Interim Conduct of Business (a) Except (i) as contemplated by this Agreement or (ii) as set forth in Section 6.1(a) of the Company Disclosure Letter, at all times during the period commencing with the execution and delivery of this Agreement and continuing until the earlier to occur of the termination of this Agreement pursuant to Article X and the Effective Time, unless Parent otherwise provides its prior written consent (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed), the Company shall and shall cause its Subsidiaries to (A) carry on its business and conduct its operations in the usual, regular and ordinary course in substantially the same manner as heretofore conducted, and (B) use its commercially reasonable efforts, consistent with past practices and policies, to (I) keep available the services of the current officers, key employees and consultants of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries, (II) preserve the current relationships of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries with customers, suppliers and other Persons whom the Company or any of its Subsidiaries has significant business relations, (III) maintain all of its material operating assets in their current condition (normal wear and tear excepted) and (IV) maintain and preserve its business organization and its material rights and franchises.
(b) Except (i) as contemplated or permitted by this Agreement or (ii) as set forth in Section 6.1(b) of the Company Disclosure Letter, at all times during the period commencing with the execution and delivery of this Agreement and continuing until the earlier to occur of the termination of this Agreement pursuant to Article X and the Effective Time, unless Parent otherwise provides its prior written consent (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed), the Company shall not do any of the following and shall not permit any of its Subsidiaries to do any of the following:
(i) amend its certificate of incorporation or bylaws or comparable organizational documents or create any new Subsidiaries;
(ii) issue, sell, deliver or agree or commit to issue, sell or deliver (whether through the issuance or granting of options, warrants, commitments, subscriptions, rights to purchase or otherwise) any Company Securities or any Subsidiary Securities, except for (A) the issuance, delivery and sale of shares of Company Common Stock pursuant to Company Options, Company RSUs or Company Restricted Stock Awards which are outstanding as of the date hereof upon the exercise or vesting thereof, as applicable, or pursuant to the Company ESPP in compliance with this Agreement or (B) grants to newly hired employees or directors of (x) Company RSUs and (y) Company Options, in each case, issued in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, in accordance with the limitations specified on Section 6.1(b) of the Company Disclosure Letter and with respect to Company Options, with a per share exercise price that is no less than the then-current market price of a share of Company Common Stock;
(iii) directly or indirectly acquire, repurchase or redeem any Company Securities or Subsidiary Securities, except in connection with (A) Company RSUs in the ordinary course of business, (B) dissolution or reorganization of a wholly owned Subsidiary of the Company in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, (C) Tax withholdings and exercise price settlements upon the exercise of Company Options or vesting of Company RSUs or Company Restricted Stock Awards or (D) the forfeiture to or repurchase by the Company of Company Common Stock in connection with the termination of service of a holder of a Company Restricted Stock Award;
(iv) (A) split, combine, subdivide or reclassify any shares of capital stock, or (B) declare, set aside or pay any dividend or other distribution (whether in cash, shares or property or any combination thereof) in respect of any shares of capital stock, or make any other actual, constructive or deemed distribution in respect of the shares of capital stock, except for cash dividends made by any direct or indirect wholly-owned Subsidiary of the Company to the Company or one of its wholly-owned Subsidiaries;
(v) propose or adopt a plan of complete or partial liquidation, dissolution, merger, consolidation, restructuring, recapitalization or other reorganization of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, except for the transactions contemplated by this Agreement;
(vi) (A) redeem, repurchase, prepay, defease, cancel, incur, create, assume or otherwise acquire or modify in any material respect any long-term or short-term debt for borrowed monies or issue or sell any debt securities or calls, options, warrants or other rights to acquire any debt securities of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or enter into any agreement having the economic effect of any of the foregoing, except for (1) debt incurred in the ordinary course of business under letters of credit, lines of credit or other credit facilities or arrangements in effect on the date hereof, and (2) loans or advances between the Company and any direct or indirect Subsidiaries, or between any direct or indirect Subsidiaries of the Company, (B) assume, guarantee, endorse or otherwise become liable or responsible (whether directly, contingently or otherwise) for the obligations of any other Person, except with respect to obligations of direct or indirect wholly-owned Subsidiaries of the Company, (C) make any loans, advances or capital contributions to or investments in any other Person (other than the Company or any direct or indirect wholly-owned Subsidiaries), except for travel advances and business expenses in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice to employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or (D) mortgage or pledge any of the Assets, or create or suffer to exist any Lien thereupon (other than Permitted Liens), except pursuant to the terms of any letters of credit, lines of credit or other credit facilities or arrangements in effect on the date hereof;
(vii) except as may be required by applicable Law or the terms of any Employee Plan as in effect on the date hereof or as contemplated by this Agreement, (A) enter into, adopt, amend (including acceleration of vesting), modify or terminate any bonus, profit sharing, incentive, compensation, severance, retention, termination, option, appreciation right, performance unit, stock equivalent, share purchase agreement, pension, retirement, deferred compensation, employment, severance, change in control, pension, retirement, collective bargaining or other employee benefit agreement, trust, plan, fund or other arrangement for the compensation, benefit or welfare of any director, officer or employee in any manner, (B) increase the compensation payable or to become payable of any director, officer or employee, pay or agree to pay any special bonus or special remuneration to any director, officer or employee, or pay or agree to pay any benefit not required by any plan or arrangement as in effect as of the date hereof, except in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice with respect to any employee who is not a director or executive officer, except in any such case (1) in connection with the hiring of new employees who are not directors or executive officers in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, and (2) in connection with the promotion of employees who are not directors or executive officers (and who will not be directors or executive officers after such promotion) in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, (C) grant or pay any severance or termination pay to (or amend any such existing arrangement with) any current or former director, officer, employee or independent contractor of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, except in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice with respect to any independent contractor or employee who is not a director or executive officer or (D) increase benefits payable under any existing severance or termination pay policies or employment agreements.
(viii) settle any pending or threatened Legal Proceeding, except for the settlement of any Legal Proceeding (A) for solely money damages not in excess of $250,000.00 individually or $500,000.00 in the aggregate and (B) as would not be reasonably likely to have any adverse impact on any other Legal Proceedings;
(ix) except as may be required as a result of a change in applicable Law or in GAAP, make any material change in any of the accounting methods, principles or practices used by it or change an annual accounting period;
(x) (A) make or change any material Tax election, (B) settle or compromise any material federal, state, local or foreign income Tax liability, (C) consent to any extension or waiver of any limitation period with respect to any claim or assessment for material Taxes, (D) change any annual Tax accounting period or method of Tax accounting, (E) file any materially amended Tax Return, (F) enter into any closing agreement with respect to any Tax or (G) surrender any right to claim a material Tax refund;
(xi) other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, (A) acquire (by merger, consolidation or acquisition of stock or assets) any other Person or any material equity interest therein or (B) dispose of any properties or assets of the Company or its Subsidiaries, which are material to the Company and its Subsidiaries, taken as a whole; or
(xii) make any capital expenditures other than capital expenditures provided for in the capital budget provided to Parent prior to the date of this Agreement and set forth on Section 6.1(b)(xii) of the Company Disclosure Letter;
(xiii) make any changes or modifications to any investment or risk management policy or other similar policies (including with respect to hedging) or any cash management policy;
(xiv) permit any insurance policy naming the Company or any of its Subsidiaries as a beneficiary or a loss payable payee to lapse, be canceled or expire unless a new policy with substantially identical coverage is in effect as of the date of lapse, cancellation or expiration;
(xv) other than in the ordinary course of business, enter into, amend in any material respect, terminate or fail to renew any Material Contract, or any other Contract that would have been a Material Contract had it not been amended, terminated or non-renewed prior to the date of this Agreement; or
(xvi) enter into a Contract to or otherwise authorize, commit, resolve, propose or agree to take any of the actions prohibited by this Section 6.1(b). Notwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this Agreement is intended to give Parent, directly or indirectly, the right to control or direct the business or operations of the Company or its Subsidiaries at any time prior to the Appointment Time.
Conduct of Claims In the event of any claims, statutory fees, costs, charges, penalties (including without limitation any legal costs), contributions, compensations, cost recoveries, expenses or fines being levied or claimed from a person in respect of which an indemnity is provided by the Supplier pursuant to ARTICLE 11, the following provisions shall apply:
(a) subject to Sections 11.3(b), 11.3(c) and 11.3(d), where it appears that a person is or may be entitled to indemnification from the Supplier in respect of all (but not part only) of the liability arising out of a claim, such person entitled to indemnification may at its sole election and subject to:
(i) approval by any relevant insurers (without prejudice to Section 11.3(f); and
(ii) the Supplier providing the party entitled to indemnification with a secured indemnity to its reasonable satisfaction against all costs and expenses (including legal expenses) that it may incur by reason of such action, permit or require the Supplier to dispute the claim on behalf of the person entitled to indemnification at the Supplier’s own expense and take conduct of any defence, dispute, compromise, or appeal of the claim and of any incidental negotiations; provided that the person entitled to indemnification shall give the Supplier (provided at the Supplier’s cost) all reasonable cooperation, access and assistance for the purposes of considering and resisting such claim;
(b) with respect to any claim conducted by the Supplier pursuant to Section 11.3(a):
(i) the Supplier shall keep the person entitled to indemnification fully informed and consult with it about material elements of the conduct of the claim;
(ii) the Supplier shall not bring the name of the person entitled to indemnification (or any Group Member thereof) into disrepute; and
(iii) the Supplier shall not pay or settle such claims without the prior consent of the person entitled to indemnification, such consent not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed;
(c) a person entitled to indemnification shall be free to pay or settle any claim on such terms as it thinks fit (and without prejudice to its rights and remedies under this Agreement) if:
(i) the Supplier is not entitled to, or is not permitted or instructed, take conduct of the claim in accordance with Section 11.3(a); or
(ii) the Supplier fails to comply in any material respect with the provisions of Sections 11.3(a) or 11.3(b);
(d) the person entitled to indemnification pursuant to ARTICLE 11 shall be free at any time to give notice to the Supplier that it is retaining or taking over (as the case may be) the conduct of any defence, dispute, compromise or appeal of any claim (or of any incidental negotiations) to which Section 11.3(a) applies. On receipt of such notice the Supplier shall promptly take all steps necessary to transfer the conduct of such claim to the person entitled to indemnification, and shall provide to the person entitled to indemnification all reasonable co- operation, access and assistance for the purposes of considering and resisting such claim;
(e) if the Supplier pays to the person entitled to indemnification an amount in respect of an indemnity and the person entitled to indemnification subsequently recovers (whether by payment, discount, credit, saving, relief or other benefit or otherwise) a sum which is directly referable to the fact, matter, event or circumstances giving rise to the claim under the indemnity, the person entitled to indemnification shall forthwith repay to the Supplier whichever is the lesser of:
(i) an amount equal to the sum recovered (or the value of the saving or benefit obtained) less any out-of-pocket costs and expenses (including legal expenses) properly incurred by the person entitled to indemnification in recovering the same; and
(ii) the amount paid to the person entitled to indemnification by the Supplier in respect of the claim under the relevant indemnity, provided that there shall be no obligation on the part of the person entitled to indemnification to pursue such recovery and that the Supplier is repaid only to the extent that the amount of such recovery aggregated with any sum recovered from the Supplier exceeds any loss sustained by the person entitled to indemnification;
(f) the Supplier shall inform the person entitled to indemnification of the requirements of any insurer who may have an obligation to provide an indemnity in respect of any liability arising under this Agreement and in relation to such the person entitled to indemnification shall issue instructions accordingly; and
(g) any person entitled to an indemnity from the Supplier must take all reasonable measures to mitigate any loss, damage or liability that it may suffer in respect of any such matter.
