EXHIBIT 10.27
FORM OF INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT
This Agreement is made as of the _______ day of _____________ 2000, by and
between Vicinity Corporation, a Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and the
undersigned prospective [Officer/Director] of the Company, ___________________
(the "Indemnitee"), with reference to the following facts:
Recitals
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The Indemnitee is willing, under certain circumstances, to serve as an
[Officer/Director] of the Company. The Indemnitee has indicated that he does
not regard the indemnities available under the Company's Bylaws as adequate to
protect him against the risks associated with his service to the Company. In
this connection, the Company and the Indemnitee now agree that they should enter
into this Indemnification Agreement in order to provide greater protection to
Indemnitee against such risks of service to the Company.
Section 145 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, under
which Law the Company is organized, empowers corporations to indemnify a person
serving as a director, officer, employee or agent of the Company and a person
who serves at the request of the Company as a director, officer, employee or
agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, or other
enterprise, and said Section 145 and the Bylaws of the Company specify that the
indemnification set forth in said Section 145 and in the Bylaws, respectively,
shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking
indemnification may be entitled under any Bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders
or disinterested directors or otherwise.
Agreement
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In order to induce the Indemnitee to serve as a[n] [Officer/Director] of
the Company and in consideration of his continued service, the Company hereby
agrees, as of the date first set forth above, to indemnify the Indemnitee as
follows:
1. Indemnity. The Company will indemnify the Indemnitee, his executors,
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administrators or assigns, for any Expenses (as defined below) which the
Indemnitee is or becomes legally obligated to pay in connection with any
Proceeding. As used in this Agreement the term "Proceeding" shall include any
threatened, pending or completed claim, action, suit or proceeding, whether
brought by or in the right of the Company or otherwise and whether of a civil,
criminal, administrative or investigative nature, in which the Indemnitee may be
or may have been involved as a party or otherwise, by reason of the fact that
Indemnitee is or was, or has agreed to become, a director or officer of the
Company, by reason of any actual or alleged error or misstatement or misleading
statement made or suffered by the Indemnitee, by reason of any action taken by
him or of any inaction on his part while acting as such director or officer, or
by reason of the fact that he was serving at the request of the Company as a
director, trustee, officer, employee or agent of the Company or another
corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise; provided,
that in each such case Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner which he
reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the
Company, and,
in the case of a criminal proceeding, in addition had no reasonable cause to
believe that his conduct was unlawful. As used in this Agreement, the term
"other enterprise" shall include (without limitation) employee benefit plans and
administrative committees thereof, and the term "fines" shall include (without
limitation) any excise tax assessed with respect to any employee benefit plan.
2. Expenses. As used in this Agreement, the term "Expenses" shall include
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(without limitation) damages, judgments, fines, penalties, settlements and
costs, attorneys' fees and disbursements and costs of attachment or similar
bonds, investigations, and any expenses of establishing a right to
indemnification under this Agreement.
3. Enforcement. If a claim or request under this Agreement is not paid
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by the Company, or on its behalf, within thirty days after a written claim or
request has been received by the Company, the Indemnitee may at any time
thereafter bring suit against the Company to recover the unpaid amount of the
claim or request and if successful in whole or in part, the Indemnitee shall be
entitled to be paid also the Expenses of prosecuting such suit. The Company
shall have the right to recoup from the Indemnitee the amount of any item or
items of Expenses theretofore paid by the Company pursuant to this Agreement, to
the extent such Expenses are not reasonable in nature or amounts; provided,
however, that the Company shall have the burden of proving such Expenses to be
unreasonable. The burden of proving that the Indemnitee is not entitled to
indemnification for any other reason shall be upon the Company.
4. Subrogation. In the event of payment under this Agreement, the Company
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shall be subrogated to the extent of such payment to all of the rights of
recovery of the Indemnitee, who shall execute all papers required and shall do
everything that may be necessary to secure such rights, including the execution
of such documents necessary to enable the Company effectively to bring suit to
enforce such rights.
5. Exclusions. The Company shall not be liable under this Agreement to
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pay any Expenses in connection with any claim made against the Indemnitee:
(a) to the extent that payment is actually made to the Indemnitee under
a valid, enforceable and collectible insurance policy;
(b) to the extent that the Indemnitee is indemnified and actually paid
otherwise than pursuant to this Agreement;
(c) in connection with a judicial action by or in the right of the
Company, in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which the Indemnitee
shall have been adjudged to be liable for negligence or misconduct in the
performance of his duty to the Company unless and only to the extent that any
court in which such action was brought shall determine upon application that,
despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of
the case, the Indemnitee is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such
expenses as such court shall deem proper;
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(d) if it is proved by final judgment in a court of law or other final
adjudication to have been based upon or attributable to the Indemnitee's in fact
having gained any personal profit or advantage to which he was not legally
entitled;
(e) for a disgorgement of profits made from the purchase and sale by
the Indemnitee of securities pursuant to Section 16(b) of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 and amendments thereto or similar provisions of any state
statutory law or common law;
(f) brought about or contributed to by the dishonesty of the Indemnitee
seeking payment hereunder; however, notwithstanding the foregoing, the
Indemnitee shall be protected under this Agreement as to any claims upon which
suit may be brought against him by reason of any alleged dishonesty on his part,
unless a judgment or other final adjudication thereof adverse to the Indemnitee
shall establish that he committed (i) acts of active and deliberate dishonesty,
(ii) with actual dishonest purpose and intent, (iii) which acts were material to
the cause of action so adjudicated; or
(g) for any judgment, fine or penalty which the Company is prohibited
by applicable law from paying as indemnity or for any other reason.
6. Indemnification of Expenses of Successful Party. Notwithstanding any
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other provision of this Agreement, to the extent that the Indemnitee has been
successful on the merits or otherwise in defense of any Proceeding or in defense
of any claim, issue or matter therein, including dismissal without prejudice,
Indemnitee shall be indemnified against any and all Expenses incurred in
connection therewith.
7. Partial Indemnification. If the Indemnitee is entitled under any
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provision of this Agreement to indemnification by the Company for some or a
portion of Expenses, but not, however, for the total amount thereof, the Company
shall nevertheless indemnify the Indemnitee for the portion of such Expenses to
which the Indemnitee is entitled.
8. Advance of Expenses. Expenses incurred by the Indemnitee in
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connection with any Proceeding, except the amount of any settlement, shall be
paid by the Company in advance upon request of the Indemnitee that the Company
pay such Expenses. The Indemnitee hereby undertakes to repay to the Company the
amount of any Expenses theretofore paid by the Company to the extent that it is
ultimately determined that such Expenses were not reasonable or that the
Indemnitee is not entitled to indemnification.
9. Approval of Expenses. No Expenses for which indemnity shall be sought
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under this Agreement, other than those in respect of judgments and verdicts
actually rendered, shall be incurred without the prior consent of the Company,
which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld.
10. Notice of Claim. The Indemnitee, as a condition precedent to his
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right to be indemnified under this Agreement, shall give to the Company notice
in writing as soon as practicable of any claim made against him for which
indemnity will or could be sought under this Agreement. Notice to the Company
shall be given at its principal office and shall be directed
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to the Corporate Secretary (or such other address as the Company shall designate
in writing to the Indemnitee); notice shall be deemed received if sent by
prepaid mail properly addressed, the date of such notice being the date
postmarked. In addition, the Indemnitee shall give the Company such information
and cooperation as it may reasonably require and as shall be within the
Indemnitee's power.
11. Exception to Right of Indemnification. Notwithstanding any other
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provision of this Agreement, the Indemnitee shall not be entitled to
indemnification under this Agreement with respect to any Proceeding brought by
the Indemnitee, or any claim thereon, unless (a) the bringing of such Proceeding
or making of such claim shall have been approved by the Board of Directors of
the Company or (b) such Proceeding is being brought by the Indemnitee to assert,
interpret or enforce the Indemnitee's rights under this Agreement.
12. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in any number of
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counterparts, all of which taken together shall constitute one instrument.
13. Indemnification Hereunder Not Exclusive. Nothing herein shall be
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deemed to diminish or otherwise restrict the Indemnitee's right to
indemnification under any provision of the Certificate of Incorporation or
Bylaws of the Company and amendments thereto or under law.
14. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in
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accordance with Delaware law, without regard to the conflicts of law provisions
thereof.
15. Saving Clause. Wherever there is conflict between any provision of
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this Agreement and any applicable present or future statute, law or regulation
contrary to which the Company and the Indemnitee have no legal right to
contract, the latter shall prevail, but in such event the affected provisions of
this Agreement shall be curtailed and restricted only to the extent necessary to
bring them within applicable legal requirements.
16. Coverage. The provisions of this Agreement shall apply with respect
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to the Indemnitee's service as a prospective [Officer/Director] of the Company
prior to the date of this Agreement and with respect to all periods of such
service after the date of this Agreement, even though the Indemnitee may have
ceased to be a[n] [Officer/Director] of the Company.
(Signature Page Follows)
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be
duly executed and signed as of the day and year first above written.
VICINITY CORPORATION
By________________________________
Authorized Officer
"INDEMNITEE"
________________________________
Name:
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