Fine Foods, Inc. v. Dahlin
Vermont Supreme Court
523 A.2d 1228 (1987)
Dahlin (defendant) sold his successful restaurant to Fine Foods (plaintiff) and, as part of the sale, signed a covenant not to compete: in exchange for $5,000, he agreed not to work in the restaurant business within 25 miles of the sold restaurant for five years. Shortly afterward, Dahlin took a job as a maître d' at another restaurant in the same town. Fine Foods sued for an injunction to enforce the covenant, and the trial court found Dahlin had violated it and granted the injunction. Dahlin appealed.
Whether a covenant not to compete is unenforceable because it is contrary to public policy, unnecessary for the employer's (or buyer's) protection, or unnecessarily restrictive of the employee's (or seller's) rights.