Solutia Inc. $300,000,000 77/8% Senior Notes due 2020 UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
Exhibit 1.1
$300,000,000
77/8% Senior Notes due 2020
77/8% Senior Notes due 2020
March 2, 2010
Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc.
As Representative of the
Several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
c/x Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc.
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx, 00000
As Representative of the
Several Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto
c/x Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc.
000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx, 00000
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Solutia Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to
the several underwriters (the “Underwriters”) named in Schedule I hereto for whom you are
acting as representative (the “Representative”) $300,000,000 aggregate principal amount of
its 77/8% Senior Notes due 2020 (the “Notes”). The respective principal amounts of the Notes
to be so purchased by the several Underwriters are set forth opposite their names in Schedule I
hereto. The Notes are to be issued under a Base Indenture (the “Base Indenture”) dated as
of October 15, 2009, by and among the Company, the guarantors party thereto listed on Schedule II
hereto (the “Guarantors” and, together with the Company, the “Issuers”) and The
Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, as Trustee (the “Trustee”) as supplemented by a
Supplemental Indenture thereto, to be dated as of the Closing Date (as defined below) (the
“Supplemental Indenture” and, together with the Base Indenture, the “Indenture”).
The Company’s obligations under the Notes and the Indenture will be fully and unconditionally
guaranteed, jointly and severally (the “Guarantees”), by each of the Guarantors; any
reference herein to the Notes shall include a reference to the related Guarantees.
As the Representative, you have advised the Company (a) that you are authorized to enter into
this Agreement on behalf of the several Underwriters, and (b) that the several Underwriters are
willing, acting severally and not jointly, to purchase the principal amount of Notes set forth
opposite their respective names in Schedule I.
In consideration of the mutual agreements contained herein and of the interests of the parties
in the transactions contemplated hereby, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1. Representations and Warranties of the Company.
The Issuers, jointly and severally, represent and warrant to each of the Underwriters as
follows:
(a) An “automatic shelf registration statement” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities
Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), on Form S-3 (File No. 333-160834) in respect of the
Notes, including a form of prospectus (the “Base Prospectus”), has been prepared and filed
by the Company not earlier than three years prior to the date hereof, in conformity with the
requirements of the Act and the rules and regulations (the “Rules and Regulations”) of the
Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) thereunder. By a post-effective
amendment dated October 5, 2009, the Company has added the Guarantors as additional registrants
and guarantees of debt securities of the Company (including the Guarantees) as an additional class
of securities to the Registration Statement. The Issuers and the transactions contemplated by
this Agreement meet the requirements of, and comply with the conditions for the use of, Form S-3
under the Act. Such registration statement, which shall be deemed to include all information
omitted therefrom in reliance upon Rules 430A, 430B or 430C under the Act, is herein referred to
as the “Registration Statement.” The Registration Statement became effective upon filing
under Rule 462(e) under the Act on July 27, 2009. If the Issuers have filed a post-effective
amendment pursuant to Rules 413(b) and 462(e) under the Act, then any reference herein to the term
“Registration Statement” shall be deemed to include such post-effective amendment. As used
herein, the term “Prospectus” means the form of prospectus relating to the Notes first
filed with the Commission pursuant to and within the time limits described in Rule 424(b) under
the Act and in accordance with Section 4(a) hereof. The Base Prospectus, as supplemented by each
preliminary prospectus (including any preliminary prospectus supplement) relating to the Notes
filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Act, including the documents
incorporated by reference in the Base Prospectus is herein referred to as a “Preliminary
Prospectus.” Any reference herein to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus
or to the Prospectus or to any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing documents shall be
deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12
of Form S-3 under the Act, as of the effective date of the Registration Statement or the date of
such Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be, and any reference to “amend,”
“amendment” or supplement with respect to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus
or the Prospectus shall be deemed to include any documents incorporated by reference therein, and
any supplements or amendments thereto, filed with the Commission after the date of filing of the
Prospectus under Rule 424(b) under the Act, and prior to the termination of the offering of the
Notes by the Underwriters.
(b) As of the Applicable Time (as defined below) and as of the Closing Date, neither (i) the
General Use Free Writing Prospectus(es) (as defined below) and Preliminary Prospectus (as defined
below) (collectively, the “General Disclosure Package”) nor (ii) any individual Limited
Use Free Writing Prospectus (as defined below), when considered together with the Preliminary
Prospectus accompanying, or delivered prior to delivery of, such Limited Use Free Writing
Prospectus, included or will include any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or will
omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of
the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however,
that the Issuers make no representations or warranties as to information contained in or omitted
from any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written
information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the
Representative, specifically for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such
information is that described in Section 12. As used in this Agreement:
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“Applicable Time” means 4:00 pm (Eastern time) on the date of this Agreement.
“Issuer Free Writing Prospectus” means any “issuer free writing prospectus,” as
defined in Rule 433 under the Act, relating to the Notes in the form filed or required to be filed
with the Commission or, if not required to be filed, in the form retained in the Company’s records
pursuant to Rule 433(g) under the Act.
“General Use Free Writing Prospectus” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is
identified on Schedule III to this Agreement.
“Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus” means any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus that is
not a General Use Free Writing Prospectus.
(c) Each Issuer has been duly organized and is validly existing as a corporation in good
standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization, with corporate power and authority to
own or lease its properties and conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement,
the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The Company does not own or control, directly
or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed in
Exhibit 21 to the Registration Statement (the “Subsidiaries”). Each of the Subsidiaries
has been duly organized and is validly existing as an entity and in good standing under the laws
of the jurisdiction of its incorporation or organization, with all requisite power and authority
to own or lease its properties and conduct its business as described in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus except with respect to Subsidiaries
that are not Guarantors, to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing
would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect (as defined below).
The Company and each of the Subsidiaries are duly qualified to transact business in all
jurisdictions in which the conduct of their business requires such qualification, except with
respect to Subsidiaries that are not Guarantors, where the failure to be so qualified would not,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. The outstanding shares of
capital stock or ownership interests of each of the Subsidiaries have been duly authorized and
validly issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned by the Company or another
Subsidiary free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and equities and claims; and no options,
warrants or other rights to purchase, agreements or other obligations to issue or other rights to
convert any obligations into shares of capital stock or ownership interests in the Subsidiaries
are outstanding.
(d) The Company has an authorized capitalization set forth under the caption “Capitalization”
in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus (and any similar
section or information contained in the General Disclosure Package). The outstanding shares of
common stock of the Company have been duly authorized and validly issued and are fully paid and
non-assessable; and no preemptive rights of stockholders exist with respect to any of the Notes or
the issue and sale thereof.
(e) The Commission has not issued an order preventing or suspending the use of the
Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the
Prospectus relating to the proposed offering of the Notes, and no proceeding for that purpose or
pursuant to Section 8A of the Act has been instituted or, to the Company’s knowledge,
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threatened by the Commission. The Registration Statement contains, and the Prospectus
and any amendments or supplements thereto will contain, all statements which are required to be
stated therein by, and will conform to, the requirements of the Act, the Trust Indenture Act and
the Rules and Regulations. The documents incorporated, or to be incorporated, by reference in the
Prospectus, at the time filed with the Commission conformed or will conform to the requirements of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission
thereunder (collectively, the “Exchange Act”). The Registration Statement and any
amendment thereto do not contain, and will not contain, any untrue statement of a material fact
and do not omit, and will not omit, to state a material fact required to be stated therein or
necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading. The Prospectus and any
amendments and supplements thereto do not contain, and will not contain, any untrue statement of a
material fact, and do not omit, and will not omit, to state a material fact necessary in order to
make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not
misleading; provided, however, that the Issuers make no representations or warranties as to
information contained in or omitted from the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, or any such
amendment or supplement, in reliance upon, and in conformity with, written information furnished
to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through the Representative, specifically for use
therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information is that described in
Section 12.
(f) Each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as of its date and at all subsequent times through
the completion of the public offer and sale of the Notes or until any earlier date that the
Company notified or notifies the Representative as described in the next sentence, did not, does
not and will not include any information that conflicted, conflicts or will conflict with the
information contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus not superseded or
modified or the Prospectus, including any document incorporated by reference and any Prospectus
Supplement deemed to be a part thereof that has not been superseded or modified.
(g) The Issuers have not, directly or indirectly, distributed and will not distribute any
offering material in connection with the offering and sale of the Notes other than any Preliminary
Prospectus, the Prospectus, the General Use Free Writing Prospectus(es) and each Limited Use Free
Writing Prospectus approved in writing in advance by the Representative and other materials, if
any, permitted under the Act and consistent with Section 4(b) below. To the extent it is required
to do so, the Company will file with the Commission all Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses in the
time and manner required under Rules 163(b)(2) and 433(d) under the Act.
(h) (i) At the time of filing the Registration Statement, (ii) at the time of the most recent
amendment thereto for the purposes of complying with Section 10(a)(3) under the Act (whether such
amendment was by post-effective amendment, incorporated report filed pursuant to Section 13 or
15(d) of the Exchange Act or form of prospectus), and (iii) at the time the Issuers or any person
acting on their behalf (within the meaning, for this clause only, of Rule 163(c) under the Act)
made any offer relating to the Notes in reliance on the exemption of Rule 163 under the Act and
(iv) at the date hereof, the Company is a “well-known seasoned issuer” as defined in Rule 405
under the Act. The Company has not received from the Commission
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any notice pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Act objecting to the use of the automatic
shelf registration form.
(i) (i) At the earliest time after the filing the Registration Statement that the Issuers or
another offering participant made a bona fide offer (within the meaning of Rule 164(h)(2) under
the Act) of the Notes and (ii) as of the date hereof (with such date being used as the
determination date for purposes of this clause (ii)), none of the Issuers was or is an “ineligible
issuer” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Act, without taking into account any determination by
the Commission pursuant to Rule 405 under the Act that it is not necessary that any such Issuer be
considered an ineligible issuer), including, without limitation, for purposes of Rules 164 and 433
under the Act with respect to the offering of the Notes as contemplated by the Registration
Statement.
(j) The financial statements of the Company and its consolidated Subsidiaries, together with
related notes and schedules as set forth or incorporated by reference in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, present fairly the financial
position and the results of operations and cash flows of the Company and the consolidated
Subsidiaries, at the indicated dates and for the indicated periods. Such financial statements and
related schedules have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted principles of
accounting (“GAAP”), consistently applied throughout the periods involved, except as
disclosed therein, and all adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of results for such
periods have been made. The summary and selected consolidated financial and statistical data
included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure
Package and the Prospectus presents fairly in all material respects the information shown therein
and such data has been compiled on a basis consistent with the financial statements presented
therein and the books and records of the Company. All disclosures contained in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus regarding “non-GAAP financial
measures” (as such term is defined by the Rules and Regulations) comply with Regulation G of the
Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K under the Act, to the extent applicable. The Company
and the Subsidiaries do not have any material liabilities or obligations, direct or contingent
(including any off-balance sheet obligations or any “variable interest entities” within the
meaning of Financial Accounting Standards Board Interpretation No. 46), not disclosed in the
Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. There are no financial
statements (historical or pro forma) that are required to be included in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not included as required.
(k) Deloitte & Touche LLP, who have certified certain of the financial statements filed with
the Commission as part of, or incorporated by reference in, the Registration Statement, the
General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, is an independent registered public accounting firm
with respect to the Company and the Subsidiaries within the meaning of the Act and the applicable
Rules and Regulations and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (the
“PCAOB”).
(l) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the
Prospectus, neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is aware of (i) any material weakness
in its internal control over financial reporting or (ii) change in internal control
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over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to
materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.
(m) Solely to the extent that the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act of 2002, as amended, and the rules and
regulations promulgated by the Commission and the New York Stock Exchange thereunder (the
“Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act”) has been applicable to the Company, there is and has been no failure
on the part of the Company to comply in all material respects with any provision of the
Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act. The Company has taken all necessary actions to ensure that it is in
compliance with all provisions of the Xxxxxxxx-Xxxxx Act that are in effect and with which the
Company is required to comply.
(n) There is no action, suit, claim or proceeding pending or, to the knowledge of the
Company, threatened against the Company or any of the Subsidiaries before any court or
administrative agency or otherwise which if determined adversely to the Company or any of the
Subsidiaries would either (i) have, individually or in the aggregate, a material adverse effect on
the earnings, business, management, properties, assets, rights, operations, condition (financial
or otherwise) or prospects of the Company and of the Subsidiaries taken as a whole or (ii) prevent
the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby (the occurrence of any such effect or any
such prevention described in the foregoing clauses (i) and (ii) being referred to as a
“Material Adverse Effect”), except as set forth in the Registration Statement, the General
Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(o) The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable title to all of the properties
and assets reflected in the consolidated financial statements hereinabove described or described
in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, subject to no
lien, mortgage, pledge, charge or encumbrance of any kind except those reflected in such financial
statements or described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the
Prospectus or which would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect. The
Company and the Subsidiaries occupy their leased properties under valid and binding leases
conforming in all material respects to the description thereof set forth in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(p) The Company and the Subsidiaries have filed all Federal, State, local and foreign tax
returns which have been required to be filed and have paid all taxes indicated by such returns and
all assessments received by them or any of them to the extent that such taxes have become due and
are not being contested in good faith and for which an adequate reserve for accrual has been
established in accordance with GAAP, except as would not have a Material Adverse Effect. All
material tax liabilities have been adequately provided for in the financial statements of the
Company and its consolidated Subsidiaries, and the Company does not know of any actual or proposed
additional material tax assessments.
(q) Since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, as each may be amended or
supplemented, there has not been any Material Adverse Effect, whether or not occurring in the
ordinary course of business, and there has not been any material transaction entered into or any
material transaction that is probable of being entered into by the Company or the Subsidiaries,
other than transactions in the ordinary course of business and changes and transactions
6
described in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, as
each may be amended or supplemented. The Company and the Subsidiaries have no material contingent
obligations which are not disclosed in the financial statements of the Company and its
consolidated Subsidiaries which are included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure
Package and the Prospectus. Except as disclosed in the General Disclosure Package and the
Prospectus, there are no outstanding guarantees or other contingent obligations of the Company or
any Subsidiary that could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(r) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is or with the giving of notice or lapse
of time or both, will be, (i) in violation of its certificate or articles of incorporation,
by-laws, certificate of formation, limited liability agreement, partnership agreement or other
organizational documents or (ii) in violation of or in default under any agreement, lease,
contract, indenture or other instrument or obligation to which it is a party or by which it, or
any of its properties, is bound and, solely with respect to this clause (ii), which violation or
default would, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect. The execution
and delivery of this Agreement and the Indenture and the fulfillment of the terms hereof by the
Company and, to the Company’s knowledge, the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated
(including, without limitation, the issuance and sale of the Notes to the Underwriters) will not
conflict with or result in a breach of (i) any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a
default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust or other agreement or instrument to which
the Company or any Subsidiary is a party or by which the Company or any Subsidiary or any of their
respective properties is bound, (ii) the certificate or articles of incorporation or by-laws of
the Company or (iii) any law, order, rule or regulation judgment, order, writ or decree applicable
to the Company or any Subsidiary of any court or of any government, regulatory body or
administrative agency or other governmental body having jurisdiction, except with respect to
clauses (i) and (iii) to the extent that such conflict, breach or default would not, individually
or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.
(s) The execution and delivery of, and the performance by the Company and each Guarantor of
its obligations under, this Agreement has been duly and validly authorized by all necessary
corporate action on the part of the Company and each Guarantor, and this Agreement has been duly
executed and delivered by the Company and each Guarantor.
(t) The Company has all requisite corporate power and authority to execute, deliver and
perform each of its obligations under the Notes. The Notes, when issued, will be in the form
contemplated by the Indenture. The Notes have been duly and validly authorized by the Company
and, when executed by the Company and authenticated by the Trustee in accordance with the
provisions of the Indenture and when delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters in accordance
with the terms of this Agreement, will constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the
Company, entitled to the benefits of the Indenture, and enforceable against the Company in
accordance with their terms, except that the enforcement thereof may be subject to (i) bankruptcy,
insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or hereafter in effect relating
to creditors’ rights generally, and (ii) general principles of equity and the discretion of the
court before which any proceeding therefor may be brought (collectively, the “Enforceability
Exceptions”).
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(u) Each Guarantor has all requisite corporate power and authority to execute, deliver and
perform each of their obligations under the Guarantees. The Guarantees, when issued, will be in
the form contemplated by the Indenture. The Guarantees have been duly and validly authorized by
each Guarantor and, when executed by each Guarantor and when the Notes are authenticated by the
Trustee in accordance with the provisions of the Indenture and delivered to and paid for by the
Underwriters in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, the Guarantees will constitute valid
and legally binding obligations of each Guarantor, entitled to the benefits of the Indenture, and
enforceable against each Guarantor in accordance with their terms, except that the enforcement
thereof may be subject to the Enforceability Exceptions.
(v) The Company and each Guarantor have all requisite corporate power and authority to
execute, deliver and perform their obligations under the Indenture. The Indenture has been duly
qualified under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “Trust Indenture Act”).
The Indenture has been duly and validly authorized by the Company and each Guarantor and, when
executed and delivered by the Company and each Guarantor (assuming the due authorization,
execution and delivery by the Trustee), will constitute a valid and legally binding agreement of
the Company and each Guarantor, enforceable against the Company and each Guarantor in accordance
with its terms, except that the enforcement thereof may be subject to the Enforceability
Exceptions.
(w) Each approval, consent, order, authorization, designation, declaration or filing by or
with any regulatory, administrative or other governmental body necessary in connection with the
execution and delivery by the Company of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions
herein contemplated (except such additional steps as may be required by the Commission, the
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) or such additional steps as may be
necessary to qualify the Notes for public offering by the Underwriters under state securities or
“Blue Sky” laws) has been obtained or made and is in full force and effect.
(x) The Company and each of the Subsidiaries hold all material licenses, certificates and
permits from governmental authorities which are necessary to the conduct of their businesses; the
Company and the Subsidiaries each own or possess the right to use all patents, patent rights,
trademarks, trade names, service marks, service names, copyrights, license rights, know-how
(including trade secrets and other unpatented and unpatentable proprietary or confidential
information, systems or procedures) and other intellectual property rights (“Intellectual
Property”) necessary to carry on their business in all material respects; neither the Company
nor any of the Subsidiaries has infringed, and none of the Company or the Subsidiaries have
received notice of conflict with, any Intellectual Property of any other person or entity. The
Company has taken all reasonable steps necessary to secure interests in such Intellectual Property
from its contractors. There are no outstanding options, licenses or agreements of any kind
relating to the Intellectual Property of the Company that are required to be described in the
Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and are not described in
all material respects. The Company is not a party to or bound by any options, licenses or
agreements with respect to the Intellectual Property of any other person or entity that are
required to be set forth in the Prospectus and are not so described in all material respects.
None
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of the technology employed by the Company has been obtained or is being used by the Company
in violation of any material contractual obligation binding on the Company or any of its officers,
directors or employees or otherwise in violation of the rights of any persons; the Company has not
received any written or oral communications alleging that the Company has violated, infringed or
conflicted with, or, by conducting its business as set forth in the Registration Statement, the
General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, would violate, infringe or conflict with, any of
the Intellectual Property of any other person or entity, except to the extent such violation,
infringement or conflict would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse
Effect.
(y) Neither the Company, nor to the Company’s knowledge, any of its affiliates, has taken or
may take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or result in, or which has
constituted or which might reasonably be expected to constitute, the stabilization or manipulation
of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Notes. The
Company acknowledges that the Underwriters may engage in passive market making transactions in the
Notes in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act.
(z) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is or, after giving effect to the offering and
sale of the Notes contemplated hereunder and the application of the net proceeds from such sale as
described in the Registration Statement, General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, will be an
“investment company” within the meaning of such term under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as
amended (the “1940 Act”), and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.
(aa) The Company and each of the Subsidiaries maintains a system of internal accounting
controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (i) transactions are executed in
accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; (ii) transactions are recorded as
necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain
accountability for assets; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with
management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is
compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect
to any differences.
(bb) The Company has established and maintains an effective system of “disclosure controls
and procedures” (as defined in Rules 13a-14(c) and 15d-14(c) under the Exchange Act) that complies
with the requirements of the Exchange Act; the Company’s “disclosure controls and procedures” are
reasonably designed to ensure that all information (both financial and non-financial) required to
be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is
recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and
regulation of the Exchange Act, and that all such information is accumulated and communicated to
the Company’s management as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure
and to make the certifications of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the
Company required under the Exchange Act with respect to such reports.
(cc) The statistical and market-related data included in the Registration Statement, the
General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus are based on or derived from
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sources which the Company reasonably and in good faith believes are reliable and accurate,
and such data agree with the sources from which they are derived.
(dd) The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all
times in compliance with applicable financial record-keeping and reporting requirements of the
Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, applicable money laundering
statutes and applicable rules and regulations thereunder (collectively, the “Money Laundering
Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency,
authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any or its subsidiaries with respect
to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened.
(ee) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries nor, to the Company’s knowledge, any
director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is
currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of
the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use
the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any
subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the
activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC.
(ff) The Company and each of the Subsidiaries carry, or are covered by, insurance in such
amounts and covering such risks as the Company reasonably deems adequate for the conduct of their
respective businesses and the value of their respective properties and as is customary for
companies engaged in similar businesses in similar industries.
(gg) Except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and
the Prospectus, the Company and each Subsidiary is in compliance in all material respects with all
presently applicable provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as
amended, including the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (“ERISA”); no
“reportable event” (as defined in ERISA) has occurred with respect to any “pension plan” (as
defined in ERISA) for which the Company and each Subsidiary would have any liability; the Company
and each Subsidiary has not incurred and do not expect to incur liability under (i) Title IV of
ERISA with respect to termination of, or withdrawal from, any “pension plan” or (ii) Sections 412
or 4971 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, including the regulations and published
interpretations thereunder (the “Code”); and each “pension plan” for which the Company or
any Subsidiary would have any liability that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of
the Code is so qualified in all material respects and nothing has occurred, whether by action or
by failure to act, which would cause the loss of such qualification.
(hh) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is in violation of any statute, rule,
regulation, decision or order of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or
foreign, relating to the use, disposal or release of hazardous or toxic substances or relating to
the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous or toxic
substances (collectively, “environmental laws”), owns or operates any real property
contaminated with any substance that is subject to environmental laws, is liable for any off-site
10
disposal or contamination pursuant to any environmental laws, or is subject to any claim relating
to any environmental laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim would,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; and the Company is not aware of
any pending investigation which could reasonably be expected to lead to such a claim.
(ii) There are no relationships or related-party transactions involving the Company or any of
the Subsidiaries or any other person required to be described in the Prospectus which have not
been described as required.
(jj) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has made any contribution or other
payment to any official of, or candidate for, any federal, state or foreign office in violation of
any law which violation is required to be disclosed in the Registration Statement, the General
Disclosure Package or the Prospectus.
(kk) There is no document, contract or other agreement required to be described in the
Registration Statement or Prospectus or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement
which is not described or filed as required by the Act or the Rules and Regulations. Each
description of a contract, document or other agreement in the Registration Statement and the
Prospectus accurately reflects in all material respects the terms of the underlying contract,
document or other agreement.
(ll) Except for this Agreement, neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries is a party to
any contract, agreement or understanding with any person that would give rise to a valid claim
against the Company or the Underwriters for a brokerage commission, finder’s fee or like payment
in connection with the offering and sale of the Notes.
(mm) The Fifth Amended Joint Plan of Reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States
Bankruptcy Code (the “Plan of Reorganization”) of the Company and its Subsidiaries named
therein (collectively, the “Reorganizing Debtors”) was confirmed by order of the United
States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York entered on November 29, 2007, and no
party has appealed such confirmation order or moved for revocation or reconsideration thereof.
The Effective Date (as defined in the Plan of Reorganization) occurred on February 28, 2008 .
Except as provided in the Plan of Reorganization, all Claims (as defined in the Plan of
Reorganization) against the Reorganizing Debtors have been discharged in full. Except as provided
in the Plan of Reorganization, all Equity Interests (as defined in the Plan of Reorganization) of
the Company have been cancelled or discharged in full. Neither the Company nor any of its
Subsidiaries is currently, or has in the past been, in default in any material respect, and no
event has occurred which, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default,
in the due performance or observance of any material term, covenant or condition contained in the
Plan of Reorganization. There is no legal or governmental proceeding relating to the Plan of
Reorganization to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries is a party or of which any property
or assets of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries are the subject; and to the best of the
Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by any governmental
authorities or threatened by others.
(nn) No Subsidiary of the Company is currently prohibited, directly or indirectly, from
paying any dividends to the Company, from making any other distribution on such Subsidiary’s
capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to such
11
Subsidiary from the Company or from transferring any of such Subsidiary’s property or assets to
the Company or any other Subsidiary of the Company.
(oo) The Notes, the Guarantees and the Indenture will conform in all material respects to the
descriptions thereof in the Prospectus and the General Disclosure Package and will be in
substantially the respective forms filed or incorporated by reference, as the case may be, as
exhibits to the Registration Statement.
2. Purchase, Sale and Delivery of the Notes.
On the basis of the representations, warranties, agreements and covenants herein contained and
subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, the Company agrees to issue and sell to the
Underwriters, and the Underwriters, acting severally and not jointly, agree to purchase the Notes
in the respective principal amounts set forth on Schedule I hereto from the Company at 97.26125% of
their principal amount. One or more certificates in definitive form for the Notes that the
Underwriters have agreed to purchase hereunder, and in such denomination or denominations and
registered in such name or names as the Underwriters request upon notice to the Company at least 36
hours prior to the Closing Date, shall be delivered by or on behalf of the Company to the
Underwriters, against payment by or on behalf of the Underwriters of the purchase price therefor by
wire transfer (same day funds), to such account or accounts as the Company shall specify prior to
the Closing Date, or by such means as the parties hereto shall agree prior to the Closing Date.
Such delivery of and payment for the Notes shall be made at the offices of Xxxxxx Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx
llp, 80 Pxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx xx 10:00 A.M., New York time, on March 9, 2010, or
at such other place, time or date as the Underwriters, on the one hand, and the Company, on the
other hand, may agree upon, such time and date of delivery against payment being herein referred to
as the “Closing Date.” The Company will make such certificate or certificates for the
Notes available for checking and packaging by the Underwriters at the offices of Xxxxxxxxx &
Company, Inc. in New York, New York, or at such other place as Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc. may
designate, at least 24 hours prior to the Closing Date.
3. Offering by the Underwriters.
It is understood that the several Underwriters are to make a public offering of the Notes as
soon as the Representative deems it advisable to do so. The Notes are to be initially offered to
the public at the initial public offering price set forth in the Prospectus. The Representative
may from time to time thereafter change the public offering price and other selling terms.
4. Covenants of the Company.
The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters that:
(a) The Company will (A) prepare and timely file with the Commission under Rule 424(b)
(without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8)) under the Act a Prospectus in a form approved by the
Representative containing information previously omitted at the time of effectiveness of the
Registration Statement in reliance on Rules 430A, 430B or 430C under the Act,
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(B) not file any
amendment to the Registration Statement or distribute an amendment or supplement to the General
Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or document incorporated by
reference therein of which the Representative shall not previously have been advised and
furnished with a copy or to which the Representative shall have reasonably objected in writing or
which is not in compliance with the Rules and Regulations and (C) file on a timely basis all
reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company
with the Commission subsequent to the date of the Prospectus and prior to the termination of the
offering of the Notes by the Underwriters.
(b) The Company will (i) not make any offer relating to the Notes that would constitute an
Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or that would otherwise constitute a “free writing prospectus” (as
defined in Rule 405 under the Act) required to be filed by the Company with the Commission under
Rule 433 under the Act unless the Representative approves its use in writing prior to first use
(each, a “Permitted Free Writing Prospectus”); provided that the prior written
consent of the Representative hereto shall be deemed to have been given in respect of the Issuer
Free Writing Prospectus(es) included in Schedule III hereto, (ii) treat each Permitted Free
Writing Prospectus as an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, (iii) comply with the requirements of
Rules 163, 164 and 433 under the Act applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, including
the requirements relating to timely filing with the Commission, legending and record keeping and
(iv) not take any action that would result in an Underwriter or the Company being required to file
with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Act a “free writing prospectus” (as defined
in Rule 405 under the Act) prepared by or on behalf of such Underwriter that such Underwriter
otherwise would not have been required to file thereunder.
(c) The Company will prepare a final term sheet (the “Final Term Sheet”) reflecting
the final terms of the Notes, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, and shall
file such Final Term Sheet as an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus pursuant to Rule 433 under the Act
prior to the close of business two business days after the date hereof; provided that the Company
shall provide the Representative with copies of any such Final Term Sheet a reasonable amount of
time prior to such proposed filing and will not use or file any such document to which the
Representative or counsel to the Underwriters shall reasonably object.
(d) The Company will advise the Representative promptly (A) when any post-effective amendment
to the Registration Statement or new registration statement relating to the Notes shall have
become effective, or any supplement to the Prospectus shall have been filed, (B) of the receipt of
any comments from the Commission, (C) of any request of the Commission for amendment of the
Registration Statement or the filing of a new registration statement or any amendment or
supplement to the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or any document incorporated by
reference therein or otherwise deemed to be a part thereof or for any additional information, and
(D) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the
Registration Statement or such new registration statement or any order preventing or suspending
the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or of
the institution of any proceedings for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Act. The
Company will use its reasonable best efforts to prevent the issuance of any such order and to
obtain as soon as possible the lifting thereof, if issued.
13
(e) If at any time when Notes remain unsold by the Underwriters the Company receives from the
Commission a notice pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the Act or otherwise ceases to be eligible to
use the automatic shelf registration statement form, the Company will (i) promptly notify the
Representative, (ii) promptly file a new registration statement or post-effective amendment on the
proper form relating to the Notes, in a form satisfactory to the Representative, (iii) use its
reasonable best efforts to cause such registration statement or post-effective amendment to be
declared effective as soon as practicable (if such filing is not otherwise effective immediately
pursuant to Rule 462 under the Act), and (iv) promptly notify the Representative of such
effectiveness. The Company will take all other action necessary or appropriate to permit the
public offering and sale of the Notes to continue as contemplated in the Registration Statement
that was the subject of the notice under Rule 401(g)(2) under the Act or for which the Company has
otherwise become ineligible. References herein to the Registration Statement relating to the
Notes shall include such new registration statement or post-effective amendment, as the case may
be.
(f) If immediately prior to the third anniversary (the “Renewal Deadline”) of the
initial effective date of the Registration Statement, any of the Notes remain unsold by the
Underwriters, the Company will, prior to the Renewal Deadline, file, if it has not already done so
and is eligible to do so, a new automatic shelf registration statement relating to the Notes, in a
form satisfactory to the Representative. If the Company is no longer eligible to file an
automatic shelf registration statement, the Company will, prior to the Renewal Deadline, if it has
not already done so, file a new shelf registration statement relating to the Notes, in a form
satisfactory to the Representative, and will use its reasonable best efforts to cause such
registration statement to be declared effective within 180 days after the Renewal Deadline. The
Company will take all other action necessary or appropriate to permit the public offering and sale
of the Notes to continue as contemplated in the expired registration statement. References herein
to the Registration Statement shall include such new automatic shelf registration statement or
such new shelf registration statement, as the case may be.
(g) The Company agrees to pay the required filing fees to the Commission relating to the
Notes within the time required by Rule 456(b)(1) under the Act without regard to the proviso
therein and otherwise in accordance with Rules 456(b) and 457(r) under the Act.
(h) The Company will cooperate with the Representative in endeavoring to qualify the Notes
for sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as the Representative may reasonably have
designated in writing and will make such applications, file such documents, and furnish such
information as may be reasonably required for that purpose; provided the Company shall not be
required to qualify as a foreign corporation or to file a general consent to service of process in
any jurisdiction where it is not now so qualified or required to file such a consent. The Company
will, from time to time, prepare and file such statements, reports, and other documents, as are or
may be required to continue such qualifications in effect for so long a period as the
Representative may reasonably request for distribution of the Notes.
(i) The Company will deliver to the Representative as many copies of any Preliminary
Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus as the Representative may reasonably request.
The Company will deliver to the Representative during the period when
14
delivery of a Prospectus (or, in lieu thereof, the notice referred to under Rule 173(a) under the
Act) is required under the Act, as many copies of the Prospectus in final form, or as thereafter
amended or supplemented, as the Representative may reasonably request. The Company will deliver
to the Representative at or before the Closing Date, one signed copy of the Registration Statement
and all amendments thereto including all exhibits filed therewith, and will deliver to the
Representative such number of copies of the Registration Statement (including such number of
copies of the exhibits filed therewith that may reasonably be requested), including documents
incorporated by reference therein, and of all amendments thereto as the Representative may
reasonably request.
(j) The Company will comply with the Act, the Rules and Regulations, the Exchange Act and the
Trust Indenture Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, so as to permit
the completion of the distribution of the Notes as contemplated in this Agreement and the
Prospectus. If during the period in which a prospectus (or, in lieu thereof, the notice referred
to under Rule 173(a) under the Act) is required by law to be delivered by an Underwriter or
dealer, any event shall occur as a result of which, in the judgment of the Company or in the
reasonable opinion of the Underwriters, it becomes necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus
in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing at the time
the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading, or, if it is necessary at any time to
amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with any law, the Company promptly will either (i)
prepare and file with the Commission an appropriate amendment to the Registration Statement or
supplement to the Prospectus or (ii) prepare and file with the Commission an appropriate filing
under the Exchange Act which shall be incorporated by reference in the Prospectus so that the
Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when it is so
delivered, be misleading, or so that the Prospectus will comply with the applicable law.
(k) If the General Disclosure Package is being used to solicit offers to buy the Notes at a
time when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and any event shall occur
as a result of which, in the judgment of the Company or in the reasonable opinion of the
Underwriters, it becomes necessary to amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package in order
to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances, not misleading, or to make the
statements therein not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement then
on file, or if it is necessary at any time to amend or supplement the General Disclosure Package
to comply with any law, the Company promptly will either (i) prepare, file with the Commission (if
required) and furnish to the Underwriters and any dealers an appropriate amendment or supplement
to the General Disclosure Package or (ii) prepare and file with the Commission an appropriate
filing under the Exchange Act which shall be incorporated by reference in the General Disclosure
Package so that the General Disclosure Package as so amended or supplemented will not, in the
light of the circumstances, be misleading or conflict with the Registration Statement then on
file, or so that the General Disclosure Package will comply with law.
(l) The Company will make generally available to its security holders, as soon as it is
practicable to do so, but in any event not later than 15 months after the effective date of the
Registration Statement (as defined in Rule 158(c) under the Act), an earnings
15
statement (which need not be audited) in reasonable detail, complying with the requirements of
Section 11(a) of the Act and Rule 158 under the Act and will advise you in writing when such
statement has been so made available.
(m) Prior to the Closing Date, the Company will furnish to the Underwriters, as soon as they
have been prepared by or are available to the Company, a copy of any unaudited interim financial
statements of the Company for any period subsequent to the period covered by the most recent
financial statements appearing in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus.
(n) During the period beginning on the date hereof and continuing to the date that is 30 days
after the Closing Date, without the prior written consent of the Representative, the Company will
not offer, sell, contract to sell or otherwise dispose of, except as provided hereunder, any
securities of the Company (or guaranteed by the Company) that are substantially similar to the
Notes.
(o) The Company shall apply the net proceeds of its sale of the Notes as set forth in the
Registration Statement, General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and shall file such reports
with the Commission with respect to the sale of the Notes and the application of the proceeds
therefrom as may be required in accordance with Rule 463 under the Act.
(p) The Company shall not invest, or otherwise use, the proceeds received by the Company from
its sale of the Notes in such a manner as would require the Company or any of the Subsidiaries to
register as an investment company under the 1940 Act.
(q) The Company will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or result
in, or that has constituted or might reasonably be expected to constitute, the stabilization or
manipulation of the price of any securities of the Company.
5. Costs and Expenses.
The Company will pay all costs, expenses and fees incident to the performance of the
obligations of the Company under this Agreement, including, without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, the following: accounting fees of the Company and the Guarantors; the fees and
disbursements of counsel for the Company and the Guarantors; one half of the expenses in connection
with the “roadshow” and any other meetings with prospective investors in the Notes; the cost of
printing and delivering to, or as requested by, the Underwriters copies of the Registration
Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses, the Prospectus, this
Agreement, the Indenture and the Underwriters’ Invitation Letter; the filing fees of the
Commission; the filing fees and reasonable expenses (including legal fees and disbursements)
incident to securing any required review by FINRA of the terms of the sale of the Notes; any fees
payable in connection with the rating of the Notes; the costs and expenses (including without
limitation any damages or other amounts payable in connection with legal or contractual liability)
associated with the reforming of any contracts for sale of the Notes made by the Underwriters
caused by a breach of the representation in Section 1(b); the expenses, including the fees and
disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters, incurred in connection with the qualification of the
Notes under State securities or “Blue Sky” laws and the preparation, printing and distribution of a
“Blue Sky” memorandum and any supplements or amendments thereto; and the fees and
16
expenses of the Trustee, including fees and expenses of counsel for the Trustee. The Company
shall not, however, be required to pay for any of the Underwriters’ expenses (other than those
related to qualification under FINRA regulations and State securities or “Blue Sky” laws) except
that, if this Agreement shall not be consummated because the conditions in Section 6 hereof are not
satisfied, or because this Agreement is terminated by the Representative pursuant to Section 10
hereof, or by reason of any failure, refusal or inability on the part of the Company to perform any
undertaking or satisfy any condition of this Agreement or to comply with any of the terms hereof on
its part to be performed, unless such failure, refusal or inability is due primarily to the default
or omission of any Underwriter, the Company shall reimburse the several Underwriters for reasonable
out-of-pocket expenses, including fees and disbursements of counsel, reasonably incurred in
connection with investigating, marketing and proposing to market the Notes or in contemplation of
performing their obligations hereunder.
6. Conditions of Obligations of the Underwriters.
The several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase the Notes on the Closing Date are
subject to the accuracy, as of the Applicable Time or the Closing Date, as the case may be, of the
representations and warranties of the Company contained herein, and to the performance by the
Company of its covenants and obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:
(a) The Registration Statement and all post-effective amendments thereto shall have become
effective and the Prospectus and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus required shall have been
filed as required by Rules 424(b) (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8)), 430A, 430B, 430C or 433
under the Act, as applicable, within the time period prescribed by, and in compliance with, the
Rules and Regulations, and any request of the Commission for additional information (to be
included in the Registration Statement or otherwise) shall have been disclosed to the
Representative and complied with to its reasonable satisfaction. No stop order suspending the
effectiveness of the Registration Statement, as amended from time to time, shall have been issued
and no proceedings for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A under the Act shall have been taken
or, to the knowledge of the Company, shall be contemplated or threatened by the Commission and no
injunction, restraining order or order of any nature by a Federal or state court of competent
jurisdiction shall have been issued as of the Closing Date which would prevent the issuance of the
Notes.
(b) The Representative shall have received on the Closing Date the opinion and 10b-5
statement of Xxxxxxxx & Xxxxx LLP, counsel for the Issuers, dated the Closing Date, addressed to
the Underwriters (and stating that it may be relied upon by counsel to the Underwriters),
substantially in the form attached as Exhibit A hereto.
(c) The Representative shall have received from Xxxxxx Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx LLP, counsel
for the Underwriters, an opinion and 10b-5 statement, dated the Closing Date, with respect to such
matters as the Representative may require, and the Issuers shall have furnished to such counsel
such documents as they request for the purpose of enabling them to pass upon such matters.
17
(d) The Representative shall have received, on each of the date hereof and the Closing Date,
a letter dated the date hereof and the Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the
Representative and addressed to the Underwriters, of Deloitte & Touche LLP confirming that they
are an independent registered public accounting firm with respect to the Company and the
Subsidiaries within the meaning of the Act and the applicable Rules and Regulations and the PCAOB
and stating that in their opinion the financial statements and schedules examined by them and
incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the
Prospectus comply in form in all material respects with the applicable accounting requirements of
the Act and the related Rules and Regulations; and containing such other statements and
information as is ordinarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to Underwriters with
respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the
Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.
(e) The Representative shall have received on the Closing Date a certificate or certificates
of the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer of the Company to the effect that,
as of the Closing Date, each of them severally represents as follows:
(i) The Registration Statement has become effective under the Act and no stop order suspending
the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or no order preventing or suspending the use of any
Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus has been issued, and
no proceedings for such purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Act have been taken or are, to his
or her knowledge, contemplated or threatened by the Commission;
(ii) The representations and warranties of the Issuers contained in Section 1 hereof are true
and correct in all material respects (except for those representations and warranties of the
Company which are qualified by materiality, in which case such representations and warranties shall
be true and correct in all respects) as of the Closing Date;
(iii) The Issuers have satisfied all conditions on their part to be
performed or satisfied hereunder;
(iv) All filings required to have been made pursuant to Rules 424(b), 430A, 430B or 430C under
the Act have been made as and when required by such rules;
(v) He or she has carefully examined the General Disclosure Package and any individual Limited
Use Free Writing Prospectus and, in his or her opinion, as of the Applicable Time, the statements
contained in the General Disclosure Package and any individual Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus
did not contain any untrue statement of a material fact, and such General Disclosure Package and
any individual Limited Use Free Writing Prospectus, when considered together with the General
Disclosure Package, did not omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements
therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading;
(vi) He or she has carefully examined the Registration Statement and, in his or her opinion,
as of the effective date of the Registration Statement, the Registration Statement and any
amendments thereto did not contain any untrue statement of a material fact
18
and did not omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein
not misleading, and since the effective date of the Registration Statement, no event has occurred
which should have been set forth in a supplement to or an amendment of the Prospectus which has not
been so set forth in such supplement or amendment;
(vii) He or she has carefully examined the Prospectus and, in his or her opinion, as of its
date and the Closing Date, the Prospectus and any amendments and supplements thereto did not
contain any untrue statement of a material fact and did not omit to state a material fact necessary
in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were
made, not misleading; and
(viii) Since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration
Statement, the General Disclosure Package and Prospectus, there has not been any material adverse
change or any development involving a prospective material adverse change in or affecting the
business, management, properties, assets, rights, operations, condition (financial or otherwise) or
prospects of the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole, whether or not arising in the
ordinary course of business.
(f) The Representative shall have been furnished with such further certificates
and documents confirming the representations and warranties, covenants and conditions contained
herein and related matters as the Representative may reasonably have requested.
(g) Subsequent to the earlier of (A) the Applicable Time and (B) the execution and delivery
of this Agreement, (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating of the Notes or any other
debt securities or preferred stock of or guaranteed by the Company or any Subsidiary by any
“nationally recognized statistical rating organization”, as such term is defined by the Commission
for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Act and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly
announced that it has under surveillance or review, or has changed its outlook with respect to,
its rating of the Notes or of any other debt securities or preferred stock of or guaranteed by the
Company or any Subsidiary (other than an announcement with positive implications of a possible
upgrading).
The opinions and certificates mentioned in this Agreement shall be deemed to be in compliance
with the provisions hereof only if they are in all material respects satisfactory to the
Representative and to Xxxxxx Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx llp, counsel for the Underwriters.
If any of the conditions hereinabove provided for in this Section 6 shall not have been
fulfilled when and as required by this Agreement to be fulfilled, the obligations of the
Underwriters hereunder may be terminated by the Representative by notifying the Company of such
termination in writing or by telegram at or prior to the Closing Date.
In such event, the Issuers and the Underwriters shall not be under any obligation to each
other (except to the extent provided in Sections 5 and 7 hereof).
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7. Indemnification.
(a) The Issuers, jointly and severally, agree:
(1) to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, the directors, officers , agents
and affiliates of each Underwriter and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter
within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act,
against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which such Underwriter or any such
controlling person may become subject under the Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses,
claims, damages or liabilities (or actions or proceedings in respect thereof) arise out of
or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of any material fact
contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing
Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, (ii) with respect to the
Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement thereto, the omission or alleged
omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make
the statements therein not misleading or (iii) with respect to any Preliminary Prospectus,
any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto,
the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated
therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading in the light of the
circumstances under which they were made; provided, however, that the
Issuers will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage
or liability arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement,
or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary
Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus, or such amendment or
supplement, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the
Company by or through the Representative specifically for use therein, it being understood
and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the
information described as such in Section 12; and
(2) to reimburse each Underwriter, each Underwriters’ directors and officers, and each
such controlling person upon demand for any legal or other out-of-pocket expenses reasonably
incurred by such Underwriter or such controlling person in connection with investigating or
defending any such loss, claim, damage or liability, action or proceeding or in responding
to a subpoena or governmental inquiry related to the offering of the Notes, whether or not
such Underwriter or controlling person is a party to any action or proceeding. In the event
that it is finally judicially determined that the Underwriters were not entitled to receive
payments for legal and other expenses pursuant to this subparagraph, the Underwriters will
promptly return all sums that had been advanced pursuant hereto.
(b) Each Underwriter severally and not jointly will indemnify and hold harmless the Issuers,
each of their directors, each of their officers who have signed the Registration Statement and
each person, if any, who controls any such Issuer within the meaning of the Act, against any
losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which such Issuer or any such director, officer or
controlling person may become subject under the Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims,
damages or liabilities (or actions or proceedings in respect thereof) arise out of
20
or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of any material fact
contained in the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing
Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, (ii) with respect to the
Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement thereto, the omission or alleged omission to
state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements
therein not misleading or (iii) with respect to any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free
Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, the omission or alleged
omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the
statements therein not misleading in the light of the circumstances under which they were made;
and will reimburse any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Company or any such
director, officer or controlling person in connection with investigating or defending any such
loss, claim, damage, liability, action or proceeding; provided, however, that each
Underwriter will be liable in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue
statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission has been made in the
Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the
Prospectus or such amendment or supplement, in reliance upon and in conformity with written
information furnished to the Company through the Representative specifically for use therein, it
being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists
of the information described as such in Section 12. This indemnity agreement will be in addition
to any liability which such Underwriter may otherwise have.
(c) In case any proceeding (including any governmental investigation) shall be instituted
involving any person in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to this Section 7, such
person (the “indemnified party”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such
indemnity may be sought (the “indemnifying party”) in writing. No indemnification
provided for in Section 7(a) or (b) shall be available to any party who shall fail to give notice
as provided in this Section 7(c) if the party to whom notice was not given was unaware of the
proceeding to which such notice would have related and was materially prejudiced by the failure to
give such notice, but the failure to give such notice shall not relieve the indemnifying party or
parties from any liability which it or they may have to the indemnified party for contribution or
otherwise than on account of the provisions of Section 7(a) or (b). In case any such proceeding
shall be brought against any indemnified party and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the
commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the
extent that it shall wish, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume
the defense thereof, with counsel satisfactory to such indemnified party and shall pay as incurred
the fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding. In any such proceeding,
any indemnified party shall have the right to retain its own counsel at its own expense.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the indemnifying party shall pay as incurred (or within 30 days of
presentation) the reasonable fees and expenses of the counsel retained by the indemnified party in
the event (i) the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have mutually agreed to the
retention of such counsel, (ii) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded
parties) include both the indemnifying party and the indemnified party and representation of both
parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests
between them or (iii) the indemnifying party shall have failed to assume the defense and employ
counsel acceptable to the indemnified party within a reasonable period of time after notice of
commencement of the action. It is understood that the Indemnifying
21
Party shall not, in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same
jurisdiction, be liable for the reasonable fees and expenses of more than one separate firm for
all such Indemnified Parties. Such firm shall be designated in writing by you in the case of
parties indemnified pursuant to Section 7(a) and by the Company in the case of parties indemnified
pursuant to Section 7(b). The indemnifying party shall not be liable for any settlement of any
proceeding effected without its written consent but if settled with such consent or if there be a
final judgment for the plaintiff, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify the indemnified party
from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment. In addition, the
indemnifying party will not, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, settle or
compromise or consent to the entry of any judgment in any pending or threatened claim, action or
proceeding of which indemnification may be sought hereunder (whether or not any indemnified party
is an actual or potential party to such claim, action or proceeding) unless such settlement,
compromise or consent includes an unconditional release of each indemnified party from all
liability arising out of such claim, action or proceeding.
(d) To the extent the indemnification provided for in this Section 7 is unavailable to or
insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under Section 7(a) or (b) above in respect of
any losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions or proceedings in respect thereof) referred
to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such
indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions or
proceedings in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative
benefits received by the Issuers on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the
offering of the Notes. If, however, the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence
is not permitted by applicable law then each indemnifying party shall contribute to such amount
paid or payable by such indemnified party in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only
such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Issuers on the one hand and the
Underwriters on the other in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such
losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions or proceedings in respect thereof), as well as
any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Issuers on the
one hand and the Underwriters on the other shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the
total net proceeds from the offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Issuers bear to
the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set
forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus. The relative fault shall be determined by
reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material
fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied
by the Issuers on the one hand or the Underwriters on the other and the parties’ relative intent,
knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.
The Issuers and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if
contributions pursuant to this Section 7(d) were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the
Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation
which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section 7(d).
The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or
liabilities (or actions or proceedings in respect thereof) referred to above in this Section 7(d)
shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such
22
indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 7(d), (i) no Underwriter shall be required to
contribute any amount in excess of the underwriting discounts and commissions applicable to the
Notes purchased by such Underwriter, and (ii) no person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation
(within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person
who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations in this
Section 7(d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations
and not joint.
(e) In any proceeding relating to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, any
Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, the Prospectus or any supplement or amendment thereto, each party
against whom contribution may be sought under this Section 7 hereby consents to the jurisdiction
of any court having jurisdiction over any other contributing party, agrees that process issuing
from such court may be served upon it by any other contributing party and consents to the service
of such process and agrees that any other contributing party may join it as an additional
defendant in any such proceeding in which such other contributing party is a party.
(f) Any losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses for which an indemnified party is
entitled to indemnification or contribution under this Section 7 shall be paid by the indemnifying
party to the indemnified party as such losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses are
incurred. The indemnity and contribution agreements contained in this Section 7 and the
representations and warranties of the Issuers set forth in this Agreement shall remain operative
and in full force and effect, regardless of (i) any investigation made by or on behalf of any
Underwriter, its directors or officers or any person controlling any Underwriter, the Issuers,
their directors or officers or any persons controlling any Issuer, (ii) acceptance of any Notes
and payment therefor hereunder, and (iii) any termination of this Agreement. A successor to any
Underwriter, its directors or officers or any person controlling any Underwriter, or to any
Issuer, its directors or officers, or any person controlling any such Issuer, shall be entitled to
the benefits of the indemnity, contribution and reimbursement agreements contained in this
Section 7.
8. Default by Underwriters.
If on the Closing Date any Underwriter shall fail to purchase and pay for the principal amount
of the Notes which such Underwriter has agreed to purchase and pay for on such date (otherwise than
by reason of any default on the part of the Issuers), you, as Representative of the Underwriters,
shall use your reasonable efforts to procure within 36 hours thereafter one or more of the other
Underwriters, or any others, to purchase from the Issuers such principal amounts as may be agreed
upon, and upon the terms set forth herein, the Notes which the defaulting Underwriter or
Underwriters failed to purchase. If during such 36 hours you, as such Representative, shall not
have procured such other Underwriters, or any others, to purchase the principal amount of the Notes
agreed to be purchased by the defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters, then (a) if the aggregate
principal amount of Notes with respect to which such default shall occur does not exceed 10% of the
aggregate principal amount of the Notes to be purchased on the Closing Date, the other Underwriters
shall be obligated, severally, in proportion to the
23
respective principal amounts of the Notes which they are obligated to purchase hereunder, to
purchase the Notes which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters failed to purchase, or (b) if
the aggregated principal amount of the Notes with respect to which such default shall occur exceeds
10% of the aggregate principal amount of the Notes to be purchased on the Closing Date, the Issuers
or you as the Representative of the Underwriters will have the right, by written notice given
within the next 36-hour period to the parties to this Agreement, to terminate this Agreement
without liability on the part of the non-defaulting Underwriters or of the Issuers, except to the
extent provided in Sections 5 and 7 hereof. In the event of a default by any Underwriter or
Underwriters, as set forth in this Section 8, the Closing Date may be postponed for such period,
not exceeding seven days, as you, as Representative, may determine in order that the required
changes in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or in the Prospectus or in
any other documents or arrangements may be effected. The term “Underwriter” includes any person
substituted for a defaulting Underwriter. Any action taken under this Section 8 shall not relieve
any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of any default of such Underwriter under this
Agreement.
9. Notices.
All communications hereunder shall be in writing and, except as otherwise provided herein,
will be mailed, delivered, telecopied or telegraphed and confirmed as follows: if to the
Underwriters, to Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc., 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000;
Attention: General Counsel, with a copy to Xxxxxx Xxxxxx & Xxxxxxx llp, 00 Xxxx Xxxxxx,
Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Xxxx X. Xxxxxxxxx, Esq.; if to any Issuer, to Solutia Inc.,
000 Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxx Xxxxx, X.X. Xxx 00000, Xx. Xxxxx, Xxxxxxxx 00000, Attention: General Counsel,
with a copy to (which shall not constitute notice) Xxxxxxxx & Xxxxx LLP, 000 Xxxx 00xx
Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Xxxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxx, Esq.
10. Termination.
This Agreement may be terminated by you by notice to the Company (a) at any time prior to the
Closing Date if any of the following has occurred: (i) since the date of the most recent financial
statements included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the
Prospectus, any Material Adverse Effect, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business,
(ii) any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or declaration of war or national emergency or other
national or international calamity or crisis (including, without limitation, an act of terrorism)
or change in economic or political conditions if the effect of such outbreak, escalation,
declaration, emergency, calamity, crisis or change on the financial markets of the United States
would, in your judgment, make it impracticable or inadvisable to market the Notes or to enforce
contracts for the sale of the Notes, (iii) suspension of trading in securities generally on the New
York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange or the Nasdaq Global Select Market or limitation
on prices (other than limitations on hours or numbers of days of trading) for securities on any
such trading market, (iv) the declaration of a banking moratorium by United States or New York
State authorities, (v) any downgrading, or placement on any watch list for possible downgrading, in
the rating of any of the Company’s debt securities by any “nationally recognized statistical rating
organization” (as defined for purposes of Rule 436(g) under the Exchange Act) or (vii) the
suspension of trading of the Company’s common stock by the New York
24
Stock Exchange, the Commission, or any other governmental authority if the effect of such
suspension would, in your judgment, make it impracticable or inadvisable to market the Notes or to
enforce contracts for the sale of the Notes.
11. Successors.
This Agreement has been and is made solely for the benefit of the Underwriters and the Issuers
and their respective successors, executors, administrators, heirs and assigns, and the officers,
directors and controlling persons referred to herein, and no other person will have any right or
obligation hereunder. No purchaser of any of the Notes from any Underwriter shall be deemed a
successor or assign merely because of such purchase.
12. Information Provided by Underwriters.
The Issuers and the Underwriters acknowledge and agree that the only information furnished or
to be furnished by any Underwriter to the Company for inclusion in the Registration Statement, any
Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus consists of the
information set forth in the second sentence of the fifth paragraph, the first sentence of the
ninth paragraph and the tenth paragraph under the caption “Underwriting” in the Prospectus.
13. No Advisory or Fiduciary Responsibility.
The Issuers acknowledge and agree that (i) the purchase and sale of the Notes pursuant to this
Agreement is an arm’s-length commercial transaction between the Issuers, on the one hand, and the
Underwriters, on the other, (ii) in connection therewith and with the process leading to such
transaction each Underwriter is acting solely as a principal and not the agent or fiduciary of the
Issuers, (iii) no Underwriter has assumed an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the
Issuers with respect to the offering contemplated hereby or the process leading thereto
(irrespective of whether such Underwriter has advised or is currently advising any Issuer on other
matters) or any other obligation to any Issuer except the obligations expressly set forth in this
Agreement and (iv) the Issuers have consulted their own legal and financial advisors to the extent
they deemed appropriate. The Issuers agree that they will not claim that any Underwriter has
rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary or similar duty to any
Issuer, in connection with such transaction or the process leading thereto.
14. Counterparts.
This Agreement may be executed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an
original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.
15. Survival Clause.
The reimbursement, indemnification and contribution agreements contained in this Agreement and
the representations, warranties and covenants in this Agreement shall remain in full force and
effect regardless of (a) any termination of this Agreement, (b) any investigation
25
made by or on behalf of any Underwriter or controlling person thereof, or by or on behalf of
the Issuers or their directors or officers and (c) delivery of and payment for the Notes under this
Agreement.
16. Governing Law; Waiver of Jury Trial.
This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the law of the State of
New York, including, without limitation, Section 5-1401 of the New York General Obligations Law.
The Underwriters, on the one hand, and the Issuers (on their own behalf and to the extent
permitted by law, on behalf of their stockholders), on the other hand, waive any right to trial by
jury in any action, claim, suit or proceeding with respect to your engagement as underwriter or
your role in connection herewith.
26
If the foregoing letter is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign
and return to us the enclosed duplicates hereof, whereupon it will become a binding agreement among
the Company and the several Underwriters in accordance with its terms.
Very truly yours, | ||||||
SOLUTIA INC. | ||||||
By | /s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxx III | |||||
CPFILMS INC. | ||||||
FLEXSYS AMERICA CO. | ||||||
MONCHEM INTERNATIONAL, INC. | ||||||
SOLUTIA BUSINESS ENTERPRISES INC. | ||||||
SOLUTIA INTER-AMERICA, INC. | ||||||
SOLUTIA OVERSEAS, INC. | ||||||
By | /s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxx III | |||||
Authorized Officer | ||||||
FLEXSYS AMERICA L.P. | ||||||
By: Flexsys America Co., | ||||||
its General Partner | ||||||
By: | /s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxx III | |||||
SE INVESTMENT LLC | ||||||
By: Monchem International, Inc. | ||||||
its Member | ||||||
By: | /s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxx III | |||||
The foregoing Underwriting Agreement
is hereby confirmed and accepted as of
the date first above written.
is hereby confirmed and accepted as of
the date first above written.
XXXXXXXXX & COMPANY, INC.
As Representative of the several
Underwriters listed on Schedule I
Underwriters listed on Schedule I
By: Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc.
By |
/s/ Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx | |||
SCHEDULE I
Underwriters
Aggregate Principal | ||||
Amount of Notes | ||||
Underwriter | to be Purchased | |||
Xxxxxxxxx & Company, Inc. |
$ | 99,000,000 | ||
Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. |
45,000,000 | |||
Citigroup Global Markets Inc. |
45,000,000 | |||
HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. |
45,000,000 | |||
X.X. Xxxxxx Securities Inc. |
45,000,000 | |||
Fifth Third Securities, Inc. |
21,000,000 | |||
Total |
$ | 300,000,000 |
SCHEDULE II
Guarantors
CPFILMS INC.
FLEXSYS AMERICA CO.
FLEXSYS AMERICA L.P.
MONCHEM INTERNATIONAL, INC.
SOLUTIA BUSINESS ENTERPRISES INC.
SOLUTIA INTER-AMERICA, INC.
SOLUTIA OVERSEAS, INC.
SE INVESTMENT LLC
FLEXSYS AMERICA CO.
FLEXSYS AMERICA L.P.
MONCHEM INTERNATIONAL, INC.
SOLUTIA BUSINESS ENTERPRISES INC.
SOLUTIA INTER-AMERICA, INC.
SOLUTIA OVERSEAS, INC.
SE INVESTMENT LLC
SCHEDULE III
1. | Pricing Supplement dated March 2, 2010 |