The High Court dismissed Ryanair’s action seeking to enforce a 12-month non-compete covenant against former chief operations officer Peter Bellew, who was due to join easyJet as COO on 1 January 2020. Mr Justice Allen found that the covenant was supported by consideration and that Ryanair had a legitimate interest in protecting sensitive commercial information. But its wording reached beyond what Ryanair had shown was necessary, making it void and unenforceable as a restraint of trade.
Ryanair had asked for specific performance of the employment covenant and an injunction preventing Mr Bellew from starting at easyJet. The covenant barred him for 12 months after his employment ended from working, in any capacity, for any business wholly or partly competing with Ryanair for air passenger services in any market.
Mr Bellew argued that the covenant was not binding because the consideration for it had failed, that the restriction was excessive, and that Ryanair’s treatment of him meant the court should refuse equitable relief. The judge rejected his arguments about the share options: the 2018 options had not been withdrawn or replaced, and the consideration had not wholly failed. He also found that Mr Bellew had not been unfairly or unreasonably treated in a way that justified refusing relief if the covenant were otherwise enforceable.
The court accepted that Mr Bellew’s COO role gave him access to confidential, commercially sensitive information about Ryanair’s operations, finances, plans and competitive position. It found the 12-month duration justified by the likely useful life of some of that information. But the evidence supported protection against competition in the low-cost or low-fare sector, not a restriction covering legacy or high-cost airlines as well. The covenant’s wording would have required Mr Bellew to obtain Ryanair’s consent before joining any European airline, including those outside the sector for which Ryanair had established a protectable interest.
The judge also found that the ban on employment “in any capacity” could reach roles such as pilot or air steward, not just positions that risked disclosure or use of protected information. The court said it could not rewrite or read down the clause to narrow its scope. It concluded that the covenant went beyond Ryanair’s legitimate interests on both the range of airlines and the roles it covered.
Mr Justice Allen held that the covenant was binding but legally void and unenforceable as an unjustified restraint of trade. The action was dismissed. The judgment did not grant the requested injunction or order preventing Mr Bellew from joining easyJet.