Form of Construction Partners, Inc. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan
Exhibit 10.7
CONSTRUCTION PARTNERS, INC.
2018 EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page | ||||||
1. | Purpose | 1 | ||||
2. | Definitions | 1 | ||||
3. | Administration | 7 | ||||
4. | Shares Subject to the Plan | 9 | ||||
5. | Award Eligibility and Limitations | 10 | ||||
6. | Options | 10 | ||||
7. | Stock Appreciation Rights | 13 | ||||
8. | Restricted Awards | 15 | ||||
9. | Performance Awards | 17 | ||||
10. | Other Stock-Based Awards | 19 | ||||
11. | Treatment of Awards on Termination of Continuous Service | 19 | ||||
12. | Covenants of the Company | 20 | ||||
13. | Company Use of Proceeds from Awards | 20 | ||||
14. | Adjustments for Changes in Stock | 20 | ||||
15. | Amendment of the Plan and Awards | 22 | ||||
16. | General Provisions | 23 | ||||
17. | Effective Date and Term of Plan | 28 | ||||
18. | Governing Law | 28 | ||||
19. | Limitation on Liability | 29 | ||||
20. | Execution | 29 |
CONSTRUCTION PARTNERS, INC.
2018 EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
1. Purpose
The purpose of the Construction Partners, Inc. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan is to enable the Company and any Affiliate to obtain and retain the services of the types of Employees, Consultants, and Directors who will contribute to the Companys long range success and to provide incentives that are linked directly to increases in share value which will inure to the benefit of all stockholders of the Company. The Plan is an amendment and restatement of the SunTX CPI Growth Company, Inc. 2016 Equity Incentive Plan.
2. Definitions
Administrator means the Board or the Committee appointed by the Board in accordance with Section 3(e).
Affiliate means any parent or direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company, whether now or hereafter existing.
Award means any Option, Restricted Award, Performance Award, Stock Appreciation Right or other Stock-Based Award granted under the Plan.
Award Agreement means a written agreement between the Company and a Participant evidencing the terms and conditions of an individual Award. Each Award Agreement will be subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan and need not be identical.
Board means the Board of Directors of the Company.
Cause means, (a) with respect to any Participant who is a party to a Service Agreement which provides for a definition of Cause, as defined therein; and (b) with respect to all other Participants, (i) the commission of, or plea of guilty or no contest to, a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude or the commission of any other act involving willful malfeasance or material fiduciary breach with respect to the Company or an Affiliate; (ii) conduct tending to bring the Company into substantial public disgrace or disrepute; (iii) gross negligence or willful misconduct with respect to the Company or an Affiliate; or (iv) material violation of state or federal securities laws. The Administrator, in its absolute discretion, shall determine the effect of all matters and questions relating to whether a Participant has been discharged for Cause.
Change in Control means:
(a) with respect to the Company, (i) a sale of all or substantially all of the equity or assets of the Company to an unrelated Person (a Sale); or (ii) any merger or consolidation of the Company with another Person if, immediately after giving effect thereto, any Person (or group of Persons acting in concert) other than the Persons holding greater than 50% of the outstanding Common Stock immediately prior thereto (the Majority Holders) have the power to designate or approve a majority of the members of the board of directors of the Surviving Entity; and
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(b) with respect to any Affiliate, as applicable (including, without limitation, the sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company or other Affiliate together with such companys subsidiaries, taken as a whole), (i) a Sale of such Affiliate; or (ii) any merger or consolidation of the Affiliate with another Person if, immediately after giving effect thereto, any Person (or group of Persons acting in concert) other than the Affiliate Majority Holders immediately prior thereto have the power to designate or approve a majority of the members of the board of directors of the Affiliate or the surviving entity, that also constitutes a change in the ownership of a corporation, a change in the effective control of a corporation, or a change in the ownership of a substantial portion of a corporations assets, in each case, within the meaning of Section 1.409A-3(i)(5) of the Treasury Regulations.
The foregoing notwithstanding, a transaction will not constitute a Change in Control if (i) its sole purpose is to change the state of the Companys incorporation or to create a holding company that will be owned in substantially the same proportions by the Persons who held the Companys securities immediately before the transaction; (ii) it constitutes a public offering that results in any security of the Company being listed (or approved for listing), or designated (or approved for designation) as a security on any Established Securities Market; (iii) solely because 50% or more of the total voting power of the Companys then outstanding securities is acquired by a trustee or other fiduciary holding securities under one or more employee benefit plans of the Company or any Affiliate, or any company that, immediately before the acquisition, is owned directly or indirectly by the Companys stockholders in substantially the same proportion as their ownership of stock in the Company immediately before the acquisition; or (iv) it results solely from a change in ownership of an existing stockholder.
Code means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
Committee means a committee of one or more members of the Board appointed by the Board to administer the Plan in accordance with Section 3(e).
Common Stock means the Companys Class A common stock, $.001 par value per Share.
Company means Construction Partners, Inc., a Delaware corporation.
Consultant means any natural person who provides bona fide consulting or advisory services to the Company or an Affiliate under a written agreement, which services are not in connection with the offer or sale of securities in a capital raising transaction and do not directly or indirectly promote or maintain a market for the Companys securities.
Continuous Service means the uninterrupted service of a Participant with the Company or an Affiliate as an Employee, Director or Consultant. A Participants Continuous Service will not be deemed interrupted or terminated merely because of a change in the capacity in which the Participant renders service, such as a change in status from Employee to Consultant or Director, or a change in the entity for which the Participant renders service, such as from the Company to an Affiliate, so long as there is no interruption or termination of the Participants service. The Administrator or its delegate, in its sole discretion, may determine whether Continuous Service will be considered interrupted in the case of any approved leave of absence, including sick leave, military leave or any other personal or family leave of absence.
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Date of Grant means the first date on which all necessary corporate action has been taken by the Administrator to approve the grant of an Award to a Participant as provided under the Plan, provided the key terms and conditions of the Award are communicated to the Participant within a reasonable period thereafter; or such later date as is designated by the Administrator and specified in the Award Agreement. In any situation where the terms of the Award are subject to negotiation with the Participant, the Date of Grant will not be earlier than the date the key terms and conditions of the Award are communicated to the Participant.
Detrimental Activity means any of the following: (a) disclosure of the Companys confidential information to any Person outside the Company, without prior written authorization from the Company or in conflict with the interests of the Company, whether the confidential information was acquired or disclosed by the Participant during or after service with the Company; (b) failure or refusal to disclose promptly or assign to the Company all right, title, and interest in any invention, work product or idea, patentable or not, made or conceived by the Participant during service with the Company, relating in any manner to the interests of the Company or, the failure or refusal to do anything reasonably necessary to enable the Company to secure a patent where appropriate in the United States and in other countries; (c) activity that is discovered to be grounds for or results in termination of the Participants Continuous Service for Cause; (d) violation or breach of a non-disclosure, confidentiality, intellectual property, privacy, exclusivity or other restrictive covenant in any Award Agreement, Service Agreement or other agreement between the Participant and the Company; (e) any direct or indirect attempt to induce any Employee to be employed or perform services or acts in conflict with the interests of the Company; (f) any direct or indirect attempt, in conflict with the interests of the Company, to solicit the trade or business of any current or prospective customer, client, supplier or partner of the Company; (g) the conviction of, or guilty plea entered by, the Participant for any felony or a crime involving moral turpitude whether or not connected with the Company or (h) the commission of any other act involving willful malfeasance or material fiduciary breach with respect to the Company. All references to the Company in this definition refer to the Company and any Affiliate.
Director means a member of the Board.
Disability means (a) with respect to any Participant who is a party to a Service Agreement that provides for a definition of Disability, as defined therein; and (b) with respect to any other Participant, the Participants inability to substantially perform his or her duties to the Company or any Affiliate by reason of a medically determinable physical or mental impairment that is expected to last for a period of six months or longer or to result in death. Notwithstanding the foregoing, for purposes of determining the term of an Incentive Stock Option under Section 11(b)(iii), Disability means permanent and total disability as defined in Code Section 22(e)(3). The Administrator will determine whether an individual has a Disability under procedures established by the Administrator. Other than for determinations of Disability for purposes of the term of an Incentive Stock Option under Section 11(b)(iii), the Administrator may rely on any determination that a Participant is disabled for purposes of benefits under any long-term disability plan maintained by the Company or any Affiliate in which a Participant participates.
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Effective Date means August 19, 2016, the date of the Plans original adoption by the Compensation Committee of the Board.
Employee means a common law or statutory employee of the Company or an Affiliate. Mere service as a Director or payment of a Directors fee by the Company or an Affiliate is not sufficient by itself to constitute being an Employee.
Established Securities Market means a national securities exchange that is registered under Section 6 of the Exchange Act, a foreign national securities exchange that is officially recognized, sanctioned or supervised by governmental authority or any over-the-counter market that is reflected by the existence of an interdealer quotation system.
Exchange Act means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
Exercise Price means the price per Share at which the holder of an Option may buy an underlying Share on exercise of the Option.
Fair Market Value means, as of the date of any valuation event, the value per Share determined using a presumptively reasonable valuation method under Treasury Regulation section 1.409A-1(b)(5)(iv), as follows:
(i) The Fair Market Value on the date of the Companys initial public offering (as described in Section 12(f)(1)(G) of the Exchange Act) of its Common Stock will be the initial price per Share to the public on that date.
(ii) On any date on which the Common Stock is admitted to trading on an Established Securities Market for which closing prices are reported on any date, Fair Market Value may be determined based on (1) the last sale before or the first sale after the Date of Grant of an Award or any other valuation event; (2) the closing price on the last trading day before the Date of Grant of an Award or any other valuation event; (3) the closing price on the Date of Grant or any other valuation event or (4) an average selling price during a specified period that is within 30 days before or 30 days after the Date of Grant of an Award, on condition that the commitment to grant an Award based on an average selling price during a specified period must be irrevocable before the beginning of the specified period, and the valuation method must be used consistently for grants of Awards under the Plan and substantially similar programs.
(iii) If the Common Stock is readily tradable on an Established Securities Market but closing prices are not reported, Fair Market Value may be determined based on (1) the average of the highest bid and lowest asked prices reported on the last trading day before the Date of Grant of an Award or any other valuation event or on the Date of Grant or any other valuation event or (2) an average of the highest bid and lowest asked prices during a specified period that is within 30 days before or 30 days after the Date of Grant of an Award, on condition that the commitment to grant an Award based on an average selling price during a specified period must be irrevocable before the beginning of the specified period, and the valuation method must be used consistently for grants of Awards under the Plan and substantially similar programs.
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(iv) At any time the Common Stock is not readily tradable on an Established Securities Market, the Administrator will determine the Fair Market Value through the reasonable application of a reasonable valuation method based on the facts and circumstances as of the valuation date, including, at the election of the Administrator, by an independent appraisal that meets the requirements of Code Section 401(a)(28)(C) and the regulations issued thereunder as of a date that is no more than 12 months before the relevant transaction to which the valuation is applied (for example, an Options Date of Grant), and that determination will be conclusive and binding on all Persons.
(v) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, in the event of a Change in Control or other transaction described under Section 14(c), Fair Market Value means the price per Share paid or payable to the Companys stockholders in such transaction.
Grant Price means the base value per Share of a Stock Appreciation Right, as determined by the Administrator and as set forth in the Award Agreement.
Incentive Stock Option means an Option intended to qualify as an incentive stock option under Section 422 of the Code and the regulations issued thereunder.
Non-Employee Director means a non-employee director as defined in Rule 16b-3(b)(3) under the Exchange Act.
Nonqualified Stock Option means an Option not intended to qualify as an Incentive Stock Option.
Officer means an individual who is an officer of the Company as defined in Rule 16a-1(f) issued under the Exchange Act.
Option means an Incentive Stock Option or a Nonqualified Stock Option granted under the Plan.
Participant means an individual to whom an Award is granted under the Plan or, if applicable, such other Person who holds an outstanding Award.
Performance Award means an Award granted under Section 9.
Performance Stock means Restricted Stock granted under a Performance Award.
Performance Stock Unit means a Restricted Stock Unit granted under a Performance Award.
Permitted Transferee means a Participants child, stepchild, grandchild, parent, stepparent, grandparent, spouse, former spouse, sibling, niece, nephew, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law or sister-in-law (including adoptive relationships), any individual sharing the Participants household (other than a tenant or employee), a trust in which these individuals (or the Participant) have more than 50% of the beneficial interest, a foundation in which these individuals (or the Participant) control the management of assets, any other entity in which these individuals (or the Participant) own more than 50% of the voting interests, or such other transferee as may be permitted by the Administrator in its sole discretion.
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Person means an individual, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, joint venture, labor organization, unincorporated organization, governmental entity or political subdivision thereof or any other entity, and includes a syndicate or group as those terms are used in Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act.
Plan means this Construction Partners, Inc. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan, which is an amendment and restatement of the SunTX CPI Growth Company, Inc. 2016 Equity Incentive Plan, as it may be amended from time to time.
Restricted Award means an Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units granted under Section 7.
Restricted Period has the meaning set forth in Section 7.
Restricted Stock means Shares granted under an Award that are subject to certain restrictions and risk of forfeiture.
Restricted Stock Unit means a hypothetical unit granted under an Award evidencing the right to receive one Share or an equivalent value in cash equal to the Fair Market Value (as determined by the Administrator) in the future, which right is subject to certain restrictions and risk of forfeiture.
Securities Act means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
Service Agreement means a written employment agreement, consulting or other service agreement or an employment policy manual, the terms of which have been approved by the Administrator, applicable to a Participants employment or service with the Company or an Affiliate.
Share means one share of Common Stock.
Stock Appreciation Right means the right under an Award to receive an amount equal to the difference between the Fair Market Value as of the date of exercise and the Grant Price, multiplied by the number of Shares for which the Award is exercised, as determined under Section 7.
Surviving Entity means the Company if immediately following any merger, consolidation or similar transaction, the holders of outstanding voting securities of the Company immediately before the merger or consolidation own equity securities possessing more than 50% of the voting power of the entity existing following the merger, consolidation or similar transaction. In all other cases, the other entity to the transaction and not the Company will be the Surviving Entity. In making the determination of ownership by the stockholders of an entity immediately after the merger, consolidation or similar transaction, equity securities that the stockholders owned immediately before the merger, consolidation or similar transaction as
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stockholders of another party to the transaction will be disregarded. Further, outstanding voting securities of an entity will be calculated by assuming the conversion of all equity securities convertible (immediately or at some future time whether or not contingent on the satisfaction of performance goals) into securities entitled to vote.
3. Administration
(a) Administrator. The Compensation Committee of the Board shall administer the Plan unless and until the Board delegates administration to a different Committee or vests authority in the Board for the administration of the Plan, as provided in Section 3(e).
(b) Authority of Administrator. The Administrator will have the power and authority to select Participants and grant Awards under the terms of the Plan.
(c) Specific Authority. In particular, the Administrator will have the authority to:
(i) construe and interpret the Plan and apply its provisions;
(ii) promulgate, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the administration of the Plan;
(iii) authorize any Person to execute, on behalf of the Company, any instrument required to carry out the purposes of the Plan;
(iv) delegate its authority to one or more Officers of the Company with respect to Awards that do not involve any individual who is subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act, which delegation shall be by a resolution that specifies the total number of Shares that may be subject to Awards by the Officer and the Officer may not make an Award to himself or herself;
(v) determine when Awards are to be granted under the Plan;
(vi) select, subject to the limitations set forth in the Plan, those Participants to whom Awards will be granted;
(vii) determine the number of Shares to be made subject to each Award;
(viii) determine whether each Option is to be an Incentive Stock Option or a Nonqualified Stock Option;
(ix) prescribe the terms and conditions of each Award, including, without limitation, the Grant Price or Exercise Price and medium of payment, vesting provisions, and to specify the provisions of the Award Agreement relating to the grant or sale;
(x) subject to the restrictions applicable under Section 15(c), amend any outstanding Awards, including for the purpose of modifying the time or manner of vesting, the purchase price, Exercise Price or Grant Price or the term of any outstanding Award;
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(xi) determine the duration and purpose of leaves of absences that may be granted to a Participant without constituting termination of their Continuous Service for purposes of the Plan, which periods will be no shorter than the periods generally applicable to Employees under the Companys employment policies or as required under applicable law;
(xii) make decisions with respect to outstanding Awards that may become necessary on a Change in Control or an event that triggers capital adjustments; and
(xiii) exercise discretion to make any and all other determinations that it may determine to be necessary or advisable for administration of the Plan.
(d) Decisions Final. All decisions made by the Administrator under the provisions of the Plan will be final and binding on the Company and the Participants, unless a decision is determined by a court having jurisdiction to be arbitrary and capricious.
(e) The Committee.
(i) General. The Board may delegate administration of the Plan to a Committee or Committees of one or more members of the Board, and the term Committee applies to any Person or Persons to whom that authority has been delegated. If administration is delegated to a Committee, the Committee will have, in connection with the administration of the Plan, the powers theretofore possessed by the Board, including the power to delegate to a subcommittee any of the administrative powers the Committee is authorized to exercise (and references in the Plan to the Administrator will thereafter be to the Committee or subcommittee), subject, however, to such resolutions, consistent with the provisions of the Plan, as the Board may adopt. The Board may abolish the Committee at any time and re-vest in the Board the administration of the Plan. The members of the Committee will be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the Board. The Board may increase or decrease the size of the Committee, add additional members to, remove members (with or without Cause) from, appoint new members in substitution therefor, and fill vacancies, however caused, in the Committee. The Committee shall act by a vote of the majority of its members or, in the case of a Committee comprised of only two members, the unanimous consent of its members, whether present or not, or by the written consent of the majority of its members and shall keep minutes of all of its meetings. Subject to the limitations prescribed by the Plan and the Board, the Committee may establish and follow such rules and regulations for the conduct of its business as it may determine to be advisable.
(ii) Committee Composition when Registration is Required. Whenever any class of the Companys common equity securities is required to be registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act, in the discretion of the Board, a Committee may consist solely of two or more Non-Employee Directors. The Board has sole discretion to determine whether it intends to comply with the exemption requirements of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act. However, if the Board intends to satisfy such exemption requirements, with respect to Awards to any Officer or Director, the Committee will at all times consist solely of two or more Non-Employee Directors. Within the scope of that authority, the Board or the Committee may delegate to a committee of one or more members of the Board who are not Non-Employee Directors the authority to grant Awards to eligible individuals who are not Officers, Directors, beneficial owners (as defined in Rule 16a 1(a)(1) under the Exchange Act) of more than 10% of any class of equity securities of
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the Company registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act or otherwise subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act. Nothing in this Section 3(e)(ii) is intended to create an inference that an Award granted other than by a committee of the Board consisting at all times solely of two or more Non-Employee Directors is not validly granted under the Plan.
(f) Indemnification. In addition to such other rights of indemnification as they may have as Directors or members of the Committee, and to the extent allowed by applicable law, the Company will indemnify the Administrator against the reasonable expenses, including attorneys fees, actually incurred in connection with any action, suit or proceeding or in connection with any appeal thereof, to which the Administrator may be party by reason of any action taken or failure to act under or in connection with the Plan or any Award granted under the Plan, and against all amounts paid by the Administrator in settlement thereof (subject, however, to the Companys approval of the settlement, which approval the Company will not unreasonably withhold) or paid by the Administrator in satisfaction of a judgment in any such action, suit or proceeding, except in relation to matters as to which it is adjudged in the action, suit or proceeding that the Administrator did not act in good faith and in a manner that the Person reasonably believed to be in the best interests of the Company, and in the case of a criminal proceeding, had no reason to believe that the conduct complained of was lawful. Notwithstanding the foregoing, it is a condition precedent to the Companys obligations in this Section 3(f) that within 60 days after institution of any such action, suit or proceeding, the Administrator or Committee member offer the Company in writing the opportunity at its own expense to handle and defend the action, suit or proceeding.
4. Shares Subject to the Plan
(a) Share Reserve. Subject to adjustment under Section 14(a), the maximum aggregate number of Shares that may be issued on exercise or vesting of all Awards under the Plan is 2,000,000 Shares, all of which may be used for any Awards. Each Share subject to any Award granted hereunder will be counted against the Share reserve on the basis of one Share for every Share subject thereto.
(b) Return of Shares to the Share Reserve. If any Award for any reason is forfeited, cancelled, expires or otherwise terminates, in whole or in part, the unissued Shares under the Award will revert to and again become available for issuance under the Plan. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Shares used to pay the Exercise Price of an Option or to satisfy a Participants tax obligations for any Award, whether tendered to or withheld by the Company, will not be available again for other Awards under the Plan, and all Shares underlying any Stock Appreciation Right, or any other Award that is settled in cash and not in Shares, will not be counted against the foregoing Share reserve. Notwithstanding anything in this Section 4 to the contrary and subject to adjustment under Section 14(a), the maximum number of Shares that may be issued on the exercise of Incentive Stock Options will equal the aggregate number of Shares stated in subsection (a) plus, to the extent permitted under Section 422 of the Code and the Treasury regulations thereunder, any Shares that become available for issuance under the Plan under this Section 4(b).
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(c) Source of Shares. Shares issued under an Award may consist of authorized and unissued Shares, Shares held by the Company as treasury shares and Shares purchased on the open market, and may be subject to restrictions deemed appropriate by the Administrator.
5. Award Eligibility and Limitations
(a) Restricted Awards, Performance Awards and other Stock-Based Awards may be granted to any Employee, Director or Consultant of the Company or any Affiliate.
(b) Nonqualified Stock Options and Stock Appreciation Rights may be granted to any Employee, Director or Consultant of the Company or of a direct or indirect majority-owned subsidiary of the Company with respect to which the Company, on the Date of Grant, is an eligible issuer under Treasury Regulation section 1.409A-1(b)(5)(iii)(E)(1).
(c) Incentive Stock Options may be granted only to an Employee of the Company or a corporation that, on the Date of Grant, is a parent corporation or subsidiary corporation of the Company, as those terms are defined in Code Sections 424(e) and 424(f), respectively.
(d) Director Awards.
(i) Each Non-Employee Director of the Company will be eligible to receive discretionary grants of Awards under the Plan. If the Board or the compensation committee of the Board separately has adopted or in the future adopts a compensation policy covering some or all Non-Employee Directors that provides for a predetermined formula grant that specifies the type of Award, the timing of the Date of Grant and the number of Shares to be awarded under the terms of the Plan, that formula grant will be incorporated herein by reference and will be administered as if provided under the terms of the Plan without any requirement that the Administrator separately take action to determine the terms of those Awards.
(ii) Subject to capitalization adjustment under Section 14(a), the aggregate dollar value of Awards (calculated as the Date of Grant fair value of such Awards for financial reporting purposes) granted under this Plan or otherwise during any calendar year to any non- Non-Employee Director will not exceed $750,000, rounded up to the nearest full Share. The foregoing limit may be multiplied by two with respect to Awards granted in the calendar year in which a Non-Employee Director first joins the Board.
6. Options
Each Option will be in such form and will contain such terms and conditions as the Administrator deems appropriate. All Options will be separately designated Incentive Stock Options or Nonqualified Stock Options at the time of grant, and, if certificates are issued, a separate certificate or certificates will be issued for Shares purchased on exercise of each type of Option. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company will have no liability to any Participant or any other Person if an Option designated as an Incentive Stock Option fails to qualify as an Incentive Stock Option at any time. No dividends or dividend equivalents will be paid on any Option. The provisions of separate Options need not be identical, but each Option will include (through incorporation of provisions hereof by reference in the Option or otherwise) the substance of each of the following provisions:
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(a) Term and Expiration. The term during which an Option is exercisable will be the period determined by the Administrator as set forth in the applicable Award Agreement, provided that no Option may be exercisable later than 10 years after the Date of Grant.
(b) Exercise Price. The Exercise Price for each Option will be equal to or greater than the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant; provided that an Option granted under an assumption or substitution for another stock option in a manner satisfying the provisions of Section 424(a) of the Code, as if the Option was a statutory stock option, may be granted with an Exercise Price lower than the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant.
(c) Term and Exercise Price of Incentive Stock Options Granted to Ten Percent Stockholders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Incentive Stock Option granted to an Employee who owns (or is deemed under Section 424(d) of the Code to own) more than 10% of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or of any parent corporation or subsidiary corporation of the Company, as those terms are defined in Code Sections 424(e) and 424(f), respectively, may be exercisable later than five years after the Date of Grant or have an exercise price that is less than 110% of the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant.
(d) Repricing Prohibited. Except as otherwise provided in Section 14, without the prior approval of the Companys stockholders: (i) the Exercise Price of an Option may not be directly or indirectly reduced; (ii) no Option may be cancelled in exchange for cash, an Option or Stock Appreciation Right with an Exercise Price or Grant Price that is less than the Exercise Price of the original Option, any other Award or otherwise and (iii) the Company shall not purchase an Option for value from a Participant if the current Fair Market Value of the Shares underlying the Option is lower than the Options Exercise Price.
(e) Payment of Exercise Price. The Exercise Price for Shares purchased under an Option will be paid in cash or by certified or bank check at the time the Option is exercised, or, to the extent permitted by applicable laws and regulations, in the Administrators sole discretion and on such terms as the Administrator approves: (i) by tendering previously-acquired Shares (either actually or by attestation), duly endorsed for transfer to the Company, valued at their Fair Market Value on the date of delivery; (ii) by a copy of instructions directing a broker to sell Shares for which the Option is exercised and to remit to the Company the aggregate Exercise Price due for the number of Shares being purchased; (iii) by a net exercise method whereby the Company withholds from the delivery of the Shares for which the Option was exercised that number of Shares having a Fair Market Value equal to the aggregate Exercise Price for the Shares for which the Option was exercised, upon which the Option will be surrendered and cancelled with respect to the total number of Shares for which the Option was exercised; or (iv) in any other form of legal consideration that may be acceptable to the Administrator, including without limitation with a full-recourse promissory note, subject to any requirements of applicable law that the par value (if any) of Shares, if newly issued, be paid in cash or cash equivalents.
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(f) Terms for Payment by Promissory Note.
(i) The interest rate payable under the terms of a promissory note will not be less than the minimum rate (if any) required to avoid the imputation of additional interest under the Code. Subject to the foregoing, the Administrator (in its sole discretion) will specify the term, interest rate, amortization requirements (if any) and other provisions of the note. Unless the Administrator determines otherwise, the holder will be required to pledge to the Company Shares having an aggregate Fair Market Value equal to or greater than the principal amount of the loan as security for payment of the unpaid balance of the loan, which pledge must be evidenced by a pledge agreement, the terms of which the Administrator will determine, in its discretion; except that each loan must comply with all applicable laws, regulations and rules of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and any other governmental agency having jurisdiction. Unless the Administrator determines otherwise, the purchase price of Shares acquired under an Option that is paid by delivery (or attestation) to the Company of other shares acquired, directly or indirectly, from the Company, will be paid only by Shares that satisfy any requirements necessary to avoid liability award accounting treatment.
(ii) Notwithstanding the foregoing, at any time that the Company is an issuer as defined in Section 2 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, no Director or Officer (or equivalent thereof) of the Company or an Affiliate will be permitted to pay any part of the Exercise Price with a promissory note or in any other form that could be deemed a prohibited personal loan under Section 13(k) of the Exchange Act. Unless otherwise provided in the terms of an Award Agreement, payment of the Exercise Price by a Participant who is an Officer, a Director or otherwise subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act, by delivery or attestation to the Company of other Shares acquired, directly or indirectly, from the Company is subject to pre-approval by the Administrator, in its sole discretion. The Administrator will document any such pre-approval in a manner that complies with the specificity requirements of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act.
(g) Vesting. The Option may, but need not, vest and thereby become exercisable in periodic installments that may, but need not, be equal. The Option may be subject to such other terms and conditions on the time or times when it may be exercised (which may be based on performance or other criteria) as the Administrator determines to be appropriate. The vesting provisions of individual Options may vary. The Administrator may, but will not be required to, provide that no Option may be exercised for a fraction of a Share. The Administrator may, but will not be required to, provide for an acceleration of vesting and exercisability in the terms of the Award Agreement for any Option upon the occurrence of a specified event.
(h) Incentive Stock Option $100,000 Limitation. To the extent that the aggregate Fair Market Value of Common Stock on the Date of Grant with respect to which Incentive Stock Options are exercisable for the first time by any Participant during any calendar year (under all plans of the Company and any parent corporation or subsidiary corporation of the Company, as those terms are defined in Code Section 424(e) and (f), respectively) exceeds $100,000, the Options or portions thereof which exceed that limit (according to the order in which they were granted) will be treated as Nonqualified Stock Options.
(i) Early Exercise. The Option may, but need not, include a provision whereby the Participant may elect at any time before the Participants Continuous Service terminates to exercise the Option as to any part or all of the Shares subject to the Option prior to the full vesting of the Option. In that case, the Shares acquired on exercise will be subject to the vesting schedule that otherwise would apply to determine the exercisability of the Option. Any unvested Shares so purchased may be subject to any other restriction the Administrator determines to be appropriate.
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(j) Employee Transfer, Approved Leave of Absence. For purposes of Incentive Stock Options, no termination of employment by an Employee will be deemed to result from either (i) a transfer to the employment of the Company from a parent corporation or subsidiary corporation of the Company, as those terms are defined in Code Section 424(e) and (f), respectively, from the Company to a parent corporation or subsidiary corporation or from one parent or subsidiary corporation to another; or (ii) an approved leave of absence for military service or sickness or for any other purpose approved by the Company, if the period of leave does not exceed three months or, if longer, the Employees right to re-employment is guaranteed either by a statute or by contract.
(k) Disqualifying Dispositions. Each Participant awarded an Incentive Stock Option will be required to immediately notify the Company in writing as to the occurrence of a disqualifying disposition of any Shares acquired by exercise of the Incentive Stock Option, and the price realized on the disqualifying disposition of those shares. A disqualifying disposition is any disposition (including, without limitation, any sale or transfer) before the later of (i) two years after the Date of Grant of the Incentive Stock Option or (ii) one year after the issuance of the shares acquired by exercise of the Incentive Stock Option. The Company may, if determined by the Administrator and in accordance with procedures established by the Administrator, retain possession of any Shares acquired by exercise of an Incentive Stock Option as agent for the applicable Participant until the end of the period described in the preceding sentence.
7. Stock Appreciation Rights
A Stock Appreciation Right may be granted either alone or in tandem with all or part of an Option. A Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with a Nonqualified Stock Option may be granted at or after the time of grant of the related Option, but a Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with an Incentive Stock Option may be granted only at the time of the grant of the related Option.
(a) Grant Requirements. A Stock Appreciation Right may be granted only if it does not provide for the deferral of compensation within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code. A Stock Appreciation Right does not provide for a deferral of compensation if: (i) the Grant Price may never be less than the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant, (ii) the compensation payable under the Stock Appreciation Right can never be greater than the difference between the Fair Market Value on the date of exercise and the Grant Price, (iii) the number of Shares, as applicable, subject to the Stock Appreciation Right is fixed on the Date of Grant, and (iv) the Stock Appreciation Right does not include any feature for the deferral of compensation other than the deferral of recognition of income until the exercise of the right. No dividends or dividend equivalents may be paid on any outstanding Stock Appreciation Right.
(b) Grant Price. The Administrator will determine the Grant Price of a Stock Appreciation Right, which in the case of a Stock Appreciation Right granted independent of any Option will not be less than the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant. The Grant Price of a Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with an Option will be the Exercise Price of the
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related Option. A Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with an Option will be exercisable only to the same extent as the related Option, provided that by its terms, such Stock Appreciation Right will be exercisable only when the Fair Market Value exceeds the Grant Price of the Stock Appreciation Right.
(c) Repricing Prohibited. Except as otherwise provided in Section 14, without the prior approval of the Companys stockholders: (i) the Grant Price of a Stock Appreciation Right may not be directly or indirectly reduced; (ii) a Stock Appreciation Right may not be cancelled in exchange for cash, an Option or Stock Appreciation Right with an Exercise Price or Grant Price that is less than the Grant Price of the original Stock Appreciation Right, any other Award or otherwise; and (iii) the Company may not purchase a Stock Appreciation Right for value from a Participant if the current Fair Market Value is less than the Stock Appreciation Rights Grant Price.
(d) Vesting. The Stock Appreciation Right will be subject to a Restricted Period that specifies forfeiture in accordance with a vesting schedule to be determined by the Administrator. The Administrator in its discretion may provide for an acceleration of vesting in the terms of any Stock Appreciation Right upon a specified event, including without limitation a Change in Control.
(e) Exercise and Settlement. Upon delivery to the Administrator of a written request to exercise a Stock Appreciation Right, the holder will be entitled to receive from the Company, an amount equal to the product of (i) the excess of the Fair Market Value on the date of exercise over the Grant Price specified in the Award Agreement, multiplied by (ii) the number of Shares for which the Stock Appreciation Right is being exercised. Settlement with respect to the exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right will be on the date of exercise and may be made in the form of Shares valued at Fair Market Value on the date of exercise (with or without restrictions as to substantial risk of forfeiture and transferability, as determined by the Administrator in its sole discretion), cash or a combination of Shares and cash, as determined by the Administrator in its sole discretion.
(f) Reduction in the Underlying Option Shares. On the exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right granted in tandem with an Option, the number of Shares for which the related Option is exercisable will be reduced by the number of such Shares for which the Stock Appreciation Right has been exercised. The number of Shares for which a tandem Stock Appreciation Right is exercisable will be reduced on any exercise of any related Option by the number of such Shares for which the Option has been exercised.
(g) Written Request. Unless otherwise determined by the Administrator in its sole discretion, Stock Appreciation Rights will be settled in Shares as specified in the Award Agreement. If permitted in the Award Agreement, a Participant may request that any exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right be settled for cash, but a Participant will not have any right to demand a cash settlement. A request for a cash settlement may be made only by a written request filed with the Corporate Secretary of the Company during the period beginning on the third business day following the date of release for publication by the Company of quarterly or annual summary statements of earnings and ending on the twelfth business day following that date. Within 30 days of the receipt by the Company of a written request to receive cash in full or
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partial settlement of a Stock Appreciation Right or to exercise the Stock Appreciation Right for cash, the Administrator will, in its sole discretion, either consent to or disapprove, in whole or in part, the written request. A written request to receive cash in full or partial settlement of a Stock Appreciation Right or to exercise a Stock Appreciation Right for cash may provide that, if the Administrator disapproves the written request, the written request will be treated as an exercise of the Stock Appreciation Right for Shares.
(h) Disapproval by Administrator. If the Administrator disapproves in whole or in part any request by a Participant to receive cash in full or partial settlement of a Stock Appreciation Right or to exercise such Award for cash, the disapproval will not affect the Participants right to exercise the Stock Appreciation Right at a later date, to the extent that it would be otherwise exercisable, or to request a cash form of payment at a later date, in each case subject to the approval of the Administrator. Additionally, the disapproval will not affect the Participants right to exercise any related Option.
8. Restricted Awards
A Restricted Award is an Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units, which provides that, except as otherwise provided in Section 16(d) with respect to Permitted Transferees, the Restricted Award may not be sold, assigned, transferred or otherwise disposed of, pledged or otherwise encumbered for the period (the Restricted Period) determined by the Administrator. Each Restricted Award will be in such form and will contain such terms, conditions, and Restricted Periods as the Administrator determines to be appropriate, including the treatment of dividends or dividend equivalents, as the case may be. The terms and conditions of the Restricted Award may change from time to time, and the terms and conditions of separate Restricted Awards need not be identical, but each Restricted Award must include (through incorporation of provisions hereof by reference in the Award Agreement or otherwise) the substance of each of the following provisions:
(a) Payment for Restricted Awards. The purchase price of Shares acquired under a Restricted Award, if any, will be determined by the Administrator and may be stated as cash, property or services rendered or to be rendered to the Company or an Affiliate for its benefit. Shares acquired in connection with a Restricted Award may be issued for such consideration, having a value not less than the par value thereof, as may be determined by the Administrator. Required consideration for Shares acquired in connection with a Restricted Award may be paid: (i) in cash at the time of purchase; or (ii) in any other form of legal consideration that may be acceptable to the Administrator in its discretion including, without limitation, a recourse promissory note, property or services that the Administrator determines have a value at least equal to the purchase price of the Restricted Award. Notwithstanding the foregoing, at any time that the Company is an issuer as defined in Section 2 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, no Director or Officer (or equivalent thereof) of the Company or an Affiliate will be permitted to pay any portion of the purchase price for Shares acquired under a Restricted Award with a promissory note or in any other form that could be deemed a prohibited personal loan under Section 13(k) of the Exchange Act.
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(b) Vesting. The Restricted Award, and any Shares acquired thereunder, may, but need not, be subject to a Restricted Period that specifies a repurchase right in favor of the Company, or forfeiture where the consideration was in the form of services, in accordance with a vesting schedule to be determined by the Administrator. The Administrator in its discretion may provide for an acceleration of vesting in the terms of any Restricted Award, at any time, including upon a Change in Control. The Administrator in its discretion may grant a Restricted Award that is, in whole or in part, vested upon grant and not subject to a Restricted Period.
(c) Concurrent Tax Payment. The Administrator may, in its sole discretion, provide for payment of a concurrent cash award in an amount equal to all or part of the estimated after-tax amount required to satisfy applicable federal, state or local tax withholding obligations arising from the receipt and deemed vesting of Restricted Stock for which an election under Code Section 83(b) may be required.
(d) Lapse of Restrictions. Subject to the Participants Continuous Service, upon the expiration or termination of the Restricted Period and the satisfaction of any other conditions prescribed by the Administrator (including, without limitation, the Participants satisfaction of applicable tax withholding obligations attributable to the Award), the restrictions applicable to the Restricted Award will lapse and the number of Shares with respect to which the restrictions have lapsed will be issued (as evidenced by the appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the Company, or by delivery of a stock certificate), free of any restrictions except those that may be imposed by law, the terms of the Plan or the terms of a Restricted Award, to the Participant or the Participants beneficiary or estate, as the case may be, unless the Restricted Award is subject to a deferral condition that complies with Section 409A of the Code and the regulations thereunder as may be allowed or required by the Administrator in its sole discretion. The Company will not be required to deliver any fractional Share but may pay, in lieu thereof, the Fair Market Value of the fractional share in cash to the Participant or the Participants beneficiary or estate, as the case may be. With respect only to Restricted Stock Units, unless otherwise subject to a deferral condition that complies with Section 409A of the Code, the Shares (or cash, as applicable) will be issued and the Participant will be entitled to the beneficial ownership rights thereof not later than (i) the date that is 2 1⁄2 months after the end of the Participants taxable year (or the end of the Companys taxable year, if later) for which the Restricted Period ends and the Restricted Stock Unit is no longer subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture, or (ii) such earlier date as may be necessary to avoid application of Section 409A of the Code to the Award.
(e) Stockholder Rights. Unless otherwise provided by the Administrator in an Award Agreement, the holder of shares of Restricted Stock will be entitled to vote such Shares. Dividends, if any, paid on shares of Restricted Stock will be held by the Company, without interest, until such time as the restrictions lapse on the related shares of Restricted Stock. Dividends on shares of Restricted Stock that are forfeited will also be forfeited to the Company.
(f) Dividends on Restricted Stock Units. In the case of Restricted Stock Units, the Participant will not be entitled to receive dividends or dividend equivalents unless the Award Agreement specifically provides therefor.
(g) Delivery of Restricted Stock. Shares of Restricted Stock will be delivered to the Participant on the Date of Grant either by book-entry registration or by delivering to the Participant, or to a custodian or escrow agent (including, without limitation, the Company or one
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or more of its Employees) designated by the Administrator, a stock certificate or certificates registered in the name of the Participant. If physical certificates representing shares of the Restricted Stock are registered in the name of the Participant, such certificates must bear an appropriate legend referring to the terms, conditions and restrictions applicable to such Shares.
9. Performance Awards
The Administrator may designate any Award as a Performance Award, which will vest only on the attainment of performance goals specified in the Award Agreement. Performance Awards may be granted independent of or in connection with the granting of any other Award under the Plan. A Performance Award may be granted under the Plan to any Participant, including a Participant who qualifies for awards under other performance plans of the Company. The Administrator will determine in its sole discretion whether and to whom Performance Awards will be granted, the performance goals for each Performance Award, the performance period or periods for measuring performance, and all other limitations and conditions applicable to Performance Awards. The Administrator, in its sole discretion, may rely on the performance goals and other standards applicable to other performance plans of the Company in setting the standards for Performance Awards under the Plan.
(a) Performance Goals.
(i) A performance goal will be based on a pre-established formula or standard that specifies the manner of determining the number of Shares under the Performance Award that will be issued or will vest if the performance goal is attained. Performance goals may be based on one or more business criteria, which may be applied to a Participant, a business unit or the Company and its Affiliates, including without limitation one or any combination of the following: (1) revenues; (2) earnings before all or any of interest expense, taxes, depreciation and/or amortization (EBIT, EVITA, or EBITDA); (3) funds from operations; (4) funds from operations per share; (5) operating income; (6) operating income per share; (7) pre-tax or after-tax income; (8) net cash provided by operating activities; (9) cash available for distribution; (10) cash available for distribution per share; (11) working capital and components thereof; (12) sales (net or gross) measured by product line, territory, customer or customers or other category; (13) return on equity or average stockholders equity; (14) return on assets; (15) return on capital; (16) enterprise value or economic value added; (17) share price performance; (18) improvements in the Companys attainment of expense levels; (19) implementation or completion of critical projects; (20) improvement in cash-flow (before or after tax); (21) net earnings; (22) earnings per share; (23) earnings from continuing operations; (24) net worth; (25) credit rating; (26) levels of expense, cost or liability by category, operating unit or any other delineation; (27) any increase or decrease of one or more of the foregoing over a specified period; or (28) the occurrence of a Change in Control.
(ii) A performance goal may be measured over a performance period on a periodic, annual, cumulative or average basis and may be established on a corporate-wide basis or with respect to one or more operating units, divisions, subsidiaries, acquired businesses, minority investments, facilities, partnerships or joint ventures. More than one performance goal may be incorporated in a performance objective, in which case achievement with respect to each performance goal may be assessed individually or in combination with each other. The
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Administrator may, in connection with the establishment of performance goals for a performance period, establish a matrix setting forth the relationship between performance on two or more performance goals and the amount of the Performance Award payable for that performance period. The level or levels of performance specified with respect to a performance goal may be established in absolute terms, as objectives relative to performance in prior periods, as an objective compared to the performance of one or more comparable companies or an index covering multiple companies on a per share basis, against the performance of the Company as a whole or against particular entities, segments, operating units or products of the Company, on a pre-tax or after-tax basis, in tandem with any other performance goal, or otherwise as the Administrator may determine. The Administrator may, in connection with the establishment of performance goals for a performance period, specify one or more adjustments to any of the business criteria specified in Section 9(a)(i).
(iii) Performance goals may be objective or subjective and may differ for Performance Awards granted to any one Participant or to different Participants. A Performance Award may provide, as determined by the Administrator, that if the Participants Continuous Service ceases before the end of the performance period for any reason, the Performance Award will be payable only if the applicable performance objectives are achieved and to the extent, if any, determined by the Administrator. Performance goals may be based on increases in a specific business criterion, on maintaining the status quo or on limiting economic losses.
(iv) The Administrator may provide in any Performance Award that any evaluation of performance may include or exclude the effect, if any, on reported financial results of objectively determinable events that occur during a performance period, including, without limitation: (1) asset write-downs; (2) litigation or claim judgments or settlements; (3) changes in tax laws, accounting principles or other laws or provisions; (4) reorganization or restructuring programs, including share repurchasing programs; (5) acquisitions or divestitures; (6) foreign currency exchange translations gains and losses; (7) any loss from a discontinued operation as described in the Accounting Standards Codification Topic 360; (8) goodwill impairment charges; (9) revenue or earnings attributable to minority ownership in another entity; (10) any amounts accrued by the Company or an Affiliate pursuant to management bonus plans or cash profit sharing plans and related employer payroll taxes for the fiscal year; (11) any discretionary or matching contributions made to a savings and deferred profit-sharing or deferred compensation plan for the fiscal year; (12) interest, expenses, taxes, depreciation and depletion, or amortization and accretion charges; or (13) gains and losses that are treated as extraordinary items under Accounting Standards Codification Topic 225.
(b) Satisfaction of Performance Goals. A Participant will be entitled to receive Shares (as evidenced either by a stock certificate or by the appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the Company) under a Performance Award only upon satisfaction of all conditions specified in the Award Agreement for the Performance Award, including, without limitation, the Participants satisfaction of applicable tax withholding obligations attributable to the Performance Award. With respect only to a Performance Stock Unit Award, Shares, or cash, as applicable, will be issued and delivered and the Participant will be entitled to the beneficial ownership rights thereof not later than (i) the date that is 2 1⁄2 months after the end of the Participants taxable year (or the end of the Companys taxable year, if later) for which the Performance Stock Unit Award is no longer subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture, and (ii) such earlier date as may be necessary to avoid application of Section 409A of the Code to the Performance Stock Unit Award.
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(c) Acceleration, Waiver, Etc. At any time before the Participants termination of Continuous Service, the Administrator may in its sole discretion and subject to Section 15, amend any or all of the goals, restrictions or conditions imposed under any Performance Award.
10. Other Stock-Based Awards
The Administrator may, either alone or in connection with the grant of other Awards, grant other stock-based Awards not otherwise described in the Plan that are payable in, valued in whole or in part by reference to, or are otherwise based on Shares, including without limitation dividend equivalent rights, as deemed by the Administrator consistent with the purpose of the Plan. The Administrator will determine the terms and conditions of any such Award.
11. Treatment of Awards on Termination of Continuous Service
(a) Unvested Awards Generally. Unless otherwise provided in an Award Agreement or Service Agreement, if a Participants Continuous Service terminates for any reason, the Participant will forfeit the unvested portion of any Award acquired in consideration of services, all unvested Shares held by the Participant as of the date of termination under the terms of any Award will be forfeited or, if applicable, may be repurchased by the Company at the lesser of the purchase price paid by the Participant or the current Fair Market Value, and the Participant will have no rights with respect to any Award or Shares so forfeited or repurchased.
(b) Options and Stock Appreciation Rights.
(i) Other than for Cause, death or Disability. Unless otherwise provided in an Award Agreement or Service Agreement, if a Participants Continuous Service is terminated for any reason other than due to the Participants death or Disability or by the Company for Cause, the Participant may exercise his or her Option or Stock Appreciation Right (to the extent vested and exercisable as of the date of termination) during the period ending on the earlier of (1) the date that is three months after the termination of the Participants Continuous Service or (2) the expiration of the original term of the Award as set forth in the Award Agreement. Any unexercised Option or Stock Appreciation Right held by the Participant will automatically terminate at the close of business on the last day of such period and will thereafter not be exercisable.
(ii) For Cause. If the Participants Continuous Service is terminated by the Company or an Affiliate for Cause, all outstanding Options and Stock Appreciation Rights (whether or not vested) will be forfeited and expire as of the beginning of business on the date of termination.
(iii) Participant Death or Disability. Unless otherwise provided in an Award Agreement or Service Agreement, if a Participants Continuous Service is terminated as a result of the Participants death or Disability, the Participants Option or Stock Appreciation Right may be exercised (to the extent the Award was vested and exercisable as of the date of termination) by the Participant or the Participants estate, designated beneficiary or such other Person who
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acquired the right to exercise the Award by bequest or inheritance, but only during the period ending on the earlier of (1) the date that is 12 months following the date of termination or (2) the expiration of the original term of the Option or Stock Appreciation Right as set forth in the Award Agreement. Any unexercised Option or Stock Appreciation Right held by the Participant or such other Person will terminate at the end of such period.
(iv) Extension of Option or Stock Appreciation Right Termination Date. An Award Agreement may provide that if the exercise of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right following the termination of the Participants Continuous Service for any reason (other than on the Participants death or Disability or termination by the Company for Cause) would violate any applicable federal, state or local law, the Award will terminate only on the earlier of (1) the expiration of the original term of the Award or (2) the date that is 30 days after the exercise of the Award would no longer violate any applicable federal, state or local law.
12. Covenants of the Company
(a) Availability of Shares. During the terms of the Awards, the Company will keep available at all times the number of Shares required to satisfy the Awards.
(b) Securities Law Compliance. Each Award Agreement will provide that no Shares may be purchased or sold thereunder unless and until any then applicable requirements of state, federal or applicable foreign laws and regulatory agencies have been fully complied with to the satisfaction of the Company and its counsel. The Company will use reasonable efforts to seek to obtain from each regulatory commission or agency having jurisdiction over the Plan such authority as may be required to grant Awards and to issue and sell Shares upon exercise of Awards; however, this undertaking will not require the Company to register under the Securities Act the Plan, any Award or any Common Stock issued or issuable pursuant to any Award. If, after reasonable efforts, the Company is unable to obtain from any such regulatory commission or agency the authority that counsel for the Company determines to be necessary for the lawful issuance and sale of Common Stock under the Plan, the Company will be relieved from any liability for failure to issue and sell Shares on exercise of any Awards unless and until that authority is obtained.
13. Company Use of Proceeds from Awards
Proceeds from the sale of Shares under the Plan will be general funds of the Company.
14. Adjustments for Changes in Stock
(a) Capitalization Adjustments. If any change is made in the Common Stock without the receipt of consideration by the Company (through merger, consolidation, reorganization, recapitalization, reincorporation, stock dividend, dividend in property other than cash, stock split, liquidating dividend, combination of Shares, exchange of Shares, change in corporate structure or other transaction not involving the receipt of consideration by the Company), then (i) the aggregate number of Shares or the class of securities that may be purchased pursuant to Awards granted hereunder; (ii) the aggregate number of Shares or the class of securities that may be purchased pursuant to Incentive Stock Options granted hereunder; (iii) the number or class of
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securities covered by outstanding Awards; (iv) the maximum number of Shares with respect to which Options, Stock Appreciation Rights and Performance Awards may be granted to any single Employee during any calendar year and (v) the Exercise Price of any Option and the Grant Price of any Stock Appreciation Right in effect before the change shall be proportionately adjusted by the Administrator to reflect any increase or decrease in the number of issued Shares or change in the Fair Market Value resulting from the transaction; provided that any fractional Shares resulting from the adjustment will be aggregated until, and eliminated at, the time of exercise or settlement by rounding down. The Administrator shall make these adjustments in a manner that will provide an appropriate adjustment that neither increases nor decreases the value of the Award as in effect immediately before the corporate change, and its determination will be final, binding and conclusive. The conversion of any securities of the Company that are by their terms convertible will not be treated as a transaction without receipt of consideration by the Company.
(b) Dissolution or Liquidation. In the event of a dissolution or liquidation of the Company, then, subject to Section 14(c), all outstanding Awards will terminate immediately before the dissolution or liquidation.
(c) Change in Control Asset Sale, Merger, Consolidation or Reverse Merger. Unless otherwise provided in an Award Agreement or Service Agreement and to the extent permitted by applicable law, in the event of a Change in Control, a dissolution or liquidation of the Company, an exchange of securities or any corporate separation or division, including, but not limited to, a split-up, a split-off or a spin-off or a sale, in one or a series of related transactions, of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company; a merger or consolidation in which the Company is not the Surviving Entity; or a reverse merger in which the Company is the Surviving Entity, but the Shares outstanding immediately preceding the merger are converted by virtue of the merger into other property, whether in the form of securities, cash or otherwise, then the Company, to the extent permitted by applicable law, but otherwise in the sole discretion of the Administrator may provide for: (i) the continuation of outstanding Awards by the Company (if the Company is the Surviving Entity); (ii) the assumption of the Plan and the outstanding Awards by the Surviving Entity or its parent; (iii) the substitution by the Surviving Entity or its parent of awards with substantially the same terms (including an award to acquire the same consideration paid to the stockholders in the transaction described in this Section 14(c)) for the outstanding Awards and, if appropriate, subject to the equitable adjustment provisions of Section 14(a); (iv) the cancellation of the outstanding Awards in consideration for a payment (in the form of securities, cash or such other consideration and under the same terms and conditions as is paid to the stockholders of the Company in the transaction) equal in value to the Fair Market Value of the Shares underlying each vested Award, or in the case of an outstanding Option or Stock Appreciation Right, the difference between the Fair Market Value and the Exercise Price or Grant Price for all Shares subject to exercise (i.e., to the extent vested) under the Option or Stock Appreciation Right (subject in each case to withholding as required by applicable law); or (v) the cancellation of the outstanding Awards without payment of any consideration. If Awards would be canceled without consideration for vested Options or Stock Appreciation Rights, the Participant will be given the right to exercise the Option or Stock Appreciation Right prior to the merger or consolidation in whole or in part without regard to any installment exercise provisions in the applicable Award Agreement.
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15. Amendment of the Plan and Awards
(a) Plan Amendment. The Board or an authorized committee of the Board at any time may amend or terminate the Plan. However, except as provided in Section 14(a) relating to adjustments upon changes in the Common Stock, no amendment will be effective unless approved by the stockholders of the Company to the extent stockholder approval is necessary to satisfy any applicable law or any securities exchange listing requirements. At the time of any amendment, the Board or its authorized committee shall determine, upon advice from counsel, whether the amendment will be contingent on stockholder approval.
(b) Contemplated Amendments. It is expressly contemplated that the Board or an authorized committee of the Board may amend the Plan in any respect the Board or its authorized committee determines necessary or advisable to provide eligible Employees with the maximum benefits provided or to be provided under the provisions of the Code and the regulations issued thereunder relating to Incentive Stock Options or to the nonqualified deferred compensation provisions of Section 409A of the Code and to bring the Plan and Awards granted hereunder into compliance therewith. Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither the Board nor the Company nor any Affiliate will have any liability to any Participant or any other Person as to (a) any tax consequences expected, but not realized, by a Participant or any other Person due to the receipt, exercise or settlement of any Award granted hereunder; or (b) the failure of any Award to comply with Section 409A of the Code.
(c) Amendment of Awards. Subject to Sections 15(d) and 15(e), the Administrator at any time may amend the terms of any one or more Awards. Except as otherwise permitted under Section 14, unless stockholder approval is obtained: (i) no amendment or modification may reduce the Exercise Price of any Option or the Grant Price of any Stock Appreciation Right; (ii) the Administrator may not cancel any outstanding Option or Stock Appreciation Right and replace it with a new Option or Stock Appreciation Right, another Award or cash, if doing so would be considered a repricing for purposes of the stockholder approval rules of the applicable securities exchange or interdealer quotation system on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted; and (iii) the Administrator may not take any other action that is considered a repricing for purposes of the stockholder approval rules of the applicable securities exchange or interdealer quotation system on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted.
(d) No Impairment of Rights. No amendment of the Plan or an Award may impair rights or increase a Participants obligations under any Award granted before the amendment unless (i) the Company requests the consent of the Participant and (ii) the Participant consents in writing. For the avoidance of doubt, a cancellation of an Award where the Participant receives a payment equal in value to the Fair Market Value of the vested Award or, in the case of a vested Option or Stock Appreciation Right, the difference between the Fair Market Value of the Shares subject to the Award and the Exercise Price or Grant Price, is not an impairment of the Participants rights or increase in the Participants obligations that requires consent of the Participant.
(e) Acceleration of Exercisability and Vesting. The Administrator has the power to accelerate at any time the time at which an Award may first be exercised or the time at which an Award or any part thereof will vest and restrictions thereon will lapse in accordance with the Plan, notwithstanding the provisions in the Award stating the time at which it may first be exercised or the time during which it will vest.
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16. General Provisions
(a) Stockholder Rights. Except as provided in Section 14(a) or as otherwise provided in an Award Agreement, no Participant will be considered the holder of, or to have any of the rights of a holder with respect to, any Shares subject to an Award unless and until the Participant has satisfied all requirements for exercise, payment or delivery of the Award, as applicable, pursuant to its terms, and no adjustment will be made for dividends (ordinary or extraordinary, whether in cash, securities or other property) or distributions of other rights for which the record date is prior to the date of issue of the Shares (as evidenced by the appropriate entry on the books of the Company or of a duly authorized transfer agent of the Company).
(b) Participation not a Guarantee of Service Right. Nothing in the Plan or any instrument executed or Award granted pursuant thereto will confer on any Participant any right to continue to serve the Company or an Affiliate in the capacity in effect at the time the Award was granted or will affect the right of the Company or an Affiliate to terminate (i) the employment of an Employee with or without notice and with or without Cause; (ii) the service of a Consultant pursuant to the terms of the Consultants agreement with the Company or an Affiliate; or (iii) the service of a Director pursuant to the Bylaws of the Company or an Affiliate, and any applicable provisions of the corporate law of the state in which the Company or the Affiliate is incorporated, as the case may be.
(c) Effect of Plan. Neither the adoption of the Plan nor any action of the Board or the Administrator may be deemed to give any Employee, Director or Consultant any right to be granted an Award or any other rights, except as may be evidenced by an Award Agreement or a Service Agreement, or any amendment thereto, duly authorized by the Administrator and executed on behalf of the Company, and then only to the extent and on the terms and conditions expressly set forth in such Award Agreement or Service Agreement. The existence of the Plan and the Awards granted hereunder does not affect in any way the right of the Board or the stockholders of the Company to make or authorize any adjustment, recapitalization, reorganization or other change in the Companys capital structure or its business, any merger or consolidation of the Company, any issue of bonds, debentures, or shares of preferred stock ahead of or affecting the Common Stock or the rights thereof, the dissolution or liquidation of the Company or any sale or transfer of all or any part of its assets or business, or any other corporate act or proceeding.
(d) Limits on Transfer.
(i) Each Award will be exercisable during the Participants lifetime only by the Participant, or, if permissible under applicable law, by the Participants legal guardian or representative. No Award may be assigned, alienated, pledged, attached, sold or otherwise transferred or encumbered by a Participant other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution and any such purported assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance will be void and unenforceable against the Company or any Affiliate; provided that the designation of a beneficiary will not constitute an assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance.
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(ii) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Administrator may, in its sole discretion, permit a Participant to transfer an Award (other than an Incentive Stock Option) by gift or domestic relations order, without consideration, to a Permitted Transferee, subject to such rules as the Administrator may adopt consistent with any applicable Award Agreement to preserve the purposes of the Plan, on condition that the Participant first gives the Administrator advance written notice describing the terms and conditions of the proposed transfer and the Administrator notifies the Participant in writing that the transfer would comply with the requirements of the Plan. If the Award Agreement does not provide for transferability, then the Award will be transferable and exercisable only as provided in the preceding Section 16(d)(i).
(iii) The terms of an Award transferred in accordance with Section 16(d)(ii) will apply to the Permitted Transferee, and any reference to a Participant in the Plan or in the Award Agreement will refer to the Permitted Transferee, except that (1) the Permitted Transferee will not be entitled to transfer the Award other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution; (2) the Permitted Transferee is not entitled to exercise a transferred Option unless there is in effect a registration statement on an appropriate form covering the Shares to be acquired by the exercise of the Option if the Administrator determines, consistent with the Award Agreement, that a registration statement is necessary or appropriate; (3) neither the Administrator nor the Company is required to provide any notice to a Permitted Transferee, whether or not notice is or would otherwise have been required to be given to the Participant; and (4) the consequences of the termination of the Participants Continuous Service under the Plan and the Award Agreement will continue to be applied with respect to the Participant, including, without limitation, that an Option will be exercisable by the Permitted Transferee only to the extent, and for such period, specified in the Plan and the Award Agreement.
(e) Investment Assurances. The Company may require a Participant, as a condition of exercising or acquiring Common Stock under any Award, (i) to give written assurances satisfactory to the Company as to the Participants knowledge and experience in financial and business matters or to employ a purchaser representative reasonably satisfactory to the Company who is knowledgeable and experienced in financial and business matters and that he or she is capable of evaluating, alone or together with the purchaser representative, the merits and risks of exercising the Award; and (ii) to give written assurances satisfactory to the Company stating that the Participant is acquiring Shares subject to the Award for the Participants own account and not with any present intention of selling or otherwise distributing the Shares. The foregoing requirements, and any assurances given pursuant to those requirements, will be inoperative if (x) the issuance of the Shares on the exercise, grant or vesting of the Award has been registered under a then currently effective registration statement under the Securities Act; or (y) as to any particular requirement, a determination is made by counsel for the Company that that requirement need not be met in the circumstances under the then applicable securities laws. The Company may, on advice of Company counsel, place legends on stock certificates issued under the Plan as such counsel considers necessary or appropriate in order to comply with applicable securities laws, including, but not limited to, legends restricting the transfer of the Shares.
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(f) Withholding Obligations. To the extent provided by the terms of an Award Agreement and subject to the discretion of the Administrator, the Participant may satisfy any federal, state or local tax withholding obligation relating to the exercise or acquisition of Shares under an Award by any one or combination of the following means (in addition to the Companys right to withhold from any compensation paid to the Participant by the Company): (i) cash payment; (ii) authorizing the Company to withhold a number of Shares from the Shares otherwise issuable to the Participant as a result of the exercise or acquisition of Shares under the Award, the Fair Market Value of which does not exceed either the maximum statutory tax rates in the Participants applicable jurisdictions or the amount of tax required to be withheld by law, and in which case the Award will be surrendered and cancelled with respect to the number of Shares retained by the Company (provided that to the extent such direction would result in the Company withholding fractional Shares, the number of Shares to be withheld will be rounded down to the nearest whole and the Participant must pay the remainder of the withholding obligation in cash or by certified or bank check); (iii) delivering to the Company previously owned and unencumbered Shares or (iv) by execution of a recourse promissory note by a Participant. Notwithstanding the foregoing, at any time that the Company is an issuer as defined in Section 2 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, no Director or executive officer (or equivalent thereof) of the Company or an Affiliate will be permitted to pay any portion of the tax withholding with respect to any Award with a promissory note or in any other form that could be deemed a prohibited personal loan under Section 13(k) of the Exchange Act. Unless otherwise provided in the terms of an Award Agreement, payment of the tax withholding by a Participant who is an Officer or Director or is otherwise subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act by delivering previously owned and unencumbered Shares or in the form of share withholding is subject to pre-approval by the Administrator, in its sole discretion. The Administrator shall document any pre-approval in the case of a Participant who is an Officer or Director in a manner that complies with the specificity requirements of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act, including the name of the Participant involved in the transaction, the nature of the transaction, the number of shares to be acquired or disposed of by the Participant and the material terms of the Award involved in the transaction.
(g) Other Compensation Arrangements. Nothing contained in the Plan will prevent the Board, including any authorized committee of the Board, from adopting other or additional compensation arrangements, subject to stockholder approval if stockholder approval is required; and those arrangements may be either generally applicable or applicable only in specific cases.
(h) Recapitalizations. Each Award Agreement will contain provisions required to reflect the provisions of Section 14(a).
(i) Delivery. Upon exercise of a right granted under an Award under the Plan, the Company will issue Shares or pay any amounts due within a reasonable period thereafter. Subject to any statutory or regulatory obligations the Company may otherwise have, for purposes of the Plan, 30 days will be considered a reasonable period.
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(j) Government and Other Regulations.
(i) The Companys obligation to settle Awards in Shares or other consideration is subject to all applicable laws, rules and regulations, and to such approvals by governmental agencies as may be required. Notwithstanding any terms or conditions of any Award to the contrary, the Company will be under no obligation to offer to sell or to sell, and is prohibited from offering to sell or selling, any Shares under an Award unless the Shares have been properly registered for sale under the Securities Act or unless the Company has received an opinion of counsel, satisfactory to the Company, that such Shares may be offered or sold without registration pursuant to an available exemption therefrom and the terms and conditions of that exemption and of all applicable state securities laws have been fully complied with. The Company will be under no obligation to register for sale under the Securities Act any of the Shares to be offered or sold under the Plan. The Administrator is authorized to provide that all certificates or book entries for Common Stock or other securities of the Company or any Affiliate delivered under the Plan will be subject to such stop transfer orders and other restrictions as the Administrator may consider advisable under the Plan, the applicable Award Agreement, the federal securities laws, or the rules, regulations and other requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission, any securities exchange or interdealer quotation system on which the Common Stock or other security is then listed or quoted and any other applicable federal, state, local or non-U.S. laws. Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary, the Administrator reserves the right to add any additional terms or provisions to any Award granted under the Plan that it in its sole discretion considers necessary or advisable in order that the Award complies with the legal requirements of any governmental entity to whose jurisdiction the Award is subject.
(ii) The Administrator may cancel an Award or any portion thereof if it determines, in its sole discretion, that legal or contractual restrictions, blockage or other market considerations would make the Companys acquisition of Shares from the public markets, the Companys issuance of Shares to the Participant, the Participants acquisition of Shares from the Company or the Participants sale of Shares to the public markets, illegal, impracticable or inadvisable. If the Administrator determines to cancel all or any portion of an Award in accordance with the foregoing, the Company will pay to the Participant an amount equal to the excess of (1) the aggregate Fair Market Value of the Shares subject to the Award or portion thereof canceled (determined as of the applicable exercise date, or the date that the Shares would have been vested or delivered, as applicable), over (2) the aggregate Exercise Price or Grant Price (in the case of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right, respectively) or any amount payable as a condition of delivery of Shares (in the case of any other Award). The amount payable will be delivered to the Participant as soon as practicable following the cancellation of the Award or portion thereof.
(k) Clawback or Recoupment. Notwithstanding any provision in this Plan or any Award Agreement or Service Agreement to the contrary, Awards granted hereunder will be subject, to the extent applicable, (i) to any clawback policy adopted by the Company, and (ii) to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the SarbanesOxley Act of 2002, each as amended, and rules, regulations and binding, published guidance thereunder. If the Company would not be eligible for continued listing, if applicable, under Section 10D(a) of the Exchange Act unless it adopted policies consistent with Section 10D(b) of the Exchange Act, then, in accordance with those policies that are so required, any incentive-based compensation payable to a Participant under this Plan will be subject to clawback in the circumstances, to the extent, and in the manner, required by Section 10D(b)(2) of the Exchange Act, as interpreted by rules of the Securities Exchange Commission. By accepting an Award under this Plan, the Participant consents to any clawback or recoupment described under this Section (k).
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(l) Reliance on Reports. Each member of the Administrator and each member of the Board will be fully justified in acting or failing to act, as the case may be, and will not be liable for having so acted or failed to act in good faith, in reliance on any report made by the independent public accountant of the Company and its Affiliates or any other information furnished in connection with the Plan by any agent of the Company or the Administrator or the Board, other than himself or herself.
(m) Foreign Participants. Without amending the Plan, the Administrator may grant Awards to eligible individuals who are foreign nationals on such terms and conditions different from those specified in the Plan as may, in the judgment of the Administrator, be necessary or desirable to foster and promote achievement of the purposes of the Plan and, in furtherance of such purposes, the Administrator may make such modifications, amendments, procedures, sub-plans and the like as may be necessary or advisable to comply with the provisions of laws and regulations in other countries or jurisdictions in which the Company or its Affiliates operate.
(n) Other Provisions. The Award Agreements authorized under the Plan may contain such other provisions not inconsistent with the Plan, including, without limitation, restrictions upon the exercise of the Awards, as the Administrator may consider advisable.
(o) Cancellation and Rescission of Awards for Detrimental Activity.
(i) On exercise, payment or delivery under an Award, the Administrator may require a Participant to certify in a manner acceptable to the Company that the Participant has not engaged in any Detrimental Activity.
(ii) Unless the Award Agreement specifies otherwise, the Administrator may cancel, rescind, suspend, withhold or otherwise limit or restrict any unexpired, unpaid or deferred Awards at any time if the Participant engages in any Detrimental Activity.
(iii) If a Participant engages in Detrimental Activity after any exercise, payment or delivery under an Award, during any period for which any restrictive covenant prohibiting such activity is applicable to the Participant, that exercise, payment or delivery may be rescinded within one year thereafter. In the event of any such rescission, the Participant will be required to pay to the Company the amount of any gain realized or payment received as a result of the exercise, payment or delivery, in such manner and on such terms and conditions as may be required by the Company. The Company will be entitled to set-off against the amount of that gain any amount owed to the Participant by the Company.
(p) Market Standoff. Each Award Agreement will provide that, in connection with any underwritten public offering by the Company of its equity securities, the Participant agrees not to sell, make any short sale of, loan, hypothecate, pledge, grant any option for the repurchase of, transfer the economic consequences of ownership or otherwise dispose or transfer for value or otherwise agree to engage in any of the foregoing transactions with respect to any Common Stock without the prior written consent of the Company or its underwriters, for the period from
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and after the effective date of such registration statement as may be requested by the Company or the underwriters (the Market Standoff). In order to enforce the Market Standoff, the Company may impose stop-transfer instructions with respect to the Shares acquired under the Plan until the end of the applicable standoff period. If there is any change in the number of outstanding Shares by reason of a stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, recapitalization, combination, reclassification, dissolution or liquidation of the Company, any corporate separation or division (including, but not limited to, a split-up, a split-off or a spin-off), a merger or consolidation; a reverse merger or similar transaction, then any new, substituted or additional securities that are by reason of the transaction distributed with respect to any Shares subject to the Market Standoff or into which the Shares thereby become convertible, will immediately be subject to the Market Standoff.
(q) Unfunded Plan. The Plan is intended to constitute an unfunded plan for incentive compensation. With respect to any payments not yet made to a Participant pursuant to an Award, nothing contained in the Plan or any Award Agreement gives any such Participant any rights that are greater than those of a general creditor of the Company.
17. Effective Date and Term of Plan
(a) Effective Date. The Plan is effective as of the Effective Date, but no Option or Stock Appreciation Right may be exercised, and no other Award may be granted, unless and until the Plan has been approved by the stockholders of the Company.
(b) Stockholder Approval. The Plan will become effective only if, within 12 months from the date of the Plans adoption by the Board or an authorized committee of the Board, it is approved by the affirmative vote of the Companys stockholders in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws of the Company and applicable state law. The Board may, in its sole discretion, submit any amendment to the Plan for stockholder approval.
(c) Plan Termination or Suspension. Unless otherwise terminated as provided herein, the Plan will continue in effect until, and automatically terminate on, the day before the 10th anniversary of the Effective Date or, if the stockholders approve an amendment to the Plan that increases the Share reserve under the Plan, the day before the 10th anniversary of the date of such stockholder approval. No Award may be granted under the Plan after that date, but Awards theretofore granted may extend beyond that date and will continue to be governed by the terms and conditions of the Plan. The Board or its authorized committee may suspend or terminate the Plan at any earlier date under Section 15(a). No Awards may be granted under the Plan while the Plan is suspended or after it is terminated.
18. Governing Law
The laws of the State of Delaware will govern all questions concerning the construction, validity and interpretation of the Plan, without regard to that states conflict of law rules.
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19. Limitation on Liability
The Company and any Affiliate that is in existence or that hereafter comes into existence will have no liability to any Participant or to any other Person as to (a) the non-issuance or sale of Shares due to the Companys inability to obtain from any regulatory body having jurisdiction the authority considered by Company counsel necessary for the lawful issuance and sale of any Shares hereunder; (b) any tax consequences expected, but not realized, by a Participant or any other Person due to the receipt, exercise or settlement of any Award granted hereunder or (c) the failure of any Award that is determined to be nonqualified deferred compensation to comply with Section 409A of the Code and the regulations thereunder.
20. Execution
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, upon authorization of the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors, the undersigned has executed the Construction Partners, Inc. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan, effective as of the Effective Date.
CONSTRUCTION PARTNERS, INC. |
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