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American Contract Law for a Global Age, 2017a

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_____________________<br />

Review Question 3. Suppose you are a transactional attorney hired by Valley<br />

Medical Specialists following this case. How might you rewrite the covenant-not-tocompete<br />

terms quoted in the case to improve the chances that an Arizona court would<br />

en<strong>for</strong>ce them? Consult section 188 of the Second Restatement in connection with<br />

answering this question. Incidentally, what exactly is the “blue pencil rule” and how<br />

might it impact the way you draft non-competition provisions?<br />

Review Question 4. The Valley Medical Specialists court notes that an<br />

“ominous” and unen<strong>for</strong>ceable covenant not to compete may have “an in terrorem effect<br />

on departing employees.” What does that mean? Do attorneys—who like doctors are<br />

government-licensed professionals with public obligations—drafting a contract have<br />

any ethical or moral obligation to not include contract terms that they know to be<br />

unen<strong>for</strong>ceable? Why or why not?<br />

_____________________<br />

BATSAKIS v. DEMOTSIS<br />

Court of Civil Appeals of Texas—El Paso<br />

226 S.W.2d 673 (Tex. Civ. App. 1949)<br />

McGILL, J.<br />

Plaintiff sued defendant to recover $2,000 with interest at the rate of 8% per<br />

annum from April 2, 1942, alleged to be due on the following instrument, being a<br />

translation from the original, which is written in the Greek language:<br />

Peiraeus<br />

April 2, 1942<br />

Mr. George Batsakis<br />

Konstantinou Diadohou #7<br />

Peiraeus<br />

Mr. Batsakis:<br />

I state by my present (letter) that I received today from you the amount of two<br />

thousand dollars ($2,000.00) of United States of America money, which I borrowed<br />

from you <strong>for</strong> the support of my family during these difficult days and because it is<br />

impossible <strong>for</strong> me to transfer dollars of my own from America.<br />

The above amount I accept with the expressed promise that I will return to you<br />

again in <strong>American</strong> dollars either at the end of the present war or even be<strong>for</strong>e in the<br />

event that you might be able to find a way to collect them (dollars) from my<br />

representative in America to whom I shall write and give him an order relative to<br />

______________________________________________________________________________<br />

322 CHAPTER V: CONTRACT DEFENSES

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