When the California Supreme Court ruled that non competes were not legal (see here) in California it made me start thinking.

If California home to Silicon Valley, the big boy of technology innovation can get by without non competes do we really need them in other places?

I understand the laws that prevent theft of property, patents, secret company plans, customer and similar items. In the end how enforceable are the non competes anyways. In Indiana were I live the courts have generally required the company enforcing the noncompete agreement to provide an equivalent salary to the person until the non compete expires.