Confidential Information Noncompetition and Cooperation The terms of the Employee Non-Competition, Non-Solicitation, Confidentiality and Assignment Agreement (the “Restrictive Covenant Agreement”), between the Company and the Employee, attached hereto as Exhibit A, shall continue to be in full force and effect and are incorporated by reference in this Agreement. The Employee hereby reaffirms the terms of the Restrictive Covenant Agreement as material terms of this Agreement.
Confidential Information and Non-Competition 13.1 The Executive acknowledges and agrees that in performing the duties and responsibilities of her employment pursuant to this Agreement, she will occupy a position of high fiduciary trust and confidence with the Corporation, pursuant to which she will develop and acquire wide experience and knowledge with respect to all aspects of the Business carried on by the Corporation and its Related Corporations, and the manner in which such Business is conducted. It is the express intent and agreement of the Executive and the Corporation that such knowledge and experience shall be used solely and exclusively in furtherance of the Business interests of the Corporation and its Related Corporations, and not in any manner detrimental to them. The Executive therefore agrees that, so long as she is engaged by the Corporation pursuant to this Agreement, she shall not engage in any practice or business that competes with the Business of the Corporation or its Related Corporations. It shall not be considered a violation of this Section 13.1 for the Executive to be involved as an investor or shareholder in securities issued by corporations that compete directly or indirectly with the Business, provided that such investment does not constitute more than 5% of the outstanding securities of a business or corporation whose shares trade on a recognized stock exchange.
13.2 The Executive agrees that during the Term, and following the termination of the Executive's employment for any reason, she shall treat confidentially all Confidential Information belonging to the Corporation or its Related Corporations, and shall not use or disclose the Confidential Information to any unauthorized persons, except with the prior express written consent of the Corporation, or otherwise as required by law.
13.3 The Executive further acknowledges and agrees that pursuant to the terms of this Agreement, she will acquire Company Property which is and shall remain the sole and exclusive property of the Corporation. Upon termination of the Executive's employment and this Agreement for any reason, the Executive shall return to the Corporation all Company Property, together with any copies or reproductions thereof, which may have come into the Executive's possession during the course of or pursuant to this Agreement, and shall delete or destroy all computer files on her personal computer which may contain any Confidential Information belonging to the Corporation, or its Related Corporations.
13.4 Notwithstanding the provision of 13.2 and 13.3, the Executive shall be permitted to disclose Confidential Information as required by law, regulation, government body or authority or by court order.
13.5 The Executive acknowledges and agrees that the Corporation would suffer irreparable harm in the event that any Confidential Information or other knowledge and experience acquired by the Executive in relation to the business of the Corporation were disclosed to a competitor of the Corporation or used for a competitive purpose for a reasonable period of time following the termination of her employment. Accordingly, the Executive agrees that in the event her employment with the Corporation is terminated for Cause by the Corporation, or in the event that the Executive voluntarily resigns her employment with the Corporation, neither she nor any employee or agent of the Executive shall, for a period of three (3) months from the Termination Date:
(a) be engaged, either directly or indirectly in any manner including, without limitation, as an officer, director, shareholder, owner, partner, member, joint venturer, employee, independent contractor, consultant, advisor or sales representative, in any business or enterprise which competes with the Business of the Corporation or any Related Corporation, as such business was conducted as of the Termination Date, with the exception that the Executive may be involved as an investor or shareholder in securities issued by corporations that compete directly or indirectly with the Business, provided that such investment does not constitute more than 5% of the outstanding securities of a business or corporation whose shares trade on a recognized stock exchange;
(b) solicit, entice or attempt to solicit or entice, either directly or indirectly, any customer or prospective customer of the Corporation or any Related Corporation as at the Termination Date, to become a customer of any business or enterprise which competes with the Corporation or any Related Corporation for any business as such business was conducted by the Corporation or any Related Corporation as at the Termination Date; or
(c) solicit or entice, or attempt to solicit or entice, either directly or indirectly, any employee of the Corporation or any Related Corporation as at the Termination Date, to become employed by or connected with any business or enterprise which competes with the Corporation or any Related Corporation for any business as such business was conducted by the Corporation or any Related Corporation as at the Termination Date. The restrictions set out in this Section 13.5 shall apply only within North America or to any business that directly relates to North America.
13.6 The Executive acknowledges and agrees that the Corporation will suffer harm in the event that the Executive breaches any of the obligations under this Article 13, and that monetary damages would be difficult to quantify and may be inadequate to compensate the Corporation for such a breach. Accordingly, the Executive agrees that in the event of a breach or a threatened breach by the Executive of any of the provisions of this Article 13, the Corporation shall be entitled to seek, in addition to any other rights, remedies or damages available to the Corporation at law or in equity, an interim and permanent injunction, in order to prevent or restrain any such breach or threatened breach by the Executive.
13.7 The Executive hereby agrees that all restrictions contained in this Article 13 are reasonable and necessary to protect the legitimate proprietary interests of the Corporation, and will not unduly restrict her ability to secure comparable alternative employment following the termination of her employment for any reason. If any covenant or provision of this Article 13 is determined to be void or unenforceable in whole or in part, for any reason, it shall be deemed not to affect or impair the validity of any other covenant or provision of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect.
13.8 The provisions of this Article 13 shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding the termination of this Agreement for any reason.
Proprietary Information and Confidentiality Both before and during the term of Executive’s employment, Executive will have access to and become acquainted with Company confidential and proprietary information (together “Proprietary Information”), including but not limited to information or plans concerning the Company’s products and technologies; customer relationships; personnel; sales, marketing and financial operations and methods; trade secrets; formulae and secret developments and inventions; processes; and other compilations of information, records, and specifications. Executive will not disclose any of the Proprietary Information directly or indirectly, or use it in any way, either during his/her employment pursuant to this Agreement or at any time thereafter, except as reasonably required or specifically requested in the course of his/her employment with the Company or as authorized in writing by the Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Proprietary Information does not include information that is otherwise publicly known or available, provided it has not become public as a result of a breach of this Agreement or any other agreement Executive has to keep information confidential. It is not a breach of this Agreement for Executive to disclose Proprietary Information (i) pursuant to an order of a court or other governmental or legal body or (ii) in connection with Protected Activity (as defined below). Executive understands that nothing in this Agreement shall in any way limit or prohibit Executive from engaging in any Protected Activity. For purposes of this Agreement, “Protected Activity” means filing a charge or complaint with, or otherwise communicating or cooperating with or participating in any investigation or proceeding that may be conducted by any federal, state or local government agency or commission, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the National Labor Relations Board (“Government Agencies”). Executive understands that in connection with such Protected Activity, Executive is permitted to disclose documents or other information as permitted by law, and without giving notice to, or receiving authorization from, the Company. Notwithstanding, in making any such disclosures or communications, Executive agrees to take all reasonable precautions to prevent any unauthorized use or disclosure of any information that may constitute Proprietary Information to any parties other than the Government Agencies. Executive further understands that “Protected Activity” does not include the disclosure of any Company attorney-client privileged communications. In addition, Executive hereby acknowledges that the Company has provided Executive with notice in compliance with the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 regarding immunity from liability for limited disclosures of trade secrets. The full text of the notice is attached in Exhibit B.
Protection of Confidential Information; Non-Competition 4.1. Executive acknowledges that:
(1) As a result of his current employment with the Company, Executive will obtain secret and confidential information concerning the business of the Company and its subsidiaries and affiliates (referred to collectively in this Article 4 as the “Company”), including, without limitations, financial information, designs and other proprietary rights, trade secrets and “know-how,” customers and sources (“Confidential Information”).
(2) The Company will suffer substantial damage which will be difficult to compute if, during the period of his employment with the Company or thereafter, Executive should enter a business competitive with the Company or divulge Confidential Information.
(3) The provisions of this Agreement are reasonable and necessary for the protection of the business of the Company.
4.2. Executive agrees that he will not at any time, either during the term of this Agreement or thereafter, divulge to any person or entity any Confidential Information obtained or learned by him as a result of his employment with the Company, except (i) in the course of performing his duties hereunder, (ii) to the extent that any such information is in the public domain other than as a result of Executive’s breach of any of his obligations hereunder, (iii) where required to be disclosed by court order, subpoena or other government process or (iv) if such disclosure is made without Executive’s knowing intent to cause material harm to the Company. If Executive shall be required to make disclosure pursuant to the provisions of clause (iii) of the preceding sentence, Executive promptly, but in no event more than 72 hours after learning of such subpoena, court order, or other government process, shall notify, by personal delivery or by electronic means, confirmed by mail, the Company and, at the Company’s expense, Executive shall: (a) take reasonably necessary and lawful steps required by the Company to defend against the enforcement of such subpoena, court order or other government process, and (b) permit the Company to intervene and participate with counsel of its choice in any proceeding relating to the enforcement thereof.
4.3. Upon termination of his employment with the Company, Executive will promptly deliver to the Company all memoranda, notes, records, reports, manuals, drawings, blue-prints and other documents (and all copies thereof) relating to the business of the Company and all property associated therewith, which he may then possess or have under his control; provided, however, that the Executive shall be entitled to retain one copy of such documents for his personal use and records.
4.4. During the period commencing with the start date of employment under this agreement and terminating three years after termination of employment: (A) Executive, without the prior written permission of the Company, shall not, anywhere in the People’s Republic of China, Hong Kong SAR and Taiwan, (i) enter into the employ of or render any services to any person, firm or corporation engaged in any business which is directly in competition with the Company’s principal existing business at the time of termination (“Competitive Business”); (ii) engage in any Competitive Business as an individual, partner, shareholder, creditor, director, officer, principal, agent, employee, trustee consultant, advisor or in any other relationship or capacity; (iv) employ, or have or cause any other person or entity to employ, any person who was employed by the Company at the time of termination of Executive’s employment by the Company (other than Executive’s personal secretary and assistant); or (v) solicit, interfere with, or endeavor to entice away from the Company, for the benefit of a Competitive Business, any of its customers. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Executive shall not be precluded from investing and managing the investment of, his or his family’s assets in the securities of any corporation or other business entity which is engaged in a Competitive Business if such securities are traded on a national stock exchange or in the over-the-counter market and if such investment does not result in his beneficially owning, at any time, more than 5% of any class of the publicly-traded equity securities of such Competitive Business; provided, however, that for a period commencing with the start date of employment under this agreement and terminating three years after termination of Executive’s employment (except for investments in a class of securities trading on public markets), Executive shall refer to the Company for consideration (before any other party) any and all opportunities to acquire or purchase, or otherwise make equity or debt investments in, companies primarily involved in a Competitive Business if such opportunities becomes known to Executive while he is the Chief Executive Officer of the Company. If the Company determines not to exploit any opportunity referred to in the foregoing sentence, the Company shall determine what, if anything, should be done with such opportunity. Executive shall not be entitled to any compensation, as a finder or otherwise, if either the Company or Executive introduces such opportunity to other persons, it being understood that all such compensation shall be paid to the Company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event the Company terminates this Agreement without “cause” or if Executive terminates this Agreement for Good Reason under Section 3.5 hereof, Executive’s obligations under this Section 4.4 shall terminate one month following termination.
4.5. If Executive commits a breach of any of the provisions of Sections 4.2 or 4.4, the Company shall have the right:
(1) to have the provisions of this Agreement specifically enforced by any court having equity jurisdiction, it being acknowledged and agreed by Executive that the services being rendered hereunder to the Company are of a special, unique and extraordinary character and that any breach or threatened breach will cause irreparable injury to the Company and that money damages will not provide an adequate remedy to the Company; and
(2) to require Executive to account for and pay over to the Company all monetary damages determined by a non-appealable decision by a court of law to have been suffered by the Company as the result of any actions constituting a breach of any of the provisions of Section 4.2 or 4.4, and Executive hereby agrees to account for and pay over such damages to the Company (up to the maximum of all payments made under the Agreement).
4.6. If Executive shall violate any covenant contained in Section 4.4, the duration of such covenant so violated shall be automatically extended for a period of time equal to the period of such violation.
4.7. If any provision of Sections 4.2 or 4.4 is held to be unenforceable because of the scope, duration or area of its applicability, the tribunal making such determination shall not have the power to modify such scope, duration, or area, or all of them and such provision or provisions shall be void ab initio.
Noncompetition and Confidentiality (a) The parties recognize that the employment of Executive with the Company has been and will continue to be special, unique and of an extraordinary character, and in connection with such employment Executive has and will continue to acquire special skill and training. The parties also recognize that the covenants of Executive contained in this Section 9 are an essential part of Executive’s engagement by the Company and that, but for the agreement of the Executive to comply with such covenants, the Company would not have entered into this Agreement. Executive accordingly agrees that, during the Term, (i) Executive shall not act or serve, directly or indirectly, as a principal, agent, independent contractor, consultant, director, officer, executive, employee or advisor or in any other position or capacity with or for, or acquire a direct or indirect ownership interest in or otherwise conduct (whether as stockholder, partner, investor, joint venturer, or as owner of any other type of interest), any Competing Business (defined below); provided, however, that this clause shall not prohibit the Executive from being the owner of (A) up to 5% of any class of outstanding securities of any entity if such class of securities is publicly traded or (B) any other securities owned by Executive on the date of this Agreement, and (ii) Executive shall not, in connection with or for the benefit of any person or entity engaged in the non-hazardous solid waste business, solicit, induce, divert or take away, any officer, employee or consultant of the Company.
(b) From the date hereof, Executive shall hold in secrecy for the Company all trade secrets and other confidential information relating to the business and affairs of the Company that have come or may have come to his attention during his employment with the Company, including information concerning costs, profits, markets, sales, business development plans, lists of clients or customers, lists of acquisition targets and other information about such acquisition targets and other information of a similar nature (such categories of information being referred to herein as “Confidential Information”). Executive shall not use for his own benefit or disclose to any person any Confidential Information other than in the ordinary course of the Company’s business or in response to a court order, unless such use or disclosure has the prior written authorization of the Company. Executive shall deliver to the Company, upon request, all correspondence, memoranda, notes, records, plans, customer lists, product compositions and other documents and all copies thereof, whether in hard copy form or electronically or magnetically stored, made, composed, or received by the Executive, solely or jointly with others, that are in the Executive’s possession, custody or control and that are related in any manner to the past, present or anticipated business of the Company.
(c) For the purposes of this Section 9, “Competing Business” shall mean an individual, business, corporation, association, firm, undertaking, partnership, joint venture, organization or other entity that operates non-hazardous solid waste landfills, non-hazardous solid waste collection businesses or similar facilities or businesses within a 50-mile radius of any of the landfills or similar facilities of the Company, Guarantor or any affiliate thereof.
(d) Should any portion of this Section 9 be deemed unenforceable because of the scope, duration or territory encompassed by the undertakings of the Executive hereunder, and only in such event, then the Executive and the Company consent and agree to such limitation on scope, duration or territory as may be finally adjudicated as enforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction after the exhaustion of all appeals.
(e) The covenants in this Section 9 shall be construed as an agreement ancillary to the other provisions of this Agreement, and the existence of any claim or cause of action of the Executive against the Company, whether predicated on this Agreement or otherwise, other than a claim or cause of action based on the Company’s failure to pay Executive amounts payable to Executive hereunder, shall not constitute a defense to the enforcement by the Company of this covenant.
(f) It is expressly recognized and agreed that the covenants set forth in this Section 9 are for the purpose of restricting the activities of the Executive only to the extent necessary for the protection of the legitimate business interests of the Company, and the Company and the Executive agree that said covenants are reasonable for that purpose and that such covenants do not and will not preclude Executive from engaging in activities sufficient for the purpose of earning a living.
Confidentiality of Proprietary Information Employee agrees, during or after the term of this employment, not to reveal confidential information, or trade secrets to any person, firm, corporation, or entity. Should Employee reveal or threaten to reveal this information, the Company shall be entitled to an injunction restraining the Employee from disclosing same, or from rendering any services to any entity to whom said information has been or is threatened to be disclosed. The right to secure an injunction is not exclusive, and the Company may pursue any other remedies it has against the Employee for a breach or threatened breach of this condition, including the recovery of damages from the Employee.
Confidential Information; Non-Disclosure In consideration of your access to certain Confidential Information (as defined below) of the Company, in connection with your business relationship with the Company, you hereby represent and agree as follows:
Covenant Not to Disclose Confidential Information The Employee ------------------------------------------------- acknowledges that during the course of his employment with the Company he has or will have access to and knowledge of certain information and data which the Company or any subsidiary, parent or affiliate of the Company considers confidential and that the release of such information or data to unauthorized persons would be extremely detrimental to the Company. As a consequence, the Employee hereby agrees and acknowledges that he owes a duty to the Company not to disclose, and agrees that, during or after the term of his employment, without the prior written consent of the Company, he will not communicate, publish or disclose, to any person anywhere or use any Confidential Information (as hereinafter defined) for any purpose other than carrying out his duties as contemplated by this Agreement. The Employee will use his best efforts at all times to hold in confidence and to safeguard any Confidential Information from falling into the hands of any unauthorized person and, in particular, will not permit any Confidential Information to be read, duplicated or copied. The Employee will return to the Company all Confidential Information in the Employee's possession or under the Employee's control when the duties of the Employee no longer require the Employee's possession thereof, or whenever the Company shall so request, and in any event will promptly return all such Confidential Information if the Employee's relationship with the Company is terminated for any or no reason and will not retain any copies thereof. For purposes hereof the term "Confidential Information" shall mean any information or data used by or belonging or relating to the Company or any subsidiary, parent or affiliate of the Company that is not known generally to the industry in which the Company or any subsidiary, parent or affiliate of the Company is or may be engaged, including without limitation, any and all trade secrets, proprietary data and information relating to the Company's or any subsidiary, parent or affiliate of the Company's past, present or future business and products, price lists, customer lists, processes, procedures or standards, know- how, manuals, business strategies, records, drawings, specifications, designs, financial information, whether or not reduced to writing, or information or data which the Company or any subsidiary, parent or affiliate of the Company advises the Employee should be treated as confidential information.
Confidential Information Breach This shall mean, generally, an instance where an unauthorized person or entity accesses Confidential Information in any manner, including but not limited to the following occurrences: (1) any Confidential Information that is not encrypted or protected is misplaced, lost, stolen or in any way compromised; (2)one or more third parties have had access to or taken control or possession of any Confidential Information that is not encrypted or protected without prior written authorization from the State; (3) the unauthorized acquisition of encrypted or protected Confidential Information together with the confidential process or key that is capable of compromising the integrity of the Confidential Information; or (4) if there is a substantial risk of identity theft or fraud to the Client Agency, the Contractor, DAS or State.
Proprietary Information; Confidentiality All drawings, models, documents, confidential records, software and other information supplied by Seller are supplied on the express understanding that all copyright and design rights are reserved to Seller and that Buyer will not, without the written consent of Seller, either give away, loan, exhibit, or sell such drawings, models, documents, confidential records, computer software or other information or extracts therefrom or copies thereof or use them in any way except in connection with the Goods in respect of which they are issued. Buyer shall consider all information furnished by Seller, which was not previously publicly disclosed by Seller, to be confidential and shall not copy nor disclose any such information to any other person, nor use any such information for commercial purposes, nor make copies of such information without written permission from Seller. Buyer shall not disclose any information relating to any order without Seller’s written permission. Unless otherwise agreed in writing by the parties, no commercial, financial or technical information disclosed in any manner or at any time by Buyer to Seller shall be deemed secret or confidential and Buyer shall have no rights against Seller with respect thereto.
