Murfreesboro Med. Clinic, P.A. v. Udom (Summary)

COVENANT NOT TO COMPETE

Murfreesboro Med. Clinic, P.A. v. Udom, No. M2003-00313-SC-S09-CV (Tenn. June 29, 2005)

A hospital brought suit against a physician seeking to enforce a covenant not to compete that was in the physician’s employment contract. The covenant not to compete stated that the physician could not practice within 25 miles of the center of the town for a period of 18 months. The Supreme Court of Tennessee stated that covenants not to compete in the medical profession are against public policy because patients should have the right to choose the physician they believe is best suited to provide them with quality care. The Supreme Court of Tennessee therefore held that the covenant not to compete between the physician and the hospital was void.