Liabilities Against Licensure 1

[keezii]

Does anyone have literature on liabilities posed against PEs in terms of the following:
- using past clientele and client information from previous firm at a new firm.
- working as a private consultant while employed at a firm

Any ideas or comments....thank you!

 

[monkeydog]

keezii,
Don't you mean ethicial responsabilites?

 

[monkeydog]

Keezii,
Found it.

http://www.nspe.org/ethics/eh1-code.asp

 

[stevenal]

You will probably find a similar code of ethics in your state laws. This is the code that can cause you to lose your license, rather than just your NSPE membership. Try finding your engineering board's website.

 

[RDK]

Other than the obvious ethical issues about doing that I would think that you would open yourself to a lawsuit from your employer.

You have a fiduciary duty to work in your employer’s best interests, that means not moonlighting in competition to him or poaching his clients after you leave.

This law suit would not be against your company that you would start up, but would be against you personally. You could lose all your assets.

Even if you win the lawsuit, the costs of defending yourself could bankrupt you.

Then you would have a fight to keep your PE status and the means of starting over.

Quit your former company and do not use the contact list provided by that company. You can of course look up the same information after you leave and contact people that you have a personal connection with but I’d wait a reasonable interval before I actively approached clients that I was involved with before leaving, start with the clients not currently active with your former employer.

Of course, this is only an off the cuff opinion and I’d advise you to get some legal advice, no matter which side of the question you are on right now.




Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[keezii]

thank you all for your input!

disclaimer: i am not the one pending this lawsuit, but would somehow be involved as a witness of some sort.

after reading all this information from both NSPE and our regional board; i am factoring the total financial input involved in the whole process...basically is it worth it to carry out this complaint.

second question..has anyone ever experienced this process and doesnt mind sharing the outcome

 

[stevenal]

Note that in the states that have adopted the NSPE model, not pursuing or assisting a complaint against a violation is a violation itself. Also says nothing about the financial impact.

 

[Slugger926]

Most firms I know of have you sign a two year non-compete letter before you start to work. The letters usually state that you can not use existing clients, or use any technologies you learned at your current job at a new one. In some cases, you can't even work in the same field for two years after leaving the company. Also, any products you develop from the time you are working with the existing company to two years after you end your employment, the previos company will own those products even if you made them at home. (See the University of Florida lawsuit against Florida Coaches who made Gatorade on their own time. The university won all rights to Gatorade.)

 

[epoisses]

Wow... if you can't work in the same field for two years after leaving the company that would make it virtually impossible to change jobs, on paper at least. I think such agreements would be legally void in many countries.

 

[HgTX]

I know at least one person who was out of work for a year waiting for his noncompete to expire.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies: faq731-376

 

[RDK]

Epoisses

Here in Canada for a non compete agreement to be valid it has to be limited in time and geographic area.

That would allow you to work in your field, just not open right across the street from your former employer at least for a period of x years.

However in many fields the internet and modern communications have made geographic location largely irrelevant.

Don’t know how this will effect non compete clauses in contracts.

Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[Ashereng]

As with anything - consult a professional.

If one needs engineering help/advise, this is a great forum.

If one needs legal help (non-competes, employment contract, state labour laws), this is probably not the forum.

Take a look at the desgination behind people's names, and also where they work, and take their advise in context to what they do.

My suggestion is to consult with an employment/contracts lawyer, or whatever the appropriate specialty. As you can see, I am not a lawyer, and I am not even sure what the appropriat field is. Take this suggestion in context also.