How North Dakota treats non-competes
North Dakota's prohibition is the oldest in the country, on the books since 1865 under its Century Code. The clause is void. What North Dakota does not provide is a remedy: the protection is essentially defensive, so a worker facing an attempted enforcement is largely on their own in pushing back.
What that means in practice
- Employee non-competes are void under a statute dating to 1865 — the longest-standing prohibition of its kind in the United States.
- The protection is defensive rather than affirmative: the clause is unenforceable, but the statute does not attach a notice duty or a damages remedy.
- In practice that means a worker who is threatened with enforcement bears the cost and effort of resisting it, even while holding the stronger legal position.
- Compare California, which voids non-competes and adds employer obligations and worker remedies on top — the outcomes differ even though both states void the clause.
Non-solicitation is a separate question
As elsewhere, non-solicitation is a distinct clause. A void non-compete does not dispose of a separately drafted restriction on soliciting clients or staff.
General information, not legal advice
Start with the mechanics
The reasonableness test, what a radius is measured from, the access-to-care argument, and the difference between a non-compete and a non-solicitation clause are covered in the national guide to veterinary non-competes. Read that first — this page only covers what is specific to North Dakota.
Other states
Only states we have researched and dated appear here. Others are added in batches rather than generated in bulk — see the national guide for why.