IQVIA Inc. v. Superior Court of California, Alameda County, et al.

A noncompete agreement imposes limitations on an employee’s ability to compete against his or her employer immediately after separating from the company. It is common for a former employee subject to a noncompete agreement who joins a competitor to file a preemptive action seeking a declaration that the agreement is unenforceable. In such an action, does the Due Process Clause, as construed in Walden v. Fiore, 571 U.S. 277 (2014), permit a state court to exercise specific personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state defendant where the plaintiff does not reside in the forum State, the noncompete agreement was formed in another State, and the employment relationship was based in another State, on the ground that enforcement of the agreement would prohibit the plaintiff from working for an employer headquartered in the forum State?