Multiple States Argue Tax Company Violated Law with No-Poach Employee Contracts

TRENTON, NJ – Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin led a coalition of 18 states and the District of Columbia in filing an amicus brief against tax preparation company Jackson Hewitt. The brief urges the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey to declare Jackson Hewitt’s “no-poach” provisions in its franchise agreements as presumptively unlawful.

The plaintiffs in the case are former tax preparers for Jackson Hewitt who claim that they were negatively impacted by the company’s no-poach agreements. These agreements bar corporate-owned and franchise locations from hiring each other’s workers. According to the amicus brief, Jackson Hewitt and its franchisees are direct competitors in the labor market, making the no-poach agreement a “naked” horizontal restraint of trade.

The coalition argues that no-poach agreements violate antitrust laws, hinder career mobility, and harm workers’ earning potential. The amicus brief asserts that the company is unlikely to prove that such agreements are reasonably necessary due to the extensive restrictions they impose on workers.

Attorney General Platkin has a history of advocating for workers’ rights and challenging unlawful labor practices. New Jersey, along with other states, has been active in pushing for more scrutiny of anticompetitive no-poach agreements and promoting workers’ rights.

Joining New Jersey in this brief are Attorneys General from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island.

The legal team representing the State in this matter includes Deputy Attorneys General Viviana Hanley, Leslie Prentice, and Bryan Sanchez, along with Consumer Fraud Prosecution Assistant Section Chief Isabella Pitt. They are supervised by Assistant Attorney General Brian F. McDonough of the Division of Law’s Affirmative Civil Enforcement Practice Group.