Form of Voting Agreement
Exhibit 10.1
VOTING AGREEMENT
VOTING AGREEMENT (Agreement), dated as of September 20, 2017, by and between Brookline Bancorp, Inc., a Delaware corporation (Buyer), and the undersigned holder (Shareholder) of common stock, par value $0.01 per share (Common Stock), of First Common Bank, N.A., a national banking association (the Company).
WHEREAS, concurrently with the execution of this Agreement, Buyer, Brookline Bank, a Massachusetts savings bank of which Buyer is the sole stockholder (Buyer Bank), and the Company have entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (as such agreement may be subsequently amended or modified, the Merger Agreement), providing for the merger of the Company with and into Buyer Bank (the Merger);
WHEREAS, the Shareholder beneficially owns (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act)) and has sole voting power with respect to the number of shares of Common Stock, and holds stock options or other rights to acquire the number of shares of Common Stock, indicated opposite the Shareholders name on Schedule 1 attached hereto (as used herein, the term Shares means all shares of Common Stock, whether such shares of Common Stock are held by the Shareholder on the date of this Agreement or are subsequently acquired prior to the Expiration Date (as defined in Section 2), whether by the exercise of any stock options or otherwise);
WHEREAS, it is a condition to the willingness of Buyer and Buyer Bank to enter into the Merger Agreement that the Shareholder execute and deliver this Agreement; and
WHEREAS, all capitalized terms used in this Agreement without definition herein shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Merger Agreement.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing recitals, the mutual covenants and agreements contained herein, and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, and intending to be legally bound hereby, the Shareholder and Buyer agree as follows:
1. Agreement to Vote Shares. The Shareholder agrees that, prior to the Expiration Date, at any meeting of the shareholders of the Company, or any adjournment or postponement thereof, or in connection with any written consent of the shareholders of the Company, with respect to the Merger Agreement or any of the transactions contemplated thereby (including the Merger) or any Acquisition Proposal, the Shareholder shall:
(a) appear at such meeting or otherwise cause the Shares to be counted as present thereat for purposes of calculating a quorum; and
(b) vote (or cause to be voted), or deliver a written consent (or cause a consent to be delivered) covering, all of the Shares that such Shareholder shall be entitled to so vote (i) in favor of adoption and approval of the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby, including the Merger; (ii) against any action or agreement that would result in a breach
in any material respect of any covenant, representation or warranty, or any other obligation or agreement of the Company contained in the Merger Agreement or of the Shareholder contained in this Agreement, or that would preclude fulfillment of a condition under the Merger Agreement to the Companys and Buyers respective obligations to consummate the Merger; and (iii) against any Acquisition Proposal, or any agreement or transaction that is intended, or could reasonably be expected, to impede, interfere with, delay, postpone, discourage or adversely affect the consummation of the Merger or any of the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement.
Any such vote shall be cast or consent shall be given in accordance with such procedures relating thereto so as to ensure that it is duly counted for purposes of determining that a quorum is present and for purposes of recording the results of such vote or consent.
2. Expiration Date. As used in this Agreement, the term Expiration Date shall mean the earliest to occur of (i) the Effective Time of the Merger, (ii) such date and time as the Merger Agreement shall be terminated pursuant to Article VIII thereof, (iii) any amendment to the Merger Agreement that decreases the Merger Consideration, or (iv) upon mutual written agreement of the parties hereto to terminate this Agreement. Upon termination or expiration of this Agreement, no party shall have any further obligations or liabilities under this Agreement; provided, however, that such termination or expiration shall not relieve any party from liability for any willful breach of this Agreement prior to the termination or expiration hereof.
3. Subsequently Acquired Shares; Agreement to Retain Shares. The Shareholder agrees that any shares of Common Stock the Shareholder acquires after the date of this Agreement (whether by the exercise of any stock option, purchases in the open market, privately or otherwise) shall be bound by and subject to the terms of this Agreement. The Shareholder shall not, except as contemplated by this Agreement or the Merger Agreement, directly or indirectly, (a) sell, assign, transfer, or otherwise dispose of (including, without limitation, by the creation of a lien, claim, charge or other encumbrance or restriction of any kind whatsoever), any Shares, (b) enter into any contract, option, commitment or other arrangement or understanding with respect to the sale, transfer, assignment or other disposition of, any Shares, (c) deposit any Shares in a voting trust or enter into a voting agreement or similar agreement with respect to any Shares or grant any proxy or power of attorney with respect thereto other than in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement, or (d) take any action that would make any representation or warranty of the Shareholder contained herein untrue or incorrect or have the effect of preventing or disabling the Shareholder from performing the Shareholders obligations under this Agreement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Shareholder may make transfers of Shares (a) by will or by operation of law, in which case this Agreement shall bind the transferee, (b) in connection with estate and charitable planning purposes, including transfers to relatives, trusts and charitable organizations, subject to the transferee agreeing in writing to be bound by the terms of, and perform the obligations of the Shareholder under, this Agreement, and (c) as Buyer may otherwise agree in writing in its sole discretion.
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4. Representations and Warranties of Shareholder. Except as disclosed on Schedule 1 hereto, the Shareholder hereby represents and warrants to Buyer and Buyer Bank as follows:
(a) the Shareholder has the full power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and to perform the Shareholders obligations hereunder;
(b) this Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by the Shareholder and (assuming this Agreement constitutes a valid and binding agreement of Buyer and Buyer Bank) is a valid and legally binding agreement with respect to the Shareholder, enforceable in accordance with its terms (except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent transfer and similar laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors rights or by general equity principles); and
(c) the Shareholder beneficially owns the number of Shares indicated opposite such Shareholders name on Schedule 1, free and clear of any liens, claims, charges or other encumbrances or restrictions of any kind whatsoever, and has sole, and otherwise unrestricted, voting and investment power with respect to such Shares.
5. No Solicitation. From and after the date hereof until the Expiration Date, the Shareholder, in his, her or its capacity as a shareholder of the Company, shall not, nor shall such Shareholder authorize any partner, officer, director, advisor or representative of, such Shareholder or any of his, her or its affiliates, other than the Company in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, to (and, to the extent applicable to the Shareholder, such Shareholder shall use reasonable best efforts to prevent any of his, her or its representatives or affiliates, other than the Company in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, to (a) initiate, solicit, induce or knowingly encourage, or take any action to facilitate the making of, any inquiry, offer or proposal which constitutes, or could reasonably be expected to lead to, an Acquisition Proposal, (b) participate in any discussions or negotiations regarding any Acquisition Proposal, or furnish, or otherwise afford access, to any person (other than Buyer) any information or data with respect to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or otherwise relating to an Acquisition Proposal, (c) enter into any agreement, agreement in principle or letter of intent with respect to an Acquisition Proposal, (d) solicit proxies or become a participant in a solicitation (as such terms are defined in Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act) with respect to an Acquisition Proposal (other than the Merger Agreement) or otherwise encourage or assist any party in taking or planning any action that would compete with, restrain or otherwise serve to interfere with or inhibit the timely consummation of the Merger in accordance with the terms of the Merger Agreement, (e) initiate a shareholders vote or action by consent of the Companys shareholders with respect to an Acquisition Proposal, or (f) except by reason of this Agreement, become a member of a group (as such term is used in Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act) with respect to any voting securities of the Company that takes any action in support of an Acquisition Proposal.
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6. Specific Enforcement. The parties hereto agree that irreparable damage would occur in the event any provision of this Agreement was not performed in accordance with the terms hereof or was otherwise breached. It is accordingly agreed that the parties shall be entitled to specific relief hereunder, including, without limitation, an injunction or injunctions to prevent and enjoin breaches of the provisions of this Agreement and to enforce specifically the terms and provisions hereof, in a Massachusetts Court (as defined in Section 15 below), in addition to any other remedy to which they may be entitled at law or in equity. Any requirements for the securing or posting of any bond with respect to any such remedy are hereby waived.
7. No Waivers. No waivers of any breach of this Agreement extended by Buyer to the Shareholder shall be construed as a waiver of any rights or remedies of Buyer with respect to any other shareholder of the Company who has executed an agreement substantially in the form of this Agreement with respect to Shares beneficially owned by such shareholder or with respect to any subsequent breach of the Shareholder or any other such shareholder of the Company. No waiver of any provisions hereof by either party shall be deemed a waiver of any other provisions hereof by any such party, nor shall any such waiver be deemed a continuing waiver of any provision hereof by such party.
8. Capacity as Shareholder. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the covenants and agreements set forth herein shall not have any effect on the ability of the Shareholder to exercise his or her duties as a director of the Company, while acting in such capacity as a director of the Company. The Shareholder is executing this Agreement solely in his or her capacity as a shareholder of the Company.
9. Entire Agreement; Amendments. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements, written or oral, among the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and contains the entire agreement among the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof. This Agreement may not be amended, supplemented or modified, and no provisions hereof may be modified or waived, except by an instrument in writing signed by each party hereto.
10. Severability. If any term or other provision of this Agreement is determined to be invalid, illegal or incapable of being enforced by any rule of law or public policy, all other conditions and provisions of this Agreement shall nevertheless remain in full force and effect so long as the economic or legal substance of the transactions contemplated hereby is not affected in any manner materially adverse to any party. Upon such determination that any term or other provision is invalid, illegal or incapable of being enforced, the parties hereto shall negotiate in good faith to modify this Agreement so as to effect the original intent of the parties as closely as possible in an acceptable manner to the end that the transactions contemplated hereby are fulfilled to the extent possible.
11. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which will be deemed an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
12. Effect of Headings. The section headings herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction or interpretation of this Agreement.
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13. Public Disclosure. The Shareholder shall not issue any press release or any public statement or other disclosure with respect to this Agreement, the Merger Agreement or the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, including the Merger, without the prior consent of Buyer. The Shareholder hereby permits Buyer to publish and disclose in any document and/or schedule filed by Buyer with the Securities and Exchange Commission and any other applicable Regulatory Authority such Shareholders identity and ownership of Shares and the nature of such Shareholders commitments and obligations pursuant to this Agreement.
14. Assignment. This Agreement may not be assigned by any party hereto without the prior written consent of the other party hereto; provided, however, that, notwithstanding the foregoing, Buyer may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement to any Subsidiary wholly owned by it. All of the covenants and agreements contained in this Agreement shall be binding upon, and inure to the benefit of, the respective parties and their permitted successors, assigns, heirs, executors, administrators and other legal representatives, as the case may be.
15. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without giving effect to the principles of conflicts of laws thereof. The parties hereto hereby irrevocably and unconditionally consent to and submit to the jurisdiction of the Business Litigation Session of the Superior Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, or if that court does not have jurisdiction, a federal court sitting in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (the Massachusetts Courts) for any litigation arising out of or relating to this Agreement and the transactions contemplated hereby, waive any objection to the laying of venue of any such litigation in the Massachusetts Courts and agree not to plead or claim in any Massachusetts Court that such litigation brought therein has been brought in any inconvenient forum.
16. Waiver of Jury Trial. The parties hereto hereby waive any right to trial by jury with respect to any action or proceeding related to or arising out of this Agreement, any document executed in connection herewith and the matters contemplated hereby and thereby.
17. No Agreement Until Executed. Irrespective of negotiations among the parties or the exchanging of drafts of this Agreement, this Agreement shall not constitute or be deemed to evidence a contract, agreement, arrangement or understanding between the parties hereto unless and until (a) the Board of Directors of the Company has approved, for purposes of any applicable anti-takeover laws and regulations, and any applicable provision of the Companys Articles of Association, as amended, the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement and this Agreement, (b) the Merger Agreement is executed by all parties thereto, and (c) this Agreement is executed by all parties hereto and delivered by electronic or facsimile signature in two or more counterparts, each of which will be deemed an original, but all of which together will constitute one and the same Agreement.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement as of the date first set forth above.
| BROOKLINE BANKCORP, INC. | |
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| SHAREHOLDER | |
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[Signature Page to Voting Agreement]
SCHEDULE 1
Shareholder |
| Shares |
| Options |
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