James River Coal Company Form 8-A

Exhibit 4.3

Form of Rights Certificate

Certificate No. R-

___________ Rights

NOT EXERCISABLE AFTER THE EARLIER OF MAY 25, 2014, AND THE DATE ON WHICH THE RIGHTS EVIDENCED HEREBY ARE REDEEMED OR EXCHANGED BY THE COMPANY AS SET FORTH IN THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT. THE RIGHTS ARE SUBJECT TO REDEMPTION AT $0.001 PER RIGHT AND TO EXCHANGE ON THE TERMS SET FORTH IN THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT. AS SET FORTH IN THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT, RIGHTS ISSUED TO, OR HELD BY, ANY PERSON WHO IS, WAS OR BECOMES AN ACQUIRING PERSON OR AN AFFILIATE OR ASSOCIATE THEREOF (AS SUCH TERMS ARE DEFINED IN THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT), WHETHER CURRENTLY HELD BY OR ON BEHALF OF SUCH PERSON OR BY ANY SUBSEQUENT HOLDER, MAY BE NULL AND VOID. [THE RIGHTS REPRESENTED BY THIS RIGHTS CERTIFICATE ARE OR WERE BENEFICIALLY OWNED BY A PERSON WHO WAS OR BECAME AN ACQUIRING PERSON OR AN AFFILIATE OR AN ASSOCIATE OF AN ACQUIRING PERSON (AS SUCH TERMS ARE DEFINED IN THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT). THIS RIGHTS CERTIFICATE AND THE RIGHTS REPRESENTED HEREBY MAY BE OR MAY BECOME NULL AND VOID IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES SPECIFIED IN SECTION 7(d) OF THE RIGHTS AGREEMENT.)]¹

RIGHTS CERTIFICATE

JAMES RIVER COAL COMPANY

This Rights Certificate certifies that __________________________, or registered assigns, is the registered holder of the number of Rights set forth above, each of which entitles the holder (upon the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Rights Agreement, dated as of May 25, 2004 (the "Rights Agreement"), between James River Coal Company, a Virginia corporation (the “Company"), and SunTrust Bank (the "Rights Agent”)), to purchase from the Company, at any time after the Distribution Date (as such term is defined in the Rights Agreement) and prior to the Expiration Date (as such term is defined in the Rights Agreement), one one-hundredth{s} of a fully paid, non-assessable share of Series A Participating Cumulative Preferred Stock (the "Preferred Stock") of the Company, at a purchase price of $200.00 per one one-hundredth of a share (the "Purchase Price"), payable in lawful money of the United States of America, upon surrender of this Rights Certificate, with the form of election to purchase and related certificate duly executed, and payment of the Purchase Price at an office of the Rights Agent designated for such purpose.

Terms used herein and not otherwise defined herein have the meanings assigned to them in the Rights Agreement.

____________________

¹ If applicable, insert this portion of the legend and delete the preceding sentence.

The number of Rights evidenced by this Rights Certificate (and the number and kind of shares issuable upon exercise of each Right) and the Purchase Price set forth above are as of May 25, 2004, and may have been or in the future may be adjusted as a result of the occurrence of certain events, as more fully provided in the Rights Agreement.

Upon the occurrence of a Flip-in Event, if the Rights evidenced by this Rights Certificate are beneficially owned by (a) an Acquiring Person or an Associate or Affiliate of an Acquiring Person, (b) a transferee of an Acquiring Person (or any such Associate or Affiliate) who becomes a transferee after the Acquiring Person becomes such, or (c) under certain circumstances specified in the Rights Agreement, a transferee of an Acquiring Person (or any such Associate or Affiliate) who becomes a transferee prior to or concurrently with the Acquiring Person becoming such, such Rights shall become null and void, and no holder hereof shall have any right with respect to such Rights from and after the occurrence of such Flip-in Event.

This Right Certificate is subject to all of the terms, provisions and conditions of the Rights Agreement, which terms, provisions and conditions are hereby incorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof and to which Rights Agreement reference is hereby made for a full description of the rights, limitations of rights, obligations, duties and immunities hereunder of the Rights Agent, the Company and the holders of the Rights Certificates, which limitations of rights include the temporary suspension of the exercisability of such Rights under the specific circumstances set forth in the Rights Agreement. Copies of the Rights Agreement are on file at the office of the Company and are also available upon written request to the Company.

Upon surrender at the principal office or offices of the Rights Agent designated for such purpose and subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the Rights Agreement, any Rights Certificate(s) may be transferred or exchanged for another Rights Certificate(s) evidencing a like number of Rights as the Rights Certificate(s) surrendered. If this Rights Certificate shall be exercised in part, the holder shall be entitled to receive upon surrender hereof another Rights Certificate(s) for the number of whole Rights not exercised.

Subject to the provisions of the Rights Agreement, the Board of Directors of the Company may, at its option,

(a) at any time prior to the earlier of (i) the Close of Business on the day that is ten (10) calendar days after Share Acquisition Date and (ii) the Final Expiration Date, redeem all but not less than all the then outstanding Rights at a redemption price of $0.001 per Right; or

(b) at any time after any Person becomes an Acquiring Person, exchange all or part of the then outstanding Rights (other than Rights held by the Acquiring Person and certain related Persons) for shares of Common Stock at an exchange ratio of one share of Common Stock per Right. If the Rights shall be exchanged in part, the holder of this Rights Certificate shall be entitled to receive upon surrender hereof another Rights Certificate(s) for the number of whole Rights not exchanged.

After the expiration of the redemption period, the Companies right of redemption may be reinstated if an Acquiring Person reduces his beneficial ownership to ten percent (10%) or less of the outstanding shares of Common Stock in a transaction or series of transactions not involving the Company and there is no other Acquiring Person.

No fractional shares of Preferred Stock are required to be issued upon the exercise of any Right(s) evidenced hereby (other than fractions which are multiples of one one-hundredth of a share of Preferred Stock, which may, at the election of the Company, be evidenced by depository receipts), but in lieu thereof a cash payment will be made, as provided in the Rights Agreement.

No holder of this Rights Certificate shall be entitled to vote, receive dividends or be deemed for any purpose the holder of the shares of capital stock which may at any time be issuable on the exercise hereof, nor shall anything contained in the Rights Agreement or herein be construed to confer upon the holder hereof, as such, any of the rights of a shareholder of the Company or any right to vote for the election of directors or upon any matter submitted to shareholders at any meeting thereof, or to give or withhold consent to any corporate action, or to receive notice of meetings or other actions affecting shareholders (except as provided in the Rights Agreement), or to receive dividends or subscription rights, or otherwise, until the Right(s) evidenced by this Rights Certificate shall have been exercised as provided in the Rights Agreement.

This Rights Certificate shall not be valid or obligatory for any purpose until it shall have been countersigned by the Rights Agent.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this instrument to be duly executed under its corporate seal by its authorized officers.


	JAMES RIVER COAL COMPANY

Dated as of _________________, ____	By:
		Title

(SEAL)

Attest:

_________________________________

Secretary

Countersigned:

_________________________________

, as Rights Agent

By:______________________________

Authorized Signature

Form of Reverse Side of Rights Certificate

FORM OF ASSIGNMENT

(To be executed if the registered holder

desires to transfer the Rights Certificate.)

FOR VALUE RECEIVED

hereby sells, assigns and transfers unto

(Please print name and address of transferee)

this Rights Certificate, together with all right, title and interest therein, and does hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint _______________________ Attorney, to transfer the within Rights Certificate on the books of the within-named Company, with full power of substitution.

Dated:_______________________________	______________________________
	Signature

Signature Guaranteed:

Certificate

The undersigned hereby certifies by checking the appropriate boxes that:

(1) the Rights evidenced by this Rights Certificate ___ are ___ are not being assigned by or on behalf of a Person who is or was an Acquiring Person or an Affiliate or Associate of any such Acquiring Person (as such terms are defined in the Rights Agreement);

(2) after due inquiry and to the best knowledge of the undersigned, it ___ did ___ did not acquire the Rights evidenced by this Rights Certificate from any Person who is, was or became an Acquiring Person or an Affiliate or Associate of an Acquiring person.

Dated:_______________________________	______________________________
	Signature

NOTICE

The signatures to the foregoing Assignment and Certificate must correspond to the name as written upon the face of this Rights Certificate in every particular, without alteration or enlargement or any change whatsoever.

___________________

FORM OF ELECTION TO PURCHASE

(To be executed if the registered holder desires to exercise Rights represented by the Rights Certificate.)

To: James River Coal Company

The undersigned hereby irrevocably elects to exercise ______________ Rights represented by this Rights Certificate to purchase shares of Preferred Stock issuable upon the exercise of the Rights (or such other securities of the Company or of any other Person which may be issuable upon the exercise of the Rights) and requests that certificates for such securities be issued in the name of and delivered to:

Please insert social security

or other identifying number

(Please print name and address)

If such number of Rights shall not be all the Rights evidenced by this Rights Certificate, a new Rights Certificate for the balance of such Rights shall be registered in the name of and delivered to:

Please insert social security

or other identifying number

_____________________________________________

(Please print name and address)

_____________________________________________

Dated: ____________________, _______

______________________________

Signature

Signature Guaranteed

Virginia	54-1602012
(State or other jurisdiction)	(I.R.S. Employer
of incorporation or organization)	Identification No.)

901 E. Byrd Street, Suite 1600 Richmond, Virginia (Address of principal executive offices)	23219 (Zip Code)
If this form relates to the registration of a class of securities pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act and is effective pursuant to General Instruction A.(c), please check the following box. [___]	If this form relates to the registration of a class of securities pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act and is effective pursuant to General Instruction A.(d), please check the following box. [x]
Securities Act registration statement file number to which this form relates:		333-118190
		(If applicable)


	3.1*	Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation of the Registrant, as Amended

	3.2*	Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Registrant

	4.1*	Specimen Common Stock Certificate of the Registrant

	4.2*	Rights Agreement between the Registrant and SunTrust Bank as Rights Agent dated as of May 25, 2004

	4.3	Form of Rights Certificate of the Registrant (filed herewith)


January 24, 2005	JAMES RIVER COAL COMPANY
	(Registrant)



	By: /s/ Peter T. Socha
	Peter T. Socha
	President and Chief Executive Officer

Title of each class to be so registered	Name of each exchange on which each class is to be registered
None