Is a noncompete common?
Frequency/market practice: Fairly common but difficult to get from private equity sellers or in some sectors.
Is it common to use waterfall or blue pencil methods to interpret contractual provisions?
Frequency/market practice: Rarely; blue pencil provisions are typical to interpret the scope of the restrictive covenants.
Are nonsolicitation provisions (of employees) common?
Frequency/market practice: Fairly common (in conjunction with noncompete).
Are nonsolicitation provisions (of customers) common?
Frequency/market practice: Fairly common (in conjunction with noncompete).
Are seller restrictions usually imposed on the target business between signing the purchase agreement and closing?
Frequency/market practice: Very common.
Is there broad access to books, records and management between signing and closing?
Frequency/market practice: Fairly common; depends on the sophistication of the parties. This is common for private deals but there is often resistance from sellers. There are competition law issues around potential "gun-jumping."