Legal or not there still needs to be a precedence set in the courts so until it happens, ie a uk airline takes a pilot to court and wins then no precedence has been set. (maybe it has) i am not a lawyer or have that much knowledge about contract law but i do know about precedence. If i was an airline recruiter and needed pilots and could get one for little or no training cost then i would not give a stuff whether he was bonded by his previous company or not. do not forget that pilots are assests just like spare tyres or aircraft or toilet handles or paper cups, get them as cheap as possible cos business is business. i am bonded and am leaving, i will continue to pay my bond for many years since i did agree to pay it back, what was not agreed was the rate of repayment.
love this topic and want some really good meat on the subject.
happy new year to you all - safe flying.