EXHIBIT 10.7
FORM OF
INDEMNITY AGREEMENT
This INDEMNITY AGREEMENT is made and entered into as of __________________,
1999, by and between CORTELCO SYSTEMS, INC., a Delaware corporation (the
"Corporation"), and _______________ ("Agent").
RECITALS
WHEREAS, Agent performs a valuable service to the Corporation in the
capacity as _____________ of the Corporation;
WHEREAS, the stockholders of the Corporation have adopted bylaws (the
"Bylaws") providing for the indemnification of the directors, executive officers
and certain other officers, employees and other agents of the Corporation,
including persons serving at the request of the Corporation in such capacities
with other corporations or enterprises, as authorized by the Delaware General
Corporation Law, as amended (the "Code");
WHEREAS, the Bylaws and the Code, by their non-exclusive nature, permit
contracts between the Corporation and its directors, executive officers, other
officers, employees and other agents with respect to indemnification of such
persons; and
WHEREAS, in order to induce Agent to continue to serve as _______________
of the Corporation, the Corporation has determined and agreed to enter into this
Agreement with Agent;
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of Agent's continued service as
_______________ after the date hereof, the parties hereto agree as follows:
AGREEMENT
1. SERVICES TO THE CORPORATION. Agent will serve, at the will of the
Corporation or under separate contract, if any such contract exists, as
____________ of the Corporation or as a director, executive officer, other
officer or other fiduciary of an affiliate of the Corporation faithfully and to
the best of Agent's ability so long as Agent is duly elected and qualified in
accordance with the provisions of the Bylaws or other applicable charter
documents of the Corporation or such affiliate; provided, however, that Agent
may at any time and for any reason resign from such position (subject to any
contractual obligation that Agent may have assumed apart from this Agreement)
and that the Corporation or any affiliate shall have no obligation under this
Agreement to continue Agent in any such position.
2. INDEMNITY OF AGENT. The Corporation hereby agrees to hold harmless
and indemnify Agent to the fullest extent authorized or permitted by the
provisions of the Bylaws and the Code, as the same may be amended from time to
time (but, only to the extent that such
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amendment permits the Corporation to provide broader indemnification rights than
the Bylaws or the Code permitted prior to adoption of such amendment).
3. ADDITIONAL INDEMNITY. In addition to and not in limitation of the
indemnification otherwise provided for herein, and subject only to the
exclusions set forth in Section 4 hereof, the Corporation hereby further agrees
to hold harmless and indemnify Agent:
(A) against any and all expenses (including attorneys' fees), witness
fees, damages, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement and any other
amounts that Agent becomes legally obligated to pay by reason of any claim or
claims made against or by Agent in connection with any threatened, pending or
completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, arbitrational,
administrative or investigative (including an action by or in the right of the
Corporation) to which Agent is, was or at any time becomes a party, or is
threatened to be made a party, by reason of the fact that Agent is, was or at
any time becomes a director, officer, employee or other agent of Corporation, or
is or was serving or at any time serves at the request of the Corporation as a
director, officer, employee or other agent of another corporation, partnership,
joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise; and
(B) otherwise to the fullest extent as may be provided to Agent by
the Corporation under the non-exclusivity provisions of the Code and Section 42
of the Bylaws.
4. LIMITATIONS ON ADDITIONAL INDEMNITY. No indemnity pursuant to Section
3 hereof shall be paid by the Corporation:
(A) on account of any claim against Agent for an accounting of
profits made from the purchase or sale by Agent of securities of the Corporation
pursuant to the provisions of Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934 and amendments thereto or similar provisions of any federal, state or local
statutory law;
(B) on account of Agent's conduct that was knowingly fraudulent or
deliberately dishonest or that constituted willful misconduct;
(C) on account of Agent's conduct that constituted a breach of
Agent's duty of loyalty to the Corporation or resulted in any personal profit or
advantage to which Agent was not legally entitled;
(D) for which payment actually is made to Agent under a valid and
collectible insurance policy or under a valid and enforceable indemnity clause,
bylaw or agreement, except in respect of any excess beyond payment under such
insurance, clause, bylaw or agreement;
(E) if indemnification is not lawful (and, in this respect, both the
Corporation and Agent have been advised that the Securities and Exchange
Commission believes that indemnification for liabilities arising under the
federal securities laws is against public policy and therefore is unenforceable
and that claims for indemnification should be submitted to appropriate courts
for adjudication); or
(F) in connection with any proceeding (or part thereof) initiated by
Agent, or any proceeding by Agent against the Corporation or its directors,
executive officers, other
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officers, employees or other agents, unless (i) such indemnification expressly
is required to be made by law, (ii) the proceeding was authorized by the Board
of Directors of the Corporation, (iii) such indemnification is provided by the
Corporation, in its sole discretion, pursuant to the powers vested in the
Corporation under the Code, or (iv) the proceeding is initiated pursuant to
Section 9 hereof.
5. CONTINUATION OF INDEMNITY. All agreements and obligations of the
Corporation contained herein shall continue during the period Agent is a
director, officer, employee or other agent of the Corporation (or is or was
serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or
other agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee
benefit plan or other enterprise) and shall continue thereafter so long as Agent
shall be subject to any possible claim or threatened, pending or completed
action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, arbitrational,
administrative or investigative, by reason of the fact that Agent was serving in
the capacity referred to herein.
6. PARTIAL INDEMNIFICATION. Agent shall be entitled under this Agreement
to indemnification by the Corporation for a portion of the expenses (including
attorneys' fees), witness fees, damages, judgments, fines and amounts paid in
settlement and any other amounts that Agent becomes legally obligated to pay in
connection with any action, suit or proceeding referred to in Section 3 hereof
even if not entitled hereunder to indemnification for the total amount thereof,
and the Corporation shall indemnify Agent for the portion thereof to which Agent
is entitled.
7. NOTIFICATION AND DEFENSE OF CLAIM. Not later than thirty (30) days
after receipt by Agent of notice of the commencement of any action, suit or
proceeding, Agent will, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the
Corporation under this Agreement, notify the Corporation of the commencement
thereof; but the omission so to notify the Corporation will not relieve it from
any liability which it may have to Agent otherwise than under this Agreement.
With respect to any such action, suit or proceeding as to which Agent notifies
the Corporation of the commencement thereof:
(A) the Corporation will be entitled to participate therein at its
own expense;
(B) except as otherwise provided below, the Corporation may, at its
option and jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified and
electing to assume such defense, assume the defense thereof, with counsel
reasonably satisfactory to Agent. After notice from the Corporation to Agent of
its election to assume the defense thereof, the Corporation will not be liable
to Agent under this Agreement for any legal or other expenses subsequently
incurred by Agent in connection with the defense thereof except for reasonable
costs of investigation or otherwise as provided below. Agent shall have the
right to employ separate counsel in such action, suit or proceeding but the fees
and expenses of such counsel incurred after notice from the Corporation of its
assumption of the defense thereof shall be at the expense of Agent; provided,
however, that the fees and expenses of Agent's separate counsel shall be borne
by the Corporation if (i) the employment of counsel by Agent has been authorized
by the Corporation, (ii) Agent reasonably shall have concluded that there may be
a conflict of interest between the Corporation and Agent in the conduct of the
defense of such action or (iii) the Corporation in fact shall not have employed
counsel to assume the defense of such action. The
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Corporation shall not be entitled to assume the defense of any action, suit or
proceeding brought by or on behalf of the Corporation or as to which Agent shall
have made the conclusion provided for in clause (ii) above; and
(C) the Corporation shall not be liable to indemnify Agent under this
Agreement for any amounts paid in settlement of any action or claim effected
without its written consent, which shall not be unreasonably withheld. The
Corporation shall be permitted to settle any action except that it shall not
settle any action or claim in any manner which would impose any penalty or
limitation on Agent without Agent's written consent, which may be given or
withheld in Agent's sole discretion.
8. EXPENSES. Promptly following request therefor, the Corporation shall
advance, prior to the final disposition of any proceeding, all expenses incurred
by Agent in connection with such proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or
on behalf of Agent to repay such amounts if it shall be determined ultimately
that Agent is not entitled to be indemnified under the provisions of this
Agreement, the Bylaws, the Code or otherwise.
9. ENFORCEMENT. Any right to indemnification or advances granted by this
Agreement to Agent shall be enforceable by or on behalf of Agent in any court of
competent jurisdiction if (i) the claim for indemnification or advances is
denied, in whole or in part, or (ii) no disposition of such claim is made within
90 days of request therefor. Agent, in such enforcement action, if successful
in whole or in part, also shall be entitled to be paid the expense of
prosecuting Agent's claim. It shall be a defense to any action for which a
claim for indemnification is made under Section 3 hereof (other than an action
brought to enforce a claim for expenses pursuant to Section 8 hereof, provided
that the required undertaking has been tendered to the Corporation) that Agent
is not entitled to indemnification because of the limitations set forth in
Section 4 hereof. Neither the failure of the Corporation (including its Board
of Directors or its stockholders) to have made a determination prior to the
commencement of such enforcement action that indemnification of Agent is proper
in the circumstances, nor an actual determination by the Corporation (including
its Board of Directors or its stockholders) that such indemnification is
improper shall be a defense to the action or create a presumption that Agent is
not entitled to indemnification under this Agreement or otherwise.
10. SUBROGATION. In the event of payment under this Agreement, the
Corporation shall be subrogated to the extent of such payment to all of the
rights of recovery of Agent, who shall execute all documents required and shall
do all acts that may be necessary to secure such rights and to enable the
Corporation effectively to bring suit to enforce such rights.
11. NON-EXCLUSIVITY OF RIGHTS. The rights conferred on Agent by this
Agreement shall not be exclusive of any other right Agent may have or hereafter
acquire under any statute, provision of the Corporation's Certificate of
Incorporation or Bylaws, agreement, vote of stockholders or directors, or
otherwise, both as to action in Agent's official capacity and as to action in
another capacity while holding office.
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12. SURVIVAL OF RIGHTS.
(A) The rights conferred on Agent by this Agreement shall continue
after Agent has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or other agent of the
Corporation or to serve at the request of the Corporation as a director,
officer, employee or other agent of another corporation, partnership, joint
venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise and shall inure to the
benefit of Agent's heirs, executors and administrators.
(B) The Corporation shall require any successor (whether direct or
indirect, by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all or
substantially all of the business or assets of the Corporation, expressly to
assume and agree to perform this Agreement in the same manner and to the same
extent that the Corporation would be required to perform if no such succession
had taken place.
13. SEPARABILITY. Each of the provisions of this Agreement is a separate
and distinct agreement and independent of the others, so that if any provision
hereof shall be held to be invalid for any reason, such invalidity contained
herein or unenforceability shall not affect the validity or enforceability of
the other provisions hereof. Furthermore, if this Agreement shall be
invalidated in its entirety on any ground, then the Corporation nevertheless
shall indemnify Agent to the fullest extent provided by the Bylaws, the Code or
any other applicable law.
14. GOVERNING LAW. This Agreement shall be interpreted and enforced in
accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware.
15. AMENDMENT AND TERMINATION. No amendment, modification, termination or
cancellation of this Agreement shall be effective unless signed in writing by
both parties hereto.
16. IDENTICAL COUNTERPARTS. This Agreement may be executed in one or more
counterparts, each of which shall be deemed for all purposes to be an original
but all of which together shall constitute this Agreement.
17. HEADINGS. The headings of the sections of this Agreement are inserted
for convenience only and shall not be deemed to constitute part of this
Agreement or to affect the construction hereof.
18. NOTICES. All notices, requests, demands and other communications
hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (i)
upon delivery if delivered by hand to the party to whom such communication was
directed or (ii) upon the third business day after the date on which such
communication was mailed if mailed by certified or registered mail with postage
prepaid:
(A) If to Agent, at the address indicated on the signature page
hereof.
(B) If to the Corporation, to
Cortelco Systems, Inc.
0000 Xxxxxx Xxxx Xxxx.
Xxxxxxx, XX 00000
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or to such other address as may have been furnished to Agent by the Corporation.
6.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement on and
as of the date set forth above in the first paragraph hereof.
CORTELCO SYSTEMS, INC.
Signature:________________________________
Print Name:_______________________________
Title:____________________________________
AGENT
Signature:________________________________
Print Name:_______________________________
Address:__________________________________
__________________________________________
[Indemnity Agreement Signature Page]
