Following advocacy efforts from the International Franchise Association (IFA), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced this week that its final “Non-Compete Clause Rule” would preserve noncompete clauses in contracts between franchisors and franchisees. While IFA commends the decision to protect the franchisor-franchisee relationship in the final rule, the organization raised continued concerns with FTC overreach in banning noncompete clauses in employment relationships and the harm it will bring to competition and intellectual property, particularly for franchised small businesses.