THIS AGREEMENT CREATES IMPORTANT OBLIGATIONS THATARE BINDING, PLEASE READ IT IN FULL BEFORE YOU SIGN IT. EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT AND CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION, ASSIGNMENT OF INVENTIONS AND NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENT BETWEEN CRAIG THOMSON, of 4787 Amblewood...
Exhibit 10.1
THIS
AGREEMENT CREATES IMPORTANT OBLIGATIONS
THATARE
BINDING, PLEASE READ IT IN FULL BEFORE YOU
SIGN
IT.
AND
CONFIDENTIAL
INFORMATION, ASSIGNMENT OF INVENTIONS
AND
NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENT
BETWEEN
XXXXX
XXXXXXX, of 0000 Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxx,
Xxxxxxxx,
XX X0X 0X0
AND
BEANSTREAM
INTERNET COMMERCE INC., of
000-0000
Xxxxxxx Xx, Xxxxxxxx, XX X0X 0X0
AND
CONFIDENTIAL
INFORMATION, ASSIGNMENT OF INVENTIONS
AND
NON-COMPETITION AGREEMENT
This
Agreement is effective as of 1 December, 2006 (the
"Effective Date")
BETWEEN:
BEANSTREAM
INTERNET COMMERCE INC., of
000-0000
Xxxxxxx Xx, Xxxxxxxx, XX X0X 0X0
(“Beanstream”)
AND:
XXXXX
XXXXXXX, of 0000 Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxx,
Xxxxxxxx,
XX X0X 0X0
(the
“Employee”)
BACKGROUND
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(A)
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Beanstream
wishes to retain the services of the Employee as its President
and CEO,
and the Employee agrees to provide such services to Beanstream
based upon
the terms and conditions set out in this
Agreement.
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(B)
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The
Employee acknowledges and
recognizes:
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(i)
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that Beanstream
is engaged in the business of supplying electronic payment processing,
risk management and authentication
services;
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(ii)
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the
importance of protecting Beanstream’s rights to inventions, discoveries,
ideas and Confidential Information as defined in this agreement,
and any
other intellectual property rights;
and
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AGREEMENT
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THEREFORE
in consideration of the employment of the Employee and for other good and
valuable consideration which both parties acknowledge is sufficient, Beanstream
and the Employee agree as follows:
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1
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DEFINITIONS
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1.1
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In
this Agreement the following words and phrases shall have the following
meanings:
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(a)
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"Confidential
Information" shall mean all information which is of a
confidential or secret nature and which is related to the processing
of
electronic payments, risk management as it relates to the processing
of
these payments and electronic authentication services and related
processes of Beanstream without limitation includes information
relating
to Beanstream’s operations, methods of doing business, research and
development, formulae, specifications, methods, processes, trade
secrets,
computer programs, algorithms, finances and other information of
a
confidential or secret nature but which information does not include
(when
so proven):
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(i)
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information:
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(A)
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that
is within the public domain at the date of its disclosure to the
Employee
by Beanstream, or which thereafter enters the public domain through
no
fault of the Employee (but only after it becomes part of the public
domain),
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(B)
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which
the Employee can establish was already known to the Employee at
the date
of its disclosure to the Employee by Beanstream and is not then
subject to
any third party confidential
restrictions;
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(C)
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which,
following disclosure by Beanstream to the Employee, is received
by the
Employee from a third party who the Employee had no reason to believe
had
obtained that information unlawfully from Beanstream;
and
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(ii)
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the
general skills and general experience of the Employee gained during
the
Employee's employment with Beanstream, which the Employee can establish
that the Employee could reasonably have been expected to acquire
from
another company.
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The
Employee and Beanstream agree that the burden of proving that information,
skills or experience are not Confidential Information shall be on the party
asserting such exclusion.
-1-
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(b)
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"Duties"
are defined in section
2.2;
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(c)
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"Employment'
is defined in section 2.
1;
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(d)
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"Effective
Date" shall mean that date as defined on page
1;
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(e)
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"Innovations"
shall:
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(i)
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mean
any and all patents, trademarks, trade names, logos, industrial
designs,
trade secrets, computer programs, algorithms, processes, formulae,
data,
specialized know-how, improvements, innovations (whether patented
or not)
and specialized techniques, developed or produced, in all or in
part, in
the course the Employee's employment with Beanstream, including
those
Innovations which relate to, or result from, the actual or anticipated
business, work, research, or investigations of Beanstream, or in
any way
result from the use of Beanstream's premises or property;
and
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(ii)
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not
include any information which is proven (by the party asserting
such
exclusion) to be information which would be excepted from the definition
of Confidential Information;
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(f)
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"Public
Domain" shall:
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(i)
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mean
readily accessible to the public in a written publication including
over
the internet and other forms of
media
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(g)
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"Salary"
is defined in section 3. 1; and
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(h)
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"Territory"
shall mean the geographical areas of the United States and Canada
such
geographical areas exist at the date of execution of this
Agreement.
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2
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EMPLOYMENT
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2.1
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Beanstream
hereby employs the Employee from the Effective Date on the terms
and
conditions set out herein, and the Employee accepts such employment
(the
"Employment").
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2.2
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The
duties and responsibilities of the Employee shall be those designated
by
Beanstream from time to time and shall include those detailed in
the
attached Schedule "A" (the
"Duties").
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2.3
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The
Employee:
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(a)
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shall,
at all times, perform the Duties in a professional manner and at
the
location as designated by Beanstream from time to time;
and
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(b)
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hereby
represents and warrants that the Employee has the necessary skills
and
qualifications to complete the Duties at a level of expertise and
diligence which Beanstream could reasonably expect from an employee
completing similar duties,and in particular warrants the accuracy
and
truth of the representations contained in the Employee's written
job
application, resume, or curriculum
vitae.
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-2-
3
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COMPENSATION
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3.1
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Provided
the Employee's Employment with Beanstream has not been terminated,
Beanstream shall pay the Employee a base annual salary of
$135,000.00 dollars for full-time employment (the
"Salary"), commencing on the Effective
Date.
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3.2
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The
Salary will be paid in bi-weekly instalments on those dates as
designated
by Beanstream as payments dates.
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3.3
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The
Employee shall be entitled to participate in the Company group
benefits
plan. Beanstream may, in its sole and absolute discretion, alter
this plan
or change insurance carriers.
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3.4
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The
Employee shall be entitled to such vacation time as is agreed to
from time
to time by the Employee and Beanstream as being reasonable having
regard
to the Employee's Duties under this Agreement. Vacation time shall
be 15
days per year not including statutory
holidays.
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3.5
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The
Employee will be reimbursed for reasonable expense incurred during
the
course of conducting business for Beanstream. It is agreed that
Beanstream
will have the final authority to determine the proportion of the
Employee's expenses to be
reimbursed.
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3.6
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The
Employee shall be eligible for participation in the Beanstream
Stock
Option Plan.
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3.7
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The
Employee shall be entitled to an annual bonus of up to 35% of the
base
annual salary upon achievement of agreed upon milestones. These
milestones
shall be determined annually by the Board of Directors in its sole
and
absolute discretion.
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4
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CONFIDENTIAL
INFORMATION TO BE KEPT IN
CONFIDENCE
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4.1
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The
Employee acknowledges that the Confidential Information is a special,
valuable, and unique proprietary asset of Beanstream and Beanstream
acknowledges that the Confidential Information is largely the result
of
the work of the Employee, either directly or through supervision
and
direction of other employees. It is therefore agreed that,
during employment and for a period of six months after the employment
has
ended, the Employee shall.
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(a)
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keep
in confidence all Confidential
Information,
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(b)
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not
directly or indirectly use the Confidential Information,
and
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(c)
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not
directly or indirectly disclose any Confidential Information to
any person
or entity;except in the course of performing duties as an employee
of
Beanstream and with the written consent of Beanstream. It is
further agreed that following a one year period after the employment
has
ended, the Employee shall owe no duties to Beanstream beyond those
arising
out of those patents, trade marks, industrial designs, copyrights
owned or
registered in favour of Beanstream,
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4.2
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During
the Employment, the Employee shall abide by Beanstream's policies
and
regulations, as established from time to time by the management
team, for
the protection of the Confidential
Information.
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-3-
4.3
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This
prohibition against the Employee's disclosure of Confidential Information
includes, but is not limited to, disclosing the fact that any similarity
exists between the Confidential Information and the information
independently developed by another person or entity, and the Employee
understands that such similarity does not excuse the Employee from
abiding
by the Employee's obligations under this
Agreement.
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5
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INNOVATIONS
PROPERTY OF BEANSTREAM
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5.1
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The
Employee.
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(a)
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acknowledges
and agrees that all Innovations, including all domestic and foreign
intellectual property rights associated with the Innovations, shall
be the
sole property of Beanstream (or any other entity designated by
Beanstream);
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(b)
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hereby;
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(i)
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assigns
to Beanstream, the Employee's entire right, title and interest
in and to
all Innovations., and
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(ii)
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waives
any moral rights which may have accrued to the Employee;
and
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(c)
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shall:
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(i)
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co-operate
and assist Beanstream, at Beanstream expense, to obtain and maintain
for
Beanstream's benefit, patents or other forms of intellectual property
protection, all of which intellectual property rights shall belong
to
Beanstream;
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(ii)
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execute
(or cause to be executed) all documentation as reasonably requested
by
Beanstream to give effect to this Agreement;
and
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(iii)
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make
and maintain adequate and current written records in the form of
notes,
sketches, drawings or reports relating to the Innovations, which
records
shall be, and remain the property of, and available to, Beanstream
at all
times and be returned to Beanstream upon termination of the Employment
except where there is a joint patent or letter of
invention.
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6
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NON-COMPETITION
AND NON-SOLICITATION
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6.1 During
the period of the Employment by Beanstream and for a period of one year after
any termination of the Employment, the Employee shall, not.without the prior
written consent of Beanstream, directly or indirectly do any one or more
of the
following in the Territory:
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(a)
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be
retained or employed by, engaged in, assist in any way, or have
a
financial or other interest in, any business or other entity whose
business is, in any way, electronic payment processing, risk management
as
it relates to this processing, electronic authentication services;
or
payment risk management services.
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(b)
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solicit,
entice or persuade any:
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(i)
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customer,
client, or industry or marketing partner, to cease doing business
with
Beanstream or to do business with any competitor of Beanstream
or
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(ii)
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employee,
consultant or other retained person of Beanstream to terminate
with
Beanstream.
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-4-
6.2
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The
Employee and Beanstream agree and confirm
that:
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(a)
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the
provisions of this non-competition and non-solicitation covenant
are:
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(i)
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necessary
and fundamental for the protection of Beanstream's business;
and
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(ii)
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are
reasonable for the parties and are not an absolute restriction
on the
future ability of the Employee to be employed or conduct
business;
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(b)
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although
Beanstream's business is global in nature, the non-competition
and non
solicitation covenant has been reduced to the smaller territory
of the
Territory and that no smaller territory or shorter time period
of
restriction would be adequate or reasonable to protect Beanstream
;
and
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6.3
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Provided
that the Employee continues to comply with the confidentiality
obligations
of this Agreement, nothing in this Agreement shall prevent the
Employee
from:
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(a)
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holding,
as a passive investor, up to 10% of the outstanding publicly traded
shares
(or other securities) of any class of any competitive corporation;
or
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(b)
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after
any termination of the Employment, being employed, directly or
indirectly,
by any company which is not in competition with
Beanstream.
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6.4
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Subject
to subsection 6.5, if the Employee is in doubt as to what activities
or
entitles would be considered to be in contravention of this
non-competition and non-solicitation section, the Employee may
request
consent from Beanstream to engage in a specific activity or with
a certain
entity and, without limiting the discretion of Beanstream for the
purpose
of granting consent, Beanstream may grant consent if the Employee
proves
to Beanstream that the products offered by the other business or
entity do
not, or the entity itself does not, directly or indirectly, compete
with
Beanstream's products, or with Beanstream, and such products do
not have
similar functional or performance specifications to Beanstream's
products.
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6.5
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Consent
to engage in a specific activity or with a specific entity shall
not be
considered to be consent to engage in any other activity or with
any other
entity, unless additional consent is obtained from Beanstream by
the
Employee.
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6.6
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The
Employee acknowledges that nothing in this non-competition and
non-solicitation section shall limit, in any way, the Employee's
obligations of confidentiality under this
Agreement.
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-5-
7
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EMPLOYEE
BOUND BY SEPARATE
COVENANTS
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7.1
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The
Employee and Beanstream agree that the intent of the non-competition
and
non-solicitation obligations in this Agreement shall be construed
as a
series of separate covenants, one for each province, state, territory
and
region of the Territory (individually called a "Separate Covenant",
and
collectively called the "Separate
Covenants").
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7.2
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Except
for geographical coverage, each Separate Covenant shall be deemed
to
contain identical provisions, including
duration.
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7.3
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Each
of the
parties acknowledges and agrees that the Separate Covenants (and
the
time and territorial restrictions therein) are reasonably
required
for the protection of Beanstream and enable the Employee to be
employed.
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7.4
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If
in any judicial proceeding (or other similar proceeding), a Court
of
competent jurisdiction (or other governing body) shall refuse to
enforce
any one or more of the Separate Covenants (or any part thereof),
then such
unenforceable covenant (or part thereof) shall be deemed eliminated
from
this Agreement only for the purpose of those proceedings and only
to the
extent necessary to permit the remaining Separate Covenants (or
portions
thereof) to be enforced.
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7.5
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Without
limiting section 7.4, but for clarification, in the event that
the
provisions of this non-competition and non-solicitation clause
should ever
be determined by a Court (or other similar proceeding) to exceed
the time
limitations permitted by applicable law, then such provisions shall
be
reformed to extend to the maximum time permitted by such determining
Court
and applicable laws applied by such
Court.
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7.6
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Beanstream
and the Employee agree that any modification to this Agreement
by a Court
(or other governing body) with respect to territorial or time limitation
shall not be considered to be a "re-drafting" of this agreement,
but
merely an interpretation of the explicit terms of this Agreement
which
show the intent of the parties. Further, any such modification
or interpretation by such a Court shall only apply within the jurisdiction
of such Court.
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8
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TRADEMARKS
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8.1
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Unless
otherwise agreed to in writing between Beanstream and the Employee,
the
Employee shall not make any written use of or reference to Beanstream's
name or trademarks (or any name under which Beanstream does business)
for
any marketing, public relations, advertising, display or other
business
purpose or make any use of Beanstream's facilities for any activity
unrelated to the express business purposes and interests of Beanstream
under this Agreement, without the prior written consent of Beanstream,
which consent may be withheld or granted in Beanstream's sole and
absolute
discretion.
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-6-
9
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TERMINATION
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9.1
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The
Employment under this Agreement may be terminated by the Employee
or by
Beanstream, at any time, upon notice in writing to the other party,
provided that such notice complies with the then existent statutory
notice
requirements in British Columbia,
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9.2
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The
Employee and Beanstream acknowledge that the Employment may be
terminated
pursuant to this Agreement but any such termination shall not terminate
this Agreement. For clarification, but without limitation, the
Employee acknowledges that Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, and
12 of this
Agreement remain binding on the Employee upon any termination of
the
Employment.
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9.3
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Notwithstanding
section 9.1, if Beanstream gives the Employee notice of termination
without cause, Beanstream hereby agrees to pay to the Employee
an amount
equal to six months of the then existing annual salary of the Employee,
regardless of the amount of notice actually given to the employee
pursuant
to statute and regardless of the amount of time worked by the Employee
after such notice is so given by Beanstream, except in the case
of a
merger or acquisition of Beanstream in which case the equivalent
of one
year of their existing salary should be paid in lieu of
notice. The Employee hereby agrees that any amount due and
payable to the Employee pursuant to section 9.1 shall be included,
and not
in addition, to the amount payable pursuant to this section
9.3.
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10
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RETURN
MATERIALS AT TERMINATION
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10.1
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In
the event of any termination of this Employment the Employee
shall:
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(a)
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promptly
deliver to Beanstream, all documents, data, records, and other
information
relating in any way to the Employee's employment, including all
Confidential Information; and
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(b)
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not
retain any documents or data, or any reproduction or excerpt of
any
documents or data, containing or pertaining to any Confidential
Information.
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11 INJUNCTION
11.1
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The
Employee agrees that:
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(a)
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it
would be difficult to measure damage to Beanstream from any breach
by the
Employee of the promises set forth in sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10,
and 12
herein;
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(b)
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the
injury to Beanstream from any such breach would be impossible to
calculate; and
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(c)
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that
money damages would therefore be inadequate remedy for such
breach.
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11.2
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Accordingly,
the Employee agrees that if the Employee breaches any provisions of
sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 12, Beanstream shall be entitled,
in
addition to all other remedies it may have, to an injunction or
other
appropriate order to remain any breach or continuation of such
breach by
the Employee, without Beanstream being required to show or prove
any
actual damage sustained by
Beanstream.
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-7-
12
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COMMON
LAW OBLIGATIONS OF
CONFIDENTIALITY
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12.1
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Nothing
in this Agreement shall restrict the duty imposed on the Employee
by
common law to maintain the confidentiality of the Confidential
Information.
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13
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GENERAL
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13.1
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Beanstream
shall be entitled to make any deductions from the Salary, which
Beanstream
is obliged to make pursuant to the Income Tax Act (Canada) (or
other
similar legislation) prior to paying the Employee the
Salary. Beanstream will forward any amount so deducted to the
appropriate government authority.
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13.2
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If
any provision of this Agreement is wholly or partially declared
unenforceable by a Court of competent jurisdiction, for any reason,
such
unenforceability shall not affect the enforceability of the balance
of
this Agreement, and all provisions of this Agreement shall, if
alternative
interpretations are applicable, be construed as to preserve the
enforceability hereof, and such unenforceable provision (or part
thereof)
shall be unenforceable only to the extent determined by such Court
and
only in the jurisdiction of such
Court.
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13.3
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The
obligations under this Agreement shall be binding upon the Employee
whether or not the Employee's employment is terminated for any
reason and
whether or not for cause.
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13.4
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This
Agreement constitute the entire agreement of the parties, including
the
terms with respect to Employee's confidentiality and non-disclosure
obligations, and shall only be altered by mutual written agreement
of the
parties.
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13.5
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This
Agreement shall be effective from the commencement of the, Employee's
employment notwithstanding the date of the execution of this
Agreement.
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This
Agreement shall be governed in accordance with the laws of British Columbia
and
the federal laws of Canada applicable therein, and all disputes under this
Agreement shall be held in a Court of competent jurisdiction in Victoria,
British Columbia.
14.
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SALE
OR REDEMPTION OF SHARES
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14.1
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In
the event that the employment of the Employee is terminated by
Beanstream,
the Employee may, by notice in writing to Beanstream, elect to
sell all or
any part of the shares held by the Employee, and if such election
is made
by the Employee, Beanstream will purchase the shares, on the following
terms and conditions:
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(a)
|
The
Employee shall make his election to sell within three months of
receiving
notice of termination.
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(b)
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Beanstream
shall purchase the shares at the price for which shares were last
sold
from Treasury.
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(c)
|
The
Employee shall surrender the share certificates on completion of
the
purchase by Beanstream.
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-8-
The
Employee acknowledges that the Employee:
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(a)
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has
had time to review this Agreement;
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(b)
|
fully
understands the contents of this Agreement;
and
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(c)
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has
had the opportunity of obtaining legal advice concerning the
Agreement's interpretation and effect on the
Employee.
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In
witness whereof, the parties execute this Agreement effective the Effective
Date,
BEANSTREAM
INTERNET COMMERCE INC.
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|
PER:
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx
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December
1, 2006
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|
DATE
OF EXECUTION
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/s/
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx
|
|
SIGNATURE
OF EMPLOYEE
|
|
December
1, 2006
|
|
DATE
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|
Xxxxx
Xxxxx
|
|
WITNESS
AS TO THE SIGNATURE
OF THE
EMPLOYEE
|
WITNESS
|
Xxxxx
Xxxxx
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|
NAME
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0000
Xxxxxxxxx Xx.
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XXXXXXX
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Xxxxxxxx
XX X0X 0X0
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|
-9-
APPENDIX
A
Job
Description
The
role
of the CEO is to implement the strategic goals of the organization. The CEO
is
to provide direction and leadership toward the achievement of the organization’s
philosophy, mission, strategy, and its annual goals and objectives.
The
CEO
reports to the Board of Directors and is responsible for the following major
functions:
|
1.
|
Board
administration and support. The CEO supports operations and administration
of the Board by advising and informing Board members, interfacing
between
Board and staff, and supporting the Board’s evaluation of the
CEO.
|
|
2.
|
Program,
product and service delivery. The CEO oversees design, marketing,
promotion, delivery and quality of programs and services offered
by the
Company.
|
|
3.
|
Financial,
tax, risk and facilities management. The CEO recommends a strategic
plan
for yearly Board approval and prudently manages the organizations
resources within those guidelines and current laws and
regulations.
|
|
4.
|
Human
resources management. The CEO effectively manages the human resources
of
the organization according to Company policies and procedures that
fully
conform to BC laws and regulations.
|
|
5.
|
Community
and public relations. The CEO assures the organization and its
mission,
programs, and services are consistently presented in a strong,
positive
image to relevant stakeholders.
|