Document8X8, INC.
2022 EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN
1.Purpose
This Plan is intended to encourage ownership of Stock by employees, consultants and directors of the Company and its Affiliates and to provide additional incentive for them to promote the success of the Company’s business through the grant of Awards of or pertaining to shares of the Company’s Stock.
2.Definitions
As used in the Plan, the following terms shall have the respective meanings set out below, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
2.1Accountants shall have the meaning set forth in Section 8.3(d) herein.
2.2Affiliate means any corporation, partnership, limited liability company, business trust, or other entity controlling, controlled by or under common control with the Company.
2.3Applicable Laws means the requirements relating to the administration of equity-based awards under U.S. state corporate laws, U.S. federal and state securities laws, the Code, any stock exchange or quotation system on which the Stock is listed or quoted and the applicable laws of any non-U.S. country or jurisdiction where Awards are, or will be, granted under the Plan.
2.4Applicable Ratio shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.1(a) herein.
2.5Award means any grant or sale pursuant to the Plan of Options, Stock Appreciation Rights, Performance Units, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, or Stock Grants.
2.6Award Agreement means an agreement between the Company and the recipient of an Award, or other notice of grant of an Award, setting forth the terms and conditions of the Award.
2.7Board means the Company’s Board of Directors.
2.8Board Approval Time means 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time on the date the Plan is adopted by the Board.
2.9Change in Control means the consummation of any of the following corporate transactions: (i) an acquisition in one or more related transactions of 45% or more of the Company’s common stock or voting securities by a “person” (as defined in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act, but excluding the Company, any employee benefit plan of the Company and any corporation controlled by the Company’s stockholders) or multiple “persons” acting as a group; (ii) a complete liquidation or dissolution of the Company; (iii) a sale, transfer or other disposition of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets; or (iv) a merger, consolidation or reorganization (collectively, a “Business Combination”) other than a Business Combination in which (x) the stockholders of the Company receive 50% or more of the stock of the corporation resulting from the Business Combination or (y) at least a majority of the board of directors of such resulting corporation were incumbent directors of the Company immediately prior to the consummation of the Business Combination or (z) after which no individual, entity or group (excluding any corporation or other entity resulting from the Business Combination or any employee benefit plan of such corporation or of the Company) who did not own 45% or more of the stock of the resulting corporation or other entity immediately before the Business Combination owns 45% or more of the stock of such resulting corporation or other entity.
2.10Code means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, or any successor statute thereto, and any regulations issued from time to time thereunder.
2.11Committee means the Compensation Committee of the Board, which in general is responsible for the administration of the Plan, as provided in Section 5 herein. For any period during which no such committee is in existence, “Committee” shall mean the Board or any committee of the Board to which the Board delegates such
authority and responsibility in its sole discretion, and all authority and responsibility assigned to the Committee under the Plan shall be exercised, if at all, by the Board or such delegate, as applicable.
2.12Company means 8x8, Inc., a corporation organized under the laws of the state of Delaware.
2.13Consultant means any natural person, other than an Employee or Non-Employee Director, engaged by the Company or an Affiliate to render services to such entity if the person: (i) renders bona fide services to the Company or the Affiliate; and (ii) renders services not in connection with the offer or sale of securities in a capital-raising transaction and does not directly or indirectly promote or maintain a market for the Company’s or any of its Affiliates’ securities.
2.14Contingent Award shall have the meaning set forth in Section 3 herein.
2.15Director means a member of the Board.
2.16Disability means total and permanent disability as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.
2.17Effective Date means the date the Plan is initially approved by the stockholders of the Company.
2.18Employee means any person, including Officers and Directors, employed by the Company or any Affiliate. Neither service as a Director nor payment of a director’s fee will be sufficient to constitute “employment.”
2.19Exchange Act means the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
2.20Exchange Program means a program under which (i) outstanding Awards are surrendered or cancelled in exchange for Awards of the same type (which may have higher or lower exercise prices and different terms), Awards of a different type, and/or cash, and/or (ii) the exercise price of an outstanding Award is reduced. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term Exchange Program does not include any action described in Section 6.4 or Section 8 and does not to apply to “issuing or assuming a stock option in a transaction to which Section 424(a) applies” within the meaning of Section 424 of the Code.
2.21Excise Tax means the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code.
2.22Grant Date means the date as of which an Option is granted, as determined under Section 7.1(a).
2.23Incentive Option means an Option which by its terms is to be treated as an “incentive stock option” within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code.
2.24Market Value means the value of a share of Stock on a particular date determined by such methods or procedures as may be established by the Committee. Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, the Market Value of Stock as of any date is: (i) the closing price for the Stock as reported on the New York Stock Exchange (or on any other national securities exchange on which the Stock is then listed) for that date or, if no closing price is reported for that date, the closing price on the last date for which a closing price was reported prior to such date; or (ii) if the Stock is not traded on a national securities exchange but is traded over-the-counter, the closing or last price of the Stock on the composite tape or other comparable reporting system on that date or, if such date is not a trading day, the last market trading day prior to such date.
2.25Non-Employee Director means a Director who is not an Employee.
2.26Nonstatutory Option means any Option that is not an Incentive Option.
2.27Officer means a person who is an officer of the Company within the meaning of Section 16 of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder (or any successor law or rule).
2.28Option means an option to purchase shares of Stock.
2.29Optionee means an eligible individual to whom an Option shall have been granted under the Plan.
2.30Parent means a “parent corporation,” whether now or hereafter existing, as defined in Section 424(e) of the Code.
2.31Participant means any holder of an outstanding Award under the Plan.
2.32Performance-Based Award means an Award that is earned or becomes vested on account of achievement of one or more Performance Goals.
2.33Performance Goals means the performance goals determined by the Committee in its discretion to be applicable to an Award.
2.34Performance Period means the one or more periods of time, which may be of varying and overlapping durations, selected by the Committee, over which the attainment of one or more Performance Goals will be measured for purposes of determining a Participant’s right to, and the payment of, a Performance Unit or other Performance-Based Award.
2.35Performance Unit means a right granted to a Participant under Section 7.5, to receive cash, Stock or other Awards, the payment of which is contingent on achieving Performance Goals established by the Committee.
2.36Plan means the 8x8 Inc. 2022 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended from time to time, including any attachments or addenda hereto.
2.37Prior Award means, individually or collectively, a grant under the Prior Plan of Options, Stock Appreciation Rights, Performance Units, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, or Stock Grants.
2.38Prior Plan means the 8x8 Inc. Amended and Restated 2012 Equity Incentive Plan, and including any attachments or addenda thereto.
2.39Prior Plan Expiration Time means 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time on June 22, 2022.
2.40Restricted Stock means a grant or sale of shares of Stock to a Participant subject to a Risk of Forfeiture.
2.41Restricted Stock Unit means a right to receive Stock at the close of a Restriction Period, subject to a Risk of Forfeiture.
2.42Restriction Period means the period of time, established by the Committee in connection with an Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units, during which the shares of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units are subject to a Risk of Forfeiture described in the applicable Award Agreement.
2.43Risk of Forfeiture means a limitation on the right of the Participant to retain Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units, including a right of the Company to reacquire shares of Restricted Stock at less than their then Market Value, arising because of the occurrence or non-occurrence of specified events or conditions.
2.44Section 409A shall have the meaning set forth in Section 19 herein.
2.45Service Provider means an Employee, Non-Employee Director or Consultant.
2.46Stock means common stock, par value $0.001 per share, of the Company, and such other securities as may be substituted for Stock pursuant to Section 8.
2.47Stock Appreciation Right or SAR means a right to receive any excess in the Market Value of shares of Stock (except as otherwise provided in Section 7.2(c)) over a specified exercise price.
2.48Stock Grant means the grant of shares of Stock not subject to restrictions or other forfeiture conditions.
2.49Stock Right means an Award in the form of an Option or a Stock Appreciation Right.
2.50Substitute Award means Awards granted or shares of Stock issued by the Company in assumption of, or in substitution or exchange for, awards previously granted, or the right or obligation to make future awards, in each case by a company or other entity acquired by the Company or any Affiliate or with which the Company or any Affiliate combines.
2.51Successor means, in the event of a Change in Control, the acquiring or succeeding company (or an affiliate thereof).
2.52Ten Percent Owner means a person who owns, or is deemed within the meaning of Section 422(b)(6) of the Code to own, stock possessing more than 10% of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the Company (or any parent or subsidiary corporations of the Company, as defined in Sections 424(e) and (f), respectively, of the Code). Whether a person is a Ten Percent Owner shall be determined with respect to an Option based on the facts existing immediately prior to the Grant Date of the Option.
2.53Total Authorized Shares shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.1 herein.
3.Term of the Plan; Stockholder Approval; Successor to Prior Plan
Unless the Plan shall have been earlier terminated by the Board, Awards may be granted under the Plan at any time during the period commencing on the date the Plan is adopted by the Board and ending on the tenth anniversary of the date the Plan is adopted by the Board. Awards granted pursuant to the Plan within that period shall not expire solely by reason of the termination of the Plan. Any Awards granted prior to stockholder approval of the Plan (“Contingent Awards”) are hereby expressly conditioned upon such stockholder approval.
The Plan will be subject to approval by the stockholders of the Company within twelve (12) months after the date the Plan is adopted by the Board. Such stockholder approval will be obtained in the manner and to the degree required under Applicable Laws.
The Plan is intended as the successor to the Prior Plan. The Plan shall take effect on the Effective Date. No additional awards may be granted under the Prior Plan following its expiration on June 22, 2022. In addition, from and after 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time on the Effective Date, all outstanding awards granted under the Prior Plan will remain subject to the terms of the Prior Plan. All Awards granted on or after 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time on the Effective Date and all Contingent Awards will be subject to the terms of the Plan.
4.Stock Subject to the Plan
4.1.Shares of Stock Subject to the Plan. Subject to adjustment as provided in Section 8 herein, the maximum number of shares of Stock reserved for the grant of Awards under the Plan (“Total Authorized Shares”) shall be equal to the sum of: (i) 8,000,000 shares of Stock, plus (ii) the number of shares of Stock subject to Options granted under the Prior Plan that are outstanding as of the Prior Plan Expiration Time, but only to the extent such Options expire, terminate, are cancelled without having been exercised in full or are settled in cash after the Prior Plan Expiration Time without the delivery of shares of Stock, plus (iii) the number of shares of Stock subject to Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, and Performance Units granted under the Prior Plan that are outstanding as of the Prior Plan Expiration Time, but only to the extent such awards are forfeited by the holder, are reacquired by the Company at less than their then Market Value as a means of effecting a forfeiture, or are settled in cash after the Prior Plan Expiration Time without the delivery of shares of Stock to the holder (in each case, with each such share referenced in this prong (iii) increasing the shares of Stock available for issuance under the Plan by the “Applicable Ratio”, as defined below), provided that in no event shall the Total Authorized Shares exceed 24,976,465 shares of Stock (which is the sum of (1) the 8,000,000 shares set forth above, plus (2) the number of shares of Stock that remain available under the Prior Plan for additional award grant purposes as of the Board Approval Time, plus (3) the aggregate number of shares of Stock subject to Options previously granted and outstanding under the Prior Plan as of the Board Approval Time plus (4) the Applicable Ratio times the aggregate number of shares of Stock subject to Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, and Performance Units previously granted and outstanding under the Prior Plan as of the Board Approval Time). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein except adjustments in accordance with Section 8, no more than 24,976,465 shares of Stock may be issued pursuant to the exercise of Incentive Options under the Plan.
(a)“Applicable Ratio” means (i) one (1) share of Stock for every one (1) share granted in connection with such Prior Awards made before July 25, 2014 or on or after August 1, 2019; (ii) one and one-half (1.5) shares of Stock for every one (1) share granted in connection with such Prior Awards made on or after July 25, 2014 and before July 22, 2016; and (iii) one and seven-tenths (1.7) shares of Stock for every one (1) share granted in connection with such Awards made on or after July 22, 2016 and before August 1, 2019.
4.2.Share Counting; Share Recycling.
(a)For purposes of determining the number of shares of Stock available for grant under the Plan, each share of Stock subject to or issued in respect of an Award shall be counted against the Total Authorized Shares as one (1) share of Stock. Shares of Stock issued pursuant to the Plan may be either authorized but unissued shares of Stock or shares of Stock held by the Company in its treasury.
(b)If an Award expires, is cancelled or becomes unexercisable without having been exercised in full, or, with respect to Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, or Performance Unit Awards, is forfeited to the Company or repurchased by the Company, the unpurchased shares of Stock (or for Awards other
than Options and Stock Appreciation Rights, the forfeited or repurchased shares of Stock) that were subject thereto will become available for future grant or sale under the Plan. Upon exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right settled in shares of Stock, the gross number of shares of Stock covered by the portion of the Award so exercised will cease to be available under the Plan. Shares of Stock that have actually been issued under the Plan under any Award will not be returned to the Plan and will not become available for future distribution under the Plan; provided, however, that if unvested shares of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units or unvested shares subject to Performance Unit Awards are repurchased by the Company or are forfeited to the Company, such shares of Stock will become available for future grant under the Plan. Shares of Stock used to pay the exercise price of an Award and/or to satisfy the tax withholding obligations related to an Award will not become available for future grant or sale under the Plan. To the extent an Award under the Plan is paid out in cash rather than shares of Stock, such cash payment will not reduce the number of shares of Stock available for issuance under the Plan. Shares of Stock actually issued pursuant to Awards transferred under any Exchange Program to reprice Options or Stock Appreciation Rights will not become available for grant or sale under the Plan.
4.3.Substitute Awards. In connection with an entity’s merger or consolidation with the Company or any Affiliate or the Company’s or any Affiliate’s acquisition of an entity’s property or stock, the Committee may grant Awards in substitution for any options or other stock or stock-based awards granted before such merger or consolidation by such entity or its affiliate. Substitute Awards may be granted on such terms and conditions as the Committee deems appropriate, notwithstanding limitations on Awards in the Plan. Substitute Awards will not count against the Total Authorized Shares (nor shall shares of Stock subject to a Substitute Award be added to the shares of Stock available for Awards under the Plan), except that shares of Stock acquired by exercise of substitute Incentive Options will count against the maximum number of shares of Stock that may be issued pursuant to the exercise of Incentive Options under the Plan.
5.Administration
The Plan shall be administered by the Committee; provided, however, that at any time and on any one or more occasions the Board may itself exercise any of the powers and responsibilities assigned the Committee under the Plan and when so acting shall have the benefit of all of the provisions of the Plan pertaining to the Committee’s exercise of its authorities hereunder; and provided further, however, that the Committee may delegate to an executive officer or officers the authority to grant Awards hereunder to Employees who are not Officers, and to Consultants, in accordance with such guidelines as the Committee shall set forth at any time or from time to time. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, the Committee shall have complete authority, in its discretion, to make or to select the manner of making all determinations with respect to each Award to be granted by the Company under the Plan including the Employee, Consultant or Non-Employee Director to receive the Award and the form of Award. In making such determinations, the Committee may take into account the nature of the services rendered by the respective Employees, Consultants, and Non-Employee Directors, their present and potential contributions to the success of the Company and its Affiliates, and such other factors as the Committee in its discretion shall deem relevant. Subject to the provisions of the Plan, the Committee shall also have complete authority to: (a) interpret the Plan, to prescribe, amend and rescind rules and regulations relating to it; (b) approve one or more forms of Award Agreement; (c) determine the initial terms and provisions of the respective Award Agreements (which need not be identical), including, without limitation, as applicable, (i) the exercise price of the Award, (ii) the method of payment for shares of Stock purchased upon the exercise of the Award, (iii) the timing, terms and conditions of the exercisability of the Award or the vesting of any shares acquired upon the exercise thereof, (iv) the time of the expiration of the Award, (v) the effect of the Participant ceasing to be a Service Provider on any of the foregoing, and (vi) all other terms, conditions and restrictions applicable to the Award or such shares not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan; (d) amend, modify, extend, cancel or renew any Award or to waive any restrictions or conditions applicable to any Award or any shares acquired upon the exercise thereof; (e) accelerate, continue, extend or defer the exercisability of any Award or the vesting of any shares acquired upon the exercise thereof, including with respect to the period following a Participant ceasing to be a Service Provider; (f) correct any defect, supply any omission or reconcile any inconsistency in the Plan or any Award Agreement and to make all other determinations and take such other actions with respect to the Plan or any Award as the Committee may deem advisable to the extent not inconsistent with the provisions of the Plan or Applicable Laws; and (g) to make all other determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of the Plan. The Committee’s determinations made in good faith on matters referred to in the Plan shall be final, binding and conclusive on all persons having or claiming any interest under the Plan or an Award made pursuant hereto.
6.Authorization of Grants
6.1Eligibility. The Committee may grant from time to time and at any time prior to the termination of the Plan one or more Awards, either alone or in combination with any other Awards, to any Employee, Consultant or Non-Employee Director. However, only Employees who are employees of the Company, and of any parent or subsidiary corporations of the Company, as defined in Sections 424(e) and (f), respectively, of the Code, shall be eligible for the grant of an Incentive Option.
6.2General Terms of Awards. Each grant of an Award shall be subject to all applicable terms and conditions of the Plan (including, but not limited to, any specific terms and conditions applicable to that type of Award set out in the following sections), and such other terms and conditions, not inconsistent with the terms of the Plan, as the Committee may prescribe. No prospective Participant shall have any rights with respect to an Award, unless and until such Participant shall have complied with the applicable terms and conditions of such Award (including, if applicable, delivering a fully executed copy of any agreement evidencing an Award to the Company).
6.3Effect of Cessation of Service, Disability or Death.
(a)Cessation of Service. Unless the Committee shall provide otherwise with respect to any Award, if the Participant ceases to be a Service Provider for any reason other than by the Participant’s Disability or death, including because of an Affiliate ceasing to be an Affiliate, (i) any outstanding Stock Right of the Participant shall cease to be exercisable in any respect not later than 90 days following the date the Participant ceases to be a Service Provider and, for the period it remains exercisable, shall be exercisable only to the extent exercisable as of the date the Participant ceased to be a Service Provider and (ii) any other outstanding Award of the Participant shall be forfeited or otherwise subject to return to or repurchase by the Company on the terms specified in the applicable Award Agreement. Cessation of the performance of services in one capacity, for example, as an Employee, shall not result in termination of an Award while the Participant continues to perform services in another capacity, for example as a Non-Employee Director. Military or sick leave or other bona fide leave approved by the Company shall not be deemed a cessation of a Participant’s status as a Service Provider, provided that it does not exceed the longer of six (6) months or the period during which the absent Participant’s reemployment rights, if any, are either guaranteed by statute or by contract or permitted by Company policy. To the extent consistent with Applicable Laws, the Committee may provide that Awards continue to vest for some or all of the period of any such leave, or that their vesting shall be tolled during any such leave and only recommence upon the Participant’s return from leave, if ever.
(b)Disability of Participant. If a Participant ceases to be a Service Provider due to the Participant’s Disability, any outstanding Stock Right may be exercised at any time within six months following the date the Participant ceases to be a Service Provider, but only to the extent of the accrued right to exercise as of the date the Participant ceased to be a Service Provider, subject to the condition that no Stock Right shall be exercised after its expiration in accordance with its terms.
(c)Death of Participant. In the event of the Participant’s death during the period during which the Stock Right may be exercised, of a Participant who is at the time of his or her death an Employee, Non-Employee Director or Consultant and whose services had not ceased or been terminated (as determined with regard to the second sentence of Section 6.3 (a)) as such from the Grant Date until the date of death, the Stock Right of the Participant may be exercised at any time within six months following the date of death by such Participant’s estate or by a person who acquired the right to exercise the Stock Right by bequest, inheritance or otherwise as a result of the Participant’s death, but only to the extent of the accrued right to exercise at the time of the Participant’s death, subject to the condition that no Stock Right shall be exercised after its expiration in accordance with its terms.
6.4Non-Transferability of Awards. Except as otherwise provided in this Section 6.4, Awards shall not be transferable, and no Award or interest therein may be sold, transferred, pledged, assigned, or otherwise alienated or hypothecated, other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution. All of a Participant’s rights in any Award may be exercised during the life of the Participant only by the Participant or the Participant’s legal representative. However, the Committee may, at or after the grant of an Award of a Nonstatutory Option, or shares of Restricted
Stock, provide that such Award may be transferred by the recipient to a family member; provided, however, that any such transfer is without payment of any consideration whatsoever and that no transfer shall be valid unless first approved by the Committee, acting in its sole discretion. For this purpose, “family member” means any child, stepchild, grandchild, parent, grandparent, stepparent, spouse, former spouse, sibling, niece, nephew, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law, including adoptive relationships, any person sharing the Participant’s household (other than a tenant or Participant), a trust in which the foregoing persons have more than 50 percent of the beneficial interests, a foundation in which the foregoing persons (or the Participant) control the management of assets, and any other entity in which these persons (or the Participant) own more than 50 percent of the voting interests. The events of termination of service of Section 6.3 hereof or in the Award Agreement shall continue to be applied with respect to the original Participant, following which the Awards shall be exercisable by the transferee only to the extent, and for the periods specified in the Award Agreement or Section 6.4, as applicable.
6.5Limitation on Grants of Awards to Non-Employee Directors. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in the Plan, a Non-Employee Director may not be granted equity Awards during any single calendar year that, taken together with any cash fees paid to such Non-Employee Director in respect of the Non-Employee Director’s services as a member of the Board during such calendar year, exceeds $800,000 in total value (calculating the value of any such Awards based on the grant date fair value of such Awards for financial accounting purposes).
7.Specific Terms of Awards
7.1Options.
(a)Date of Grant. An Option’s Grant Date shall be specified in the applicable Award Agreement, as determined by the Committee.
(b)Exercise Price. The price at which shares of Stock may be acquired under each Incentive Option shall be not less than 100% of the Market Value of Stock on the Grant Date, or not less than 110% of the Market Value of Stock on the Grant Date if the Optionee is a Ten Percent Owner. The price at which shares of Stock may be acquired under each Nonstatutory Option shall not be less than the Market Value of Stock on the Grant Date. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Options may be granted with an exercise price of less than 100% of the Market Value of Stock on the Grant Date pursuant to a transaction described in, and in a manner consistent with, Section 424(a) of the Code.
(c)Option Period. No Option may be exercised on or after the tenth anniversary of the Grant Date, and, further, no Incentive Option may be exercised or on or after the fifth anniversary of the Grant Date if the Optionee is a Ten Percent Owner.
(d)Exercisability. An Option may be immediately exercisable or become exercisable in such installments, cumulative or non-cumulative, as the Committee may determine. In the case of an Option not otherwise immediately exercisable in full, the Committee may accelerate the vesting and exercisability of such Option in whole or in part at any time; provided, however, that in the case of an Incentive Option, any such acceleration of the Option would not cause the Option to fail to comply with the provisions of Section 422 of the Code or the Optionee consents to the acceleration.
(e)Method of Exercise. An Option may be exercised by the Optionee giving written notice, in the manner provided in Section 16, specifying the number of shares of Stock with respect to which the Option is then being exercised. The notice shall be accompanied by payment in the form of cash or check payable to the order of the Company in an amount equal to the exercise price of the shares of Stock to be purchased or, subject in each instance to the Committee’s approval, acting in its sole discretion, and to such conditions, if any, as the Committee may deem necessary to avoid adverse accounting effects to the Company,
(i)by delivery to the Company of shares of Stock having a Market Value equal to the exercise price of the shares to be purchased, or
(ii)by surrender of the Option as to all or part of the shares of Stock for which the Option is then exercisable in exchange for shares of Stock having an aggregate Market Value equal to the difference between (1) the aggregate Market Value of the surrendered
portion of the Option, and (2) the aggregate exercise price under the Option for the surrendered portion of the Option, or
(iii)unless prohibited by Applicable Laws, by delivery to the Company of the Optionee’s executed promissory note in the principal amount equal to the exercise price of the shares of Stock to be purchased and otherwise in such form as the Committee shall have approved, or
(iv)by delivery of any other lawful means of consideration which the Committee may approve.
If the Stock is traded on an established market, payment of any exercise price may also be made through and under the terms and conditions of any formal cashless exercise program authorized by the Company entailing the sale of the Stock subject to an Option in a brokered transaction (other than to the Company). Receipt by the Company of such notice and payment in any authorized or combination of authorized means shall constitute the exercise of the Option. Within 30 days thereafter but subject to the remaining provisions of the Plan, the Company shall deliver or cause to be delivered to the Optionee or his or her agent a certificate or certificates or book-entry authorization and instruction to the Company’s transfer agent and registrar for the number of shares of Stock then being purchased. Such shares of Stock shall be fully paid and nonassessable. In its reasonable discretion, the Committee may suspend or halt Option exercises for such length of time as the Committee deems reasonably necessary under circumstances in which such suspension or halt is considered to be in the best interests of the Company.
(f)Limit on Incentive Option Characterization. Notwithstanding any Option’s designation as an Incentive Option, to the extent that the aggregate Market Value of the shares of Stock with respect to which Incentive Options are exercisable for the first time by the Participant during any calendar year (under all plans of the Company and its Affiliates) exceeds one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), such Options will be treated as Nonstatutory Options.
(g)Notification of Disposition. Each person exercising any Incentive Option granted under the Plan shall be deemed to have covenanted with the Company to report to the Company any disposition of the shares of Stock issued upon such exercise prior to the expiration of the holding periods specified by Section 422(a)(1) of the Code and, if and to the extent that the realization of income in such a disposition imposes upon the Company federal, state, local or other withholding tax requirements, or any such withholding is required to secure for the Company an otherwise available tax deduction, to remit to the Company an amount in cash sufficient to satisfy those requirements.
(h)Participants shall not be entitled to receive payments equivalent to any dividends declared with respect to Stock referenced in the grant of an Option.
7.2Stock Appreciation Rights.
(a)Tandem or Stand-Alone. Stock Appreciation Rights may be granted in tandem with an Option (at or, in the case of a Nonstatutory Option, after, the award of the Option), or alone and unrelated to an Option. Stock Appreciation Rights in tandem with an Option shall terminate to the extent that the related Option is exercised, and the related Option shall terminate to the extent that the tandem Stock Appreciation Rights are exercised.
(b)Exercise Price. Stock Appreciation Rights shall have an exercise price of not less than 100% of the Market Value of the Stock on the date of award, or in the case of Stock Appreciation Rights in tandem with Options, the exercise price of the related Option.
(c)Other Terms. Except as the Committee may deem inappropriate or inapplicable in the circumstances, Stock Appreciation Rights shall be subject to terms and conditions substantially similar to those applicable to a Nonstatutory Option. Participants shall not be entitled to receive payments equivalent to any dividends declared with respect to Stock referenced in the grant of a Stock Appreciation Right.
7.3Restricted Stock.
(a)Purchase Price. Shares of Restricted Stock shall be issued under the Plan for such consideration, in cash, other property or services, or any combination thereof, as is determined by the Committee.
(b)Issuance of Certificates. Each Participant receiving a Restricted Stock Award, subject to subsection (c) below, shall be issued a stock certificate in respect of such shares of Restricted Stock. Such certificate shall be registered in the name of such Participant, and, if applicable, shall bear an appropriate legend referring to the terms, conditions, and restrictions applicable to such Award substantially in the following form:
The shares evidenced by this certificate are subject to the terms and conditions of the 8x8, Inc. 2022 Equity Incentive Plan and an Award Agreement entered into by the registered owner and 8x8, Inc., copies of which will be furnished by the Company to the holder of the shares evidenced by this certificate upon written request and without charge.
(c)Escrow of Shares. The Committee may require that the stock certificates evidencing shares of Restricted Stock be held in custody by a designated escrow agent (which may but need not be the Company) until the restrictions thereon shall have lapsed, and that the Participant deliver a stock power, endorsed in blank, relating to the Stock covered by such Award.
(d)Restrictions and Restriction Period. During the Restriction Period applicable to shares of Restricted Stock, such shares shall be subject to limitations on transferability and a Risk of Forfeiture arising on the basis of such conditions related to the performance of services, Company or Affiliate performance or otherwise as the Committee may determine and provide for in the applicable Award Agreement. Any such Risk of Forfeiture may be waived or terminated, or the Restriction Period shortened, at any time by the Committee on such basis as it deems appropriate.
(e)Rights Pending Lapse of Risk of Forfeiture or Forfeiture of Award. Except as otherwise provided in the Plan or the applicable Award Agreement, at all times prior to lapse of any Risk of Forfeiture applicable to, or forfeiture of, an Award of Restricted Stock, the Participant shall have all of the rights of a stockholder of the Company, including the right to vote, and the right to receive any dividends with respect to, the shares of Restricted Stock, which, at the Committee’s discretion, may be paid in cash or shares of Stock. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan to the contrary, dividends or other distributions declared during the Restriction Period applicable to any Award of Restricted Stock shall only become payable if (and to the extent) the Restriction Period applicable to the Award of Restricted Stock lapses with all conditions satisfied. Any such dividends shall be paid, if at all, without interest or other earnings.
(f)Lapse of Restrictions. If and when the Restriction Period expires without a prior forfeiture of the Restricted Stock, the certificates for such shares shall be delivered to the Participant promptly if not theretofore so delivered.
7.4Restricted Stock Units.
(a)Character. Each Restricted Stock Unit shall entitle the Participant to one or more shares of Stock at a close of such Restriction Period as the Committee may establish and subject to a Risk of Forfeiture arising on the basis of such conditions relating to the performance of services, Company or Affiliate performance, or otherwise as the Committee may determine and provide for in the applicable Award Agreement. Any such Risk of Forfeiture may be waived or terminated, or the Restriction Period shortened, at any time by the Committee on such basis as it deems appropriate.
(b)Form and Timing of Payment. Payment of earned Restricted Stock Units shall be made in a single lump sum following the close of the applicable Restriction Period. At the discretion of the Committee, Participants may be entitled to receive payments equivalent to any dividends declared with respect to Stock referenced in grants of Restricted Stock Units. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan to the contrary, any such dividend equivalents declared during the Restriction Period applicable to any Restricted Stock Units shall only become payable if (and to the extent) the Restriction Period applicable to the Restricted Stock Units lapses with all conditions satisfied and the Committee elects to grant rights to such dividend equivalents in its discretion. Any such dividend equivalents shall be paid, if at all, without interest or other earnings.
7.5Performance Units.
(a)Character. Each Performance Unit shall entitle the recipient to the value of a specified number of shares of Stock, over the initial value for such number of shares, if any, established by the Committee at the time of grant, at the close of a specified Performance Period to the extent specified Performance Goals shall have been achieved.
(b)Earning of Performance Units. The Committee shall set Performance Goals in its discretion which, depending on the extent to which they are met within the applicable Performance Period, will determine the number and value of Performance Units that will be paid out to the Participant. After the applicable Performance Period has ended, the holder of Performance Units shall be entitled to receive payout on the number and value of Performance Units earned by the Participant over the Performance Period, to be determined as a function of the extent to which the corresponding Performance Goals have been achieved.
(c)Form and Timing of Payment. Payment of earned Performance Units shall be made in a single lump sum following the close of the applicable Performance Period. Participants shall not be entitled to receive payments equivalent to any dividends declared with respect to Stock referenced in grants of Performance Units, except that, at the discretion of the Committee, Participants may be entitled to receive such payments following the close of the Performance Period, only if the Performance Units have been earned. Any such dividend equivalents shall be paid, if at all, without interest or other earnings. The Committee may permit or, if it so provides at grant require, a Participant to defer such Participant’s receipt of the payment of cash or the delivery of Stock that would otherwise be due to such Participant by virtue of the satisfaction of any requirements or goals with respect to Performance Units. If any such deferral election is required or permitted, the Committee shall establish rules and procedures for such payment deferrals.
7.6Stock Grants. Stock Grants shall be awarded solely in recognition of significant prior or expected contributions to the success of the Company or its Affiliates, as an inducement to employment, in lieu of compensation otherwise already due and in such other limited circumstances as the Committee deems appropriate. Stock Grants shall be made without forfeiture conditions of any kind.
7.7Awards to Participants Outside the United States. The Committee may modify the terms of any Award under the Plan granted to a Participant who is, at the time of grant or during the term of the Award, resident or primarily employed outside of the United States in any manner deemed by the Committee to be necessary or appropriate in order that the Award shall conform to laws, regulations, and customs of the country in which the Participant is then resident or primarily employed, or so that the value and other benefits of the Award to the Participant, as affected by foreign tax laws and other restrictions applicable as a result of the Participant’s residence or employment abroad, shall be comparable to the value of such an Award to a Participant who is resident or primarily employed in the United States. The Committee may establish supplements to, or amendments, restatements, or alternative versions of the Plan for the purpose of granting and administrating any such modified Award. No such modification, supplement, amendment, restatement or alternative version may increase the Total Authorized Shares.
8.Adjustment Provisions
8.1Adjustment for Corporate Actions. In the event that any dividend or other distribution (whether in the form of cash, shares of Stock, other securities, or other property), recapitalization, reclassification, stock split, reverse stock split, reorganization, merger, consolidation, split-up, spin-off, combination, repurchase, or exchange of shares of Stock or other securities of the Company, or other change in the corporate structure of the Company affecting the shares of Stock occurs, the Committee, in order to prevent diminution or enlargement of the benefits or potential benefits intended to be made available under the Plan, will appropriately and proportionately adjust the number and class of shares of Stock that may be delivered under the Plan and/or the number, class, and price of shares of Stock covered by each outstanding Award (without change in the aggregate exercise price as to which any such Stock Rights remain exercisable), provided, however, that any fractional shares resulting from such adjustment shall be eliminated. Any adjustments determined by the Committee shall be final, binding and conclusive.
8.2Related Matters. Any adjustment in Awards made pursuant to Section 8.1 shall be determined and made, if at all, by the Committee, acting in its sole discretion, and shall include any correlative modification of terms, including of Stock Right exercise prices, rates of vesting or exercisability, Risks of Forfeiture, applicable repurchase prices for
Restricted Stock, and Performance Goals which the Committee may deem necessary or appropriate so as to ensure the rights of the Participants in their respective Awards are not substantially diminished nor enlarged as a result of the adjustment and corporate action other than as expressly contemplated in this Section 8.
8.3Change in Control.
(a)Assumption, Substitution or Continuation of Outstanding Awards. In the event of a Change in Control in which the Successor proposes to assume, substitute or continue equivalent awards (with such adjustments as may be required or permitted by Section 8.1 of the Plan, with appropriate adjustments as to the number and kind of shares and prices), any substitute equivalent award must (i) have a value at least equal to the value of the Award being substituted; (ii) relate to a publicly-traded equity security of the Successor involved in the Change in Control or another publicly traded entity that is affiliated with the Successor following the Change in Control; (iii) be the same type of award as the Award being substituted; (iv) be vested to the extent the Award being substituted was vested at the time of the Change in Control and (v) have other terms and conditions (including by way of example, vesting and exercisability) that are the same or more favorable to the Participant than the terms and conditions of the Award being substituted, in each case, as reasonably determined by the Committee (as constituted prior to the Change in Control) in good faith. If a Participant’s Award is assumed, substituted or continued by the Successor pursuant to this Section 8.3(a), then, subject to the remaining provisions of this Section 8.3, such Award will not vest or lapse solely as a result of the Change in Control but will instead remain outstanding under the terms pursuant to which it has been assumed, substituted, or continued and will continue to vest or lapse pursuant to such terms.
(i)For the purposes of Section 8.3 of the Plan, an Award will be considered assumed if, following the Change in Control, the Award confers the right to purchase or receive, for each share of Stock subject to the Award immediately prior to the Change in Control, the consideration (whether stock, cash, or other securities or property) received in the Change in Control by holders of Stock for each share of Stock held on the effective date of the transaction (and if holders were offered a choice of consideration, the type of consideration chosen by the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Stock); provided, however, that if such consideration received in the Change in Control is not solely common stock of the Successor or its Parent, the Committee may, with the consent of the Successor, provide for the consideration to be received upon the exercise of an Option or Stock Appreciation Right or upon the payout of any other Award, for each share of Stock subject to such Award, to be solely common stock of the Successor or its Parent equal in fair market value to the per share consideration received by holders of shares of Stock in the Change in Control.
(b)No Assumption, Substitution, or Continuation of Outstanding Awards. Unless otherwise provided in an applicable Award Agreement or another applicable agreement between the Company and a Participant, if for any reason outstanding Awards are not assumed, substituted, or continued pursuant to Section 8.3(a), such outstanding Awards will be subject to the following rules, in each case effective immediately prior to such Change in Control but conditioned upon completion of such Change in Control, with any corresponding payments made as soon as reasonably practicable after the Change in Control, but no later than within 30 days following the date of the Change in Control:
(i)Options and Stock Appreciation Rights. All Options and Stock Appreciation Rights will become fully vested and exercisable. The Committee will give Participants a reasonable opportunity (at least 30 days if practicable) to exercise any or all Options and Stock Appreciation Rights before the consummation of the transaction resulting in the Change in Control, provided that any such exercise will be contingent upon and subject to the occurrence of the Change in Control and if the Change in Control does not take place within a specified period after giving such notice for any reason whatsoever, the exercise will be null and void and such Options and Stock Appreciation Rights will be restored to their status as if there had been no Change in Control. If a Participant does not exercise all Options and Stock Appreciation Rights prior to the Change in Control,
the Committee will pay such Participant in exchange for the cancellation of each such unexercised Option and Stock Appreciation Right the difference between the exercise price for such Option or Stock Appreciation Right and the consideration per share of Stock provided to other similarly situated stockholders in such Change in Control; provided, however, that if the exercise price of such Option or Stock Appreciation Right exceeds the aforementioned consideration provided, then such unexercised Option or Stock Appreciation Right will be canceled and terminated without any payment.
(ii)Vesting of Restricted Stock Units and Lapse of Restricted Stock Restrictions, for Awards that are not Performance-Based Awards. All restrictions imposed on Restricted Stock Units and Restricted Stock that do not have Performance Goals will lapse and be of no further force and effect, such that all such Restricted Stock Units and Restricted Stock will become fully vested and no longer subject to a Risk of Forfeiture and the Restriction Period shall lapse, and Restricted Stock Units will be settled and paid in cash and/or shares of Stock at the Committee’s discretion, and Restricted Stock will be paid in cash and/or shares of Stock at the Committee’s discretion; provided, however that if any such payment is to be made in shares of Stock, the Committee may in its discretion, provide such holders the consideration provided to other similarly situated stockholders in such Change in Control.
(iii)Vesting, Payment and Achievement of Performance-Based Awards. All Performance-Based Awards for which the Performance Period has been completed as of the date of the Change in Control but have not yet been paid will vest and be paid in cash and/or shares of Stock at such time at the Committee’s discretion, with all Performance Goals to be deemed achieved at actual performance. Unless otherwise provided in an applicable Award Agreement or another applicable agreement between the Company and a Participant, all Performance-Based Awards for which the Performance Period has not been completed as of the date of the Change in Control will, with respect to each Performance Goal or other vesting criteria, be deemed achieved at the greater of (x) one hundred percent (100%) of target levels and (y) actual performance measured on the date of the Change in Control as determined by the Committee, in each case, with all other terms and conditions met, and vest and be paid out for the entire Performance Period (and not pro rata), with the manner of payment to be made in cash or shares of Stock at the Committee’s discretion; provided, however that if any such payment is to be made in shares of Stock, the Committee may in its reasonable discretion, provide such holders the consideration provided to other similarly situated stockholders in such Change in Control.
(iv)Notwithstanding anything in Section 8.3 to the contrary, an Award that vests, is earned or paid-out upon the satisfaction of one or more Performance Goals will not be considered assumed if the Company or its Successor modifies any of such Performance Goals without the Participant’s consent; provided, however, a modification to such Performance Goals only to reflect the Successor’s post-Change in Control corporate structure will not be deemed to invalidate an otherwise valid Award assumption.
(c)Termination, Amendment and Modifications of Change in Control Provisions; Other Agreements. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan or any Award Agreement provision, the provisions of Section 8.3 of the Plan may not be terminated, amended, or modified in any manner that adversely affects any then-outstanding Award or Award Participant without the prior written consent of the Participant, unless for the purpose of complying with Applicable Laws and regulations.
(d)Limitation on Change in Control Payments. Notwithstanding anything in Section 8.3 of the Plan to the contrary, if, with respect to a Participant, the acceleration of the vesting of an Award or the payment of cash in exchange for all or part of the Award (i) could be deemed a “parachute payment” within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code and (ii) but for Section 8.3 of the Plan, would be subject to an Excise Tax, then the “payments” to such Participant pursuant to Section 8.3 of the Plan shall be either
(a) delivered in full, or (b) delivered as to a reduced amount that would result in no portion of such payments or benefits being subject to the Excise Tax; whichever of the foregoing amounts, taking into account the applicable federal, state, local and foreign income and employment taxes and the Excise Tax, results in the receipt by the Participant on an after-tax basis, of the greatest amount of benefit, notwithstanding that all or some portion of such benefits may be taxable under Section 4999 of the Code. In the event that any Excise Tax is imposed on any payments under the Plan, the Participant will be fully responsible for the payment of any and all Excise Tax, and the Company and its Affiliates will not be obligated to pay all or any portion of any Excise Tax. All computations and determinations called for by Section 8.3(d) shall be promptly determined and reported in writing to the Company and the applicable Participant by independent public accountants or other independent advisors selected by the Company and reasonably acceptable to the applicable Participant (the “Accountants”), and all such computations and determinations shall be conclusive and binding upon the applicable Participant and the Company. For the purposes of such determinations, the Accountants may rely on reasonable, good faith interpretations concerning the application of Sections 280G and 4999 of the Code. The Company and the applicable Participant shall furnish to the Accountants such information and documents as the Accountants may reasonably request in order to make their required determinations. The Company shall bear all fees and expenses charged by the Accountants in connection with these services.
8.4Clawback. If the Committee determines that a Participant has intentionally committed an act of embezzlement, fraud, dishonesty, or breach of fiduciary duty during the Participant’s employment that contributed to an obligation to restate the Company’s financial statements, the Participant shall be required to repay to the Company, in cash and upon demand, Award Proceeds (defined below) resulting from any sale or other disposition of shares of Stock issued or issuable under an Award (a) if the sale or disposition was effected during the twelve-month period following the first public issuance or filing with the SEC of the financial statements required to be restated, or (b) if the shares of Stock were issued as a result of vesting criteria that were determined to be satisfied based all or in part on the financial statements required to be restated. In the preceding sentence, “Award Proceeds” means, with respect to any sale or other distribution, an amount determined appropriate by the Committee to reflect the effect of the restatement on the Company’s stock price, up to the amount equal to the number of shares of Stock sold or disposed multiplied by the excess of Market Value at the time of such sale or disposition over the amount paid, if any, to purchase such shares of Stock.
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan to the contrary, all Awards granted under the Plan shall be and remain subject to any incentive compensation clawback or recoupment policy of the Company currently in effect or as may be adopted by the Company and, in each case, as may be amended from time to time. No such policy adoption or amendment shall require a Participant’s prior consent.
9.Settlement of Awards
9.1In General. Awards of Restricted Stock shall be settled in accordance with their terms. All other Awards may be settled in cash or Stock, or a combination thereof, as determined by the Committee at or after grant and subject to any contrary applicable Award Agreement. The Committee may not require settlement of any Award in Stock pursuant to the immediately preceding sentence to the extent issuance of such Stock would be prohibited or unreasonably delayed by reason of any other provision of the Plan.
9.2Violation of Law. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan or the relevant Award Agreement, if, at any time, in the reasonable opinion of the Company, the issuance of shares of Stock covered by an Award may constitute a violation of Applicable Laws, then the Company may delay such issuance and the delivery of a certificate for such shares until (i) approval shall have been obtained from such governmental agencies, other than the Securities and Exchange Commission, as may be required under any Applicable Laws, rule, or regulation and (ii) in the case where such issuance would constitute a violation of a law administered by or a regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission, one of the following conditions shall have been satisfied:
(a)the shares of Stock are at the time of the issue of such shares effectively registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended; or
(b)the Company shall have determined, on such basis as it deems appropriate (including an opinion of counsel in form and substance satisfactory to the Company) that the sale, transfer, assignment, pledge, encumbrance or other disposition of such shares does not require registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended or any applicable State securities laws.
9.3Corporate Restrictions on Rights in Stock. Any Stock to be issued pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan shall be subject to all restrictions upon the transfer thereof which may be now or hereafter imposed by the charter, certificate or articles, and by-laws, of the Company, as applicable.
9.4Investment Representations. The Company shall be under no obligation to issue any shares of Stock covered by any Award unless the shares to be issued pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan have been effectively registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Participant shall have made such written representations to the Company (upon which the Company believes it may reasonably rely) as the Company may deem necessary or appropriate for purposes of confirming that the issuance of such shares will be exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933 and any applicable state securities laws and otherwise in compliance with all Applicable Laws, rules and regulations, including, but not limited to, that the Participant is acquiring the shares for his or her own account for the purpose of investment and not with a view to, or for sale in connection with, the distribution of any such shares.
9.5Registration. If the Company shall deem it necessary or desirable to register under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or other applicable statutes any shares of Stock issued or to be issued pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan, or to qualify any such shares of Stock for exemption from the Securities Act of 1933, as amended or other applicable statutes, then the Company shall take such action at its own expense. The Company may require from each recipient of an Award, or each holder of shares of Stock acquired pursuant to the Plan, such information in writing for use in any registration statement, prospectus, preliminary prospectus or offering circular as is reasonably necessary for that purpose and may require reasonable indemnity to the Company and its officers and directors from that holder against all losses, claims, damage and liabilities arising from use of the information so furnished.
9.6Certificates. All certificates for shares of Stock or other securities delivered under the Plan shall be subject to such stop transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee may deem advisable under the rules, regulations, and other requirements of any stock exchange upon which the Stock is then listed, and any applicable federal or state securities law, and the Committee may cause a legend or legends to be placed on any such certificates to make appropriate reference to such restrictions.
9.7Tax Withholding. Whenever shares of Stock are issued or to be issued pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan, the Company shall have the right to require the Participant to remit to the Company an amount sufficient to satisfy federal, state, local or other withholding tax requirements if, when, and to the extent required by law (whether so required to secure for the Company an otherwise available tax deduction or otherwise) or as provided below, prior to the delivery of any certificate or certificates for such shares. The obligations of the Company under the Plan shall be conditional on satisfaction of all such withholding obligations and the Company shall, to the extent permitted by law, have the right to deduct any such taxes from any payment of any kind otherwise due to the Participant, including, without limitation, pursuant to the Company’s delivery of an irrevocable direction to a securities broker (on a form prescribed by the Committee) to sell shares of Stock and to deliver all or part of the sale proceeds to the Company in payment of the amount necessary to satisfy the minimum tax or social insurance obligations required by law to be withheld in respect of Awards and any Greater Amount (as defined below) (such arrangement, a “Sale to Cover Arrangement”). In the Committee’s discretion, the Company’s foregoing rights to (i) to have the Participant remit to the Company amounts to satisfy tax withholding requirements and (ii) to deduct any such taxes from any payment of any kind otherwise due to the Participant, shall extend to the minimum tax or social insurance obligations required by law to be withheld in respect of Awards, or, if applicable, such other withholding amount (a “Greater Amount”) as mutually agreed upon by the Company and the Participant, up to the sum of all applicable statutory maximum rates (provided, in the case of a Participant who is an Officer, that such other amount is approved in advance by the Committee or the Board), and provided further, that if any part of such amount is permitted by the Committee at its discretion to be paid in shares of Stock, such shares of Stock shall be valued at their Market Value on the date the applicable tax is incurred. Participants may elect, subject to the approval of the Committee, acting in its sole discretion, to satisfy an applicable withholding requirement, in whole or
in part, by having the Company withhold shares of Stock to satisfy their tax obligations or by means of a Sale to Cover Arrangement. However, unless a corresponding Greater Amount is approved in advance by the Committee or the Board, Participants who elect, subject to the approval of the Committee, to satisfy an applicable withholding requirement, in whole or in part, by having the Company withhold shares of Stock to satisfy their tax obligation, may only elect to have shares of Stock withheld having a Market Value on the date the tax is to be determined equal to the minimum statutory total tax which could be imposed on the transaction. All elections shall be irrevocable, made in writing, signed by the Participant, and shall be subject to any restrictions or limitations that the Committee deems appropriate. Any determination that a tax withholding obligation has arisen shall be made without regard to the potential applicability of Section 83(c) of the Code.
9.8Company Charter and By-Laws; Other Company Policies. This Plan and all Awards granted under the Plan (including the exercise, settlement or exchange of an Award) are subject to and must comply with the certificate of incorporation and by-laws of the Company, as they may be amended from time to time, and all other Company policies duly adopted by the Board, the Committee or any other committee of the Board as in effect from time to time regarding the acquisition, ownership or sale of Stock by Employees and other Service Providers, including, without limitation, policies intended to limit the potential for insider trading and to avoid or recover compensation payable or paid on the basis of inaccurate financial results or statements, employee conduct, and other similar events.
9.9Dividends and Dividend Equivalents. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan to the contrary, dividend and dividend equivalent and other distribution amounts the Committee grants with respect to any Award (or share of Stock underlying an Award) may be accrued but not paid to a Participant until all conditions or restrictions relating to such Award and/or share of Stock have been satisfied or lapsed and shall be forfeited if all of such conditions or restrictions are never satisfied or lapse.
10.Reservation of Stock
The Company shall at all times during the term of the Plan and while any Awards are outstanding under the Plan reserve or otherwise keep available such number of shares of Stock as will be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the Plan (if then in effect) and such Awards.
11.Limitation of Rights in Stock; No Special Service Rights
A Participant shall not be deemed for any purpose to be a stockholder of the Company with respect to any of the shares of Stock subject to an Award, unless and until a certificate shall have been issued therefor and delivered to the Participant or his or her agent. Any Stock to be issued pursuant to Awards granted under the Plan shall be subject to all restrictions upon the transfer thereof which may be now or hereafter imposed by the certificate of incorporation and the by-laws of the Company. Nothing contained in the Plan or in any Award Agreement shall confer upon any recipient of an Award any right with respect to the continuation of his or her employment or other association with the Company (or any Affiliate), or interfere in any way with the right of the Company (or any Affiliate), subject to the terms of any separate employment or consulting agreement or provision of law or certificate of incorporation or by-laws to the contrary, at any time to terminate such employment or consulting agreement or to increase or decrease, or otherwise adjust, the other terms and conditions of the recipient’s employment or other association with the Company and its Affiliates.
12.Unfunded Status of Plan
The Plan is intended to constitute an “unfunded” plan for incentive compensation, and the Plan is not intended to constitute a plan subject to the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended. With respect to any payments not yet made to a Participant by the Company, nothing contained herein shall give any such Participant any rights that are greater than those of a general creditor of the Company. In its sole discretion, the Committee may authorize the creation of trusts or other arrangements to meet the obligations created under the Plan to deliver Stock or payments with respect to Stock Rights and other Awards hereunder, provided, however, that the existence of such trusts or other arrangements is consistent with the unfunded status of the Plan.
13.Nonexclusivity of the Plan
Neither the adoption of the Plan by the Board nor any action taken in connection with the adoption or operation of the Plan shall be construed as creating any limitations on the power of the Board to adopt such other incentive arrangements as it may deem
desirable, including without limitation, the granting of stock options and restricted stock other than under the Plan, and such arrangements may be either applicable generally or only in specific cases.
14.No Guarantee of Tax Consequences
Neither the Company nor any Affiliate, nor any director, officer, agent, representative or employee of either, guarantees to the Participant or any other person any particular tax consequences as a result of the grant of, exercise of rights under, or payment in respect of an Award, including, but not limited to, that an Option granted as an Incentive Option has or will qualify as an “incentive stock option” within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code or that the provisions and penalties of Section 409A of the Code, pertaining non-qualified plans of deferred compensation, will or will not apply.
15.Termination and Amendment of the Plan
15.1Termination or Amendment of the Plan. Subject to the limitations contained in Section 15.3 below, including specifically the requirement of stockholder approval if applicable, the Board may at any time terminate the Plan or make such modifications of the Plan as it shall deem advisable. Unless the Board otherwise expressly provides, no amendment of the Plan shall affect the terms of any Award outstanding on the date of such amendment.
15.2No Repricing and No Cash Buyout. Other than in connection with an adjustment to an Award pursuant to Section 8, the Company shall not, without stockholder approval, at any time when the exercise price per share of Stock of an Option or SAR is greater than Market Value of the underlying shares of Stock, reduce the exercise price of such Option or SAR or exchange such Option or SAR for a new Award with a lower (or no) purchase price or for cash.
15.3Limitations on Amendments, Etc.
Without the approval of the Company’s stockholders, no amendment or modification of the Plan by the Board may (i) increase the number of shares of Stock which may be issued under the Plan (except in accordance with Section 8.1 herein, to the extent stockholder approval is not required by Applicable Law), (ii) change the description of the persons eligible for Awards, (iii) implement an Exchange Program or (iv) effect any other change for which stockholder approval is required by Applicable Law.
No amendment or modification of the Plan by the Board, or of an outstanding Award by the Committee, shall impair the rights of the recipient of any Award outstanding on the date of such amendment or modification or such Award, as the case may be, without the Participant’s consent; provided, however, that no such consent shall be required if (i) the Board or Committee, as the case may be, determines in its sole discretion and prior to the date of any Change in Control that such amendment or alteration either is required or advisable in order for the Company, the Plan or the Award to satisfy any law or regulation, including without limitation the provisions of Section 409A of the Code, or to meet the requirements of or avoid adverse financial accounting consequences under any accounting standard, or (ii) the Board or Committee, as the case may be, determines in its sole discretion and prior to the date of any Change in Control that such amendment or alteration is not reasonably likely to significantly diminish the benefits provided under the Award, or that any such diminution has been adequately compensated.
16.Notices and Other Communications
Any notice, demand, request or other communication hereunder to any party shall be deemed to be sufficient if contained in a written instrument delivered in person or duly sent by first class registered, certified or overnight mail, postage prepaid, or telecopied with a confirmation copy by regular, certified or overnight mail, addressed or telecopied, as the case may be, (i) if to the recipient of an Award, at his or her residence address last filed with the Company and (ii) if to the Company, at its principal place of business, addressed to the attention of its General Counsel or to such other address or telecopier number, as the case may be, as the addressee may have designated by notice to the addressor. All such notices, requests, demands and other communications shall be deemed to have been received: (i) in the case of personal delivery, on the date of such delivery; (ii) in the case of mailing, when received by the addressee; and (iii) in the case of facsimile transmission, when confirmed by facsimile machine report.
17.Administrative Provisions
Nothing contained in the Plan shall require the issuance or delivery of certificates for any period during which the Company has elected to maintain or caused to be maintained the evidence of ownership of its shares of Stock, either generally or in the case of Stock acquired pursuant to Awards, by book entry, and all references herein to such actions or to certificates shall be interpreted accordingly in light of the systems maintained for that purpose. Furthermore, any reference herein to actions to be taken or notices (including of grants of Awards) to be provided in writing or pursuant to specific procedures may be satisfied by means of and pursuant to any electronic or automated voice response systems the Company may elect to establish for such purposes, either by itself or through the services of a third party, for the period such systems are in effect.
18.Limitations Applicable to Section 16 Insiders
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan, the Plan and any Award granted or awarded to any individual who is then subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act shall be subject to any additional limitations set forth in any applicable exemptive rule under Section 16 of the Exchange Act (including Rule 16b-3 and any amendments thereto) that are requirements for the application of such exemptive rule. To the extent permitted by Applicable Laws, the Plan and Awards granted or awarded hereunder shall be deemed amended to the extent necessary to conform to such applicable exemptive rule.
19.Compliance With Section 409A of the Code
The Plan as well as payments and benefits under the Plan are intended to be exempt from, or to the extent subject thereto, to comply with Section 409A of the Code and any regulations or guidance promulgated thereunder (“Section 409A”), and, accordingly, to the maximum extent permitted, the Plan shall be interpreted in accordance therewith. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, to the extent required in order to avoid accelerated taxation and/or tax penalties under Section 409A, a Participant shall not be considered to have terminated employment or service with the Company or an Affiliate for purposes of the Plan and no payment shall be due to the Participant under the Plan or any Award until the Participant would be considered to have incurred a “separation from service” from the Company or any Affiliate within the meaning of Section 409A. Any payments described in the Plan that are due within the “short term deferral period” as defined in Section 409A shall not be treated as deferred compensation unless Applicable Laws require otherwise. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Plan, to the extent that any Awards are payable upon a separation from service and such payment would result in the imposition of any individual tax and penalty interest charges imposed under Section 409A, the settlement and payment of such awards (or other amounts) shall instead be made on the first business day after the date that is six (6) months following such separation from service (or death, if earlier). Each amount to be paid or benefit to be provided under this Plan shall be construed as a separate identified payment for purposes of Section 409A. The Company makes no representation that any or all of the payments or benefits described in this Plan will be exempt from or comply with Section 409A and makes no undertaking to preclude Section 409A from applying to any such payment. The Participant shall be solely responsible for the payment of any taxes and penalties incurred under Section 409A and comparable provisions of any applicable state or local income tax laws. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Plan or any Award, if and to the extent the Committee shall determine that the terms of any Award may result in the failure of such Award to comply with or be exempt from the requirements of Section 409A, the Committee shall have authority to take such action to amend, modify, cancel or terminate the Plan or any Award as it deems necessary or advisable to bring such Award into compliance with or maintain an exemption from Section 409A.
20.Governing Law
The Plan and, except as otherwise provided in an applicable Award Agreement, all actions taken thereunder, shall be governed, interpreted and enforced in accordance with the laws of the state of Delaware, without regard to the conflicts of laws principles thereof.
