On Aug. 20, a federal judge in Texas blocked a regulation issued by the Federal Trade Commission that would prevent employers from using noncompete agreements, which prohibit workers from joining rival companies.

U.S. District Judge Ada Brown ruled that the FTC does not have the authority to promote the noncompete rule, and the circulation of said rule by the commission is an “unlawful agency action.”

Brown, in her ruling, said the FTC did not provide sufficient evidence or a reasoned basis as to why the commission chose to enforce all noncompetes rather than targeting specific, “harmful” noncompetes.

“The role of this court is to determine whether the FTC provides a sufficient explanation of the alternatives to permit a reasoned choice among different courses of action,” Brown said in the ruling. “However, the FTC provides no such explanation. While considering less disruptive alternative, the FTC ‘was required to assess whether there were reliance interests, determine whether they were significant, and weigh any such interests against competing policy concerns.”

According to Brown’s ruling, the FTC will be unable to enforce its noncompete rule, which was set to go into effect on Sept. 4.

FTC spokesperson Victoria Graham said the commission is considering appealing the court’s decision.

“Today’s decision does not prevent the FTC from addressing non-competes through case-by-base enforcement actions,” Graham said in a statement.

On April 23, the FTC voted 3 to 2 to ban noncompete agreements, stating that the agreements suppress wages and restricts workers’ freedom.