07:11 AM EDT, 08/22/2024 (MT Newswires) -- (Updates with FTC comment in the fourth paragraph.)

According to multiple media reports late Tuesday, a federal judge in Texas has blocked a US Federal Trade Commission ban on agreements preventing workers from joining their employers' rivals or launching competing businesses.

District Judge Ada Brown ruled that the FTC overstepped its authority.

Brown ruled that even if the FTC had the authority to impose such a ban, it failed to justify outlawing most noncompete agreements.

"We are seriously considering a potential appeal," the US Federal Trade Commission told MT Newswires, adding the decision does not prevent the agency from addressing noncompete agreements through case-by-case enforcement actions.