The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has dropped its remaining no-poach criminal case, apparently abandoning its strategy of challenging employers’ no-hire agreements as criminal conspiracies under the antitrust laws. On November 15, 2023, a federal trial court in Texas granted DOJ’s motion to dismiss criminal charges against Surgical Care Affiliates (SCA) and SCAI Holdings for allegedly conspiring not to hire each other’s senior-level employees. DOJ stated that “dismissal of this case is not contrary to manifest public interest, and it will allow the conservation of this Court’s time and resources.”
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC), our affiliated nonprofit membership association, can read more here.