Guaranty of the Obligations Subject to the provisions of Section 7.2, Guarantors jointly and severally hereby irrevocably and unconditionally guaranty to Administrative Agent for the ratable benefit of the Beneficiaries the due and punctual payment in full of all Obligations when the same shall become due, whether at stated maturity, by required prepayment, declaration, acceleration, demand or otherwise (including amounts that would become due but for the operation of the automatic stay under Section 362(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, 11 U.S.C. § 362(a)) (collectively, the “Guaranteed Obligations”).
Guaranty Absolute, etc This Guaranty shall in all respects be a continuing, absolute, unconditional and irrevocable guaranty of payment, and shall remain in full force and effect until all Obligations of each Borrower and each other Obligor have been paid in full in cash, all obligations of the Guarantor hereunder shall have been paid in full in cash, all Letters of Credit have been terminated or expired and all Commitments shall have terminated. The Guarantor guarantees that the Obligations of each Borrower and each other Obligor will be paid strictly in accordance with the terms of the Credit Agreement and each other Loan Document under which they arise, regardless of any law, regulation or order now or hereafter in effect in any jurisdiction affecting any of such terms or the rights of any Secured Party or any holder of any Note with respect thereto. The liability of the Guarantor under this Guaranty shall be absolute, unconditional and irrevocable irrespective of:
(a) any lack of validity, legality or enforceability of the Credit Agreement, any Note or any other Loan Document;
(b) the failure of any Secured Party or any holder of any Note
(i) to assert any claim or demand or to enforce any right or remedy against a Borrower, any other Obligor or any other Person (including any other guarantor (including the Guarantor)) under the provisions of the Credit Agreement, any Note, any other Loan Document or otherwise, or
(ii) to exercise any right or remedy against any other guarantor (including the Guarantor) of, or collateral securing, any Obligations of a Borrower or any other Obligor;
(c) any change in the time, manner or place of payment of, or in any other term of, all or any of the Obligations of a Borrower or any other Obligor, or any other extension, compromise or renewal of any Obligation of a Borrower or any other Obligor;
(d) any reduction, limitation, impairment or termination of any Obligations of a Borrower or any other Obligor for any reason, including any claim of waiver, release, surrender, alteration or compromise, and shall not be subject to (and the Guarantor hereby waives any right to or claim of) any defense or setoff, counterclaim, recoupment or termination whatsoever by reason of the invalidity, illegality, nongenuineness, irregularity, compromise, unenforceability of, or any other event or occurrence affecting, any Obligations of a Borrower, the Guarantor, any other Obligor or otherwise;
(e) any amendment to, rescission, waiver, or other modification of, or any consent to departure from, any of the terms of the Credit Agreement, any Note or any other Loan Document;
(f) any addition, exchange, release, surrender or non-perfection of any collateral, or any amendment to or waiver or release or addition of, or consent to departure from, any other guaranty, held by any Secured Party or any holder of any Note securing any of the Obligations of a Borrower or any other Obligor; or
(g) any other circumstance which might otherwise constitute a defense available to, or a legal or equitable discharge of, a Borrower, any other Obligor, any surety or any guarantor.
Absolute Obligation Except as expressly provided herein, no provision of this Note shall alter or impair the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay the principal of, liquidated damages and accrued interest, as applicable, on this Note at the time, place, and rate, and in the coin or currency, herein prescribed. This Note is a direct debt obligation of the Company. This Note ranks pari passu with all other Notes now or hereafter issued under the terms set forth herein.
Severance Obligations (i) Ashland and Buyer intend that the transactions contemplated by this Agreement shall not result in a severance of employment of any Employee prior to or upon the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and that the Employees will have continuous and uninterrupted employment immediately before and immediately after the Closing Date, and Ashland and Buyer shall comply with any requirements under applicable Law to ensure the same. Subject to Section 7.5(b)(iv), Buyer shall bear any costs related to, and shall indemnify and hold harmless Ashland and the Asset Selling Corporations from and against, any claims made by any Employee for any statutory, contractual or common law severance or separation benefits and other legally mandated payment obligations (including the employer portion of any employment taxes, together with any compensation payable during any mandatory termination notice period related thereto, collectively, “Separation Benefits”), in each case, arising out of or in connection with the failure of Buyer or the Buyer Corporations to make offers of employment or continue the employment of any Employee, in each case in accordance with this Agreement and as required by applicable Law, and Ashland and the Asset Selling Corporations shall bear any costs related to, and shall indemnify and hold harmless Buyer and the Buyer Corporations from and against, any claims made by any Employee for any Separation Benefits that arise out of the refusal of such Employee to accept an offer of employment made in accordance with this Agreement and applicable Law by, or an objection by such Employee to an automatic transfer of employment to, Buyer or a Buyer Corporation or for the liabilities associated with the agreements listed in Schedule 7.5.
(ii) Subject to Section 7.5(b)(iv), Buyer shall, or shall cause the Buyer Corporations to, provide each Transferred Employee whose employment is terminated within eighteen (18) months following the Closing Date with severance and other separation benefits substantially comparable to the severance and other separation benefits provided to such Transferred Employee by Ashland or the applicable Asset Selling Corporation as in effect as of the date of this Agreement.
Obligations of Company Unconditional Nothing contained in this Article Eight or elsewhere in this Indenture or in the Securities is intended to or shall impair, as among the Company and the Holders of the Securities, the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay to the Holders of the Securities the principal of and interest on the Securities as and when the same shall become due and payable in accordance with their terms, or is intended to or shall affect the relative rights of the Holders of the Securities and creditors of the Company other than the holders of the Senior Indebtedness, nor shall anything herein or therein prevent the Holder of any Security or the Trustee on their behalf from exercising all remedies otherwise permitted by applicable law upon default under this Indenture, subject to the rights, if any, under this Article Eight of the holders of the Senior Indebtedness in respect of cash, property or securities of the Company received upon the exercise of any such remedy. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, nothing contained in this Article Eight shall restrict the right of the Trustee or the Holders of Securities to take any action to declare the Securities to be due and payable prior to their stated maturity pursuant to Section 6.01 or to pursue any rights or remedies hereunder; provided, however, that all Senior Indebtedness then due and payable shall first be paid in full in cash before the Holders of the Securities or the Trustee are entitled to receive any direct or indirect payment from the Company of principal of or interest on the Securities.
Separate Obligations These obligations are independent of Borrower’s obligations and separate actions may be brought against Guarantor (whether action is brought against Borrower or whether Borrower is joined in the action).
Conditions to Obligations of Each Party Under This Agreement The respective obligations of each party to effect the Merger and the other transactions contemplated herein shall be subject to the satisfaction at or prior to the Effective Time of the following conditions, any or all of which may be waived, in whole or in part, to the extent permitted by applicable Law:
Obligations Absolute The obligation of the Borrower to reimburse the L/C Issuer for each drawing under each Letter of Credit and to repay each L/C Borrowing shall be absolute, unconditional and irrevocable, and shall be paid strictly in accordance with the terms of this Agreement under all circumstances, including the following:
(i) any lack of validity or enforceability of such Letter of Credit, this Agreement, or any other Loan Document;
(ii) the existence of any claim, counterclaim, setoff, defense or other right that the Borrower or any Subsidiary may have at any time against any beneficiary or any transferee of such Letter of Credit (or any Person for whom any such beneficiary or any such transferee may be acting), the L/C Issuer or any other Person, whether in connection with this Agreement, the transactions contemplated hereby or by such Letter of Credit or any agreement or instrument relating thereto, or any unrelated transaction;
(iii) any draft, demand, certificate or other document presented under such Letter of Credit proving to be forged, fraudulent, invalid or insufficient in any respect or any statement therein being untrue or inaccurate in any respect; or any loss or delay in the transmission or otherwise of any document required in order to make a drawing under such Letter of Credit;
(iv) any payment by the L/C Issuer under such Letter of Credit against presentation of a draft or certificate that does not strictly comply with the terms of such Letter of Credit; or any payment made by the L/C Issuer under such Letter of Credit to any Person purporting to be a trustee in bankruptcy, debtor-in-possession, assignee for the benefit of creditors, liquidator, receiver or other representative of or successor to any beneficiary or any transferee of such Letter of Credit, including any arising in connection with any proceeding under any Debtor Relief Law; or
(v) any other circumstance or happening whatsoever, whether or not similar to any of the foregoing, including any other circumstance that might otherwise constitute a defense available to, or a discharge of, the Borrower or any Subsidiary. The Borrower shall promptly examine a copy of each Letter of Credit and each amendment thereto that is delivered to it and, in the event of any claim of noncompliance with the Borrower’s instructions or other irregularity, the Borrower will immediately notify the L/C Issuer. The Borrower shall be conclusively deemed to have waived any such claim against the L/C Issuer and its correspondents unless such notice is given as aforesaid.
Obligations Joint and Several Should more than one person or entity sign this Note as a Borrower, the obligations of each such Borrower shall be joint and several.
Continuing Agreement, Transfer of Secured Obligations This Agreement is a continuing agreement and shall (a) subject to Section 5.3, remain in full force and effect until the Discharge of ABL Obligations shall have occurred, (b) be binding upon the Parties and their successors and assigns, and (c) inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by the Parties and their respective successors, transferees and assigns. Nothing herein is intended, or shall be construed to give, any other Person any right, remedy or claim under, to or in respect of this Agreement or any Common Collateral. All references to any Grantor shall include any Grantor as debtor-in-possession and any receiver or trustee for such Grantor in any Insolvency Proceeding. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing clause (c), the ABL Collateral Agent, any ABL Secured Party, the New First Lien Collateral Agent and any New First Lien Secured Party may assign or otherwise transfer all or any portion of the ABL Obligations or the New First Lien Obligations, as applicable, to any other Person (other than the Company, any Grantor or any Affiliate of the Company or any Grantor and any Subsidiary of the Company or any Grantor), and such other Person shall thereupon become vested with all the rights and obligations in respect thereof granted to the ABL Collateral Agent, the New First Lien Collateral Agent, any ABL Secured Party or any New First Lien Secured Party, as the case may be, herein or otherwise. The ABL Secured Parties and the New First Lien Secured Parties may continue, at any time and without notice to the other parties hereto, to extend credit and other financial accommodations, lend monies and provide Indebtedness to, or for the benefit of, any Grantor on the faith hereof.
