1
Exhibit 1.1
_______________ Shares
THE MRC GROUP, INC.
Common Stock
($_____ Par Value)
FORM OF
EQUITY UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT
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_____________, 1998
BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated
Xxxxxxxxx, Lufkin & Xxxxxxxx Securities Corporation
Xxxxxxx Xxxxx & Company, L.L.C.
As Representatives of the
Several Underwriters
c/o BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated
Xxx Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx 00000
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The MRC Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and
certain shareholders of the Company (the "Selling Shareholders") propose to sell
to the several underwriters (the "Underwriters") named in Schedule I hereto for
whom you are acting as representatives (the "Representatives") an aggregate of
__________ shares of the Company's Common Stock, $_____ par value (the "Firm
Shares"), of which __________ shares will be sold by the Company and __________
shares will be sold by the Selling Shareholders. The respective amounts of the
Firm Shares to be so purchased by the several Underwriters are set forth
opposite their names in SCHEDULE I hereto, and the respective amounts to be sold
by the Selling Shareholders are set forth opposite their names in SCHEDULE II
hereto. The Company and the Selling Shareholders are sometimes referred to
herein collectively as the "Sellers." [The Company and the certain Selling
Shareholders also propose to sell at the Underwriters' option an aggregate of up
to __________ additional shares of the Company's Common Stock (the "Option
Shares") as set forth on SCHEDULE II hereto.]
As the Representatives, you have advised the Company and the Selling
Shareholders (a) that you are authorized to enter into this Agreement on behalf
of the several Underwriters, and
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(b) that the several Underwriters are willing, acting severally and not jointly,
to purchase the numbers of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names
in SCHEDULE I, plus their pro rata portion of the Option Shares if you elect to
exercise the over-allotment option in whole or in part for the accounts of the
several Underwriters. The Firm Shares and the Option Shares (to the extent the
aforementioned option is exercised) are herein collectively called the "Shares."
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 AND THE SELLING
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SHAREHOLDERS.
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(a) The Company represents and warrants to each of the
Underwriters as follows:
(i) A registration statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-______)
with respect to the Shares has been prepared by the Company in conformity with
the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Act"), and the
Rules and Regulations (the "Rules and Regulations") of the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "Commission") thereunder and has been filed with the
Commission. Copies of such registration statement, including any amendments
thereto, the preliminary prospectuses (meeting the requirements of the Rules and
Regulations) contained therein and the exhibits, financial statements and
schedules, as finally amended and revised, have heretofore been delivered by the
Company to you and to the extent applicable, were identical to the
electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to
the Commission's Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval System
("XXXXX"), except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T. Such registration
statement, together with any registration statement filed by the Company
pursuant to Rule 462 (b) of the Act, herein referred to as the "Registration
Statement," which shall be deemed to include all information omitted therefrom
in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in the Prospectus referred to below,
has become effective under the Act and no post-effective amendment to the
Registration Statement has been filed as of the date of this Agreement.
"Prospectus" means the form of prospectus first filed with the Commission
pursuant to Rule 424(b). Each preliminary prospectus included in the
Registration Statement prior to the time it becomes effective is herein referred
to as a "Preliminary Prospectus." Any reference herein to the Registration
Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus or to the Prospectus shall be deemed to
refer to and include any supplements or amendments thereto, filed with the
Commission after the date of filing of the Prospectus under Rules 424(b) or
430A, and prior to the termination of the offering of the Shares by the
Underwriters. For purposes of this Agreement, all references to the Registration
Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus, or any amendment or
supplement to any of the foregoing, shall be deemed to include the respective
copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to XXXXX.
(ii) The Company has been duly organized and is validly
existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of
Delaware, with corporate power and authority to own or lease its properties
and conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement. Each of
the subsidiaries of the Company as listed in Exhibit 21 to Item 16(a) of the
Registration Statement (collectively, the "Subsidiaries") has been duly
organized and is validly existing as a
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corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its
incorporation, with corporate power and authority to own or lease its properties
and conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement. The
Subsidiaries are the only subsidiaries, direct or indirect, of the Company. 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. The outstanding shares of capital stock of each of the
Subsidiaries have been duly authorized and validly issued, are fully paid and
non-assessable and are owned by the Company 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.
(iii) The outstanding shares of Common Stock of the Company,
including all shares to be sold by the Selling Shareholders, have been duly
authorized and validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable; the portion
of the Shares to be issued and sold by the Company have been duly authorized and
when issued and paid for as contemplated herein will be validly issued, fully
paid and non-assessable; and no preemptive rights of stockholders exist with
respect to any of the Shares or the issue and sale thereof. Neither the filing
of the Registration Statement nor the offering or sale of the Shares as
contemplated by this Agreement gives rise to any rights, other than those which
have been waived or satisfied, for or relating to the registration of any shares
of Common Stock.
(iv) The information set forth under the caption
"Capitalization" in the Prospectus is true and correct. All of the Shares
conform to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement. The
form of certificates for the Shares conforms to the corporate law of the
jurisdiction of the Company's incorporation.
(v) The Commission has not issued an order preventing or
suspending the use of any Prospectus relating to the proposed offering of the
Shares nor instituted proceedings for that purpose. 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 and the Rules and Regulations. 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 any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary 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 material fact; and do not omit, and will not omit, to state any
material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements
therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not
misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes 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 Representatives, specifically for use
in the preparation thereof.
(vi) The consolidated financial statements of the Company and
the Subsidiaries, together with related notes and schedules as set forth in the
Registration Statement, present fairly
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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,
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 financial and statistical data included
in the Registration Statement presents fairly 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.
(vii) Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx LLP and Skoda, Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxx & Co.,
who have certified certain of the financial statements filed with the
Commission as part of, or incorporated by reference in, the Registration
Statement, are independent public accountants as required by the Act and the
Rules and Regulations.
(viii) 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 its Subsidiaries might result in
any material adverse change in 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 to prevent the
consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, except as set forth in the
Registration Statement.
(ix) The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable
title to all of the properties and assets reflected in the financial statements
(or as described in the Registration Statement) hereinabove described, subject
to no lien, mortgage, pledge, charge or encumbrance of any kind except those
reflected in such financial statements (or as described in the Registration
Statement) or which are not material in amount. 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.
(x) 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 said 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 generally accepted accounting principles.
All tax liabilities have been adequately provided for in the financial
statements of the Company, and the Company does not know of any actual or
proposed additional material tax assessments.
(xi) Since the respective dates as of which information is
given in the Registration Statement, as it may be amended or supplemented, there
has not been any material adverse change or any development involving a
prospective material adverse change in or affecting the earnings, business,
management, properties, assets, rights, operations, condition (financial or
otherwise), or prospects of the Company and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole,
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
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than transactions in the ordinary course of business and changes and
transactions described in the Registration Statement, as it may be amended or
supplemented. The Company and the Subsidiaries have no material contingent
obligations which are not disclosed in the Company's financial statements which
are included in the Registration Statement.
(xii) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is or
with the giving of notice or lapse of time or both, will be, in violation of or
in default under its Charter or By-Laws or 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 which default is of material
significance in respect of the condition, financial or otherwise of the Company
and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole or the business, management, properties,
assets, rights, operations, condition (financial or otherwise) or prospects of
the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole. The execution and delivery of
this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated and
the fulfillment of the terms hereof will not conflict with or result in a breach
of 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 of the Charter or By-Laws of the
Company or any order, rule or regulation applicable to the Company or any
Subsidiary of any court or of any regulatory body or administrative agency or
other governmental body having jurisdiction.
(xiii) 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 National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (the "NASD") or such
additional steps as may be necessary to qualify the Shares 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.
(xiv) The Company and each of the Subsidiaries holds all
material licenses, certificates and permits from governmental authorities which
are necessary to the conduct of their businesses; and neither the Company nor
any of the Subsidiaries has infringed any patents, patent rights, trade names,
trademarks or copyrights, which infringement is material to the business of the
Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole. The Company knows of no material
infringement by others of patents, patent rights, trade names, trademarks or
copyrights owned by or licensed to the Company.
(xv) 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 the shares of Common Stock to facilitate the sale or resale of the
Shares. The Company acknowledges that the Underwriters may engage in passive
market making transactions in the Shares on The Nasdaq National Market in
accordance with Rule 103 under Regulation M promulgated by the Commission.
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(xvi) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary is 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.
(xvii) The Company 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 generally accepted accounting principles 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.
(xviii) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries carry, or are
covered by, insurance in such amounts and covering such risks as is adequate for
the conduct of their respective businesses and the value of their respective
properties and as is customary for companies engaged in similar industries.
(xviii) The Company 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 would have any liability; the Company has not incurred and
does 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 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.
(xix) To the Company's knowledge, there are no affiliations or
associations between any member of the NASD and any of the Company's officers,
directors or securityholders, except as set forth in the Registration Statement.
(xx) As of the merger of the MRC Group, Inc., a Missouri
corporation (the "Predecessor Company"), with and into the Company at the
effective time of the Reincorporation Merger, the Company and the Predecessor
Company each had all requisite power and authority to enter into the Agreement
and Plan of Merger and to consummate the transactions contemplated thereby. The
execution and delivery of the Agreement and Plan of Merger and the consummation
of the transactions contemplated thereby have been duly authorized by all
necessary corporate action on the part of the Company and the Predecessor
Company. The Agreement and Plan of Merger has been duly executed and delivered
by the Company and constitutes a valid and binding obligation of the Company,
enforceable against the Company and the Predecessor Company in accordance with
its terms. Each stockholder of the Company has received notice of the Agreement
and Plan of Merger and the transactions contemplated thereby as required under
applicable law (the "Reincorporation Merger") as described
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in the Registration Statement, has been consummated and duly effected under
applicable law. The rights of the stockholders of the Company to dissent to the
Reincorporation Merger and to demand payment of the fair value with respect to
their shares of securities of the Company under applicable law have terminated.
(xxi) The Company is in compliance in all material respects
with all applicable laws, regulations, orders, judgments and decrees applicable
to its business. The Company is in compliance with all applicable laws,
regulations, orders, judgments and decrees relating to discrimination in
employment, employment practices, family leave, disability or occupational
health and safety in connection with its business.
(b) Each of the Selling Shareholders severally represents and
warrants as follows:
(i) Such Selling Shareholder now has and at the Closing Date
[and the Option Closing Date, as the case may be] (as such date[s] [is] [are]
hereinafter defined) will have good and marketable title to the Firm Shares [and
the Option Shares] to be sold by such Selling Shareholder, free and clear of any
liens, encumbrances, equities and claims, and full right, power and authority to
effect the sale and delivery of such Firm Shares [and Option Shares]; and upon
the delivery of, against payment for, such Firm Shares [and Option Shares]
pursuant to this Agreement, the Underwriters will acquire good and marketable
title thereto, free and clear of any liens, encumbrances, equities and claims.
(ii) Such Selling Shareholder has full right, power and
authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and the Selling Shareholder's
Power of Attorney and Custody Agreement referred to below and to perform its
obligations under such Agreements. The execution and delivery of this Agreement
and the consummation by such Selling Shareholder of the transactions herein
contemplated and the fulfillment by such Selling Shareholder of the terms hereof
will not require any consent, approval, authorization, or other order of any
court, regulatory body, administrative agency or other governmental body (except
as may be required under the Act, state securities laws or Blue Sky laws) and
will not result in a breach of any of the terms and provisions of, or constitute
a default under, organizational documents of such Selling Shareholder, if not an
individual, or any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust or other agreement or
instrument to which such Selling Shareholder is a party, or of any order, rule
or regulation applicable to such Selling Shareholder of any court or of any
regulatory body or administrative agency or other governmental body having
jurisdiction.
(iii) Such Selling Shareholder has not taken and will not
take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to, or which has constituted,
or which might reasonably be expected to cause or result in the stabilization or
manipulation of the price of the Common Stock of the Company and, other than as
permitted by the Act, the Selling Shareholder will not distribute any prospectus
or other offering material in connection with the offering of the Shares.
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(iv) Without having undertaken to determine independently the
accuracy or completeness of either the representations and warranties of the
Company contained herein or the information contained in the Registration
Statement, such Selling Shareholder has no reason to believe that the
representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Section 1 are
not true and correct, is familiar with the Registration Statement and has no
knowledge of any material fact, condition or information not disclosed in the
Registration Statement which has adversely affected or may adversely affect the
business of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries; and the sale of the Firm
Shares [and the Option Shares] by such Selling Shareholder pursuant hereto is
not prompted by any information concerning the Company or any of the
Subsidiaries which is not set forth in the Registration Statement The
information pertaining to such Selling Shareholder under the caption "Selling
Shareholders" in the Prospectus is complete and accurate in all material
respects.
2. PURCHASE, SALE AND DELIVERY OF THE FIRM SHARES.
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(a) On the basis of the representations, warranties and
covenants herein contained, and subject to the conditions herein set forth, the
Sellers agree to sell to the Underwriters and each Underwriter agrees, severally
and not jointly, to purchase, at a price of $_____ [net price] per share, the
number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the name of each Underwriter in
SCHEDULE I hereof, subject to adjustments in accordance with Section 9 hereof.
The number of Firm Shares to be purchased by each Underwriter from each Seller
shall be as nearly as practicable in the same proportion to the total number of
Firm Shares being sold by each Seller as the number of Firm Shares being
purchased by each Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares to be
sold hereunder. The obligations of the Company and of each of the Selling
Shareholders shall be several and not joint.
(b) Certificates in negotiable form for the total number of
the Shares to be sold hereunder by the Selling Shareholders have been placed in
custody with the Company as custodian (the "Custodian") pursuant to the Selling
Shareholder's Power of Attorney and Custody Agreement executed by each Selling
Shareholder for delivery of all Firm Shares [and any Option Shares] to be sold
hereunder by the Selling Shareholders. Each of the Selling Shareholders
specifically agrees that the Firm Shares [and any Option Shares] represented by
the certificates held in custody for the Selling Shareholders under the Selling
Shareholder's Power of Attorney and Custody Agreement are subject to the
interests of the Underwriters hereunder, that the arrangements made by the
Selling Shareholders for such custody are to that extent irrevocable, and that
the obligations of the Selling Shareholders hereunder shall not be terminable by
any act or deed of the Selling Shareholders (or by any other person, firm or
corporation including the Company, the Custodian or the Underwriters) or by
operation of law (including the death of an individual Selling Shareholder or
the dissolution of a corporate Selling Shareholder) or by the occurrence of any
other event or events, except as set forth in the Selling Shareholder's Power of
Attorney and Custody Agreement. If any such event should occur prior to the
delivery to the Underwriters of the Firm Shares [or the Option Shares]
hereunder, certificates for the Firm Shares [or the Options Shares, as the case
may be,] shall be delivered by the Custodian in accordance with the terms and
conditions of this
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Agreement as if such event has not occurred. The Custodian is authorized to
receive and acknowledge receipt of the proceeds of sale of the Shares held by it
against delivery of such Shares.
(c) Payment for the Firm Shares to be sold hereunder is to be
made in Federal (same day) funds to an account designated by the Company for the
shares to be sold by it and to an account designated by the Custodian for the
shares to be sold by the Selling Shareholders, in each case against delivery of
certificates therefor to the Representatives for the several accounts of the
Underwriters. Such payment and delivery are to be made through the facilities of
the Depository Trust Company at 10:00 a.m., New York time, on the third business
day after the date of this Agreement or at such other time and date not later
than five business days thereafter as you and the Company shall agree upon, such
time and date being herein referred to as the "Closing Date." (As used herein,
"business day" means a day on which the New York Stock Exchange is open for
trading and on which banks in New York are open for business and not permitted
by law or executive order to be closed.)
(d) In addition, on the basis of the representations and
warranties herein contained and subject to the terms and conditions herein set
forth, the Company and the [certain] Selling Shareholders [listed on SCHEDULE II
hereto] hereby grants an option to the several Underwriters to purchase the
Option Shares at the price per share as set forth in the first paragraph of this
Section 2. The maximum number of Option Shares to be sold by the Company and the
Selling Shareholders is set forth opposite their respective names on SCHEDULE II
hereto. The option granted hereby may be exercised in whole or in part by giving
written notice (i) at any time before the Closing Date and (ii) only once
thereafter within 30 days after the date of this Agreement, by you, as
Representatives of the several Underwriters, to the Company, the
Attorney-in-Fact, and the Custodian setting forth the number of Option Shares as
to which the several Underwriters are exercising the option, the names and
denominations in which the Option Shares are to be registered and the time and
date at which such certificates are to be delivered. If the option granted
hereby is exercised in part, the respective number of Option Shares to be sold
by the Company and each of the Selling Shareholders listed in SCHEDULE II hereto
shall be determined on a pro rata basis in accordance with the percentages set
forth opposite their names on SCHEDULE II hereto, adjusted by you in such manner
as to avoid fractional shares. The time and date at which certificates for
Option Shares are to be delivered shall be determined by the Representatives but
shall not be earlier than three nor later than 10 full business days after the
exercise of such option, nor in any event prior to the Closing Date (such time
and date being herein referred to as the "Option Closing Date"). If the date of
exercise of the option is three or more days before the Closing Date, the notice
of exercise shall set the Closing Date as the Option Closing Date. The number of
Option Shares to be purchased by each Underwriter shall be in the same
proportion to the total number of Option Shares being purchased as the number of
Firm Shares being purchased by such Underwriter bears to the total number of
Firm Shares, adjusted by you in such manner as to avoid fractional shares. The
option with respect to the Option Shares granted hereunder may be exercised only
to cover over-allotments in the sale of the Firm Shares by the Underwriters.
You, as Representatives of the several Underwriters, may cancel such option at
any time prior to its expiration by giving written notice of such cancellation
to the Company and the Attorney-in-Fact. To the extent, if any, that the option
is exercised, payment for the Option Shares shall be made on the Option Closing
Date in Federal (same day) funds drawn to the order of the Company for the
Option Shares to be sold by it and to
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the order of [["The MRC Group, Inc.], as Custodian" for the Option Shares to be
sold by the Selling Shareholders against delivery of certificates therefor
through the facilities of the Depository Trust Company, New York, New York.]
(e) If on the Closing Date [or Option Closing Date, as the
case may be,] any Selling Shareholder fails to sell the Firm Shares [or Option
Shares] which such Selling Shareholder has agreed to sell on such date as set
forth in SCHEDULE II hereto, the Company agrees that it will sell or arrange for
the sale of that number of shares of Common Stock to the Underwriters which
represents Firm Shares [or the Option Shares] which such Selling Shareholder has
failed to so sell, as set forth in SCHEDULE II hereto, or such lesser number as
may be requested by the Representatives.
3. OFFERING BY THE UNDERWRITERS.
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It is understood that the several Underwriters are to make a
public offering of the Firm Shares as soon as the Representatives deem it
advisable to do so. The Firm Shares are to be initially offered to the public at
the initial public offering price set forth in the Prospectus. The
Representatives may from time to time thereafter change the public offering
price and other selling terms. To the extent, if at all, that any Option Shares
are purchased pursuant to Section 2 hereof, the Underwriters will offer them to
the public on the foregoing terms.
It is further understood that you will act as the
Representatives for the Underwriters in the offering and sale of the Shares in
accordance with a Master Agreement Among Underwriters entered into by you and
the several other Underwriters.
4. COVENANTS OF THE COMPANY AND THE SELLING SHAREHOLDERS.
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The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters
that:
(i) The Company will (A) use its best efforts to cause the
Registration Statement to become effective or, if the procedure in Rule 430A of
the Rules and Regulations is followed, to prepare and timely file with the
Commission under Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations a Prospectus in a form
approved by the Representatives containing information previously omitted at the
time of effectiveness of the Registration Statement in reliance on Rule 430A of
the Rules and Regulations, and (B) not file any amendment to the Registration
Statement or supplement to the Prospectus of which the Representatives shall not
previously have been advised and furnished with a copy or to which the
Representatives shall have reasonably objected in writing or which is not in
compliance with the Rules and Regulations. To the extent applicable, the copies
of the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto (including all exhibits
filed therewith), any Preliminary Prospectus or Prospectus (in each case, as
amended or supplemented) furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the
electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to
XXXXX, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.
(ii) The Company will advise the Representatives promptly (A)
when the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto shall
have become effective, (B) of
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receipt of any comments from the Commission, (C) of any request of the
Commission for amendment of the Registration Statement or for supplement to the
Prospectus 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 the use of the Prospectus or of the institution of any proceedings
for that purpose. The Company will use its best efforts to prevent the issuance
of any such stop order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus and to
obtain as soon as possible the lifting thereof, if issued.
(iii) The Company will cooperate with the Representatives in
endeavoring to qualify the Shares for sale under the securities laws of such
jurisdictions as the Representatives 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 Representatives may reasonably request for distribution of the Shares.
(iv) The Company will deliver to, or upon the order of, the
Representatives, from time to time, as many copies of any Preliminary Prospectus
as the Representatives may reasonably request. The Company will deliver to, or
upon the order of, the Representatives during the period when delivery of a
Prospectus is required under the Act, as many copies of the Prospectus in final
form, or as thereafter amended or supplemented, as the Representatives may
reasonably request. The Company will deliver to the Representatives at or before
the Closing Date, four signed copies of the Registration Statement and all
amendments thereto including all exhibits filed therewith, and will deliver to
the Representatives such number of copies of the Registration Statement
(including such number of copies of the exhibits filed therewith that may
reasonably be requested), and of all amendments thereto, as the Representatives
may reasonably request.
(v) The Company will comply with the Act and the Rules and
Regulations, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange
Act"), and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, so as to
permit the completion of the distribution of the Shares as contemplated in this
Agreement and the Prospectus. If during the period in which a prospectus 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 prepare and file
with the Commission an appropriate amendment to the Registration Statement or
supplement to 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 law.
(vi) 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
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Registration Statement, an earning statement (which need not be audited) in
reasonable detail, covering a period of at least 12 consecutive months beginning
after the effective date of the Registration Statement, which earning statement
shall satisfy the requirements of Section 11(a) of the Act and Rule 158 of the
Rules and Regulations and will advise you in writing when such statement has
been so made available.
(vii) 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.
(viii) No offering, sale, short sale or other disposition of
any shares of Common Stock of the Company or other securities convertible into
or exchangeable or exercisable for shares of Common Stock or derivative of
Common Stock (or agreement for such) will be made for a period of 180 days after
the date of this Agreement, directly or indirectly, by the Company otherwise
than hereunder or with the prior written consent of BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated.
(ix) The Company will use its best efforts to list, subject to
notice of issuance, the Shares on the Nasdaq National Market.
(x) The Company has caused each officer and director [and
specific shareholders] of the Company to furnish to you, on or prior to the date
of this agreement, a letter or letters, in form and substance satisfactory to
the Underwriters, pursuant to which each such person shall agree not to offer,
sell, sell short or otherwise dispose of any shares of Common Stock of the
Company or other capital stock of the Company, or any other securities
convertible, exchangeable or exercisable for Common Shares or derivative of
Common Shares owned by such person or request the registration for the offer or
sale of any of the foregoing (or as to which such person has the right to direct
the disposition of) for a period of 180 days after the date of this Agreement,
directly or indirectly, except with the prior written consent of BT Alex. Xxxxx
Incorporated ("Lockup Agreements").
(xi) The Company shall apply the net proceeds of its sale of
the Shares as set forth in the Prospectus and shall include such information
with respect thereto in such reports filed with the Commission as may be
required in accordance with Rule 463 under the Act.
(xii) The Company shall not invest, or otherwise use the
proceeds received by the Company from its sale of the Shares in such a manner as
would require the Company or any of the Subsidiaries to register as an
investment company under the 1940 Act.
(xiii) The Company will maintain a transfer agent and, if
necessary under the jurisdiction of incorporation of the Company, a registrar
for the Common Stock.
(xiv) 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.
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(xv) If on the Closing Date [or any Option Closing Date] any
Selling Shareholder fails to sell the Shares which such Selling Shareholder has
agreed to sell on such date as set forth in Schedule II hereto, the Company will
sell that number of shares of Common Stock to the Underwriters which represents
the Shares which such Selling Shareholder has failed to so sell, as set forth in
Schedule II hereto, or such lesser number as may be requested by the
Representatives.
(xvi) The Company will not, for a period of 180 days after
the Closing Date, file a registration statement (on Form S-8 or otherwise)
covering the resale of Common Stock issued upon exercise of the Company's stock
options.
(b) Each of the Selling Shareholders covenants and agrees with
the several Underwriters that:
(i) No offering, sale, short sale or other disposition of any
shares of Common Stock of the Company or other capital stock of the Company or
other securities convertible, exchangeable or exercisable for Common Stock or
derivative of Common Stock owned by the Selling Shareholder or request the
registration for the offer or sale of any of the foregoing (or as to which the
Selling Shareholder has the right to direct the disposition of) will be made for
a period of 180 days after the date of this Agreement, directly or indirectly,
by such Selling Shareholder otherwise than hereunder or under a letter agreement
in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters and with the prior
written consent of BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated.
(ii) In order to document the Underwriters' compliance with
the reporting and withholding provisions of the Tax Equity and Fiscal
Responsibility Act of 1982 and the Interest and Dividend Tax Compliance Act of
1983 with respect to the transactions herein contemplated, each of the Selling
Shareholders agrees to deliver to you prior to or at the Closing Date a properly
completed and executed United States Treasury Department Form W-8 or W-9 (or
other applicable form or statement specified by Treasury Department regulations
in lieu thereof).
(iii) Such Selling Shareholder 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 Sellers under this Agreement,
including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the following:
accounting fees of the Company; the fees and disbursements of counsel for the
Company and the Selling Shareholders; the cost of printing and delivering to,
or as requested by, the Underwriters copies of the Registration Statement,
Preliminary Prospectuses, the Prospectus, this Agreement, the Underwriters'
Selling Memorandum, the Underwriters' Invitation Letter, the Listing
Application, the Blue Sky Survey and any supplements or amendments thereto; the
filing fees of the Commission; the filing fees and expenses (including legal
fees and disbursements) incident to securing any required review by the NASD of
the terms of the sale of the Shares; the Listing Fee of the Nasdaq National
Market; and the expenses, including the fees and disbursements of counsel for
the Underwriters, incurred in connection with the qualification of the Shares
under State securities or Blue Sky laws. The Selling Shareholders have agreed
with the Company to reimburse the Company for a portion of such expenses. To
the extent, if at all, that
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any of the Selling Shareholders engage special legal counsel to represent them
in connection with this offering, the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be
borne by such Selling Shareholder. Any transfer taxes imposed on the sale of the
Shares to the several Underwriters will be paid by the Sellers pro rata. The
Company agrees to pay all costs and expenses of the Underwriters, including the
fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters, incident to the offer
and sale of directed shares of the Common Stock by the Underwriters to employees
and persons having business relationships with the Company and its Subsidiaries.
The Sellers shall not, however, be required to pay for any of the Underwriters'
expenses (other than those related to qualification under NASD regulation 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 Representatives pursuant to Section
11 hereof, or by reason of any failure, refusal or inability on the part of the
Company or the Selling Shareholders to perform any undertaking or satisfy any
condition of this Agreement or to comply with any of the terms hereof on their
part to be performed, unless such failure to satisfy said condition or to comply
with said terms be due to the default or omission of any Underwriter, then 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 Shares or
in contemplation of performing their obligations hereunder; but the Company and
the Selling Shareholders shall not in any event be liable to any of the several
Underwriters for damages on account of loss of anticipated profits from the sale
by them of the Shares.
6. CONDITIONS TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE UNDERWRITERS.
----------------------------------------------
The several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase the
Firm Shares on the Closing Date and the Option Shares, if any, on the Option
Closing Date are subject to the accuracy, as of the Closing Date or the Option
Closing Date, as the case may be, of the representations and warranties of the
Company and the Selling Shareholders contained herein, and to the performance by
the Company and the Selling Shareholders of its their 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 any and all filings required
by Rule 424 and Rule 430A of the Rules and Regulations shall have been made, and
any request of the Commission for additional information (to be included in the
Registration Statement or otherwise) shall have been disclosed to the
Representatives and complied with to their 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
shall have been taken or, to the knowledge of the Company, shall be contemplated
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, or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, which would
prevent the issuance of the Shares.
(b) The Representatives shall have received on the Closing
Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, the opinions of Xxxxx &
Xxxxxxxxx, LLP, counsel for the Company and the Selling Shareholders, dated the
Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the
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case may be, addressed to the Underwriters (and stating that it may be relied
upon by counsel to the Underwriters) to the effect that:
(i) The Company has been duly organized and is validly
existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of
Delaware, with corporate power and authority to own or lease its properties and
conduct its business as described in the Registration Statement; each of the
Subsidiaries has been duly organized and is validly existing as a corporation
in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, with
corporate power and authority to own or lease its properties and conduct its
business as described in the Registration Statement; 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, or in which
the failure to qualify would have a materially adverse effect upon the business
of the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole; and the outstanding
shares of capital stock of each of the Subsidiaries have been duly authorized
and validly issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned by the
Company or a Subsidiary; and, to the best of such counsel's knowledge, the
outstanding shares of capital stock of each of the Subsidiaries is owned 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 any shares of capital stock or
of ownership interests in the Subsidiaries are outstanding.
(ii) The Company has authorized and outstanding capital stock
as set forth under the caption "Capitalization" in the Prospectus; the
authorized shares of the Company's Common Stock have been duly authorized; the
outstanding shares of the Company's Common Stock, including the Shares to be
sold by the Selling Shareholders, have been duly authorized and validly issued
and are fully paid and non-assessable; all of the Shares conform to the
description thereof contained in the Prospectus; the certificates for the
Shares, assuming they are in the form filed with the Commission, are in due and
proper form; the shares of Common Stock, including the Option Shares, if any, to
be sold by the Company pursuant to this Agreement have been duly authorized and
will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable when issued and paid for
as contemplated by this Agreement; and no preemptive rights of stockholders
exist with respect to any of the Shares or the issue or sale thereof.
(iii) Except as described in or contemplated by the
Prospectus, to the knowledge of such counsel, there are no outstanding
securities of the Company convertible or exchangeable into or evidencing the
right to purchase or subscribe for any shares of capital stock of the Company
and there are no outstanding or authorized options, warrants or rights of any
character obligating the Company to issue any shares of its capital stock or any
securities convertible or exchangeable into or evidencing the right to purchase
or subscribe for any shares of such stock; and except as described in the
Prospectus, to the knowledge of such counsel, no holder of any securities of the
Company or any other person has the right, contractual or otherwise, which has
not been satisfied or effectively waived, to cause the Company to sell or
otherwise issue to them, or to permit them to underwrite the sale of, any of the
Shares or the right to have any Common Shares or other securities of the Company
included in the Registration Statement or the right, as a result of the filing
of the Registration Statement, to require registration under the Act of any
shares of Common Stock or other securities of the Company.
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(iv) The Registration Statement has become effective under the
Act and, to the best of the knowledge of such counsel, no stop order proceedings
with respect thereto have been instituted or are pending or threatened under the
Act.
(v) The Registration Statement, the Prospectus and each
amendment or supplement thereto comply as to form in all material respects with
the requirements of the and the applicable rules and regulations thereunder
(except that such counsel need express no opinion as to the financial statements
and related schedules therein).
(vi) The statements under the captions "Management-Employment
and Severence Agreements," "Certain Transactions," "Description of Capital
Stock" and "Shares Eligible for Future Sale" in the Prospectus, insofar as
such statements constitute a summary of documents referred to therein or
matters of law, fairly summarize in all material respects the information
called for with respect to such documents and matters.
(vii) Such counsel does not know of any contracts or documents
required to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement or described in
the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which are not so filed or described
as required, and such contracts and documents as are summarized in the
Registration Statement or the Prospectus are fairly summarized in all material
respects.
(viii) Such counsel knows of no material legal or governmental
proceedings pending or threatened against the Company or any of the Subsidiaries
except as set forth in the Prospectus.
(ix) The execution and delivery of this Agreement and the
consummation of the transactions herein contemplated do not and will not
conflict with or result in a breach of any of the terms or provisions of, or
constitute a default under, the Charter or By-Laws of the Company, or any
agreement or instrument known to such counsel to which the Company or any of the
Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries may
be bound.
(x) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and
delivered by the Company.
(xi) No approval, consent, order, authorization, designation,
declaration or filing by or with any regulatory, administrative or other
governmental body is necessary in connection with the execution and delivery of
this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated
(other than as may be required by the NASD or as required by State securities
and Blue Sky laws as to which such counsel need express no opinion) except such
as have been obtained or made, specifying the same.
(xii) The Company is not, and will not become, as a result of
the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, and
application of the net proceeds therefrom as described in the Prospectus,
required to register as an investment company under the 1940 Act.
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(xiii) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and
delivered on behalf of the Selling Shareholders.
(xiv) As of the merger of the MRC Group, Inc., a Missouri
corporation (the "Predecessor Company"), with and into the Company at the
effective time of the Reincorporation Merger, the Company and the Predecessor
Company each had all requisite power and authority to enter into the Agreement
and Plan of Merger and to consummate the transactions contemplated thereby. The
execution and delivery of the Agreement and Plan of Merger and the consummation
of the transactions contemplated thereby have been duly authorized by all
necessary corporate action on the part of the Company and the Predecessor
Company. The Agreement and Plan of Merger has been duly executed and delivered
by the Company and constitutes a valid and binding obligation of the Company,
enforceable against the Company and the Predecessor Company in accordance with
its terms. Each stockholder of the Company has received notice of the Agreement
and Plan of Merger and the transactions contemplated thereby as required under
applicable law (the "Reincorporation Merger") as described in the Registration
Statement, has been consummated and duly effected under applicable law. The
rights of the stockholders of the Company to dissent to the Reincorporation
Merger and to demand payment of the fair value with respect to their shares of
securities of the Company under applicable law have terminated.
(xv) Each Selling Shareholder has full legal right, power and
authority, and any approval required by law (other than as required by State
securities and Blue Sky laws as to which such counsel need express no opinion),
to sell, assign, transfer and deliver the portion of the Shares to be sold by
such Selling Shareholder.
(xvi) The Selling Shareholder's Power of Attorney and Custody
Agreement executed and delivered by each Selling Shareholder is valid and
binding.
(xvii) The Underwriters (assuming that they are bona fide
purchasers within the meaning of the Uniform Commercial Code) have acquired good
and marketable title to the Shares being sold by each Selling Shareholder on the
Closing Date, and the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, free and clear of
all liens, encumbrances, equities and claims.
In rendering such opinion Xxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP may rely as
to matters governed by the laws of states other than Delaware or Federal laws
on local counsel in such jurisdictions and as to the matters set forth in
subparagraphs (xiii), (xiv) and (xv) on opinions of other counsel representing
the respective Selling Shareholders, provided that in each case Xxxxx &
Xxxxxxxxx, LLP shall state that they believe that they and the Underwriters are
justified in relying on such other counsel. In addition to the matters set forth
above, such opinion shall also include a statement to the effect that nothing
has come to the attention of such counsel which leads them to believe that (i)
the Registration Statement, at the time it became effective under the Act (but
after giving effect to any modifications incorporated therein pursuant to Rule
430A under the Act) and as of the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as
the case may be, contained an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to
state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the
statements therein not misleading, and (ii) the Prospectus, or any supplement
thereto, on the date it
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was filed pursuant to the Rules and Regulations and as of the Closing Date or
the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, contained an untrue statement of a
material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary in order to make the
statements, in the light of the circumstances under which they are made, not
misleading (except that such counsel need express no view as to financial
statements, schedules and statistical information therein). With respect to such
statement, Xxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP may state that their belief is based upon the
procedures set forth therein, but is without independent check and verification.
(c) The Representatives shall have received from Xxxxx,
Xxxxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP, counsel for the Underwriters, an opinion dated the
Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, substantially to
the effect specified in subparagraphs (ii), (iii), (iv) and (ix) of Paragraph
(b) of this Section 6, and that the Company is a duly organized and validly
existing corporation under the laws of the State of Delaware. In rendering
such opinion Xxxxx, Xxxxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP may rely as to all matters governed
other than by the laws of the State of Delaware or Federal laws on the opinion
of counsel referred to in Paragraph (b) of this Section 6. In addition to the
matters set forth above, such opinion shall also include a statement to the
effect that nothing has come to the attention of such counsel which leads them
to believe that (i) the Registration Statement, or any amendment thereto, as of
the time it became effective under the Act (but after giving effect to any
modifications incorporated therein pursuant to Rule 430A under the Act) as of
the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, contained an
untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required
to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading,
and (ii) the Prospectus, or any supplement thereto, on the date it was filed
pursuant to the Rules and Regulations and as of the Closing Date or the Option
Closing Date, as the case may be, contained an untrue statement of a material
fact or omitted to state a material fact, necessary in order to make the
statements, in the light of the circumstances under which they are made, not
misleading (except that such counsel need express no view as to financial
statements, schedules and statistical information therein). With respect to such
statement, Xxxxx, Xxxxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP may state that their belief is based
upon the procedures set forth therein, but is without independent check and
verification.
(d) The Representatives shall have received at or prior to
the Closing Date from Xxxxx, Xxxxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, LLP a memorandum or summary,
in form and substance satisfactory to the Representatives with respect to the
qualification for offering and sale by the Underwriters of the Shares under the
State securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives
may reasonably have designated to the Company.
(e) You shall have received, on each of the dates hereof, the
Closing Date and the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, a letter dated the
date hereof, the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be,
in form and substance satisfactory to you, of Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx LLP and Skoda,
Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxx & Co. confirming that they are independent public accountants
within the meaning of the Act and the applicable published Rules and
Regulations thereunder and stating that in their opinion the financial
statements and schedules examined by them and included in the Registration
Statement comply in form in all material respects with the applicable
accounting requirements of the Act and the related published Rules and
Regulations. The letter of Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx LLP shall contain such other
statements and information as is ordinarily included in
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accountants' "comfort letters" to Underwriters with respect to the financial
statements and certain financial and statistical information contained in the
Registration Statement and Prospectus.
(f) The Representatives shall have received on the Closing
Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, 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 or the Option Closing
Date, as the case may be, 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 Registrations
Statement has been issued, and no proceedings for such purpose have been taken
or are, to his knowledge, contemplated by the Commission;
(ii) The representations and warranties of the Company
contained in Section 1 hereof are true and correct as of the Closing Date or the
Option Closing Date, as the case may be;
(iii) All filings required to have been made pursuant to Rules
424 or 430A under the Act have been made;
(iv) He or she has carefully examined the Registration
Statement and the Prospectus and, in his or her opinion, as of the effective
date of the Registration Statement, the statements contained in the Registration
Statement were true and correct, and such Registration Statement and Prospectus
did not omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or 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; and
(v) Since the respective dates as of which information is
given in the Registration Statement and Prospectus, there has not been any
material adverse change or any development involving a prospective material
adverse change in or affecting the condition, financial or otherwise, of the
Company and its Subsidiaries taken as a whole or the earnings, 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.
(g) The Company and the Selling Shareholders shall have
furnished to the Representatives such further certificates and documents
confirming the representations and warranties, covenants and conditions
contained herein and related matters as the Representatives may reasonably have
requested.
(h) The Firm Shares and Option Shares, if any, have been
approved for designation upon notice of issuance on the Nasdaq National Market.
(i) The Lockup Agreements described in Section 4(x) are in
full force and effect.
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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 Representatives and to Xxxxx,
Xxxxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx, 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 Representatives by notifying the Company of such termination in writing
or by telegram at or prior to the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as
the case may be.
In such event, [the Selling Shareholders,] the Company and the
Underwriters shall not be under any obligation to each other (except to the
extent provided in Sections 5 and 8 hereof).
7. CONDITIONS OF THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE SELLERS.
---------------------------------------------
The obligations of the Sellers to sell and deliver the portion
of the Shares required to be delivered as and when specified in this Agreement
are subject to the conditions that at the Closing Date or the Option Closing
Date, as the case may be, no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the
Registration Statement shall have been issued and in effect or proceedings
therefor initiated or threatened.
8. INDEMNIFICATION.
----------------
(a) The Company agrees:
(1) to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter and each
person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of the
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, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement
thereto, (ii) 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) any act or failure to act,
or any alleged act or failure to act, by any Underwriter in connection
with, or relating in any manner to, the Shares or the offering
contemplated hereby, and which is included as part of or referred to in
any loss, claim, damage, liability or action arising out of or based
upon matters covered by clause (i) or (ii) above (PROVIDED, that the
Company shall not be liable under this clause (iii) to the extent that
it is determined in a final judgment by a court of competent
jurisdiction that such loss, claim, damage, liability or action
resulted directly from any such acts or failures to act undertaken or
omitted to be taken by such Underwriter through its gross negligence or
willful misconduct) PROVIDED, HOWEVER, that the Company 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
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untrue statement, or omission or alleged omission made in the
Registration Statement, any Preliminary 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
Representatives specifically for use in the preparation thereof. This
indemnity obligation will be in addition to any liability which the
Company may otherwise have.
(2) to reimburse each Underwriter 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 Shares, 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) The Selling Shareholders agree to indemnify the
Underwriters and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the
meaning of the Act, against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which
such Underwriter or controlling person may become subject under the Act or
otherwise to the same extent as indemnity is provided by the Company pursuant to
Section 8(a) above. In no event, however, shall the liability of any Selling
Shareholder for indemnification under this Section 8(b) exceed the proceeds
received by such Selling Shareholder from the Underwriters in the offering. This
indemnity obligation will be in addition to any liability which the Selling
Shareholders may otherwise have.
(c) Each Underwriter severally and not jointly will indemnify
and hold harmless the Company, each of its directors, each of its officers who
have signed the Registration Statement, the Selling Shareholders, and each
person, if any, who controls the Company or the Selling Shareholders within the
meaning of the Act, against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which
the Company or any such director, officer, Selling Shareholder 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 or are based upon (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue
statement of any material fact contained in the Registration Statement, any
Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto,
or (ii) the omission or the 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, Selling Shareholder 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, the Prospectus
or such amendment or supplement, in reliance upon and in conformity with written
information furnished to the Company by or through the Representatives
specifically for use in the preparation thereof. This indemnity agreement will
be in addition to any liability which such Underwriter may otherwise have.
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(d) 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 8, 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 8(a), (b) or (c) shall be available to
any party who shall fail to give notice as provided in this Section 8(d) 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 8(a), (b) or (c). 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 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
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 8(a) or (b) and by the Company and the Selling Shareholders in the case
of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 8(c). 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.
(e) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 8 is
unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under
Section 8(a), (b) or (c) 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
23
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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 Company and the Selling
Shareholders on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering
of the Shares. 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 Company and the Selling Shareholders 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 Company and the Selling
Shareholders 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 Company and the Selling Shareholders 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
Company or the Selling Shareholders 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 Company, the Selling Shareholders and the Underwriters
agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this
Section 8(e) 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 8(e). 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 8(e) shall be
deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such
indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action
or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (e), (i) no
Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the
underwriting discounts and commissions applicable to the Shares purchased by
such Underwriter, (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, and (iii) no
Selling Shareholder shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the
proceeds received by such Selling Shareholder from the Underwriters in the
offering. The Underwriters' obligations in this Section 8(e) to contribute are
several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not
joint.
(f) In any proceeding relating to the Registration Statement,
any Preliminary Prospectus, the Prospectus or any supplement or amendment
thereto, each party against whom contribution may be sought under this Section 8
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 him or it by any other contributing party and consents to the
service of such process and agrees that any other contributing party may join
him or it as an additional defendant in any such proceeding in which such other
contributing party is a party.
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(g) Any losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses for
which an indemnified party is entitled to indemnification or contribution under
this Section 8 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 8 and the
representations and warranties of the Company 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 or any person controlling
any Underwriter, the Company, its directors or officers or any persons
controlling the Company, (ii) acceptance of any Shares and payment therefor
hereunder, and (iii) any termination of this Agreement. A successor to any
Underwriter, or to the Company, its directors or officers, Selling Shareholders,
or any person controlling the Company, shall be entitled to the benefits of the
indemnity, contribution and reimbursement agreements contained in this Section
8.
9. DEFAULT BY UNDERWRITERS.
------------------------
If on the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case
may be, any Underwriter shall fail to purchase and pay for the portion of the
Shares 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 Company or a Selling
Shareholder), you, as Representatives 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 Company and the Selling
Shareholders such amounts as may be agreed upon and upon the terms set forth
herein, the Firm Shares or Option Shares, as the case may be, which the
defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters failed to purchase. If during such 36
hours you, as such Representatives, shall not have procured such other
Underwriters, or any others, to purchase the Firm Shares or Option Shares, as
the case may be, agreed to be purchased by the defaulting Underwriter or
Underwriters, then (a) if the aggregate number of shares with respect to which
such default shall occur does not exceed 10% of the Firm Shares or Option
Shares, as the case may be, covered hereby, the other Underwriters shall be
obligated, severally, in proportion to the respective numbers of Firm Shares or
Option Shares, as the case may be, which they are obligated to purchase
hereunder, to purchase the Firm Shares or Option Shares, as the case may be,
which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters failed to purchase, or (b) if
the aggregate number of shares of Firm Shares or Option Shares, as the case may
be, with respect to which such default shall occur exceeds 10% of the Firm
Shares or Option Shares, as the case may be, covered hereby, the Company or you
as the Representatives 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 Company or of the Selling Shareholders except to the
extent provided in Section 8 hereof. In the event of a default by any
Underwriter or Underwriters, as set forth in this Section 9, the Closing Date or
Option Closing Date, as the case may be, may be postponed for such period, not
exceeding seven days, as you, as Representatives, may determine in order that
the required changes in the Registration Statement 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 9 shall not relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability
in respect of any default of such Underwriter under this Agreement.
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10. 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 BT Alex. Xxxxx
Incorporated, Xxx Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxxx, Xxxxxxxx 00000, Attention:
___________________; with a copy to BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated, One Bankers
Trust Plaza, 000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: General
Counsel; if to the Company or the Selling Shareholders, to
Xxxxxx Xxxx
Chief Financial Officer
The MRC Group, Inc.
00000 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx, Xxxxx 000
Xxxxxxxxx, Xxxx 00000
with a copy to:
Xxxx X. Xxxxxxxx, Esq.
Xxxxx & Xxxxxxxxx LLP
3200 National City Center
0000 Xxxx 0xx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxxxx, Xxxx 00000-0000
11. TERMINATION.
------------
(a) This Agreement may be terminated by you by notice to the
Company at any time prior to the Closing Date if any of the following has
occurred: (i) since the respective dates as of which information is given in the
Registration Statement and the Prospectus, any material adverse change or any
development involving a prospective material adverse change in or affecting the
condition, financial or otherwise, of the Company and its Subsidiaries taken as
a whole or the earnings, business, management, properties, assets, rights,
operations, condition (financial or otherwise) or prospects of the Company and
its Subsidiaries taken as a whole, 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
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 reasonable judgment, make it
impracticable or inadvisable to market the Shares or to enforce contracts for
the sale of the Shares, or (iii) suspension of trading in securities generally
on the New York Stock Exchange or the American Stock Exchange or limitation on
prices (other than limitations on hours or numbers of days of trading) for
securities on either such Exchange, (iv) the enactment, publication, decree or
other promulgation of any statute, regulation, rule or order of any court or
other governmental authority which in your opinion materially and adversely
affects or may materially and adversely affect the business or operations of the
Company, (v) declaration of a banking moratorium by United States or New York
State authorities, (vi) any downgrading, or placement on any watch list for
possible downgrading, in the rating of the Company's debt securities by any
"nationally recognized statistical rating organization" (as defined for purposes
of Rule 436(g) under the Act); (vii) the suspension of trading of the Company's
common stock by the Nasdaq National Market, the Commission, or any other
governmental authority or, (viii) the taking of any action by any governmental
body or agency in respect of its monetary or fiscal affairs which in your
reasonable opinion has a material adverse effect on the securities markets in
the United States; or
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(b) as provided in Sections 6 and 9 of this Agreement.
12. SUCCESSORS.
-----------
This Agreement has been and is made solely for the benefit of
the Underwriters, the Company and the Selling Shareholders 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 Shares from
any Underwriter shall be deemed a successor or assign merely because of such
purchase.
13. INFORMATION PROVIDED BY UNDERWRITERS.
-------------------------------------
The Company, the Selling Shareholders and the Underwriters
acknowledge and agree that the only information furnished or to be furnished by
any Underwriter to the Company for inclusion in any Prospectus or the
Registration Statement consists of the information set forth in the last
paragraph on the front cover page (insofar as such information relates to the
Underwriters), legends required by Item 502(d) of Regulation S-K under the Act
and the information under the caption "Underwriting" in the Prospectus.
14. MISCELLANEOUS.
--------------
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 made by or on behalf of any
Underwriter or controlling person thereof, or by or on behalf of the Company or
its directors or officers and (c) delivery of and payment for the Shares under
this Agreement.
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.
This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed in
accordance with, the laws of the State of Maryland.
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 Selling Shareholders, the
Company and the several Underwriters in accordance with its terms.
Any person executing and delivering this Agreement as Attorney-in-Fact
for a Selling Shareholder represents by so doing that he has been duly appointed
as Attorney-in-Fact by such Selling Shareholder pursuant to a validly existing
and binding Power of Attorney which authorizes such Attorney-in-Fact to take
such action.
Very truly yours,
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THE MRC GROUP, INC.
By
------------------------------------------
Selling Shareholders listed on SCHEDULE II
By
------------------------------------------
Attorney in Fact
The foregoing Equity Underwriting Agreement
is hereby confirmed and accepted as
of the date first above written.
BT ALEX. XXXXX INCORPORATED
XXXXXXXXX, LUFKIN & XXXXXXXX SECURITIES CORPORATION
XXXXXXX XXXXX & COMPANY, L.L.C.
As Representatives of the several
Underwriters listed on SCHEDULE I
By: BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated
By:
-----------------------------------
Authorized Officer
28
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SCHEDULE I
SCHEDULE OF UNDERWRITERS
Number of Firm Shares
Underwriter to be Purchased
----------- ---------------
BT Alex. Xxxxx Incorporated
Xxxxxxxxx, Lufkin & Xxxxxxxx Securities Corporation
Xxxxxxx Xxxxx & Company, L.L.C.
---------------------
Total
=====================
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SCHEDULE II
SCHEDULE OF SELLING SHAREHOLDERS
Number of Maximum Number Percentage of
Firm Shares of Option Shares Total Number of
Selling Shareholder to be Purchased to be Sold Option Shares
------------------- --------------- ---------- -------------
-------------- ------------- -------------
Total
============== ============= =============
