PHILADELPHIA-BellSouth Corp. asked an appeals court to overturn a ruling voiding a clause in current Vice Chairman Gary Forsee’s employment contract that would make it easier for him to accept the chief executive officer position at rival telecommunications company Sprint Corp.
BellSouth is trying to prevent Forsee from joining Sprint, citing a noncompete clause in his contract that prohibits him from joining a BellSouth competitor within 18 months after leaving the company.
“The trial court erred in determining the enforceability of the noncompetition clause,” BellSouth said in a court filing.
The Superior Court of Fulton County, Georgia voided the non-compete clause in Forsee’s contract last week, noting it was overly broad and unenforceable, which BellSouth is arguing was improperly voided and prevented the topic from being discussed during an arbitration proceeding. BellSouth also claims that the court did not have the authority to set a 30-day time limit on arbitration, noting the negotiation scheduled could only be set by an arbitrator.
