Four nurse anesthetists thought a $30,000 clause was a buyout – their new employer agreed to pay it
A Texas appeals court has upheld a non-compete injunction against four nurse anesthetists whose new employer promised to cover all legal fallout.
The decision, handed down on April 16, 2026, by the Court of Appeals for the Ninth District of Texas at Beaumont, affirmed a temporary injunction barring four Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists from practicing within a 20-mile radius of their former workplaces for three years. The case offers a pointed reminder for HR professionals about how non-compete agreements hold up in court – and what happens when a competitor tries to work around them.
The dispute began when Anesthesia Associates, a professional association of physicians and healthcare providers based in Beaumont, Texas, terminated its anesthesia services contract with CHRISTUS Health Southeast Texas after the two sides failed to renegotiate terms. The termination took effect on August 1, 2025. That same day, four of the group's CRNAs – Chad Dubois, Kenneth Simmons III, Monica Bentzen, and Lance Mendoza – started working at CHRISTUS facilities in Beaumont for a competitor called EmergencHealth.
Each of the four had signed employment agreements with Anesthesia Associates that included a three-year non-compete clause covering a 20-mile radius, a $30,000 liquidated damages provision, and language acknowledging that any breach would cause irreparable harm. Each was aware...
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