a 80
proper and legitimate state interest is served by enforcing 81
strong legal protections in contracts between employers and 82
contracted personnel which encourage optimal levels of 83
information sharing and training and development. The 84
Legislature further finds that alternative means of protecting 85
confidential informatio n and client relationships, such as 86
nondisclosure agreements, fixed -duration term contracts, and 87
nonsolicitation clauses in employment contracts, are inadequate 88
to protect against the significant global risks faced by 89
companies in this state. The Legislatu re further finds that 90
predictability in the enforcement of contracts described in this 91
part encourages investment in this state. Therefore, the 92
Legislature determines and declares that this part fulfills an 93
important state interest. 94
542.43 Definitions. —For the purposes of this part, the 95
term: 96
(1) "Annual mean wage of employees in Florida" or "annual 97
mean wage" means the most recent annual mean wage as calculated 98
by the United States Department of Labor Bureau of Labor 99
Statistics, or its successor calcul ation, for all occupations in 100
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this state. 101
(2) "Benefit" means access to health insurance, life 102
insurance, or disability insurance that is the same as or 103
similar to the insurance that a covered employee had access to 104
and at the same cost to that employee during the month before 105
the commencement of his or her notice period. 106
(3) "Covered employee" means an employee or individual 107
contractor who earns or is reasonably expected to earn a salary 108
greater than twice the annual mean wage of the county in this 109
state in which the covered employer has its principal place of 110
business, or the county in this state in which the employee 111
resides if the covered employer's principal place of business is 112
not in this state. The term does not include a person classified 113
as a health care practitioner as defined in s. 456.001. 114
(4) "Covered employer" means an entity or individual who 115
employs or engages a covered employee. 116
(5) "Covered garden leave agreement" means a written 117
agreement, or part of a written agreement, between a covered 118
employee and covered employer in which: 119
(a) The covered employee and covered employer agree to up 120
to, but no more than, 4 years of advance, express notice before 121
terminating the employment or contractor relationship; 122
(b) The covered employee ag rees not to resign before the 123
end of such notice period; and 124
(c) The covered employer agrees to retain the covered 125
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employee for the duration of such notice period and to continue 126
paying the covered employee the same salary and providing the 127
same benefits that the covered employee received from the 128
covered employer in the last month before the commencement of 129
the notice period. The covered employer is not obligated to 130
provide discretionary incentive compensation or benefits or have 131
the covered employee con tinue performing any work during the 132
notice period. 133
(6) "Covered noncompete agreement" means a written 134
agreement, or a portion of a written agreement, between a 135
covered employee and a covered employer in which, for a period 136
not to exceed 4 years and within the geographic area defined in 137
the agreement, the covered employee agrees not to assume a role 138
with or for another business, entity, or individual: 139
(a) In which the covered employee would provide services 140
similar to the services provided to the co vered employer during 141
the 3 years preceding the noncompete period; or 142
(b) In which it is reasonably likely the covered employee 143
would use the confidential information or customer relationships 144
of the covered employer. 145
(7) "Noncompete period" means the time from the covered 146
employee's termination of employment through the end of the 147
agreed-upon postemployment period of noncompetition as set forth 148
in the covered noncompete agreement. 149
(8) "Notice period" means the date from the covered 150
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employee's or covered employer's written notice of intent to 151
terminate the covered employee's employment through the date of 152
termination as set forth in a covered garden leave agreement. 153
(9) "Primary place of work" means the location where the 154
covered employee spends more work time than any other single 155
workplace. 156
(10) "Salary" means the base compensation, calculated on 157
an annualized basis, which a covered employer pays a covered 158
employee, including a base wage, a salary, a professional fee, 159
or other compensation for per sonal services, and the fair market 160
value of any benefit other than cash. Salary does not include 161
health care benefits, severance pay, retirement benefits, 162
expense reimbursement, distribution of earnings and profits not 163
included as compensation for persona l services, discretionary 164
incentives or awards, or anticipated but indeterminable 165
compensation, including tips, bonuses, or commissions. 166
542.44 Covered garden leave agreement. — 167
(1) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies to: 168
(a) A covered garden leave ag reement with a covered 169
employee who maintains a primary place of work in this state, 170
regardless of any applicable choice of law provisions; or 171
(b) A covered garden leave agreement with a covered 172
employer whose principal place of business is in this state and 173
which agreement is expressly governed by the laws of this state. 174
175
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If any provision of this section is in conflict with any other 176
law, the provisions of this section shall govern. 177
(2) RESTRAINT OF TRADE. —A covered garden leave agreement 178
does not violate public policy as a restraint of trade, as 179
described in s. 542.18, or an attempt to monopolize trade or 180
commerce in this state, as described in s. 542.19, and is fully 181
enforceable according to its terms, provided that: 182
(a) A covered employee was advis ed, in writing, of the 183
right to seek counsel before execution of the covered garden 184
leave agreement and was provided notice as described in 185
subsection (3); 186
(b) A covered employee acknowledges, in writing, receipt 187
of confidential information or customer r elationships; and 188
(c) The covered garden leave agreement provides that: 189
1. After the first 90 days of the notice period, the 190
covered employee does not have to provide services to the 191
covered employer; 192
2. The covered employee may engage in nonwork act ivities 193
at any time, including during normal business hours, during the 194
remainder of the notice period; 195
3. The covered employee may, with the permission of the 196
covered employer, work for another employer while still employed 197
by the covered employer durin g the remainder of the notice 198
period; and 199
4. The garden leave agreement notice period may be reduced 200
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during the notice period if the covered employer provides at 201
least 30 days' advance notice in writing to the covered 202
employee. 203
(3) NOTICE.— 204
(a) A covered employer must provide a proposed covered 205
garden leave agreement to: 206
1. A prospective covered employee at least 7 days before 207
an offer of employment expires; or 208
2. A current covered employee at least 7 days before the 209
date that an offer to enter into a covered garden leave 210
agreement expires. 211
(b) A covered employer may, as provided for in the covered 212
garden leave agreement, shorten the term of the notice period at 213
any time during the notice period by providing at least 30 days' 214
advance notice in writing to the covered employee. 215
(4) OTHER AGREEMENTS. —This section does not affect or 216
limit the enforceability of any other employment agreement or 217
any other agreement. 218
(5) BREACH OF A COVERED GARDEN LEAVE AGREEMENT; REMEDIES. — 219
(a) Upon application by a covered employer seeking 220
enforcement of a covered garden leave agreement, a court must 221
preliminarily enjoin a covered employee from providing services 222
to any business, entity, or individual other than the covered 223
employer during the notice period. Th e court may modify or 224
dissolve the injunction only if the covered employee establishes 225
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by clear and convincing evidence, based on nonconfidential 226
information, that: 227
1. The covered employee will not perform, during the 228
notice period, any work similar to the services provided to the 229
covered employer during the 3 -year period preceding the 230
commencement of the notice period, or use confidential 231
information or customer relationships of the covered employer; 232
or 233
2. The covered employer has failed to pay or pro vide the 234
salary and benefits provided for in the covered garden leave 235
agreement during the notice period and has had a reasonable 236
opportunity to cure the failure. 237
(b) Upon application by a covered employer seeking 238
enforcement of a covered garden leave ag reement, a court must 239
preliminarily enjoin a business, an entity, or an individual 240
from engaging a covered employee during the covered employee's 241
notice period. The court may modify or dissolve the injunction 242
only if the business, entity, or individual est ablishes by clear 243
and convincing evidence, based on nonconfidential information, 244
that: 245
1. The covered employee will not provide any services 246
similar to the services provided to the covered employer during 247
the 3-year period preceding the commencement of t he notice 248
period, or use confidential information or customer 249
relationships of the covered employer; or 250
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2. The business or individual seeking to employ or engage 251
the covered employee is not engaged in, and is not planning or 252
preparing to engage in, any b usiness activity similar to that 253
engaged in by the covered employer during the notice period. 254
255
Any information filed with the court which the covered employer 256
deems to be confidential must be filed under seal to protect 257
confidentiality or avoid substantial injury. A court must 258
presume that an employee or individual contractor has access to 259
confidential information or customer relationships if the 260
employee or individual contractor acknowledges the access or 261
receipt of such access in writing. 262
(c) The injunctive relief provided under this section is 263
not an exclusive remedy, and a prevailing covered employer is 264
entitled to recover all available monetary damages for all 265
available claims. 266
(d) In any action to enforce this section, the prevailing 267
party is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs. 268
(e) If the covered employee engages in gross misconduct 269
against the covered employer, the covered employer may reduce 270
the salary or benefits of the covered employee or take other 271
appropriate action during the no tice period, which reduction or 272
other action may not be considered a breach of the covered 273
garden leave agreement. 274
542.45 Covered noncompete agreements. — 275
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(1) APPLICABILITY.—This section applies to: 276
(a) A covered noncompete agreement with a covered em ployee 277
who maintains a primary place of work in this state, regardless 278
of any applicable choice of law provisions; or 279
(b) A covered noncompete agreement with a covered employer 280
whose principal place of business is in this state and which 281
agreement is expressly governed by the laws of this state. 282
283
In either case, if any provision of this section is in conflict 284
with any other law, the provisions of this section govern. 285
(2) RESTRAINT OF TRADE. —A covered noncompete agreement 286
does not violate public policy a s a restraint of trade, as 287
described in s. 542.18, or an attempt to monopolize trade or 288
commerce in this state, as described in s. 542.19, and is fully 289
enforceable according to its terms, provided that: 290
(a) A covered employee was advised, in writing, of the 291
right to seek counsel before execution of the covered noncompete 292
agreement and was provided notice as described in subsection 293
(3); 294
(b) A covered employee acknowledges, in writing, that in 295
the course of his or her employment, the covered employee will 296
receive confidential information or customer relationships; and 297
(c) A covered noncompete agreement provides that the 298
noncompete period is reduced day -for-day by any nonworking 299
portion of the notice period, pursuant to a covered garden leave 300
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agreement between the covered employee and the covered employer, 301
if applicable. 302
(3) NOTICE.—A covered employer must provide a proposed 303
covered noncompete agreement to: 304
(a) A prospective covered employee at least 7 days before 305
an offer of employment expires; or 306
(b) A current covered employee at least 7 days before the 307
date that an offer to enter into a covered noncompete agreement 308
expires. 309
(4) OTHER AGREEMENTS. —This section does not affect or 310
limit the enforceability of any other employment agreement or 311
any other agreement. 312
(5) BREACH OF COVERED NONCOMPETE AGREEMENT; REMEDIES. — 313
(a) Upon application by a covered employer seeking 314
enforcement of a covered noncompete agreement, a court must 315
preliminarily enjoin a covered employee from providing services 316
to any business, entity, or individual other than the covered 317
employer during the noncompete period. The court may modify or 318
dissolve the injunction only if the covered employee establishes 319
by clear and convincing evidence, based on nonconfidential 320
information, that: 321
1. The covered employee will not perform, during the 322
noncompete period, any work similar to the services provided to 323
the covered employer during the 3 -year period preceding the 324
commencement of the noncompete period, or use confidential 325
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information or customer relationships of the covered employer; 326
2. The covered employer has failed to pay or provide the 327
consideration provided for in the covered noncompete agreement 328
and has had a reasonable opportunity to cure the failure; or 329
3. The business, entity , or individual seeking to employ 330
or engage the covered employee is not engaged in, and is not 331
planning or preparing to engage in during the noncompete period, 332
business activity similar to that engaged in by the covered 333
employer in the geographic area spec ified in the noncompete 334
agreement. 335
(b) Upon application by a covered employer seeking 336
enforcement of a covered noncompete agreement, a court must 337
preliminarily enjoin a business, an entity, or an individual 338
from engaging a covered employee during the covered employee's 339
noncompete period. The court may modify or dissolve the 340
injunction only if the business, entity, or individual 341
establishes by clear and convincing evidence, based on 342
nonconfidential information, that: 343
1. The covered employee will not p rovide any services 344
similar to the services provided to the covered employer during 345
the 3-year period preceding the commencement of the noncompete 346
period, or use confidential information or customer 347
relationships of the covered employer; or 348
2. The business or individual seeking to employ or engage 349
the covered employee is not engaged in, and is not planning or 350
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preparing to engage in during the noncompete period, business 351
activity similar to that engaged in by the covered employer in 352
the geographic area spe cified in the noncompete agreement. 353
354
Any information filed with the court which the covered employer 355
deems to be confidential must be filed under seal to protect 356
confidentiality or avoid substantial injury. A court must 357
presume that an employee or individu al contractor has access to 358
confidential information or customer relationships if the 359
employee or individual contractor acknowledges the access or 360
receipt of such access in writing. 361
(c) The injunctive relief provided in this section is not 362
an exclusive remedy, and a prevailing covered employer is 363
entitled to recover all available monetary damages for all 364
available claims. 365
(d) In any action to enforce this section, the prevailing 366
party is entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs. 367
(e) If the covered employee engages in gross misconduct 368
against the covered employer, the covered employer may reduce 369
the salary or benefits of the covered employee or take other 370
appropriate action during the noncompete period, which reduction 371
or other action may not be c onsidered a breach of the covered 372
noncompete agreement. 373
374
Any action regarding a restrictive covenant that does not meet 375
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the definition of a covered garden leave agreement or a covered 376
noncompete agreement as provided in this part is governed by s. 377
542.335. 378
Section 3. Section 542.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to 379
read: 380
542.15 Short title. —This part act shall be known and may 381
be cited as the "Florida Antitrust Act of 1980." 382
Section 4. Section 542.16, Florida Statutes, is amended to 383
read: 384
542.16 Purpose.—The Legislature declares it to be the 385
purpose of this part act to complement the body of federal law 386
prohibiting restraints of trade or commerce in order to foster 387
effective competition. It is the intent of the Legislature that 388
this part act be liberally construed to accomplish its 389
beneficial purpose. 390
Section 5. Section 542.17, Florida Statutes, is amended to 391
read: 392
542.17 Definitions. —Unless a different meaning is clearly 393
indicated by the context, for the purposes of this part chapter, 394
the terms defined in this section have the following meanings 395
ascribed to them: 396
(1) "Commodity" means any goods, merchandise, wares, 397
produce, chose in action, land, article of commerce, or other 398
tangible or intangible property, real, personal, or mixed , for 399
use, consumption, production, enjoyment, or resale. 400
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(2) "Service" means any kind of activity performed in 401
whole or in part for economic benefit. 402
(3) "Person" means any individual, corporation, firm, 403
partnership, limited partnership, incorporated or unincorporated 404
association, professional association, or other legal, 405
commercial, or governmental entity, including the State of 406
Florida, its departments, agencies, political subdivisions, and 407
units of government. 408
(4) "Trade or commerce" means any eco nomic activity of any 409
type whatsoever involving any commodity or service whatsoever. 410
(5) "Document" means any stored or retained data or 411
information in whatever form. 412
(6) "Attorney General" includes not only the Attorney 413
General of Florida but also any designee of the Attorney General 414
or any assistant attorney general or special assistant attorney 415
general. 416
(7) "State attorney" includes not only the state attorneys 417
of Florida but also any designee of a state attorney or any 418
assistant state attorney or special assistant state attorney. 419
(8) "Local government" means a municipality, county, 420
school district, or any other general -function or special-421
function governmental unit established by the laws of the state. 422
Section 6. Section 542.20, Florida Statu tes, is amended to 423
read: 424
542.20 Exemptions.—Any activity or conduct exempt under 425
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Florida statutory or common law or exempt from the provisions of 426
the antitrust laws of the United States is exempt from the 427
provisions of this part chapter. 428
Section 7. Subsection (1) of section 542.22, Florida 429
Statutes, is amended to read: 430
542.22 Suits for damages. — 431
(1) Any person who shall be injured in her or his business 432
or property by reason of any violation of s. 542.18 or s. 542.19 433
may sue therefor in the circuit courts of this state and shall 434
recover threefold the damages by her or him sustained, and the 435
cost of suit, including a reasonable attorney attorney's fee. 436
The court shall award a reasonable attorney attorney's fee to a 437
defendant prevailing in any action under this part chapter for 438
damages or equitable relief in which the court finds there was a 439
complete absence of a justiciable issue of either law or fact 440
raised by the plaintiff. 441
Section 8. Section 542.23, Florida Statutes, is amended to 442
read: 443
542.23 Equitable remedies. —In addition to other remedies 444
provided by this part chapter, any person shall be entitled to 445
sue for and have injunctive or other equitable relief in the 446
circuit courts of this state against threatened loss or damage 447
by a violation of this part chapter. In any action under this 448
section in which the plaintiff substantially prevails, the court 449
shall award the cost of suit, including a reasonable attorney 450
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attorney's fee, to the plaintiff. 451
Section 9. Subsection (4) of section 542.235, Florida 452
Statutes, is amended to read: 453
542.235 Limitations of actions and penalties against local 454
governments and their officials and employees. — 455
(4) No criminal action shall be maintained pursuant to s. 456
542.21(2), and no civil penalties, damages, interest on damages, 457
costs, or attorney attorneys' fees shall be recovered pursuant 458
to s. 542.21(1) or s. 542.22, against any local government 459
official or employee for official conduct within the scope of 460
her or his lawful authority, unless the official or employee has 461
violated the provisions of this part chapter for the purpose of 462
deriving personal financial or professional gain or for the 463
professional or financial gain of her or his immediate family or 464
of any principal by whom the official is retained. 465
Section 10. Section 542.24, Florida Statutes, is amended 466
to read: 467
542.24 Consent decrees and settleme nt agreements.—In a 468
civil action maintained under this part chapter by the Attorney 469
General or a state attorney, any party to such action may 470
petition the court for entry of a consent decree or for approval 471
of a settlement agreement. The proposed decree or agreement 472
shall set out the alleged violations, the future obligations of 473
the parties, the damages or other relief agreed upon, and the 474
reasons for entering into the consent decree or settlement 475
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agreement. 476
Section 11. Section 542.25, Florida Statutes, is amended 477
to read: 478
542.25 Judgment in favor of state as prima facie 479
evidence.—A final judgment or decree entered in any civil or 480
criminal proceeding brought by the Attorney General or a state 481
attorney under s. 542.21 or s. 542.23 to the effect that a 482
defendant has violated s. 542.18 or s. 542.19, or entered in any 483
civil or criminal proceeding brought by the United States 484
Department of Justice under comparable federal laws, shall be 485
prima facie evidence against such defendant in any civil action 486
or proceeding under this part chapter brought by any other 487
person against such defendant as to all matters with respect to 488
which such judgment or decree would be an estoppel as between 489
the parties thereto; however, this section does not apply to a 490
consent judgment or decree entered bef ore any testimony has been 491
taken. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to 492
impose any limitation on the application of collateral estoppel. 493
Section 12. Subsection (2) of section 542.26, Florida 494
Statutes, is amended to read: 495
542.26 Limitation of actions.— 496
(2) Whenever any civil or criminal proceeding is 497
instituted by the Attorney General or a state attorney to 498
prevent, restrain, or punish any violation of this part chapter, 499
the running of the statute of limitations, with respect to eve ry 500
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private right of action arising under this part chapter and 501
based in whole or in part on any matter complained of in said 502
proceeding, shall be suspended during the pendency thereof and 503
for 1 year thereafter. Whenever the running of the statute of 504
limitations in respect of a cause of action arising under s. 505
542.22(1) is suspended hereunder, any action to enforce such 506
cause of action shall be forever barred unless commenced either 507
within the period of suspension or within the period of 508
limitation. 509
Section 13. Section 542.27, Florida Statutes, is amended 510
to read: 511
542.27 Enforcement authority. — 512
(1) The Attorney General, or a state attorney with written 513
permission from the Attorney General, acting jointly or 514
independently, may commence and try all crim inal prosecutions 515
under this part chapter. Criminal prosecutions under this part 516
chapter shall be commenced by indictment. With respect to 517
commencement and trial of such prosecutions, the Attorney 518
General or a state attorney shall have all the powers and d uties 519
vested by law with respect to criminal prosecutions generally. 520
Incident to any investigation commenced under this part chapter, 521
the Attorney General may participate in and appear before a 522
grand jury in assistance of any state attorney, irrespective o f 523
the provisions of chapter 905. 524
(2) The Attorney General is authorized to institute or 525
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intervene in civil proceedings seeking the full range of relief 526
afforded by this part chapter or by federal laws pertaining to 527
antitrust or restraints of trade on beh alf of the state, its 528
departments, agencies, and units of government. In addition, the 529
Attorney General, as chief state legal officer, may institute 530
any action authorized under this part chapter, federal laws 531
pertaining to antitrust or restraints of trade, or similar laws 532
of other states on behalf of natural persons in the state. 533
(3) Whenever the Attorney General, by her or his own 534
inquiry or as a result of a complaint, suspects that a violation 535
of this part chapter or federal laws pertaining to restraint s of 536
trade is imminent, occurring, or has occurred, the Attorney 537
General may investigate such suspected violation. 538
Section 14. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2), paragraph (b) 539
of subsection (3), and subsections (5) and (13) of section 540
542.28, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 541
542.28 Civil investigative demand. — 542
(2) The demand shall: 543
(b) State the nature of the conduct which constitutes the 544
violation of this part chapter or of the federal antitrust laws 545
and which is alleged to have occurred or t o be imminent. 546
(3) No such demand shall require the production of any 547
documentary material, the submission of any answers to written 548
interrogatories, or the giving of any oral testimony if such 549
material, answers, or testimony would be protected from 550
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disclosure under: 551
(b) The standards applicable to a discovery request under 552
the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure, to the extent that the 553
application of such standards to any such demand is appropriate 554
and consistent with the provisions and purposes of this part 555
chapter. 556
(5) Within 30 days after the service of an investigative 557
demand upon any person or at any time before the return date 558
specified therein, whichever period is longer, the person served 559
may file in the circuit court in and for the county in whi ch the 560
person resides or transacts business, and serve upon the 561
Attorney General or state attorney, a petition for an order of 562
the court modifying or setting aside the demand. The time 563
allowed for compliance in whole or in part with the demand as 564
deemed proper and ordered by the court shall not run while the 565
petition is pending before the court. The petition shall specify 566
each ground upon which the petitioner relies in seeking relief 567
and may be based upon the failure of the demand to comply with 568
the provisions of this part chapter or upon any constitutional 569
or other legal right or privilege of such person. 570
(13) Nothing contained in this section shall impair the 571
authority of the Attorney General or state attorney to: 572
(a) Institute a civil proceeding under s. 542.22; 573
(b) Lay before a grand jury of this state evidence 574
concerning a violation of this part chapter; 575
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(c) Invoke the power of a court to compel the production 576
of evidence before a grand jury; or 577
(d) File a civil complaint or criminal indictment alleging 578
a violation of this part chapter. 579
Section 15. Section 542.29, Florida Statutes, is amended 580
to read: 581
542.29 Duty of public officers. —In any investigation and 582
in any criminal or civil action c ommenced pursuant to this part 583
chapter, it shall be the duty of all public officers and their 584
deputies, assistants, clerks, subordinates, or employees to 585
render and furnish to the Attorney General or a state attorney, 586
when so requested, assistance and all information available in 587
their official capacity. 588
Section 16. Section 542.30, Florida Statutes, is amended 589
to read: 590
542.30 Jurisdiction and venue. —Without regard to the 591
amount in controversy, a suit or proceeding brought under this 592
part chapter shall be brought in the circuit court in and for 593
any county in which the cause of action arose; in which any 594
defendant resides, is found, or has an agent; or in which any 595
act in furtherance of the conduct prohibited by this part 596
chapter occurred. 597
Section 17. Section 542.31, Florida Statutes, is amended 598
to read: 599
542.31 Action not barred as affecting or involving 600
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interstate or foreign commerce. —No action under this part 601
chapter shall be barred on the grounds that the activity or 602
conduct complained of in any way affects or involves interstate 603
or foreign commerce. It is the intent of the Legislature to 604
exercise its powers to the fullest extent consistent with the 605
Constitutions of this state and the United States. 606
Section 18. Section 542.32, Florida Statutes , is amended 607
to read: 608
542.32 Rule of construction and coverage. —It is the intent 609
of the Legislature that, in construing this part chapter, due 610
consideration and great weight be given to the interpretations 611
of the federal courts relating to comparable fed eral antitrust 612
statutes. In particular, the failure to include in this part 613
chapter the substantive provisions of s. 3 of the Clayton Act, 614
15 U.S.C. s. 14, shall not be deemed in any way to limit the 615
scope of s. 542.18 or s. 542.19. 616
Section 19. Subsect ion (1) of section 542.33, Florida 617
Statutes, is amended to read: 618
542.33 Contracts in restraint of trade valid. — 619
(1) Notwithstanding other provisions of this part chapter 620
to the contrary, each contract by which any person is restrained 621
from exercising a lawful profession, trade, or business of any 622
kind, as provided by subsections (2) and (3) hereof, is to that 623
extent valid, and all other contracts in restraint of trade are 624
void. 625
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Section 20. Section 542.35, Florida Statutes, is amended 626
to read: 627
542.35 Remedies cumulative. —The remedies provided by this 628
part act are cumulative of each other and of existing powers and 629
remedies inherent in the courts. 630
Section 21. Section 542.36, Florida Statutes, is amended 631
to read: 632
542.36 Continuing violations. —Violations commenced prior 633
to October 1, 1980, the effective date of this act and 634
continuing after the effective date shall be actionable as 635
provided in this part chapter. The fact that any conduct 636
occurred prior to October 1, 1980, the effective date of thi s 637
act shall not affect its relevance in proving that a violation 638
of this part chapter has occurred or is occurring. 639
Section 22. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 640