Form of Nonqualified Stock Option Agreement under the Qurate Retail, Inc. 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, for certain officers
Exhibit 10.69
NONQUALIFIED STOCK OPTION AGREEMENT
THIS NONQUALIFIED STOCK OPTION AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made and effective as of the date specified in Schedule I hereto (the “Grant Date”), by and between the issuer specified in Schedule I hereto (the “Company”) and you.
The Company has adopted the incentive plan that governs the Options specified in Schedule I hereto (as has been or may hereafter be amended, the “Plan”), a copy of which is attached via a link at the end of this online Agreement as Exhibit A and, by this reference, made a part hereof. Capitalized terms used and not otherwise defined in this Agreement will have the meanings ascribed to them in the Plan.
Pursuant to the Plan, the Plan Administrator has determined that it would be in the interest of the Company and its stockholders to grant you an Award of Options, subject to the conditions and restrictions set forth in this Agreement and in the Plan, in order to provide you with additional remuneration for services rendered, to encourage you to remain in the service or employ of the Company or its Subsidiaries and to increase your personal interest in the continued success and progress of the Company.
The Company and you therefore agree as follows:
“Agreement” has the meaning specified in the preamble to this Agreement.
“Business Day” means any day on which stock exchanges in the United States are open for trading.
“Cause” has the meaning specified as “cause” in Section 10.2(b) of the Plan.
“Close of Business” means, on any day, 4:00 p.m., New York, New York time.
“Common Stock” has the meaning specified in Schedule I hereto.
“Company” has the meaning specified in the preamble to this Agreement.
“Confidential Information” has the meaning specified in Section 11 (Confidential Information).
“Disability” has the meaning specified as “Disability” in Section 2.1 of the Plan.
“Employment Termination Date” means the date of termination of your employment with the Company or a Subsidiary, as applicable.
“Exercise Notice” has the meaning specified in Section 4(i)(1) (Manner of Exercise).
“Forfeitable Benefits” has the meaning specified in Section 29 (Forfeiture for Misconduct and Repayment of Certain Amounts).
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“Grant Date” has the meaning specified in the preamble to this Agreement.
“Misstatement Period” has the meaning specified in Section 29 (Forfeiture for Misconduct and Repayment of Certain Amounts).
“Option(s)” has the meaning specified in Section 2 (Award).
“Option Exercise Price” means, with respect to each type of Common Stock for which Options are granted hereunder, the amount specified in Schedule I hereto as the Option Exercise Price for such Common Stock.
“Option Termination Date” has the meaning specified in Schedule I hereto.
“Plan” has the meaning specified in the preamble to this Agreement.
“Plan Administrator” has the meaning specified in Section 13 (Plan Administrator).
“Required Withholding Amount” has the meaning specified in Section 5 (Mandatory Withholding for Taxes).
“Section 409A” has the meaning specified in Section 28 (Code Section 409A).
“Year of Continuous Service” means a consecutive 12-month period, measured by your hire date (as determined by the Company) and the anniversaries of that date, during which you are employed by the Company or a Subsidiary (or an applicable predecessor of the Company) without interruption. If you were employed by a Subsidiary at the time of such Subsidiary’s acquisition by the Company, your employment with the Subsidiary prior to the acquisition date will be included in determining your Years of Continuous Service unless the Plan Administrator, in its sole discretion, determines that such prior employment will be excluded.
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Notwithstanding any period of time referenced in this Section 7 or Schedule I hereto or any other provision of this Agreement that may be construed to the contrary, the Options will in any event terminate at the Close of Business on the Option Termination Date. Notwithstanding anything herein or the Plan to the contrary, if the Options would otherwise expire when trading in the Common Stock is prohibited by law or the Company’s insider trading policy pursuant to an event-specific occurrence (as determined by the Company), then the Options shall instead expire on the 30th day after the expiration of such prohibition.
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Schedule I
to
Nonqualified Stock Option Agreement
[Insert Grant Code]
Grant Date: | [____________] |
Issuer/Company: | Qurate Retail, Inc., a Delaware corporation |
Plan: | Qurate Retail, Inc. 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time |
Common Stock: | Qurate Retail, Inc. Series A Common Stock (“QRTEA Common Stock”) |
Option Termination Date: | [____________] |
Option Exercise Price: | QRTEA Common Stock:$[______] |
General Vesting Schedule: | Subject to your continuous employment with the Company from the Grant Date through the following applicable vesting date, each class of the Options will vest and become exercisable, rounded down to the nearest whole number, on the following schedule: Vesting Date Vesting Percentage [____________] [____________]% [____________] [____________]% [____________] [____________]% |
| Each portion of the Options that relates to a particular type of Common Stock and is subject to a particular vesting date is referred to herein as an individual “Tranche” (e.g., if this Award includes Options to acquire three types of Common Stock and there are three vesting dates for each type of Common Stock, then there are nine Tranches). |
Vesting Terms Upon a Termination without Cause: | Notwithstanding Section 3(a) of the Agreement, if your employment with the Company or a Subsidiary is terminated by the Company or such Subsidiary without Cause, subject to your execution of, and delivery to the Company in accordance with the notice requirements of this Agreement, a general release agreement in a form satisfactory to the Company and such release becoming irrevocable in accordance with its terms, in each case, no later than 60 days following the Employment Termination Date (the “Release Conditions”), a Pro Rata Portion (as defined below) of each remaining unvested Tranche will become vested and exercisable upon the Release Conditions being met. |
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For purposes of this Agreement, a Pro Rata Portion shall be equal to the product of “A” multiplied by “B,” where “A” equals the number of Options in the applicable Tranche that are not vested on the Employment Termination Date, and “B” is a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of calendar days that have elapsed from the Grant Date through the Employment Termination Date plus (i) an additional 270 calendar days if you are an Assistant Vice President or Vice President of the Company or a Subsidiary on the Employment Termination Date or (ii) an additional 365 calendar days if you are a Senior Vice President, Executive Vice President or Chief of the Company or a Subsidiary on the Employment Termination Date, and the denominator of which is the number of days in the entire vesting period for such Tranche (in no event to exceed the total number of unvested Options in such Tranche as of the Employment Termination Date). The vesting period for each Tranche of Options is the period that begins on the Grant Date and ends on the vesting date for such Tranche. | |
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Post-Termination without Cause Exercise Period: | Notwithstanding Section 7(b)(i) of the Agreement, if your employment with the Company or a Subsidiary is terminated by the Company or such Subsidiary without Cause, subject to the Release Conditions being met, those Options which are then exercisable (after taking into account the applicable accelerated vesting treatment) shall remain exercisable for the period of time beginning on the Employment Termination Date and continuing for the number of days that is equal to the sum of (i) 90, plus (ii) 180 multiplied by your total Years of Continuous Service. |
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Company Notice Address: | Qurate Retail, Inc. 12300 Liberty Boulevard Englewood, Colorado 80112 Attn: Chief Legal Officer |
Company Website: | www.qurateretail.com |
Plan Access: | You can access the Plan via the link at the end of the Agreement or by contacting Qurate Retail, Inc.’s Legal Department. |
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