Conduct of the Business (a) From the date hereof until the Closing Date, or the earlier termination of this Agreement pursuant to Article IX, except to the extent described in Schedule 5.01 or otherwise required or specifically permitted by this Agreement, the Company shall: (i) conduct the Business in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice in all material respects (including with respect to capital expenditures, the timely making of any budgeted or emergency capital expenditures or capital expenditures that are required to maintain the Business in compliance with any applicable Laws), unless the Parent shall have otherwise consented in writing (which consent will not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed); (ii) maintain in effect the insurance coverage described on Schedule 7.16 (or reasonably equivalent replacement coverage); (iii) use its commercially reasonable efforts to preserve the present relationships of the Business with suppliers, vendors, licensees and other Persons with which the Business has business relations; (iv) maintain in effect the Business Licenses (if any) in accordance with the terms thereof and renew any Business License that would otherwise expire pursuant to the terms thereof between the date of this Agreement and the Closing; (v) use its commercially reasonable efforts to keep, or to cause Spoonful to keep, available the services of the Business Employees subject to the normal hiring and firing of Business Employees in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and (vi) use commercially reasonable efforts to preserve intact its business organization, value as a going concern and relationships with third parties (including lessors, licensors, suppliers, distributors and customers) and employees.
(b) From the date hereof until the Closing Date, or the earlier termination of this Agreement pursuant to Article IX, except to the extent described in Schedule 5.01 or otherwise required or specifically permitted by this Agreement or consented to in writing by the Parent (which consent will not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed), the Company shall refrain from: (i) issuing, selling or delivering any of its Company LLC Interests or other Equity Interests or issuing or selling any securities convertible into, or options with respect to, or warrants to purchase or rights to subscribe for, any of its Company LLC Interests or other Equity Interests (or amending any term of any of the foregoing); (ii) effecting any recapitalization, reclassification, dividend, split or like change in its capitalization other than dividends in the in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and the terms and conditions of the Company’s Organizational Documents; (iii) amending its Organizational Documents; (iv) making any redemption or purchase of any of its of its Company LLC Interests or other Equity Interests; (v) (A) merging, consolidating or combining with any Person or (B) acquiring any material assets, except for acquisitions of inventory, equipment and supplies in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice; (vi) permitting any of the assets of the Company to become subject to a Lien (other than a Permitted Lien) or selling, leasing, licensing or otherwise disposing of any assets or securities, including by merger, consolidation, asset sale or other business combination, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice; (vii) making any loans or advances to, or any investments in, any other Person (in the case of loans or advances to employees, in excess of $100,000 in the aggregate for all such loans and advances); (viii) pledging or otherwise encumbering of its Company LLC Interests or other Equity Interests; (ix) excepting as required or specifically permitted by this Agreement, entering into or amending any Contract with the Manager or any officer of the Company; (x) increasing any benefits under any Employee Benefit Plan or increasing the compensation payable or paid, whether conditionally or otherwise, to any employee, officer, manager or consultant of Company (other than (A) any increase adopted in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice in respect of the compensation of any employee whose annual base compensation does not exceed $125,000 after giving effect to such increase or (B) any increase in benefits or compensation required by Law or required pursuant to the terms of an existing Employee Benefit Plan); (xi) becoming liable in respect of any guarantee (other than a guarantee by the Company of a Liability of the Company that is made in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice) or incur, assume or otherwise become liable in respect of any Indebtedness; (xii) repaying, prepaying or otherwise discharging or satisfying any Indebtedness or other material Liabilities, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, or waiving, cancelling or assigning any claims or rights of substantial value other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice; (xiii) making any capital expenditures that are in the aggregate in excess of $100,000 (other than capital expenditures contemplated by the capital expenditure budget attached to Schedule 5.01, emergency capital expenditures or capital expenditures that are required to maintain the Business in compliance with any applicable Laws); (xiv) making any change in its methods of accounting or accounting practices (including with respect to reserves) or any Tax election; filing any amended Tax Return; electing or changing any method of accounting for Tax purposes; settling any Action or claim in respect of Taxes; or consenting to any extension or waiver of the limitations period for the assessment of any Tax; (xv) settling, agreeing to settle, waiving or otherwise compromising any pending or threatened Actions or claims (A) involving potential payments by or to the Company of more than $100,000 in aggregate, (B) that admit Liability or consent to non-monetary relief, or (C) that otherwise are or would reasonably be expected to be material to the Company or the Business; (xvi) entering into, adopt, terminate, modify, renew or amend in any material respect (including by accelerating material rights or benefits under) any Contract unless such Contract requires payments by the Company of less than $10,000 per month and that can be terminated by the Company upon 60 days’ or less notice without penalty; (xvii) writing up or writing down any of its material assets of the Company or revalue its inventory or reserves in respect of its accounts receivable; (xviii) taking any action or failing to take any action that would result in any of the representations and warranties set forth in this Agreement becoming false or inaccurate in any material respect; or (xix) authorizing, agreeing or committing or entering into a Contract to do any of the foregoing.
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 the Company’s Business During the period from the date of this Agreement and continuing until the earlier of the Effective Time and the date nominees of Parent or Subsidiary constitute a majority of the members of the board of trustees of the Company (such earlier time, the “Control Time”), except either as consented to in writing (including by email or other electronic transmission) by Parent in response to a written or oral request therefore from the Company (which response shall not be unreasonably delayed), the Company shall, and shall cause its subsidiaries to, conduct its and their business in the ordinary course and use commercially reasonable efforts to conduct its and their business relationships with third parties and to keep available the services of their present officers and employees, provided that it does not require additional compensation, and preserve its and their relationships with customers, suppliers and others having business dealings with the Company and its subsidiaries, and to maintain the Company’s qualification as a REIT, in each case subject to the terms of or contemplated by this Agreement. In addition, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, except as expressly permitted in this Agreement, from the date hereof until the Control Time, the Company shall not, and shall cause its subsidiaries not to:
(a) (i) authorize, declare or pay any dividends on or make other distributions in respect of any of its stock (except for dividends by a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company to its parent and except for distributions necessary for the Company to maintain its REIT qualification, avoid the incurrence of any taxes under Section 857 of the Code, avoid the imposition of any excise taxes under Section 4981 of the Code, or avoid the need to make one or more extraordinary or disproportionately larger distributions to meet any of the three preceding objectives), (ii) split, combine or reclassify any of its stock or issue or authorize or propose the issuance of any other securities or (iii) repurchase, redeem or otherwise acquire any shares of stock of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or any other securities thereof or any rights, warrants or options to acquire any such shares or other securities;
(b) except in accordance with the Share Option Agreement, issue, deliver, sell, pledge or encumber, or authorize or propose the issuance, delivery, sale, pledge or encumbrance of, any shares of its beneficial interests, stock or any other security;
(c) amend or propose to amend its declaration of trust, certificate of incorporation or bylaws (or similar organizational documents);
(d) (i) acquire or agree to acquire any material assets (including securities) outside the ordinary course or merge or consolidate with any person or engage in any similar transaction or (ii) make any loans, advances or capital contributions to, or investments in, any other person, other than to the Company or any wholly owned subsidiary of the Company and other than loans to auto dealers in the ordinary course of business which would, when originated, qualify as Eligible Receivables under the Warehouse Line;
(e) sell, lease, license, encumber or otherwise dispose of any of its assets or any interest therein, other than in the ordinary course (including the disposition of any assets acquired as a result of a foreclosure), or adopt a plan of complete or partial liquidation, dissolution, merger, consolidation, restructuring or other reorganization;
(f) incur or suffer to exist any indebtedness for borrowed money or guarantee any such indebtedness, guarantee any debt of others, enter into any “keep-well” or other agreement to maintain any financial statement condition of another person or enter into any arrangement having the economic effect of any of the foregoing, except for borrowings under the Warehouse Line;
(g) make or rescind any Tax election or settle or compromise any Tax liability of the Company or any of its subsidiaries;
(h) make or agree to make any capital expenditures other than in amounts of less than $75,000 in the aggregate;
(i) pay, discharge, settle or satisfy any Claim (whether absolute, accrued, asserted or unasserted, contingent or otherwise), other than the payment, discharge, settlement or satisfaction, in the ordinary course of business or in accordance with their terms, of Claims whether recognized or disclosed in the most recent financial statements (or the notes thereto) of the Company included in the Company Filed SEC Documents or incurred since the date of such financial statements in the ordinary course of business except for cash payments (x) paid by any insurer or person other than the Company and any subsidiary of the Company, plus (y) an amount paid by the Company or any subsidiary of the Company not exceeding $100,000 per Claim, liability or obligation or $500,000 for all Claims in the aggregate.
(j) (i) modify, amend or terminate any material contract, (ii) waive, release or assign any material rights or claims, (iii) waive the benefits of, or agree to modify in any manner, any confidentiality, standstill or similar agreement, or fail to enforce any such agreement to the fullest extent practicable, including by seeking injunctive relief and specific performance or (iv) except, with respect to this clause (iv), in the ordinary course of business, enter into any material contracts or transactions;
(i) increase the compensation or benefits of any director, trustee, officer or employee, except for, in the cases of non-officer employees, increases in the ordinary course that are consistent with past practice, (ii) adopt any material amendment to a Benefit Plan, (iii) enter into, amend or modify any employment, consulting, severance, termination or similar agreement with any director, trustee, officer or employee, (iv) accelerate the payment of compensation or benefits to any director, officer or employee, (v) take any action to fund or in any other way secure the payment of compensation or benefits under any Benefit Plan or compensation agreement or arrangement; or change any actuarial or other assumption used to calculate funding obligations with respect to any pension plan or change the timing or manner in which contributions to any pension plan are made or the basis on which such contributions are determined or (vi) take any action that could give rise to severance benefits payable to any officer, trustee, director, or employee of the Company or any subsidiary as a result of consummation of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement; provided that nothing in this paragraph (k) shall preclude the payment by the Company of accrued, but unpaid bonuses to employees for 2004 and retroactive salary adjustments in each case as set forth in Section 6.1(k) of the Company Disclosure Schedule;
(l) take any action to exempt or make not subject to or to otherwise waive or cause to be inapplicable (x) the provisions of any Takeover Statute or (y) Section 7.2 of the Declaration of Trust, in each case to any individual or entity (other than Parent or its subsidiaries), or any action taken thereby, which individual, entity or action would have otherwise been subject to the restrictive provisions thereof and not exempt therefrom;
(m) take any action to delist the Shares from Nasdaq;
(n) make any material change to its methods of accounting in effect on the date hereof, except as required by changes in GAAP as concurred with by the Company’s independent auditors, or change its fiscal year;
(o) enter into any transaction with any of its affiliates other than pursuant to arrangements in effect on the date hereof which have been disclosed to Parent;
(p) accelerate the collection of receivables or defer the payment of payables, or modify the payment terms of any receivables or payables, in each case, other than in the ordinary course of business;
(q) securitize, or create any financing arrangements in the nature of a collateralized debt obligation with respect to, any accounts receivable, loans or other assets;
(r) amend or modify the existing agreement between Company and Company Financial Advisor; or
(s) authorize any of, or commit or agree to take any of, the foregoing actions or any action that would result in a breach of any representation, warranty or agreement of the Company contained in this Agreement as of the date when made or as of any future date or would result in any of the conditions to the Merger not being satisfied or in a material delay in the satisfaction of such conditions.
Conduct of Business in Ordinary Course INT'X.xxx will carry on its business in the ordinary course in substantially the same manner as heretofore conducted and, to the extent consistent with such business, use all reasonable best efforts consistent with past practice and policies to preserve intact its present business organization, keep available the services of its present officers, consultants and employees and preserve its relationships with customers, suppliers and distributors and others having business dealings with it. INT'X.xxx will confer on a regular and frequent basis with representatives of Parent to report operational matters of a material nature and to report the general status of the ongoing operations of the business of INT'X.xxx. The foregoing notwithstanding, INT'X.xxx will not:
(a) other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with prior practice, enter into any material commitment or transaction, including but not limited to any purchase of assets (other than raw materials, supplies or cash equivalents) for a purchase price in excess of $50,000;
(b) grant any bonus, severance or termination pay to any officer, director, independent contractor or employee of INT'X.xxx;
(c) enter into or amend any agreements pursuant to which any other party is granted support, service, marketing or publishing rights, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with prior practice, or is granted distribution rights of any type or scope with respect to any products of INT'X.xxx;
(d) other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with prior practice, enter into or terminate any contracts, arrangements, plans, agreements, leases, licenses, franchises, permits, indentures, authorizations, instruments, or commitments, or amend or otherwise change in any material respect the terms thereof in a manner adverse to INT'X.xxx;
(e) commence a lawsuit other than: (i) for the routine collection of bills, (ii) in such cases where INT'X.xxx in good faith determines that failure to commence suit would result in a material impairment of a valuable aspect of INT'X.xxx's business PROVIDED THAT INT'X.xxx consults with Parent prior to filing such suit, or (iii) for a breach of this Agreement or any agreement related hereto;
(f) modify in any material respect existing discounts or other terms and conditions with dealers, distributors and other resellers of INT'X.xxx's products or services in a manner adverse to INT'X.xxx;
(g) accelerate the vesting or otherwise modify any INT'X.xxx Option, restricted stock or other outstanding rights or other securities other than any acceleration or modification that results from the execution and performance of this Agreement or any of the transactions contemplated hereby;
(h) take any action which would make any representation or warranty in this Agreement untrue or incorrect, as if made as of such time; or
(i) agree in writing or otherwise to take any of the foregoing actions.
Existence; Conduct of Business The Borrower will, and will cause each of its Subsidiaries to, do or cause to be done all things necessary to preserve, renew and keep in full force and effect its legal existence and the rights, licenses, permits, privileges and franchises material to the conduct of its business; provided that the foregoing shall not prohibit any merger, consolidation, liquidation or dissolution permitted under Section 6.03.
Conduct of Business of the Company Except as expressly ---------------------------------- contemplated by this Agreement or as set forth on Schedule 6.01 hereto, during the period from the date hereof to the Effective Time, the Company and its subsidiaries will each conduct its operations according to its ordinary course of business consistent with past practice, and the Company and its subsidiaries will each use its reasonable best efforts to (i) preserve intact its business organization, (ii) keep available the services of its officers and employees, other than those officers and employees identified on Schedule 6.01 hereto, and (iii) maintain existing relationships with its lenders, suppliers and others having business relationships with it. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, and except as otherwise contemplated by this Agreement or as set forth on Schedule 6.01 hereto, prior to the Effective Time, neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries will, without the prior written consent of Acquisition:
(a) amend or propose to amend any of their respective certificates or articles of incorporation or by-laws;
(b) authorize for issuance, issue, sell, deliver or agree or commit to issue, sell, pledge, encumber, deliver or otherwise dispose of (whether through the issuance or granting of options, warrants, commitments, subscriptions, rights to purchase or otherwise) any stock of any class or any other equity securities or equity equivalents of the Company or any of its subsidiaries or amend in any material respect any of the terms of any such securities outstanding as of the date hereof;
(c) split, combine or reclassify any shares of its capital stock or the capital stock of any of its subsidiaries, declare, set aside or pay any dividend (other than dividends (whether in cash, stock, or property or any combination thereof), if any, paid by wholly-owned subsidiaries to the Company or another wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company) or other distribution in respect of its capital stock or redeem, repurchase or otherwise acquire any of its securities or any securities of its subsidiaries or any options, warrants or other rights to acquire any shares of its capital stock or adopt a plan of complete or partial liquidation or resolutions providing for or authorizing such liquidation or a dissolution, merger, consolidation, restructuring, recapitalization or other reorganization of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, other than the redemption, repurchase or other acquisition of the equity securities of any subsidiary of the Company which is not wholly-owned by the Company for aggregate consideration not in excess of the book value of such securities;
(i) except as set forth in clause (e), incur any additional indebtedness for borrowed money or issue any debt securities or assume, guarantee or endorse the obligations of any other person except for the obligations of wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Company in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice; (ii) make any loans, advances or capital contributions to, or investments in, any other person (other than to wholly- owned subsidiaries of the Company and advances to employees for travel or other business related expenses in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practices); (iii) pledge or otherwise encumber shares of capital stock of the Company or any of its subsidiaries; (iv) mortgage or pledge any of its material assets, tangible or intangible, or create or suffer to exist any material Lien thereupon; or (v) enter into any contract, agreement, commitment or arrangement to do any of the foregoing;
(e) incur any advances pursuant to that certain Revolving Credit Agreement, dated as of June 18, 1991, among the Company, various subsidiaries of the Company and Xxxxxx (as successor in interest to HCR Partners), as amended (the "Credit Agreement"), other than advances which at any time outstanding do not exceed $3,000,000.
(f) enter into, adopt or (except as may be required by law) amend or terminate any bonus, profit sharing, compensation, severance, termination, stock option, stock appreciation right, restricted stock, performance unit, stock equivalent, stock purchase, pension, retirement, deferred compensation, employment, severance or other employee benefit agreement, trust, plan, fund or other arrangement for the benefit or welfare of any director, officer or employee, or (except for normal increases in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice that, in the aggregate, do not result in a material increase in benefits or compensation expense to the Company or an increase in excess of 5% in the case of any individual (other than compensation based upon the payment of commissions pursuant to commission schedules previously made available to Parent or Acquisition by the Company)) increase in any manner the compensation or fringe benefits of any director, officer or employee or pay any benefit not required by any plan or arrangement in effect as of the date hereof (including, without limitation, the granting of stock appreciation rights or performance units) or enter into any contract, agreement, commitment or arrangement to do any of the foregoing;
(g) acquire, sell, lease or dispose of any assets outside the ordinary course of business or any assets which in the aggregate are material to the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, or commit or agree to do any of the above;
(h) except as required by GAAP, change any of the accounting principles or practices used by it;
(i) make any tax election or settle or compromise any income tax liability material to the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole;
(j) pay, discharge or satisfy any claims, liabilities or obligations (absolute, accrued, asserted or unasserted, contingent or otherwise), other than the payment, discharge or satisfaction in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice or in accordance with their terms, of liabilities reflected or reserved against in, or contemplated by, the consolidated financial statements (or the notes thereto) of the Company and its subsidiaries or incurred in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice; provided that, in no event shall the Company and its subsidiaries repay any long-term indebtedness except to the extent required by the terms thereof;
(i) acquire (by merger, consolidation, or acquisition of stock or assets) any corporation, partnership or other business organization or division thereof; (ii) enter into or commit to enter into any contract or agreement other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice or which requires the payment of amounts in excess of $100,000 or which gives rise to obligations which extend beyond ninety (90) days from the date hereof other than agreements to provide services to customers of the Company or any of its subsidiaries; (iii) authorize any capital expenditures, other than those as to which the Company or its subsidiaries have committed as set forth on Schedule 6.01 hereto, individually in excess of $100,000, or in the aggregate in excess of $1,000,000, except with the consent of Parent (which shall not be unreasonably withheld); or (iv) enter into or amend any contract, agreement, commitment or arrangement with respect to any of the foregoing;
(i) make or enter into any new lease of real property other than any new lease of real property which will replace an existing lease or (ii) extend or amend any existing lease of real property other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice or on terms and conditions no less favorable to the Company or the subsidiary than the existing lease;
(m) enter into or commit to enter into any amendment or modification to any contract, agreement or arrangement with any vendor or supplier identified on Schedule 6.01(m) hereto which individually or in the aggregate with all other such amendments and modifications is or could reasonably be expected to be material to such contract, agreement or arrangement;
(n) intentionally take or omit to take, or enter into an agreement to take or agree to omit to take, any action that would result in any of the conditions to the Offer set forth in Annex A attached hereto or the conditions to the Merger set forth in Article VII hereof not being timely satisfied;
(o) release or relinquish any material contractual rights, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice;
(p) settle any pending or threatened material action, suit, claim or proceeding involving the Company or any subsidiary, other than in the ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and other than any settlements which require only the payment of money not in excess of $50,000 individually or $250,000 in the aggregate;
(q) enter into or commit to enter into any contract, agreement or arrangement or any amendment or modification to any existing contract, agreement or arrangement with Xxxxxx Holdings, Inc. or any affiliate thereof; or
(r) commit or agree in writing or otherwise to take any of the actions described in Sections 6.01(a) through 6.01(q) hereof or any action which would make any of the representations or warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement untrue or incorrect in any material respect as of the date when made or as of the Effective Time, or omit to take or commit or agree to omit to take any action necessary to prevent any such representation or warranty from being untrue or incorrect in any material respect in any respect at any time which would result in any of the conditions set forth in this Agreement not being satisfied.
Insurance Business All insurance policies issued by any Regulated Insurance Company are, to the extent required under applicable law, on forms approved by the insurance regulatory authorities of the jurisdictions where issued or have been filed with and not objected to by such authorities within the period for objection, except for those forms with respect to which a failure to obtain such approval or make such a filing without it being objected to, either individually or in the aggregate, has not had, and could not reasonably be expected to have, a Material Adverse Effect.
Business Landlord acknowledges that it is not the intent of this Section 30 to prohibit Tenant from using the Premises for the Permitted Use. Tenant may operate its business according to prudent industry practices so long as the use or presence of Hazardous Materials is strictly and properly monitored according to all then applicable Environmental Requirements. As a material inducement to Landlord to allow Tenant to use Hazardous Materials in connection with its business, Tenant agrees to deliver to Landlord prior to the Commencement Date a list identifying each type of Hazardous Materials to be brought upon, kept, used, stored, handled, treated, generated on, or released or disposed of from, the Premises and setting forth any and all governmental approvals or permits required in connection with the presence, use, storage, handling, treatment, generation, release or disposal of such Hazardous Materials on or from the Premises (“Hazardous Materials List”). Tenant shall deliver to Landlord an updated Hazardous Materials List at least once a year and shall also deliver an updated list before any new Hazardous Material is brought onto, kept, used, stored, handled, treated, generated on, or released or disposed of from, the Premises. Tenant shall deliver to Landlord true and correct copies of the following documents (the “Haz Mat Documents”) relating to the use, storage, handling, treatment, generation, release or disposal of Hazardous Materials prior to the Commencement Date, or if unavailable at that time, concurrent with the receipt from or submission to a Governmental Authority: permits; approvals; reports and correspondence; storage and management plans, notice of violations of any Legal Requirements; plans relating to the installation of any storage tanks to be installed in or under the Project (provided, said installation of tanks shall only be permitted after Landlord has given Tenant its written consent to do so, which consent may be withheld in Landlord’s sole and absolute discretion); all closure plans or any other documents required by any and all federal, state and local Governmental Authorities for any storage tanks installed in, on or under the Project for the closure of any such tanks; and a Surrender Plan (to the extent surrender in accordance with Section 28 cannot be accomplished in 3 months). Tenant is not required, however, to provide Landlord with any portion(s) of the Haz Mat Documents containing information of a proprietary nature which, in and of themselves, do not contain a reference to any Hazardous Materials or hazardous activities. It is not the intent of this Section to provide Landlord with information which could be detrimental to Tenant’s business should such information become possessed by Tenant’s competitors.
Conduct of the Business Pending the Closing (a) Except as otherwise expressly provided by this Agreement or with the prior written consent of Newco, between the date hereof and the Closing, the Company shall:
(i) conduct the Business only in the Ordinary Course of Business;
(ii) use its commercially reasonable efforts to (A) preserve the present business operations, organization (including officers and Employees) and goodwill of the Company and (B) preserve the present relationships with Persons having business dealings with the Company (including customers and suppliers);
(iii) maintain (A) all of the assets and properties of, or used by, the Company consistent with past practice, and (B) insurance upon all of the assets and properties of the Company in such amounts and of such kinds comparable to that in effect on the date of this Agreement;
(iv) (A) maintain the books, accounts and records of the Company in the Ordinary Course of Business, (B) continue to collect accounts receivable and pay accounts payable and other Liabilities set forth on the Balance Sheet in the Ordinary Course of Business utilizing normal procedures and without discounting or accelerating payment of such accounts or Liabilities utilizing all available cash and any available line of credit, and (C) comply with all contractual and other obligations of the Company;
(v) comply with the capital expenditure plan of the Company for 2009 set forth on Company Disclosure Schedule 6.2(a)(v), including making such capital expenditures in the amounts and at the times set forth in such plan;
(vi) comply in all material respects with all applicable Laws;
(vii) take steps to renew all Permits in a timely manner prior to their lapse; and
(viii) pay all maintenance and similar fees and take all other appropriate actions as necessary to prevent the abandonment, loss or impairment of all Intellectual Property of the Company.
(b) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, except as otherwise expressly provided by this Agreement or with the prior written consent of Newco, the Company shall not:
(i) (A) increase the salary or other compensation of any director or Employee of the Company except for normal year-end increases in the Ordinary Course of Business, (B) grant any bonus, benefit or other direct or indirect compensation to any Employee or director, (C) increase the coverage or benefits available under any (or create any new) severance pay, termination pay, vacation pay, company awards, salary continuation for disability, sick leave, deferred compensation, bonus or other incentive compensation, insurance, pension or other employee benefit plan or arrangement made to, for, or with any of the directors, officers, Employees, agents or representatives of the Company or otherwise modify or amend or terminate any such plan or arrangement (D) enter into any employment, deferred compensation, stay bonus, severance, special pay, consulting, non-competition or similar agreement or arrangement with any directors or officers of the Company (or amend any such agreement) to which the Company is a party; or (E) pay or make any dividend or distribution of cash or other property with respect to the units or other equity interests of the Company;
(ii) (A) create, incur, assume, guarantee, endorse or otherwise become liable or responsible with respect to (whether directly, contingently or otherwise) any Indebtedness except (u) the Indebtedness related to the Permitted Exceptions, (x) the Indebtedness reflected in the Balance Sheet, (y) the Indebtedness incurred in the Ordinary Course of Business since the Balance Sheet Date, or (z) the Indebtedness set forth on Company Disclosure Schedule 4.5; (B) except in the Ordinary Course of Business, pay, prepay, accelerate, discharge, purchase, repurchase or satisfy any Indebtedness issued or guaranteed by the Company; (C) materially modify the terms of any Indebtedness or other Liability; or (D) make any loans, advances of capital contributions to, or investments in, any other Person;
(iii) subject to any Lien or otherwise encumber or, except for Permitted Exceptions, permit, allow or suffer to be subjected to any Lien or otherwise encumbered, any of the Purchased Assets;
(iv) acquire any material properties or assets or sell, assign, license, transfer, convey, lease or otherwise dispose of any of the Purchased Assets (except for fair consideration in the Ordinary Course of Business) of the Company;
(v) except as provided in Section 6.6 hereof, enter into or agree to enter into any merger or consolidation with any Person, and not engage in any new business or invest in, make a loan, advance or capital contribution to, or otherwise acquire the securities of any Person;
(vi) cancel or compromise any debt or claim, or waive or release any material right of the Company except in the Ordinary Course of Business;
(vii) enter into, modify or terminate any labor or collective bargaining agreement or, through negotiation or otherwise, make any commitment or incur any Liability to any labor organization with respect to any Employee;
(viii) introduce any material change with respect to the operation of the Business, including any material change in the types, nature, composition or quality of products or services, or, other than in the Ordinary Course of Business, make any change in product specifications or prices or terms of distributions of such products;
(ix) enter into any transaction or enter into, modify or renew any Contract which by reason of its size or otherwise is not in the Ordinary Course of Business;
(x) enter into any Contract, understanding or commitment that restrains, restricts, limits or impedes the ability of the Business, or the ability of Newco or Purchaser, to compete with or conduct any business or line of business in any geographic area or solicit the employment of any persons;
(xi) terminate, amend, restate, supplement or waive any rights under any (A) Material Contract, Real Property Lease, Personal Property Lease or Intellectual Property License, other than in the Ordinary Course of Business or (B) Permit;
(xii) settle or compromise any pending or threatened Legal Proceeding or any claim or claims for, or that would result in a loss of revenue of, an amount that could, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to be greater than $50,000;
(xiii) change or modify its credit, collection or payment policies, procedures or practices, including acceleration of collections or receivables (whether or not past due) or fail to pay or delay payment of payables or other liabilities;
(xiv) take any action which would adversely affect the ability of the parties to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement;
(xv) amend the operating agreement of the Company;
(xvi) agree to materially increase Liabilities from the amounts set forth on the Balance Sheet except in the Ordinary Course of Business under loan or credit agreements or arrangements up to the maximum amounts and other terms as in effect on the date of this Agreement; or
(xvii) agree to do anything (A) prohibited by this Section 6.2, (B) that would make any of the representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement or any of the Company Documents untrue or incorrect in any material respect or could result in any of the conditions to the Closing not being satisfied or (C) that could be reasonably expected to have a Material Adverse Effect with respect to the Company.
Outside Businesses Subject to the provisions of Section 6.3, any Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee and the Property Trustee may engage in or possess an interest in other business ventures of any nature or description, independently or with others, similar or dissimilar to the activities of the Trust, and the Trust and the Holders of Securities shall have no rights by virtue of this Trust Agreement in and to such independent ventures or the income or profits derived therefrom, and the pursuit of any such venture, even if competitive with the activities of the Trust, shall not be deemed wrongful or improper. No Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee or the Property Trustee shall be obligated to present any particular investment or other opportunity to the Trust even if such opportunity is of a character that, if presented to the Trust, could be taken by the Trust, and any Covered Person, the Sponsor, the Delaware Trustee and the Property Trustee shall have the right to take for its own account (individually or as a partner or fiduciary) or to recommend to others any such particular investment or other opportunity. Any Covered Person, the Delaware Trustee and the Property Trustee may engage or be interested in any financial or other transaction with the Sponsor or any Affiliate of the Sponsor, or may act as depositary for, trustee or agent for, or act on any committee or body of holders of, securities or other obligations of the Sponsor or its Affiliates.
