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Employment Agreement Writer for Key Hires
Describe the role, the pay and the state they will work in. River drafts an employment agreement that fits that state's rules, with review notes.
River drafts a written employment agreement for a specific hire, fitted to the state where that person will work. Describe the role, pay, bonus, equity, severance and any restrictions you have in mind, in your own words. River researches that state's current rules, writes the agreement in standard legal form, leaves out clauses the state does not allow, and lists the points a lawyer should check before anyone signs. Missing facts are marked for you to fill in, not guessed.
Most employment contract templates are written for nowhere in particular, which is a problem because employment law is set state by state. A non-compete that is routine in one state is void in California and banned outright in Minnesota. River starts from the work state and builds the agreement around it: the at-will statement, the exempt status and salary rules, final pay and vacation treatment, and the notices some states require in invention assignment and confidentiality terms.
This is for founders, small business owners and HR leads hiring an executive or key employee, or anyone who wants severance, a bonus plan or restrictions in writing. For an ordinary full-time startup hire, a startup offer letter is usually enough, and the founder document studio will fill it in. If you are not sure the person is an employee at all, run the classification check first, since the agreement assumes an employee. Co-owners who have not yet settled how the business is run should start with an LLC operating agreement.
What changes from state to state
Restrictive covenants vary most. California voids most employee non-competes and, since 2024, bars employers from enforcing one against a California employee even if it was signed elsewhere. Minnesota banned new employee non-competes in 2023, and several states allow them only above a salary threshold. A federal ban never took effect: a Texas court set aside the FTC's rule in 2024, and the agency dropped its appeals in September 2025. Non-solicitation and confidentiality terms are usually safer ground.
Pay terms are next. To be exempt from federal overtime, most salaried professionals and managers must earn at least $684 a week, the level the Labor Department restored in 2026 after a court struck down its 2024 increase, and several states set higher thresholds. Some states treat earned vacation as wages that must be paid out at the end of employment. Montana is the exception to at-will employment, requiring good cause for a firing once the probation period ends.
Severance has its own rules. When severance is paid in exchange for a release of claims, a worker aged forty or older must get at least twenty-one days to consider it and seven days to revoke it under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act. A good agreement sets that process up in advance. Arbitration clauses cannot force sexual harassment or assault claims into arbitration if the worker objects, under a 2022 federal law, and severance timing can raise deferred compensation tax issues.
How it works
Describe the hire
Say the role, pay, bonus, equity, severance and restrictions, and the state where they will work.
River checks the state
It researches that state's current employment rules and decides which clauses can go in.
Get the agreement
A complete draft employment agreement, with gaps marked and a separate list of points for review.
Adjust in chat
Ask for a version without severance, a shorter offer letter, or changes after your lawyer's comments.
What you get
- A complete employment agreement in standard legal form, written from the terms you describe
- The work state's current rules researched and applied, with the sources listed for your lawyer
- Clauses the state does not allow left out, with a note on what was changed and why
- Severance tied to a release with the timing older workers are entitled to under federal law
- Confidentiality and invention assignment terms with the notices federal and state law expect
- Missing facts marked for you, plus a short list of points for an employment lawyer to check
Common questions
Do I need an employment agreement, or is an offer letter enough?
For most hires an offer letter is enough. It records title, pay, start date and at-will status, and pairs with a confidentiality and invention assignment agreement. A full agreement makes sense for executives and key hires, or whenever you are promising severance, a guaranteed bonus, a fixed term, or restrictions after they leave.
Can I include a non-compete?
It depends on the state where the person works. California and Minnesota bar most employee non-competes, others allow them only above a salary level or with notice and extra pay, and the rest require them to be reasonable. River checks the work state and, where a non-compete will not hold, uses customer and employee non-solicitation terms instead where those are allowed.
Does at-will employment still apply if there is a contract?
It can. An agreement can state that employment is at will while still promising severance if the company ends it without cause. A fixed-term agreement is different, because ending it early may breach the contract. Montana is a special case, since its law requires good cause to fire an employee after the probation period.
How does severance work in the agreement?
The agreement says what is paid, when, and on what conditions, usually that the employee signs a release of claims and returns company property. For employees forty or older, federal law requires at least twenty-one days to consider the release and seven days to revoke it. Payment timing should also be set with deferred compensation tax rules in mind.
Which state's law should govern?
Usually the state where the employee works. California, for example, generally does not let an employer require a California employee to accept another state's law or courts as a condition of employment. River sets governing law to the work state unless you tell it otherwise, and flags any conflict.
Is the draft ready to sign?
Treat it as a strong first draft. Employment rules change often and depend on facts like headcount, location and pay level, so have an employment lawyer in the work state review it before it goes to the candidate. River lists the specific points to check and the sources it relied on, which keeps that review short.
Sources
Built by
Chandler Supple
Co-founder & CEO, River
Chandler has spent the last six years working in AI, building tools for millions of users and Fortune 100 companies. In 2025, he co-founded River to build a new kind of operating system for AI agents.
Employment Agreement Writer for Key Hires
Describe what you need, add any files you have, and your workspace opens with the work already underway.