What are confidentiality agreements?
Confidentiality agreements serve the purpose of keeping any information an employee is exposed to throughout their employment confidential, in accordance with the terms of the agreement. These terms must be fair and reasonable.
Have you received a confidentiality agreement from your employer?
If you have received a confidentiality agreement then it is a good idea to make sure that you read through it carefully and understand it fully before signing.
What are your legal options?
You may not need to sign the agreement, if you have signed it already then depending on what you are looking at doing you may need to get advice on what your options are.
How do our employment lawyers help you?
We can review the agreement to ensure your rights are protected or provide you an advice on the clause or document you have signed.
Frequently Asked Questions
My employer handed me a confidentiality agreement; do I have to sign it?
You may not have to sign the agreement but if you do then it is important that you read through the agreement and take the time to understand it.
My employer asked me to sign a confidentiality agreement but in the agreement, they have not provided what needs to be kept confidential. Does this make it invalid?
Not necessarily, there is legal definition of confidential information which would more than likely apply to the agreement.
I have breached a confidentiality agreement and my employer has sent me a letter threatening to sue me for it. How do I deal with this?
First you should reread the agreement and make sure you understand exactly what you have signed, think about what has prompted your employer to send a letter and whether you may have breached it. Then you should consider your legal options.