Stock Option Agreement and Stock Option Terms and Conditions for Officers
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Business Finance
- Stock Agreements
EX-10.7 9 c57581exv10w7.htm EX-10.7 exv10w7
EXHIBIT 10.7
SUPERVALU INC.
LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PROGRAM
FOR THE [_____] PERFORMANCE CYCLE
UNDER THE 2007 STOCK PLAN
PERFORMANCE STOCK UNIT AWARD
AGREEMENT (CASH SETTLED)
LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PROGRAM
FOR THE [_____] PERFORMANCE CYCLE
UNDER THE 2007 STOCK PLAN
PERFORMANCE STOCK UNIT AWARD
AGREEMENT (CASH SETTLED)
This agreement is made and entered into as of the grant date indicated below (the “Grant Date”), by and between SUPERVALU INC. (the “Company”), and the individual whose name appears below (“Recipient”).
The Company has established the Long-Term Incentive Program for the [___] Performance Cycle under the 2007 Stock Plan (the “Plan”), under which key employees of the Company may be granted Awards of Performance Stock Units of the Company. Recipient has been selected by the Company to receive an Award of Performance Stock Units subject to the provisions of this agreement. Capitalized terms that are used in this agreement, that are not defined, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Plan.
In consideration of the foregoing, the Company and Recipient hereby agree as follows:
1. Grant. The Company hereby grants to Recipient, subject to Recipient’s acceptance hereof, an Award of Performance Stock Units for the number of Performance Stock Units indicated below, effective as of the Grant Date.
2. Acceptance of Award of Performance Stock Units and Performance Stock Unit Award Terms and Conditions. The Award of Performance Stock Units is subject to and governed by the Performance Stock Unit Award Terms and Conditions (“Terms and Conditions”) attached hereto, which are incorporated herein and made a part hereof, and the terms and provisions of the Plan. To accept the Award of Performance Stock Units, this agreement must be delivered and accepted through an electronic medium in accordance with procedures established by the Company or Recipient must sign and return a copy of this agreement to the Company. By so doing, Recipient acknowledges receipt of the accompanying Terms and Conditions and the Plan, and represents that Recipient has read and understands the same and agrees to be bound by the accompanying Terms and Conditions and the terms and provisions of the Plan. In the event that any provision of this agreement or the accompanying Terms and Conditions is inconsistent with the terms and provisions of the Plan, the terms and provisions of the Plan shall govern. Any question of administration or interpretation arising under this agreement or the accompanying Terms and Conditions shall be determined by the Committee administering the Plan, and such determination shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all parties in interest.
3. Earning and Vesting of Performance Stock Units. Subject to the accompanying Terms and Conditions, the number of Performance Stock Units that shall be earned by Recipient under the Award of Performance Stock Units shall be determined in [Month/Year], in accordance with Exhibit A attached hereto, which is incorporated herein and made a part hereof. All such Performance Stock Units shall vest upon earning. Upon the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units, Recipient shall receive a cash payment, as more particularly described in the accompanying Terms and Conditions.
Grant Date:
Number of Performance Stock Units Awarded:
| SUPERVALU INC. | RECIPIENT: | |||||||||
By: | ||||||||||
| David E. Pylipow | ||||||||||
| Executive Vice President, Human Resources And Communications | SS # | |||||||||
SUPERVALU INC.
LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PROGRAM
FOR THE [_____] PERFORMANCE CYCLE
UNDER THE 2007 STOCK PLAN
PERFORMANCE STOCK UNIT AWARD
TERMS AND CONDITIONS (CASH SETTLED)
LONG-TERM INCENTIVE PROGRAM
FOR THE [_____] PERFORMANCE CYCLE
UNDER THE 2007 STOCK PLAN
PERFORMANCE STOCK UNIT AWARD
TERMS AND CONDITIONS (CASH SETTLED)
These Performance Stock Unit Award Terms and Conditions (“Terms and Conditions”) apply to the Award of Performance Stock Units granted pursuant to the Long-Term Incentive Program for the [___] Performance Cycle under the 2007 Stock Plan (the “Plan”), pursuant to the Performance Stock Unit Award Agreement (the “Agreement”) to which this document is attached. Capitalized terms that are used in this document, but are not defined, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Plan or the attached Agreement. See Section 19 for a list of defined terms.
1. Award of Performance Stock Units. SUPERVALU INC. (the “Company”) hereby grants to you an Award of Performance Stock Units for the number of Performance Stock Units set forth in the attached Agreement. The Award is effective as of the Grant Date. Each Performance Stock Unit represents the right to receive cash in the amount equal to the Fair Market Value of one share of the Company’s common stock, $1.00 par value (the “Common Stock”), subject to these Terms and Conditions.
2. Rights with Respect to the Performance Stock Units. The Performance Stock Units granted pursuant to the attached Agreement do not and shall not give you any of the rights and privileges of a holder of Common Stock. Your rights with respect to the Performance Stock Units shall remain forfeitable at all times prior to the date on which such rights become earned and vested and the restrictions with respect thereto lapse in accordance with Section 3 or Section 4 hereof.
3. Earning and Vesting of Performance Stock Units. The number of the Performance Stock Units that you earn shall be determined in April [___] by the Committee administering the Plan as more particularly described in Exhibit A to the attached Agreement or as otherwise expressly provided in these Terms and Conditions. All such Performance Stock Units shall vest upon earning.
4. Change in Control.
| a) | If, within two (2) years after a Change in Control you experience an involuntary termination of employment initiated by the Company for reasons other than Cause, or a termination of employment for Good Reason, then you shall become immediately and unconditionally vested in all the Performance Stock Units and the restrictions with respect to all the Performance Stock Units shall lapse and the Performance Stock Units shall be settled and paid to you as soon as administratively feasible following your termination of employment but in no event later than March 15 of the year following the year of your termination of employment. If the Award of Performance Stock Units is replaced pursuant to subsection (c) below, the protections and rights granted under this subsection (a) shall transfer and apply to such replacement grant. | ||
| b) | If, in the event of a Change in Control, and to the extent the Award of Performance Stock Units is not assumed by a successor corporation (or affiliate thereto) or other successor entity or person, or replaced with an award or grant that, solely in the discretionary judgment of the Committee preserves the existing value of the Award of Performance Stock Units at the time of the Change in Control, then you shall become immediately and unconditionally vested in all the Performance Stock Units and the restrictions with respect to all the Performance Stock Units shall lapse and the Performance Stock Units shall be settled and paid to you as soon as administratively feasible after the Change in Control but in no event later than March 15 of the year following the year of the Change in Control. | ||
| c) | If in the event of a Change in Control and to the extent that this Award of Performance Stock Units is assumed by any successor corporation, affiliate thereof, person or other entity, or are replaced with awards that, solely in the discretionary judgment of the Committee preserve the existing value of this Award of Performance Stock Units at the time of the Change in Control and provide for vesting, settlement terms and performance goals that are at least as favorable to you as the vesting and payout terms applicable to this Award of Performance Stock Units, then the |
| assumed Award of Performance Stock Units or such substitute therefor shall remain outstanding and be governed by its respective terms. |
5. Forfeiture. If you cease to be an employee of the Company or any of its Affiliates prior to the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units pursuant to Section 3 or Section 4 hereof for any reason, then your rights to all of the Performance Stock Units shall be immediately and irrevocably forfeited. However, the Committee administering the Plan may determine to accelerate the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units if you cease to be an employee of the Company or any of its Affiliates prior to the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units pursuant to Section 3 or Section 4 hereof for any reason.
6. Restrictions on Transfer. Except as may otherwise be determined by the Committee administering the Plan, none of the Performance Stock Units may be sold, assigned, transferred, pledged, hypothecated or otherwise disposed of or encumbered by you, and no attempt to transfer the Performance Stock Units, whether voluntary or involuntary, by operation of law or otherwise, shall vest the transferee with any interest or right in or with respect to the Performance Stock Units.
7. Payment. After the Performance Stock Units are earned and vest pursuant to Section 3 or Section 4 hereof, and following payment of the applicable withholding taxes pursuant to Section 8 hereof, the Company shall promptly cause a cash payment in the amount equal to (i) the Fair Market Value as of the vesting date of one share of Common Stock for each such earned and vested Performance Stock Unit, multiplied by the number of such earned and vested Performance Stock Units, less any amount withheld to pay taxes, to be made to you. The Company will pay to you the Fair Market Value as of the vesting date of any fractional share Common Stock (less any amount withheld to pay taxes). No cash payment shall be made to you prior to the date on which the applicable Performance Stock Units are earned and vest, in accordance with these Terms and Conditions of the attached Agreement and these Terms and Conditions. Furthermore, in no event shall any cash payment be made to you later than sixty (60) calendar days after the applicable Performance Stock Units are earned and vest.
8. Taxes.
| a) | You acknowledge that you will consult with your personal tax advisor regarding the income tax consequences of the grant of the Performance Stock Units, the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units, the receipt of the cash payment pursuant to Section 7 hereof, and any other matters related to these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement. In order to comply with all applicable federal or state income, social security, payroll, withholding or other tax laws or regulations, the Company may take such action, and may require you to take such action, as it deems appropriate to ensure that all applicable federal or state income, social security, payroll, withholding or other taxes, which are your sole and absolute responsibility, are withheld or collected from you. | ||
| b) | You acknowledge that you are responsible for the payment of any federal, state, local or other taxes that are required to be withheld by the Company upon the earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units. In order to satisfy any applicable federal, state, local or other taxes that are required to be withheld, the Company shall withhold a portion of the cash payment to be delivered pursuant to Section 7 hereof in the amount equal to the federal and state income tax required to be withheld upon such vesting. |
9. Adjustments. If any Performance Stock Units are earned and vest subsequent to any change in the number or character of the Common Stock through any recapitalization, stock split, reverse stock split, reorganization, merger, consolidation, split-up, spin-off, combination, repurchase or exchange of shares or other securities of the Company, issuance of warrants or other rights to purchase shares or other securities of the Company or other similar corporate transaction or event that affects the Performance Stock Units covered by this Award of Performance Stock Units, you shall then receive upon such earning and vesting of the Performance Stock Units, the number and type of securities or other consideration which you would have received if such Performance Stock Units had been earned and vested prior to the event changing the number or character of the outstanding Common Stock.
10. Covenants. In consideration of benefits described elsewhere in these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement, and in recognition of the fact that, as a result of your employment with the Company or any of its Affiliates, you have had or will have access to and gain knowledge of highly confidential or
proprietary information or trade secrets pertaining to the Company or its Affiliates, as well as the customers, suppliers, joint ventures, licensors, licensees, distributors or other persons and entities with whom the Company or any of its Affiliates does business (“Confidential Information”), which the Company or its Affiliates have expended time, resources, and money to obtain or develop and which have significant value to the Company and its Affiliates, you agree for the benefit of the Company and its Affiliates, and as a material condition to your receipt of benefits described elsewhere in these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement, as follows:
| a) | Non-Disclosure of Confidential Information. You acknowledge that you will receive access or have received access to Confidential Information about the Company or its Affiliates, that this information was obtained or developed by the Company or its Affiliates at great expense and is zealously guarded by the Company and its Affiliates from unauthorized disclosure, and that your possession of this special knowledge is due solely to your employment with the Company or one or more of its Affiliates. In recognition of the foregoing, you will not at any time during employment or following termination of employment for any reason, disclose, use or otherwise make available to any third party, any Confidential Information relating to the Company’s or any Affiliate’s business, products, services, customers, vendors or suppliers; trade secrets, data, specifications, developments, inventions and research activity; marketing and sales strategies, information and techniques; long and short term plans; existing and prospective client, vendor, supplier and employee lists, contacts and information; financial, personnel and information system information and applications; and any other information concerning the business of the Company or its Affiliates which is not disclosed to the general public or known in the industry, except for disclosure necessary in the course of your duties or with the express written consent of the Company. All Confidential Information, including all copies, notes regarding and replications of such Confidential Information will remain the sole property of the Company or its Affiliates, as applicable, and must be returned to the Company or such Affiliates immediately upon termination of your employment. | ||
| b) | Return of Property. Upon termination of employment with the Company or any of its Affiliates, or at any other time at the request of the Company, you shall deliver to a designated Company representative all records, documents, hardware, software and all other property of the Company or its Affiliates and all copies of such property in your possession. You acknowledge and agree that all such materials are the sole property of the Company or its Affiliates and that you will certify in writing to the Company at the time of delivery, whether upon termination or otherwise, that you have complied with this obligation. | ||
| c) | Non-Solicitation of Existing or Prospective Customers, Vendors and Suppliers. You specifically acknowledge that the Confidential Information described in Section 10(a) includes confidential data pertaining to existing and prospective customers, vendors and suppliers of the Company or its Affiliates; that such data is a valuable and unique asset of the business of the Company or its Affiliates; and that the success or failure of their businesses depends upon their ability to establish and maintain close and continuing personal contacts and working relationships with such existing and prospective customers, vendors and suppliers and to develop proposals which are specific to such existing and prospective customers, vendors and suppliers. Therefore, during your employment with the Company or any of its Affiliates and for the twelve (12) months following termination of employment for any reason, you agree that you will not, except on behalf of the Company or its Affiliates, or with the Company’s express written consent, solicit, approach, contact or attempt to solicit, approach or contact, either directly or indirectly, on your own behalf or on behalf of any other person or entity, any existing or prospective customers, vendors or suppliers of the Company or its Affiliates with whom you had contact or about whom you gained Confidential Information during your employment with the Company or its Affiliates for the purpose of obtaining business or engaging in any commercial relationship that would be competitive with the “Business of the Company” (as defined below in Section 10(e)(i)) or cause such customer, supplier or vendor to materially change or terminate its business or commercial relationship with the Company or its Affiliates. | ||
| d) | Non-Solicitation of Employees. You specifically acknowledge that the Confidential Information described in Section 10(a) also includes confidential data pertaining to employees and agents of the Company or its Affiliates, and you further agree that during your employment with the Company or its Affiliates and for the twelve (12) months following termination of employment for |
| any reason, you will not, directly or indirectly, on your own behalf or on behalf of any other person or entity, solicit, contact, approach, encourage, induce or attempt to solicit, contact, approach, encourage, or induce any of the employees or agents of the Company or its Affiliates to terminate their employment or agency with the Company or any of its Affiliates. | |||
| e) | Non-Competition. You covenant and agree that during your employment with the Company or any of its Affiliates and for the twelve (12) months following termination of employment for any reason, you will not, in any geographic market in which you worked on behalf of the Company or any of its Affiliates, or for which you had any sales, marketing, operational, logistical or other management or oversight responsibility, engage in or carry on, directly or indirectly, as an owner, employee, agent, associate, consultant, partner or in any other capacity, a business competitive with the Business of the Company. This Section 10(e) shall not apply in the event of a Change in Control as described in Section 4 above. |
| i) | The “Business of the Company” shall mean any business or activity involved in grocery or general merchandise retailing and supply chain logistics, including but not limited to grocery distribution, business-to-business portal, retail support services and third-party logistics, of the type provided by the Company or its Affiliates, or presented in concept to you by the Company or its Affiliates at any time during your employment with the Company or any of its Affiliates. | ||
| ii) | To “engage in or carry on” shall mean to have ownership in such business (excluding ownership of up to one percent (1%) of the outstanding shares of a publicly-traded company) or to consult, work in, direct or have responsibility for any area of such business, including but not limited to operations, logistics, sales, marketing, finance, recruiting, sourcing, purchasing, information technology or customer service. |
| f) | No Disparaging Statements. You agree that you will not make any disparaging statements about the Company, its Affiliates, directors, officers, agents, employees, products, pricing policies or services. | ||
| g) | Remedies for Breach of These Covenants. Any breach of the covenants in this Section 10 likely will cause irreparable harm to the Company or its Affiliates for which money damages could not reasonably or adequately compensate the Company or its Affiliates. Accordingly, the Company or any of its Affiliates shall be entitled to all forms of injunctive relief (whether temporary, emergency, preliminary, prospective or permanent) to enforce such covenants, in addition to damages and other available remedies, and you consent to the issuance of such an injunction without the necessity of the Company or any such Affiliate posting a bond or, if a court requires a bond to be posted, with a bond of no greater than $500 in principal amount. In the event that injunctive relief or damages are awarded to Company or any of its Affiliates for any breach by you of this Section 10, you further agree that the Company or such Affiliate shall be entitled to recover its costs and attorneys’ fees necessary to obtain such recovery. In addition, you agree that upon your breach of any covenant in this Section 10, this Award of Performance Stock Units shall be immediately and irrevocably forfeited. | ||
| h) | Enforceability of These Covenants. It is further agreed and understood by you and the Company that if any part, term or provision of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement should be held to be unenforceable, invalid or illegal under any applicable law or rule, the offending term or provision shall be applied to the fullest extent enforceable, valid or lawful under such law or rule, or, if that is not possible, the offending term or provision shall be struck and the remaining provisions of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement shall not be affected or impaired in any way. |
11. Arbitration. You and the Company agree that any controversy, claim or dispute arising out of or relating to the attached Agreement or the breach of any of these Terms and Conditions, or arising out of or relating to your employment relationship with the Company or any of its Affiliates, or the termination of such relationship, shall be resolved by final and binding arbitration under the Employment Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures of the American Arbitration Association, or other neutral arbitrator and rules as mutually agreed to you and the Company, except for claims by the Company relating to your alleged breach of any of the employee covenants set forth in Section 10 above. This agreement to arbitrate specifically includes, but is not limited to, discrimination claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964 and under state and local laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Nothing in this Section 11 shall preclude the Company from pursuing a court action to obtain a temporary restraining order or a preliminary injunction relating to the alleged breach of any of the covenants set forth in Section 10. The agreement to arbitrate shall continue in full force and effect despite the forfeiture of this Award of Performance Stock Units or the termination of your employment relationship with the Company or any of its Affiliates. You and the Company agree that any award rendered by the arbitrator must be in writing and include the findings of fact and conclusions of law upon which it is based, shall be final and binding, and that judgment upon the final award may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. The arbitrator may grant any remedy or relief that the arbitrator deems just and equitable, including any remedy or relief that would have been available to you or the Company or its Affiliates had the matter been heard in court. All expenses of arbitration, including the required travel and other expenses of the arbitrator and any witnesses, and the costs relating to any proof produced at the direction of the arbitrator, shall be borne equally by you and the Company unless otherwise mutually agreed or unless the arbitrator directs otherwise in the award. The arbitrator’s compensation shall be borne equally by you and the Company unless otherwise mutually agreed or the law provides otherwise.
12. Severability. In the event that any portion of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement shall be held to be invalid, the same shall not affect in any respect whatsoever the validity and enforceability of the remainder of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement.
13. Interpretations. These Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement are subject in all respects to the Plan. A copy of the Plan is available upon your request. In the event that any provision of these Terms and Conditions or the attached Agreement is inconsistent with the terms of the Plan, the terms and provisions of the Plan shall govern. Any question of administration or interpretation arising under these Terms and Conditions or the attached Agreement shall be determined by the Committee administering the Plan, and such determination shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all parties in interest.
14. No Right to Employment. Nothing in these Terms and Conditions, the attached Agreement or the Plan shall be construed as giving you the right to be retained as an employee of the Company. In addition, the Company may at any time dismiss you from employment, free from any liability or any claim under these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement, unless otherwise expressly provided in these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement.
15. Compensation. Any compensation realized from the receipt or payment of (or the lapse of restrictions relating to) this Award of Performance Stock Units shall constitute a special long-term incentive payment to you and whether or not it is taken into account as compensation in determining the amount of any benefit under any retirement or other employee benefit plan of the Company or any of its Affiliates will be determined solely under the terms of those benefit plans.
16. Headings. Headings are given to the sections and subsections of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement solely as a convenience to facilitate reference. Such headings shall not be deemed in any way material or relevant to the construction or interpretation of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement or any provision hereof.
17. Governing Law. The internal law, and not the law of conflicts, of the State of Delaware will govern all questions concerning the validity, construction and effect of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement.
18. Notice. For purpose of these Terms and Conditions and the attached Agreement, notices and all other communications provided for in the attached Agreement, these Terms and Conditions or contemplated by either shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given when personally delivered or when mailed United States certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, and addressed, in the case of the Company, to the Company at:
P.O. Box 990
Minneapolis, MN 55440
Attention: Corporate Secretary
Minneapolis, MN 55440
Attention: Corporate Secretary
and in the case of you, to you at the most current address shown on your employment records. Either party may designate a different address by giving notice of change of address in the manner provided above, except that notices of change of address shall be effective only upon receipt.
| a) | Notice of Termination by Company. Any purported termination of employment of you by the Company (whether for Cause or without Cause) shall be communicated by a Notice of Termination to you. No purported termination of employment of you by the Company shall be effective without a Notice of Termination having been given. | ||
| b) | Good Reason Notice by You. Any purported termination of employment by you for Good Reason shall be communicated by a Notice of Termination to the Company. Your termination of employment will not be for Good Reason unless (i) you give the Company written notice of the event or circumstance which you claim is the basis for Good Reason within six (6) months of such event or circumstance first occurring and (ii) the Company is given thirty (30) days from its receipt of such notice within which to cure or resolve the event or circumstance so noticed. If the circumstance is cured or resolved within said thirty (30) days, your termination of employment will not be for Good Reason. |
19. Definitions. The following terms, and terms derived from the following terms, shall have the following meanings when used in the Agreement with initial capital letters unless, in the context, it would be unreasonable to do so.
| a) | Cause shall mean: |
| i) | your continued failure to perform your duties with the Company (other than any such failure resulting from incapacity due to physical or mental illness), after a written demand for substantial performance is delivered to you by the Board or an officer of the Company which specifically identifies the manner in which the Board or the officer believes that you have not substantially performed your duties; | ||
| ii) | the conviction of, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony or the willful engaging by you in conduct which is materially and demonstrably injurious to the Company; | ||
| iii) | your commission of a material act or material acts of personal dishonesty intended to result in your substantial personal enrichment at the expense of the Company; or | ||
| iv) | your material violation of Company policies relating to Code of Business Conduct, Equal Employment Opportunities and Harassment or Workplace Violence; |
| provided, however, that in no event shall Cause exist by virtue of any action taken by you (A) in compliance with express written directions of the Board, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer or the officer to whom you report or (B) in reliance upon the express written consent of the Company’s counsel. | |||
| In each case above, for a termination of employment to be for Cause, you must be provided with a Notice of Termination (as described in Section 18(a)) within six (6) months after the Company has actual knowledge of the act or omission constituting Cause. Whether a termination of employment is for Cause as provided above will be determined by the Company in its sole discretion based on all the facts and circumstances. | |||
| b) | Change in Control shall be deemed to have occurred upon any of the following events: |
| i) | the acquisition by any individual, entity or group (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act of beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act) of twenty percent (20%) or more of either (A) the then outstanding shares of common stock of the Company or (B) the combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors; provided, however, that for purposes of this subsection (i), the following acquisitions shall not constitute a Change in Control: (A) any acquisition directly from the Company or (B) any acquisition by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by the Company or any corporation controlled by the Company; |
| ii) | the consummation of any merger or other business combination of the Company, sale or lease of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets or combination of the foregoing transactions (the “Transactions”) other than a Transaction immediately following which the stockholders of the Company and any trustee or fiduciary of any Company employee benefit plan immediately prior to the Transaction own at least sixty percent (60%) of the voting power, directly or indirectly, of (A) the surviving corporation in any such merger or other business combination; (B) the purchaser or lessee of the Company’s assets or (C) both the surviving corporation and the purchaser or lessee in the event of any combination of Transactions; | ||
| iii) | within any 24-month period, the persons who were directors immediately before the beginning of such period (the “Incumbent Directors”) shall cease (for any reason other than death) to constitute at least a majority of the Board or the board of directors of a successor to the Company. For this purpose, any director who was not a director at the beginning of such period shall be deemed to be an Incumbent Director if such director was elected to the Board by, or on the recommendation of or with the approval of, at least three-fourths of the directors who then qualified as Incumbent Directors (so long as such director was not nominated by a person who has expressed an intent to effect a Change in Control or engage in a proxy or other control contest); or | ||
| iv) | such other event or transaction as the Board shall determine constitutes a Change in Control. |
| c) | CIC Date shall mean the date on which a Change in Control occurs. | ||
| d) | Good Reason shall mean any one or more of the following events occurring during the two-year period following the CIC Date: |
| i) | your annual base salary is reduced below the higher of (A) the amount in effect on the CIC Date or (B) the highest amount in effect at any time thereafter; | ||
| ii) | your duties and responsibilities or the program of incentive compensation (including without limitation long term incentive plans and equity incentive programs), vacation, fringe benefits, perquisites, retirement and general insurance benefits offered to your are materially and adversely diminished in comparison to the duties and responsibilities or the program of such benefits enjoyed by you on the CIC Date; or | ||
| iii) | you are required to be based at a location more than forty-five (45) miles from the location where you were based and performed services on the CIC Date or your business travel obligations are significantly increased over those in effect immediately prior to the CIC Date; |
| provided, however, that any diminution of duties or responsibilities that occurs solely as a result of the fact that the Company ceases to be a public company shall not, in and of itself, constitute Good Reason. | |||
| e) | Notice of Termination shall mean a written notice which shall indicate the specific provision in this Agreement relied upon and shall set forth in reasonable detail the facts and circumstances claimed to provide a basis for your termination of employment under the provisions so indicated. |
Original Approval:
