-----BEGIN PRIVACY-ENHANCED MESSAGE----- Proc-Type: 2001,MIC-CLEAR Originator-Name: webmaster@www.sec.gov Originator-Key-Asymmetric: MFgwCgYEVQgBAQICAf8DSgAwRwJAW2sNKK9AVtBzYZmr6aGjlWyK3XmZv3dTINen TWSM7vrzLADbmYQaionwg5sDW3P6oaM5D3tdezXMm7z1T+B+twIDAQAB MIC-Info: RSA-MD5,RSA, WUArtgdLXEvMFPpXkaSeWmTDAbg5p71uAXLFLbr7B8pyxG/gefh44GoUyy8zs/dN 5YmiGkna1WalTOMKVPsljA== 0001362310-09-008260.txt : 20090527 0001362310-09-008260.hdr.sgml : 20090527 20090527173004 ACCESSION NUMBER: 0001362310-09-008260 CONFORMED SUBMISSION TYPE: 8-K PUBLIC DOCUMENT COUNT: 3 CONFORMED PERIOD OF REPORT: 20090527 ITEM INFORMATION: Other Events ITEM INFORMATION: Financial Statements and Exhibits FILED AS OF DATE: 20090527 DATE AS OF CHANGE: 20090527 FILER: COMPANY DATA: COMPANY CONFORMED NAME: PARK NATIONAL CORP /OH/ CENTRAL INDEX KEY: 0000805676 STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION: NATIONAL COMMERCIAL BANKS [6021] IRS NUMBER: 311179518 STATE OF INCORPORATION: OH FISCAL YEAR END: 1231 FILING VALUES: FORM TYPE: 8-K SEC ACT: 1934 Act SEC FILE NUMBER: 001-13006 FILM NUMBER: 09855289 BUSINESS ADDRESS: STREET 1: 50 NORTH THIRD ST CITY: NEWARK STATE: OH ZIP: 43055 BUSINESS PHONE: 6143498451 MAIL ADDRESS: STREET 1: P O BOX 3500 CITY: NEWARK STATE: OH ZIP: 43058-3500 8-K 1 c86079e8vk.htm FORM 8-K Form 8-K
 
 

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): May 27, 2009

Park National Corporation
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
         
Ohio   1-13006   31-1179518
(State or other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)   (Commission File Number)   (IRS Employer Identification No.)
     
50 North Third Street, P.O. Box 3500, Newark, Ohio
  43058-3500
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)   (Zip Code)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (740) 349-8451
 
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address if changed since last report.)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

o Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

o Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

o Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 
 

 

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ITEM 8.01 OTHER EVENTS.

On May 27, 2009, Park National Corporation (“Park”) and its national bank subsidiary The Park National Bank (“PNB”) entered into a Distribution Agreement (the “Distribution Agreement”) with Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. (“Sandler O’Neill”), pursuant to which Park may offer and sell common shares, without par value (“Common Shares”), having aggregate sales proceeds of up to $70,000,000 from time to time through Sandler O’Neill as sales agent, provided, that in no event will the aggregate number of Common Shares offered and sold under offerings conducted pursuant to the Distribution Agreement exceed 1,050,000 Common Shares. Sales of the Common Shares, if any, will be made by means of ordinary brokers’ transactions on NYSE Amex at market prices, in block transactions or as otherwise agreed with Sandler O’Neill.

Common Shares sold pursuant to the Distribution Agreement will be issued pursuant to a prospectus supplement filed by Park with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on May 27, 2009, to the accompanying prospectus filed with the Commission on May 22, 2009, as part of Park’s Registration Statement on Form S-3ASR (File No. 333-159454) (the “Registration Statement”). Interested investors should read the prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and all documents incorporated by reference therein.

The Distribution Agreement is filed as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and is incorporated herein by reference. The foregoing description of the material terms of the Distribution Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to such Exhibit 99.1.

Exhibits 5.1 and 23.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K are filed herewith in connection with Park’s Registration Statement and are incorporated therein by reference.

This Current Report on Form 8-K does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any Common Shares. A Registration Statement relating to the Common Shares has been filed with the Commission and is effective. Copies of the prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained when available by contacting Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. at (866) 805-4128 or by visiting EDGAR on the Commission’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov.

ITEM 9.01 FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND EXHIBITS

     
Exhibit Number   Description

5.1
 
Opinion of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP regarding the legality of the Common Shares to be offered and sold pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, dated May 27, 2009, among Park National Corporation, The Park National Bank and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.

23.1
 
Consent of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).

99.1
 
Distribution Agreement, dated May 27, 2009, among Park National Corporation, The Park National Bank and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank;
signature on following page]

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SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

PARK NATIONAL CORPORATION

Date: May 27, 2009

By: /s/ John W. Kozak                           
John W. Kozak
Chief Financial Officer

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EXHIBIT INDEX

     
Exhibit Number   Description

5.1
 
Opinion of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP regarding the legality of the Common Shares to be offered and sold pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, dated May 27, 2009, among Park National Corporation, The Park National Bank and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.

23.1
 
Consent of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).

99.1
 
Distribution Agreement, dated May 27, 2009, among Park National Corporation, The Park National Bank and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.

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EX-5.1 2 c86079exv5w1.htm EXHIBIT 5.1 Exhibit 5.1
Exhibit 5.1
     
VORYS
  52 East Gay St.
Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP
  PO Box 1008 
Legal Counsel
  Columbus, OH 43216-1008 
 
  614.464.6400 
 
   
 
  www.vorys.com
 
  Founded 1909 
May 27, 2009
Park National Corporation
50 North Third Street
Newark, Ohio 43055
Re: Registration Statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-159454)
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as counsel to Park National Corporation, an Ohio corporation (the “Company”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-159454) of the Company (the “Registration Statement”) filed on May 22, 2009 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the Prospectus Supplement, dated May 27, 2009 (the “Prospectus Supplement”), of the Company filed with the Commission, relating to the offering and sale of common shares, without par value (the "Common Shares”), having aggregate sales proceeds of up to $70,000,000, that are being offered and sold pursuant to the Distribution Agreement, dated May  27, 2009 (the “Distribution Agreement”), among the Company, The Park National Bank, the Company’s national bank subsidiary (“PNB”), and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. (“Sandler O’Neill”); provided, that in no event will the aggregate number of Common Shares offered and sold under the offerings pursuant to the Distribution Agreement exceed 1,050,000 Common Shares. This opinion letter is being delivered in accordance with the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K promulgated by the Commission.
For purposes of giving the opinions expressed below, we have examined originals or certified, conformed or reproduction copies, and have relied upon the accuracy, without independent verification or investigation, of the following:
  (1)  
the Articles of Incorporation of the Company and amendments thereto, as certified by the Secretary of State of the State of Ohio on May  26, 2009 (the “Articles”);
 
Columbus | Washington | Cleveland | Cincinnati | Alexandria | Akron | Houston

 

 


 

Park National Corporation
May  27, 2009
Page 2
  (2)  
the Regulations, as amended to date, of the Company, the completeness and accuracy of which have been certified to us as of the date hereof by an officer of the Company;
 
  (3)  
a copy of the resolutions (the “Company Resolutions”) adopted by the Company’s Board of Directors on May 15, 2009, approving the entry into the Distribution Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated thereby, the completeness and accuracy of which have been certified to us as of the date hereof by an officer of the Company;
 
  (4)  
a copy of an excerpt from the minutes of the meeting held by the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of PNB on May 23, 2009, approving the entry into the Distribution Agreement and the consummation of the transactions contemplated thereby, the completeness and accuracy of which have been certified to us as of the date hereof by an officer of PNB;
 
 
  (5)  
the Distribution Agreement;
 
  (6)  
the Registration Statement, and the related form of prospectus included therein, in the form in which the Registration Statement was transmitted to the Commission under the Securities Act;
 
  (7)  
the Prospectus Supplement in the form in which it was transmitted to the Commission under the Securities Act; and
 
  (8)  
such other records of the Company and PNB and certificates of the Company and PNB and of public officials and such other documents as we have deemed relevant and necessary as the basis for the opinions set forth below.
 
In our examinations, we have assumed: (a) the legal capacity of all natural persons executing documents, the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to original documents of all documents submitted to us as certified, conformed or reproduction copies and the authenticity of all such originals of such copies; (b) except with respect to the Company and PNB, the due completion, authorization, execution and delivery of all documents and instruments examined by us; (c) that Sandler O’Neill has the power and authority to execute and deliver the Distribution Agreement and to perform its obligations thereunder, and all such actions have been duly and validly authorized by all

 

 


 

Park National Corporation
May  27, 2009
Page 3
necessary proceedings by Sandler O’Neill; and (d) except with respect to the Company and PNB, that when duly authorized, executed and delivered, the Distribution Agreement will constitute a legal, valid and binding obligation of Sandler O’Neill, enforceable against Sandler O’Neill in accordance with its terms. We also have assumed that all actions to register and qualify the Common Shares for sale under all applicable state securities laws will be accomplished prior to the offer and sale of the Common Shares.
Based upon the foregoing examinations and in reliance thereon and the assumptions made herein, we are of the opinion that the Common Shares have been duly authorized and validly issued and, when sold pursuant to the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and the Prospectus Supplement and in accordance with the Company Resolutions and the terms of the Distribution Agreement, the Common Shares will be fully paid and non-assessable.
The opinions expressed herein are limited solely to: (i) the federal laws of the United States of America; and (ii) the laws of the State of Ohio, in each case as currently in effect, and we express no opinion as to the effect of the laws of any other jurisdiction on the opinions expressed herein. Our opinions are limited to those expressly set forth herein, and we express no opinions by implication.
This opinion letter is being furnished to you for submission to the Commission as an exhibit to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K relating to the Distribution Agreement and the Common Shares (the “Form 8-K”), which is filed in connection with the Registration Statement and incorporated therein by reference.
We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion with the Commission as an exhibit to the Form 8-K and to the reference to our firm therein and in the Registration Statement and related Prospectus and the Prospectus Supplement under the caption “LEGAL MATTERS.” In giving such consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Securities Act or the General Rules and Regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder.
Respectfully,
/s/ VORYS, SATER, SEYMOUR AND PEASE LLP
VORYS, SATER, SEYMOUR AND PEASE LLP

 

 

EX-99.1 3 c86079exv99w1.htm EXHIBIT 99.1 Exhibit 99.1
Exhibit 99.1
Up to 1,050,000 Common Shares
Park National Corporation
Common Shares
without par value
Distribution Agreement
May 27, 2009
Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.,
919 Third Avenue, 6th Floor,
New York, New York 10022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Park National Corporation, an Ohio corporation (the “Company”), proposes, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein, to sell from time to time to or through Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P., as sales agent and/or principal (the “Agent”), up to 1,050,000 of the Company’s common shares, without par value (the “Common Shares”), held by the Company as treasury shares (the “Shares”), having aggregate sales proceeds of up to $70,000,000 on the terms set forth in Section 2 of this Distribution Agreement (this “Agreement”). The Company agrees that whenever it determines to sell Shares directly to the Agent as principal, it will enter into a separate agreement (each, a “Terms Agreement”) in substantially the form of Annex I hereto, relating to such sale in accordance with Section 3 of this Agreement.
Section 1. Representations and Warranties. The Company represents and warrants to the Agent that as of the date of this Agreement, any applicable Registration Statement Amendment Date (as defined in Section 3(j) below), each Company Periodic Report Date (as defined in Section 3(i) below), each Applicable Time (as defined in Section 1(a) below) and each Settlement Date (as defined in Section 2(h) below):
(a) Compliance with Registration Requirements. The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) an “automatic shelf registration statement” as defined under Rule 405 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “1933 Act”), on Form S-3 (File No. 333-159454), in respect of the Company’s Common Shares (including the Shares) (collectively, the “Securities”) not earlier than three years prior to the date hereof; such registration statement, and any post-effective amendment thereto, became effective on filing; and no stop order suspending the effectiveness of such registration statement or any part thereof has been issued and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened by the Commission, and no written (or, to the knowledge of the Company, oral) notice of objection of the Commission to the use of such form of registration statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant

 

 


 

to Rule 401(g)(2) under the 1933 Act has been received by the Company (the base prospectus filed as part of such registration statement, in the form in which it has most recently been filed with the Commission on or prior to the date of this Agreement, is hereinafter called the “Basic Prospectus”; the various parts of such registration statement, excluding any Form T-1 but including all exhibits thereto and any prospectus supplement relating to the Shares that is filed with the Commission and deemed by virtue of Rule 430B under the 1933 Act to be part of such registration statement, each as amended at the time such part of the registration statement became effective, are hereinafter collectively called the “Registration Statement”; the prospectus supplement specifically relating to the Shares prepared and filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the 1933 Act is hereinafter called the “Prospectus Supplement”; the Basic Prospectus, as amended and supplemented by the Prospectus Supplement, is hereinafter called the “Prospectus”; any reference herein to the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 under the 1933 Act; any reference to any amendment or supplement to the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement, any prospectus supplement relating to the Shares filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the 1933 Act and any documents filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “1934 Act”), and incorporated therein, in each case after the date of the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus, as the case may be; any reference to any amendment to the Registration Statement shall be deemed to refer to and include any annual report of the Company filed pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the 1934 Act after the effective date of the Registration Statement that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement; and any “issuer free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 433 under the 1933 Act relating to the Shares is hereinafter called an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”).
No order preventing or suspending the use of the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus has been issued by the Commission, and the Basic Prospectus and the Prospectus Supplement, at the time of filing thereof, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the 1933 Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (the “1933 Act Regulations”) and did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.
For the purposes of this Agreement, the “Applicable Time” means, with respect to any Shares, the time of sale of such Shares pursuant to this Agreement; the Prospectus and the applicable Issuer Free Writing Prospectus(es) issued at or prior to such Applicable Time, taken together (collectively, and, with respect to any Shares, together with the public offering price of such Shares, the “General Disclosure Package”) as of each Applicable Time and each Settlement Date, will not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; and each applicable Issuer Free Writing Prospectus will not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus, and each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as supplemented by and taken together with the General Disclosure Package as of such Applicable Time, will not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

 

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(b) Incorporation of Documents by Reference. The documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, when they became effective or were filed with the Commission, as the case may be, complied in all material respects with the requirements of the 1934 Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, and, when read together with the other information in the Prospectus, (a) at the time the Registration Statement became effective, (b) at the time the Prospectus was issued and (c) on the date of this Agreement, did not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.
(c) Independent Accountants. Crowe Horwath LLP, who have certified the financial statements and supporting schedules, if any, of the Company and its subsidiaries included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, are independent public accountants as required by the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations, and, to the knowledge of the Company, such accountants are not in violation of the auditor independence requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 with respect to the Company.
(d) Financial Statements. The financial statements included or incorporated by reference in each of the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, together with the supporting schedules, if any, and notes, present fairly the consolidated financial condition of the Company and its subsidiaries at the dates indicated and the consolidated results of operations and cash flows of the Company and its subsidiaries for the periods specified. Such financial statements and supporting schedules, if any, have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved. The supporting schedules, if any, present fairly in accordance with GAAP the information required to be stated therein. The selected financial data and the summary financial information included or incorporated by reference in each of the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus present fairly the information shown therein and have been compiled on a basis consistent with that of the audited financial statements included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. Pro forma financial statements are not required to be included in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus under the 1933 Act, the 1933 Act Regulations or GAAP.

 

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(e) No Material Adverse Change in Business. Neither the Company nor any of its subsidiaries listed on Schedule 21 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008 (the “Form 10-K”), other than Park Title Agency, LLC (each a “Subsidiary” and collectively, the “Subsidiaries”) has sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus; and, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except as set forth or contemplated in the each of the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, (A) there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, business prospects, financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries taken as a whole (a “Material Adverse Effect”), (B) there have been no transactions entered into by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, other than those in the ordinary course of business, which are material with respect to the Company and the Subsidiaries, taken as a whole, and (C) there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company on any class of its capital stock.
(f) Good Standing of the Company. The Company is registered as a bank holding company under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended, and has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Ohio, with corporate power and authority to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus and to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing does not have, and could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect.
(g) Good Standing of Subsidiaries. Each Subsidiary that is a corporation has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation, in good standing under the laws of the state of its incorporation, with corporate power and authority to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing does not have, and could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect; each Subsidiary that is a bank has been duly chartered and is validly existing as a national or state chartered bank, in each case in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, with power and authority as a national or state chartered bank to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus, and has been duly qualified for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing does not have, and could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect; each Subsidiary that is a limited liability company has been duly formed and is validly existing as a limited liability company in good standing under

 

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the laws of the jurisdiction of its formation, with limited liability company power and authority to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus, and has been duly qualified as a foreign limited liability company for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing does not have, and could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect; all of the issued shares of capital stock or limited liability company interests of each Subsidiary that is a corporation, bank or limited liability company, as the case may be, have been duly authorized and validly issued and are fully paid and nonassessable and are owned, directly or through other subsidiaries of the Company, by the Company, free and clear of any pledge, lien, encumbrance, claim or equity; none of the outstanding shares of capital stock or limited liability company interests of any Subsidiary that is a corporation, bank or limited liability company, as the case may be, was issued in violation of the preemptive rights of any securityholder of such Subsidiary; the Company does not own or control, directly or indirectly, any corporation, association or other entity other than the subsidiaries listed in Exhibit 21 to the Form 10-K.
(h) Capitalization. All of the issued shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and nonassessable and have been issued in compliance with federal and state securities laws; and no such shares were issued in violation of the preemptive rights of any security holder of the Company.
(i) Authorization of Agreement. This Agreement and any Terms Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.
(j) Authorization and Description of Securities. The Shares to be sold pursuant to this Agreement have been duly and validly authorized and issued, and, when delivered and paid for in accordance with this Agreement on each Settlement Date will be, fully paid and nonassessable; the Shares conform to the description thereof contained in the Prospectus; no holder of the Shares will be subject to personal liability by reason of being such a holder; and the sale of the Shares is not subject to the preemptive rights of any securityholder of the Company. The Common Shares have been registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the 1934 Act and are listed on NYSE Amex LLC (“AMEX”), and the Company has taken no action designated to, or likely to have the effect of, terminating the listing of the Common Shares on AMEX, nor has the Company received any written notification that the Commission or AMEX is contemplating terminating such registration or listing.

 

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(k) Absence of Defaults and Conflicts. The sale of the Shares by the Company, the compliance by the Company and The Park National Bank, a national bank (the “Bank”) with all of the provisions of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated will not conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any contract, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, note, lease or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is subject which could reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect (collectively, the “Agreements and Instruments”), nor will any such action (A) result in any violation of the provisions of the articles of incorporation or code of regulations of the Company or any of the respective charter documents of any of the Subsidiaries or any law, statute or any order, rule or regulation of any federal, state, local or foreign court, arbitrator, regulatory authority or governmental agency or body (each, a “Governmental Entity”) having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any of their properties or (B) constitute a Repayment Event (as defined below) under, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or other encumbrance upon any assets or operations of the Company or any Subsidiary pursuant to, any of the Agreements and Instruments; and no consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any such Governmental Entity is required for the sale of the Shares or the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, except the registration of the Shares under the 1933 Act, the listing of the Shares on AMEX and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under state securities or Blue Sky laws in connection with the purchase of the Shares by the Agent in its capacity as principal and the distribution of the Shares by the Agent in its capacity as sales agent. As used herein, a “Repayment Event” means any event or condition which gives the holder of any note, debenture or other evidence of indebtedness (or any person acting on such holder’s behalf) the right to require the repurchase, redemption or repayment of all or a portion of such indebtedness by the Company or any Subsidiary.
(l) Absence of Labor Dispute. No labor problem or dispute with the employees of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries exists or, to the Company’s knowledge, is threatened or imminent, and, to the Company’s knowledge, there is no existing or imminent labor disturbance by the employees of any of its or the Subsidiaries’ principal suppliers, contractors or customers, that could reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in the Prospectus.
(m) Absence of Proceedings. Other than as set forth in the Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental actions, suits, investigations or proceedings before or by any Governmental Entity, now pending or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened or contemplated by Governmental Entities or threatened by others, to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is or would be a party or of which any property or asset of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is or would be the subject (A) that are required to be disclosed in the Registration Statement by the 1933 Act or by the 1933 Act Regulations and not disclosed therein or (B) which, if determined adversely to the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, would, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and there are no contracts or documents of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries that are required to be described in the Registration Statement or to be filed as exhibits thereto by the 1933 Act or by the 1933 Act Regulations which have not been so described and filed.

 

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(n) Possession of Intellectual Property. The Company and the Subsidiaries own or have valid, binding, enforceable and sufficient licenses or other rights to use the patents and patent applications, copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade names, technology, know-how (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary rights) and other intellectual property necessary or used in any material respect to conduct their respective businesses in the manner in which they are being conducted and in the manner in which it is contemplated as set forth in the Prospectus or otherwise necessary or used in connection with the commercialization of the existing products of the Company and the Subsidiaries and the products described in the Prospectus as being under development (collectively, the “Company Intellectual Property”); except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, the Company Intellectual Property is valid, subsisting and enforceable, and none of the patents owned or licensed by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is unenforceable or invalid, and none of the patent applications owned or licensed by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries would be unenforceable or invalid if issued as patents; the Company and the Subsidiaries, and to the Company’s knowledge, their licensors, have complied with the duty of candor and disclosure of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and any similar foreign intellectual property office (collectively, the “Patent Offices”); neither the Company nor the Subsidiaries have infringed or otherwise violated any intellectual property rights of any third person or have breached any contract in connection with which any Company Intellectual Property is provided to the Company and the Subsidiaries; neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is obligated to pay a royalty, grant a license, or provide other consideration to any third party in connection with the Company Intellectual Property other than as disclosed in the Prospectus; no person has asserted or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened to assert any claim against, or notified, the Company (or any of the Subsidiaries) in writing (or, to the knowledge of the Company, orally) that (A) the Company or any of the Subsidiaries has infringed or otherwise violated any intellectual property rights of any third person, (B) the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is in breach or default of any contract under which any Company Intellectual Property is provided, (C) such person will terminate a contract described in clause (B) or adversely alter the scope of the rights provided thereunder or (D) otherwise concerns the ownership, enforceability, validity, scope, registerability, interference, use or the right to use, any Company Intellectual Property (other than a patent office review of pending applications in the ordinary course); to the knowledge of the Company, no third party is infringing or otherwise violating any of the Company Intellectual Property owned by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, except as would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(o) Absence of Further Requirements. No filing with, or authorization, approval, consent, license, order, registration, qualification or decree of, any court or governmental authority or agency is necessary or required for the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder, in connection with the offering or sale of the Shares hereunder or the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or any Terms Agreement, except such as have been already obtained or as may be required under the 1933 Act or the 1933 Act Regulations or state securities laws, or the listing of the Shares on AMEX.
(p) Absence of Manipulation. Neither the Company nor any affiliate of the Company nor any person acting on their behalf has taken, nor will the Company or any affiliate or any person acting on their behalf take, directly or indirectly, any action which is designed to or which has constituted or which would be expected to cause or result in stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

 

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(q) Possession of Licenses and Permits. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries possess such permits, licenses, approvals, consents and other authorizations (collectively, “Governmental Licenses”) issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies necessary to conduct the business now operated by the Company or the Subsidiaries; the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms and conditions of all such Governmental Licenses, except where the failures so to comply would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; all of the Governmental Licenses are valid and in full force and effect, except where the invalidity of such Governmental Licenses or the failure of such Governmental Licenses to be in full force and effect would not, individually or in the aggregate, reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; and neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries has received any written notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such Governmental Licenses which, individually or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would reasonably be expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect.
(r) Title to Property. The Company and the Subsidiaries have good and marketable title in fee simple to all real property and good and marketable title to all personal property owned by them, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except such as are described in the Prospectus or such as do not materially affect the value of such property and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company and the Subsidiaries; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company and the Subsidiaries are held by them under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company and the Subsidiaries.
(s) Investment Company Act. The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares, and after receipt of payment for the Shares and the application of such proceeds as described in the Prospectus, will not be required to register as an “investment company” or an entity “controlled” by an “investment company”, as such terms are defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”).
(t) Environmental Laws. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries is in compliance with all applicable federal, state and local environmental laws and regulations, including, without limitation, those applicable to emissions to the environment, waste management, and waste disposal (each an “Environmental Law”), except where such noncompliance would not reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect, or except as disclosed in the Prospectus, and to the knowledge of the Company, there are no circumstances that would prevent, interfere with or materially increase the cost of such compliance in the future. To the knowledge of the Company, under applicable law, there are no past or present actions, activities, circumstances, events or incidents, including, without limitation, releases of any material into the environment, that are reasonably likely to form the basis of any claim under any Environmental Law, including common law, against the Company or the Subsidiaries which would be reasonably likely to have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

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(u) Registration Rights. Except as described in the Prospectus, (A) there are no outstanding contractual or statutory rights, warrants or options to acquire, or instruments convertible into or exchangeable for, or agreements or understandings with respect to the sale of, any shares of capital stock of or other equity interest in the Company and (B) there are no contracts, agreements or understandings between the Company and any person granting such person the right to require the Company to file a registration statement under the 1933 Act or otherwise register any securities of the Company owned or to be owned by such person.
(v) Accounting Controls and Disclosure Controls. Each of the Company and the Subsidiaries maintains a system of accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (A) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization, (B) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP and to maintain asset accountability, (C) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization and (D) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences. The Company has established and maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and Rule 15d-15(e) under the 1934 Act). Such disclosure controls and procedures (A) are designed to ensure that material information relating to the Company, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to the Company’s chief executive officer and its chief financial officer by others within those entities to allow timely decisions regarding disclosures, (B) have been evaluated for effectiveness as of the end of the most recent fiscal quarter and (C) are effective to perform the functions for which they were established. The Company’s independent registered public accounting firm and the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company have been advised of (1) any significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Company’s ability to record, process, summarize, and report financial data and (2) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a role in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Since the date of the most recent evaluation of such disclosure controls and procedures, there have been no changes in internal control over financial reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.
(w) Well-Known Seasoned Issuer. (A)(i) At the time of filing the Registration Statement, (ii) at the time of the most recent amendment thereto for the purposes of complying with Section 10(a)(3) of the 1933 Act (whether such amendment was by post-effective amendment, incorporated report filed pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the 1934 Act or form of prospectus), and (iii) at the time the Company or any person acting on its behalf (within the meaning, for this clause only, of Rule 163(c) under the 1933 Act) made any offer relating to the Shares in reliance on the exemption of Rule 163 under the 1933 Act, the Company was a “well-known seasoned issuer” as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act; and (B) at the earliest time after the filing of the Registration Statement that the Company or another offering participant made a bona fide offer (within the meaning of Rule 164(h)(2) under the 1933 Act) of the Shares, the Company was not an “ineligible issuer” as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act.

 

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(x) No Commissions. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is a party to any contract, agreement or understanding with any person (other than as contemplated by this Agreement) that would give rise to a valid claim against the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or the Agent for a brokerage commission, finder’s fee or like payment in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares.
(y) Actively-Traded Security. The Common Shares are an “actively-traded security” exempted from the requirements of Rule 101 of Regulation M under the 1934 Act by subsection (c)(1) of such rule.
(z) Deemed Representation. Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company delivered to the Agent or to counsel for the Agent pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement or any Terms Agreement shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to the Agent as to the matters covered thereby as of the date or dates indicated in such certificate.
(aa) Compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The Company is in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder applicable to it and will comply with those provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act that will become effective in the future upon their effectiveness; and the Company is in compliance with the applicable rules and regulations of AMEX.
(bb) Payment of Taxes. The Company has filed all foreign, federal, state and local tax returns that are required to be filed or is eligible for, and has requested, extensions thereof, except as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus and has paid all taxes required to be paid by it and any other assessment, fine or penalty levied against it, to the extent that any of the foregoing is due and payable, except for any such tax, assessment, fine or penalty that is currently being contested in good faith or as would not have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus.
(cc) Insurance. The Company and each of the Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and customary in the business in which they are engaged; all policies of insurance insuring the Company or any of the Subsidiaries are in full force and effect; the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms of such policies and instruments in all material respects; and there are no claims by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries under any such policy or instrument as to which any insurance company is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause; neither the Company nor any such Subsidiary has been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and neither the Company nor any such Subsidiary knows of any facts that could prevent it from being able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a Material Adverse Effect, except as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus.

 

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(dd) Statistical and Market-Related Data. The statistical and market related data contained in each of the General Disclosure Package, the Registration Statement and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources that the Company believes are reliable and accurate.
(ee) Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries has (A) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expenses relating to political activity; (B) made any direct or indirect unlawful payment to any foreign or domestic government official or employee; (C) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, and the rules and regulations thereunder; (D) made any bribe, rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful payment; or (E) made any payment of funds to the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or received or retained funds in violation of any law, rule or regulation, which payment, receipt or retention of funds is of a character required to be disclosed in each of the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, that is not described in each of the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as required.
(ff) Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions applicable to the Company and the Subsidiaries, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of the Subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.
(gg) OFAC. Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee, affiliate or person acting on behalf of the Company is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department (“OFAC”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any Subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC.

 

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(hh) Regulatory Agreements. Neither the Company nor the Bank is subject or is party to, or has received any notice or advice that either of them may become subject or party to any investigation with respect to, any corrective, suspension or cease-and-desist order, agreement, consent agreement, memorandum of understanding or other regulatory enforcement action, proceeding or order with or by, or is a party to any commitment letter or similar undertaking to, or is subject to any directive by, or has been a recipient of any supervisory letter from, or has adopted any board resolutions at the request of, any Regulatory Agency (as defined below) that currently relates to or restricts in any material respect the conduct of their business or that in any manner relates to their capital adequacy, credit policies or management (each, a “Regulatory Agreement”), nor has the Company or the Bank been advised by any Regulatory Agency that it is considering issuing or requesting any such Regulatory Agreement. There is no unresolved violation, criticism or exception by any Regulatory Agency with respect to any report or statement relating to any examinations of the Company or the Bank which, in the reasonable judgment of the Company, is expected to result in a Material Adverse Effect. As used herein, the term “Regulatory Agency” means any Governmental Entity having supervisory or regulatory authority with respect to the Company or the Bank, including, but not limited to, any federal or state agency charged with the supervision or regulation of depositary institutions or holding companies of depositary institutions, or engaged in the insurance of depositary institution deposits.
(ii) Compliance with Law. The Company and the Subsidiaries are conducting their respective businesses in compliance with all statutes, laws, rules, regulations, judgments, decisions, directives, orders and decrees of any Governmental Entity (including, without limitation, all regulations and orders of, or agreements with, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the “OCC”), the Board of the Federal Reserve System (the “FRB”) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”)) applicable to them, except where the failure to so comply would not reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(jj) Dividends. The Bank currently is not prohibited, directly or indirectly, from paying dividends, subject to regulatory guidelines, to the Company, from making any other distribution on its capital stock, from repaying to the Company any loans or advances to it from the Company or from transferring any of its property or assets to the Company or any other Subsidiary.
(kk) No Conflict. Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is (A) in violation of its respective charter documents or (B) in default in the performance or observance of any obligation, agreement, covenant or condition contained in any of the Agreements and Instruments, except with respect to subsection (B) for such default that would not be reasonably be expected, individually or in the aggregate, to have a Material Adverse Effect.
(ll) Certain Statements. The statements set forth in the Prospectus under the caption “Description of Common Shares,” insofar as they purport to constitute a summary of the terms of the Common Shares, are accurate and complete in all material respects.

 

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(mm) ERISA. Any “employee benefit plan” (as defined under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (collectively, “ERISA”)) established or maintained by the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or their “ERISA Affiliates” (as defined below) is in compliance in all material respects with ERISA; “ERISA Affiliate” means, with respect to the Company or any Subsidiary, any member of any group of organizations described in Section 414(b), (c), (m) or (o) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder (the “Code”), of which the Company or such Subsidiary is a member; no “reportable event” (as defined under ERISA) has occurred or is reasonably expected to occur with respect to any “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates; no “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates, if such “employee benefit plan” were terminated, would have any “amount of unfunded benefit liabilities” (as defined under ERISA); none of the Company, the Subsidiaries nor any of their ERISA Affiliates has incurred or reasonably expects to incur any liability under (A) Title IV of ERISA with respect to termination of, or withdrawal from, any “employee benefit plan” or (B) Sections 412, 4971, 4975 or 4980B of the Code; each “employee benefit plan” established or maintained by the Company, any of the Subsidiaries or any of their ERISA Affiliates that is intended to be qualified under Section 401(a) of the Code is so qualified and, to the Company’s knowledge, nothing has occurred whether by action or failure to act, which would cause the loss of such qualification.
(nn) Relationships. No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, on the one hand, and the directors, officers, shareholders, customers or suppliers of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, on the other, that is required by the 1933 Act to be described in the General Disclosure Package and that is not so described.
(oo) Off-Balance Sheet Transactions. Except as described in the General Disclosure Package, there are no material off-balance sheet transactions, arrangements, obligations (including contingent obligations), or any other relationships with unconsolidated entities or other persons, that could reasonably be expected to have a material current or future effect on the Company’s financial condition, changes in financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures, capital resources, or significant components of revenues or expenses.
(pp) Representations and Warranties of the Bank. The Bank represents and warrants to, and agrees with the Agent that:
(i) The Bank has been duly chartered and is validly existing as a national bank in good standing under the laws of the United States, with power and authority as a national bank to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus, and has been duly qualified for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure to so qualify or be in good standing does not have, and could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect;
(ii) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Bank and the compliance by the Bank with all of the provisions of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated, in each case to the extent applicable to the Bank, will not conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Bank or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which the Bank or any of its subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Bank or any of its subsidiaries is subject, which could reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect, nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of the charter of the Bank or any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Bank or any of its subsidiaries or any of their properties;

 

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(iii) Neither the Bank nor any of its subsidiaries is in violation of its respective charter documents or in default in the performance or observance of any obligation, agreement, covenant or condition contained in any contract, indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, note, lease or other agreement or instrument to which the Bank or any of its subsidiaries is a party or by which it or any of its subsidiaries may be bound, or to which any of the property of the Bank or any of its subsidiaries is subject, except for such default that could not reasonably be expected to have, individually or in the aggregate, a Material Adverse Effect; and
(iv) The activities of the subsidiaries of the Bank are permitted to subsidiaries of a national bank under applicable law and the rules and regulations of the OCC set forth in Chapter I of Title 12 of the Code of Federal Regulations and the deposit accounts of the Bank are insured up to the applicable limits by the FDIC.
Section 2. Sale and Delivery of Shares.
(a) Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, the Company agrees to sell through the Agent acting as sales agent or directly to the Agent acting as principal from time to time, and the Agent agrees to use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell as sales agent for the Company, the Shares. Sales of the Shares, if any, through the Agent acting as sales agent or directly to the Agent acting as principal, will be made by means of ordinary brokers’ transactions on AMEX or otherwise at market prices prevailing at the time of sale, at prices related to prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices.
(b) The Shares are to be sold on a daily basis or otherwise as shall be agreed to by the Company and the Agent on any trading day (other than a day on which AMEX is scheduled to close prior to its regular weekday closing time, each, a “Trading Day”) that the Company has satisfied its obligations under Section 6 of this Agreement and that the Company has instructed the Agent to make such sales. On any Trading Day, the Company may instruct the Agent by telephone (confirmed promptly by telecopy or email, which confirmation will be promptly acknowledged by the Agent) as to the maximum number of Shares to be sold by the Agent on such day (in any event not in excess of the number available for sale under the Prospectus and the currently effective Registration Statement) and the minimum price per Share at which such Shares may be sold. Subject to the terms and conditions hereof, the Agent shall use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell as sales agent all of the Shares so designated by the Company. The Company and the Agent each acknowledge and agree that (A) there can be no assurance that the Agent will be successful in selling the Shares, (B) the Agent will incur no liability or obligation to the Company or any other person or entity if it does not sell Shares for any reason other than a failure by the Agent to use its commercially reasonable efforts consistent with its normal trading and sales practices and applicable law and regulations to sell such Shares as required by this Agreement, and (C) the Agent shall be under no obligation to purchase Shares on a principal basis except as otherwise specifically agreed by the Agent and the Company pursuant to a Terms Agreement. In the event of a conflict between the terms of this Agreement and the terms of a Terms Agreement, the terms of such Terms Agreement will control.

 

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(c) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall not authorize the sale of, and the Agent as sales agent shall not be obligated to use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell, any Shares (i) at a price lower than the minimum price therefor authorized from time to time, or (ii) in a number in excess of the number of Shares authorized from time to time to be sold under this Agreement, in each case, by the Company’s Board of Directors, or a duly authorized committee thereof, and notified to the Agent in writing. In addition, the Company or the Agent may, upon notice to the other party hereto by telephone (confirmed promptly by telecopy or email, which confirmation will be promptly acknowledged), suspend the offering of the Shares with respect to which the Agent is acting as sales agent for any reason and at any time; provided, however, that such suspension or termination shall not affect or impair the parties’ respective obligations with respect to the Shares sold hereunder prior to the giving of such notice.
(d) The gross sales price of any Shares sold pursuant to this Agreement by the Agent acting as sales agent of the Company shall be the market price prevailing at the time of sale for Common Shares sold by the Agent on AMEX or otherwise, at prices relating to prevailing market prices or at negotiated prices. The compensation payable to the Agent for sales of Shares with respect to which the Agent acts as sales agent shall be equal to 3.0% of the gross sales price of the Shares for amounts of Shares sold pursuant to this Agreement. The Company may sell Shares to the Agent as principal at a price agreed upon at the relevant Applicable Time and pursuant to a separate Terms Agreement. The remaining proceeds, after further deduction for any transaction fees imposed by any governmental, regulatory or self-regulatory organization in respect of such sales, shall constitute the net proceeds to the Company for such Shares (the “Net Proceeds”). The Agent shall notify the Company as promptly as practicable if any deduction referenced in the preceding sentence will be required.
(e) If acting as sales agent hereunder, the Agent shall provide written confirmation to the Company following the close of trading on AMEX each day in which Shares are sold under this Agreement setting forth the number of Shares sold on such day, the aggregate gross sales proceeds of the Shares, the Net Proceeds to the Company and the compensation payable by the Company to the Agent with respect to such sales.
(f) Under no circumstances shall the aggregate offering price or number, as the case may be, of Shares sold pursuant to this Agreement and any Terms Agreement exceed the aggregate offering price or number, as the case may be, of Common Shares (i) set forth in the preamble paragraph of this Agreement, (ii) available for sale under the Prospectus and the then currently effective Registration Statement or (iii) authorized from time to time to be sold under this Agreement or any Terms Agreement by the Company’s Board of Directors, or a duly authorized committee thereof, and communicated to the Agent in writing. In addition, under no circumstances shall any Shares with respect to which the Agent acts as sales agent be sold at a price lower than the minimum price therefor authorized from time to time by the Company’s Board of Directors, or a duly authorized committee thereof, and communicated to the Agent in writing.

 

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(g) If either party believes that the exemptive provisions set forth in Rule 101(c)(1) of Regulation M under the 1934 Act (applicable to securities with an average daily trading volume of $1,000,000 that are issued by an issuer whose common equity securities have a public float value of at least $150,000,000) are not satisfied with respect to the Company or the Shares, it shall promptly notify the other party and sales of Shares under this Agreement and any Terms Agreement shall be suspended until that or other exemptive provisions have been satisfied in the reasonable judgment of each party.
(h) Settlement for sales of Shares pursuant to this Section 2 will occur on the third business day that is also a Trading Day following the trade date on which such sales are made, unless another date shall be agreed to by the Company and the Agent (each such day, a “Settlement Date”). On each Settlement Date, the Shares sold through the Agent for settlement on such date shall be delivered by the Company to the Agent against payment of the Net Proceeds from the sale of such Shares. Settlement for all Shares shall be effected by book-entry delivery of Shares to an account at The Depository Trust Company designated by the Agent against payments by the Agent of the Net Proceeds from the sale of such Shares in same day funds delivered to an account designated by the Company. If the Company shall default on its obligation to deliver Shares on any Settlement Date, the Company shall (i) indemnify and hold the Agent harmless against any loss, claim or damage arising from or as a result of such default by the Company and (ii) pay the Agent any commission to which it would otherwise be entitled absent such default. If the Agent breaches this Agreement by failing to deliver the applicable Net Proceeds on any Settlement Date for Shares delivered by the Company, the Agent will pay the Company interest based on the effective overnight federal funds rate until such proceeds, together with such interest, have been fully paid.
(i) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Company and the Agent agree that no sales of Shares shall take place, and the Company shall not request the sale of any Shares that would be sold, and the Agent shall not be obligated to sell, during any period in which the Company’s insider trading policy, as it exists on the date of this Agreement, would prohibit the purchases or sales of the Common Shares by its officers or directors, or during any other period in which the Company is, or could be deemed to be, in possession of material non-public information; provided that, unless otherwise agreed between the Company and the Agent, for purposes of this paragraph (i) such period shall be deemed to end on the date on which the Company’s next subsequent Annual Report on Form 10-K or Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, as the case may be, is filed with the Commission.
(j) At each Applicable Time, Settlement Date, Registration Amendment Date and each Company Periodic Report Date, the Company shall be deemed to have affirmed each representation and warranty contained in this Agreement. Any obligation of the Agent to use its commercially reasonable efforts to sell the Shares on behalf of the Company as sales agent shall be subject to the continuing accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Company herein, to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder and to the continuing satisfaction of the additional conditions specified in Section 6 of this Agreement.

 

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Section 3. Covenants. The Company agrees with the Agent:
(a) During any period when the delivery of a prospectus is required in connection with the offering or sale of Shares (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 153 or Rule 172 under the 1933 Act, or in lieu thereof, a notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the 1933 Act), (i) to make no further amendment or any supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus prior to any Settlement Date which shall be disapproved by the Agent promptly after reasonable notice thereof and to advise the Agent, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the time when any amendment to the Registration Statement has been filed or becomes effective or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus has been filed and to furnish the Agent with copies thereof, (ii) to file promptly all other material required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the 1933 Act, (iii) to file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), Section 13(c), Section 14 or Section 15(d) of the 1934 Act, (iv) to advise the Agent, promptly after it receives notice thereof, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus or other prospectus in respect of the Shares, of any notice of objection of the Commission to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the 1933 Act, of the suspension of the qualification of the Shares for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, of the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for any such purpose, or of any request by the Commission for the amending or supplementing of the form of the Registration Statement or the Prospectus or for additional information, and (v) in the event of the issuance of any such stop order or of any such order preventing or suspending the use of the Prospectus in respect of the Shares or suspending any such qualification, to promptly use its commercially reasonable efforts to obtain the withdrawal of such order; and in the event of any such issuance of a notice of objection, promptly to take such reasonable steps as may be necessary to permit offers and sales of the Shares by the Agent, which may include, without limitation, amending the Registration Statement or filing a new registration statement, at the Company’s expense (references herein to the Registration Statement shall include any such amendment or new registration statement).
(b) Promptly from time to time to take such action as the Agent may reasonably request to qualify the Shares for offering and sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as the Agent may request and to comply with such laws so as to permit the continuance of sales and dealings therein in such jurisdictions for as long as may be necessary to complete the sale of the Shares, provided that in connection therewith the Company shall not be required to qualify as a foreign corporation or to file a general consent to service of process in any jurisdiction; and to promptly advise the Agent of the receipt by the Company of any notification with respect to the suspension of the qualification of the Shares for offer or sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for such purpose.

 

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(c) During any period when the delivery of a prospectus is required (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 153 or Rule 172 under the 1933 Act, or in lieu thereof, a notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the 1933 Act) in connection with the offering or sale of Shares, the Company will make available to the Agent, as soon as practicable after the execution of this Agreement, and thereafter from time to time furnish to the Agent, copies of the most recent Prospectus in such quantities and at such locations as the Agent may reasonably request for the purposes contemplated by the 1933 Act. During any period when the delivery of a prospectus is required (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 153 or Rule 172 under the 1933 Act, or in lieu thereof, a notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the 1933 Act) in connection with the offering or sale of Shares, and if at such time any event shall have occurred as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made when such Prospectus is delivered, not misleading, or, if for any other reason it shall be necessary during such same period to amend or supplement the Prospectus or to file under the 1934 Act any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus in order to comply with the 1933 Act or the 1934 Act, to notify the Agent and to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to the Agent as many written and electronic copies as the Agent may from time to time reasonably request of an amended Prospectus or a supplement to the Prospectus which will correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance.
(d) To make generally available to its securityholders as soon as practicable, but in any event not later than sixteen months after the effective date of the Registration Statement (as defined in Rule 158(c) under the 1933 Act), an earnings statement of the Company and the Subsidiaries (which need not be audited) complying with Section 11(a) of the 1933 Act and the 1933 Act Regulations (including, at the option of the Company, Rule 158 under the 1933 Act).
(e) To pay the required Commission filing fees relating to the Shares within the time required by Rule 456(b)(1) under the 1933 Act without regard to the proviso therein and otherwise in accordance with Rule 456(b) and Rule 457(r) under the 1933 Act.
(f) To use the Net Proceeds received by it from the sale of the Shares pursuant to this Agreement and any Terms Agreement in the manner specified in the General Disclosure Package.
(g) In connection with the offering and sale of the Shares, the Company will file with AMEX all documents and notices, and make all certifications, required by AMEX of companies that have securities that are listed on AMEX and will maintain such listing.
(h) To not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or result in, or that has constituted or might reasonably be expected to constitute, under the 1934 Act or otherwise, the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any securities of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

 

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(i) At each Applicable Time, each Settlement Date, each Registration Statement Amendment Date (as defined below) and each Company Periodic Report Date (as defined below) and each date on which Shares are delivered to the Agent pursuant to a Terms Agreement, the Company shall be deemed to have affirmed each representation, warranty, covenant and other agreement contained in this Agreement or any Terms Agreement. In each Annual Report on Form 10-K or Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed by the Company in respect of any quarter in which sales of Shares were made by or through the Agent under this Agreement or any Terms Agreement (each date on which any such document is filed, and any date on which an amendment to any such document is filed, a “Company Periodic Report Date”), the Company shall set forth with regard to such quarter the number of Shares sold through the Agent under this Agreement or any Terms Agreement, the Net Proceeds received by the Company and the compensation paid by the Company to the Agent with respect to sales of Shares pursuant to this Agreement or any Terms Agreement.
(j) Upon commencement of the offering of Shares under this Agreement and each time the Shares are delivered to the Agent as principal on a Settlement Date and promptly after each (i) date the Registration Statement or the Prospectus shall be amended or supplemented (other than (1) by an amendment or supplement providing solely for the determination of the terms of the Shares, (2) in connection with the filing of a prospectus supplement that contains solely the information set forth in Section 3(i), (3) in connection with the filing of any current reports on Form 8-K (other than any current reports on Form 8-K which contain financial statements, supporting schedules or other financial data, including any current report on Form 8-K under Item 2.02 of such form that is considered “filed” under the 1934 Act) or (4) by a prospectus supplement relating to the offering of other securities (including, without limitation, other Common Shares)) (each such date, a “Registration Statement Amendment Date”) and (ii) Company Periodic Report Date, the Company will furnish or cause to be furnished forthwith to the Agent a certificate dated the date of effectiveness of such amendment or the date of filing with the Commission of such supplement or other document, as the case may be, in a form reasonably satisfactory to the Agent to the effect that the statements contained in the certificate referred to in Section 6(e) of this Agreement which were last furnished to the Agent are true and correct at the time of such amendment, supplement or filing, as the case may be, as though made at and as of such time (except that such statements shall be deemed to relate to the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as amended and supplemented to such time) or, in lieu of such certificate, a certificate of the same tenor as the certificate referred to in said Section 6(e), but modified as necessary to relate to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus as amended and supplemented, or to the document incorporated by reference into the Prospectus, to the time of delivery of such certificate. As used in this paragraph, to the extent there shall be an Applicable Time on or following the date referred to in clause (i) or (ii) above, promptly shall be deemed to be on or prior to the next succeeding Applicable Time.

 

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(k) Upon commencement of the offering of Shares under this Agreement and each time the Shares are delivered to the Agent as principal on a Settlement Date, and promptly after each (i) Registration Statement Amendment Date and (ii) Company Periodic Report Date, the Company will furnish or cause to be furnished to the Agent and to counsel to the Agent the written opinion and letter of counsel for the Company or other counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Agent, dated the date of effectiveness of such amendment or the date of filing with the Commission of such supplement or other document, as the case may be, in a form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Agent and its counsel, of the same tenor as the opinion and letter referred to in Section 6(c) of this Agreement, but modified as necessary to relate to the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus as amended and supplemented, or to the document incorporated by reference into the Prospectus, to the time of delivery of such opinion and letter or, in lieu of such opinion and letter, counsel last furnishing such letter to the Agent shall furnish such Agent with a letter substantially to the effect that the Agent may rely on such last opinion and letter to the same extent as though each were dated the date of such letter authorizing reliance (except that statements in such last letter shall be deemed to relate to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus as amended and supplemented to the time of delivery of such letter authorizing reliance). As used in this paragraph, to the extent there shall be an Applicable Time on or following the date referred to in clause (i) or (ii) above, promptly shall be deemed to be on or prior to the next succeeding Applicable Time.
(l) Upon commencement of the offering of Shares under this Agreement, and at the time Shares are delivered to the Agent as principal on a Settlement Date, and promptly after each (i) Registration Statement Amendment Date and (ii) Company Periodic Report Date, the Company will cause Crowe Horwath LLP, or other independent accountants reasonably satisfactory to the Agent, to furnish to the Agent a letter, dated the date of effectiveness of such amendment or the date of filing of such supplement or other document with the Commission, as the case may be, in form reasonably satisfactory to the Agent and its counsel, of the same tenor as the letter referred to in Section 6(d) hereof, but modified as necessary to relate to the Registration Statement, the General Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, as amended and supplemented, or to the document incorporated by reference into the Prospectus, to the date of such letter. As used in this paragraph, to the extent there shall be an Applicable Time on or following the date referred to in clause (i) or (ii) above, promptly shall be deemed to be on or prior to the next succeeding Applicable Time.
(m) The Company consents to the Agent trading in the Common Shares for the Agent’s own account and for the account of its clients at the same time as sales of Shares occur pursuant to this Agreement or any Terms Agreement.
(n) If, to the knowledge of the Company, all filings required by Rule 424 in connection with this offering shall not have been made or the representations in Section 1(a) shall not be true and correct on the applicable Settlement Date, the Company will offer to any person who has agreed to purchase Shares from the Company as the result of an offer to purchase solicited by the Agent the right to refuse to purchase and pay for such Shares.
(o) The Company will cooperate timely with any reasonable due diligence review conducted by the Agent or its counsel from time to time in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby or in any Terms Agreement, including, without limitation, and upon reasonable notice providing information and making available documents and appropriate corporate officers, during regular business hours and at the Company’s principal offices, as the Agent may reasonably request.

 

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(p) The Company will not, without (i) giving the Agent at least five business days’ prior written notice specifying the nature of the proposed sale and the date of such proposed sale and (ii) the Agent suspending activity under this program for such period of time as requested by the Company or as deemed appropriate by the Agent in light of the proposed sale, (A) offer, pledge, announce the intention to sell, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of, lend or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any Common Shares or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for or repayable with Common Shares, or file any registration statement under the 1933 Act with respect to any of the foregoing (other than a shelf registration statement under Rule 415 under the 1933 Act, a registration statement on Form S-8 or post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement) or (B) enter into any swap or other agreement or any transaction that transfers in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, any of the economic consequence of ownership of the Common Shares, or any securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for or repayable with Common Shares, whether any such swap or transaction described in clause (A) or (B) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Shares or such other securities, in cash or otherwise. The foregoing sentence shall not apply to (v) the Shares to be offered and sold through the Agent pursuant to this Agreement or any Terms Agreement, (w) Common Shares issuable pursuant to the Company’s dividend reinvestment plan or the Company’s employee stock ownership plan, in either case as amended or replaced from time to time, (x) equity incentive awards approved by the Board of Directors of the Company or the compensation committee thereof or the issuance of Common Shares upon exercise thereof, (y) equity awards made pursuant to the Company’s stock plan for non-employee directors or the issuance of Common Shares in connection therewith, and (z) Common Shares issuable upon any exercise of the warrant granted by the Company to the United States Department of the Treasury (the “U.S. Treasury”) in connection with the Company’s participation in the U.S. Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program.
(q) If immediately prior to the third anniversary (the “Renewal Deadline”) of the initial effective date of the Registration Statement, any of the Shares remain unsold, the Company will, prior to the Renewal Deadline, if it has not already done so and is eligible to do so, prepare and file a new automatic shelf registration statement relating to the Shares, in a form reasonably satisfactory to the Agent. If the Company is no longer eligible to file an automatic shelf registration statement, the Company will, prior to the Renewal Deadline, if it has not already done so, file a new shelf registration statement relating to the Shares, in a form satisfactory to the Agent, and will use its best efforts to cause such registration statement to be declared effective within 60 days after the Renewal Deadline. The Company will take all other action necessary or appropriate to permit the sale of the Shares to continue as contemplated in the expired registration statement relating to the Shares. References herein to the Registration Statement shall include such new automatic shelf registration statement or such new shelf registration statement, as the case may be.

 

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Section 4. Free Writing Prospectus.
(a) (i) The Company represents and agrees that it has not made and, without the prior consent of the Agent, will not make any offer relating to the Shares that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 405 under the 1933 Act; and
(ii) the Agent represents and agrees that it has not made and, without the prior consent of the Company will not make any offer relating to the Shares that would constitute a free writing prospectus required to be filed with the Commission.
(b) The Company has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rule 433 under the 1933 Act applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus (including any free writing prospectus identified in Section 4(a) hereof), including timely filing with the Commission or retention where required and legending.
Section 5. Payment of Expenses.
(a) The Company covenants and agrees with the Agent that the Company will pay or cause to be paid the following: (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel and accountants in connection with the registration of the Shares under the 1933 Act and all other expenses in connection with the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus and amendments and supplements thereto and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Agent; (ii) the cost of printing or producing this Agreement or any Terms Agreement, any Blue Sky and Legal Investment Memoranda, closing documents (including any compilations thereof) and any other documents in connection with the offering, purchase, sale and delivery of the Shares; (iii) all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offering and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 3(b) hereof, including the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Agent in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky and Legal Investment Memoranda; (iv) any filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Agent in connection with, any required review by Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. of the terms of the sale of the Shares; (v) all fees and expenses in connection with listing the Shares on AMEX; (vi) the cost of preparing the Shares; (vii) the costs and charges of any transfer agent or registrar or any dividend distribution agent; and (viii) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder which are not otherwise specifically provided for in this Section.
(b) In addition to the expenses to be borne by the Company pursuant to Section 5(a), the Company agrees to reimburse the Agent, upon request made from time to time, for its reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with the offering contemplated by this Agreement, including, without limitation, legal fees and expenses and travel expenses.

 

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Section 6. Conditions of Agent’s Obligation. The obligations of the Agent hereunder shall be subject, in its discretion, to the condition that all representations and warranties and other statements of the Company herein or in certificates of any officer of the Company delivered pursuant to the provisions hereof are true and correct as of the time of the execution of this Agreement, the date of any executed Terms Agreement and as of each Registration Statement Amendment Date, Company Periodic Report Date, Applicable Time and Settlement Date, to the condition that the Company shall have performed all of its obligations hereunder theretofore to be performed, and the following additional conditions:
(a) The Prospectus Supplement shall have been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the 1933 Act on or prior to the date hereof and in accordance with Section 3(a) hereof, any other material required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the 1933 Act shall have been filed with the Commission within the applicable time periods prescribed for such filings by Rule 433 under the 1933 Act; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof shall have been issued and no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission and no notice of objection of the Commission to the use of the form of the Registration Statement or any post-effective amendment thereto pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) under the 1933 Act shall have been received; no stop order suspending or preventing the use of the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; and all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission shall have been complied with to the reasonable satisfaction of the Agent.
(b) On every date specified in Section 3(j) hereof and on such other dates as reasonably requested by Agent, Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, counsel for the Agent, shall have furnished to the Agent such written opinion or opinions, dated as of such date, with respect to such matters as the Agent may reasonably request, and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.
(c) On every date specified in Section 3(k) hereof and on such other dates as reasonably requested by the Agent following the filing of any current reports on Form 8-K, Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP, counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Agent written opinion or opinions, dated as of such date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Agent.
(d) At the dates specified in Section 3(l) hereof and on such other dates as reasonably requested by the Agent following the filing of any current reports on Form 8-K, the independent accountants of the Company who have certified the financial statements of the Company and the Subsidiaries included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall have furnished to the Agent a letter dated as of the date of delivery thereof and addressed to the Agent, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Agent and its counsel, containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements of the Company and the Subsidiaries included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement.

 

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(e) (i) Upon commencement of the offering of Shares under this Agreement and on such other dates as reasonably requested by Agent, the Company will furnish or cause to be furnished promptly to the Agent a certificate of an officer in a form satisfactory to the Agent stating the minimum price for the sale of such Shares pursuant to this Agreement and the maximum number of Shares that may be sold pursuant to this Agreement or, alternatively, maximum gross proceeds from such sales, as authorized from time to time by the Company’s Board of Directors or a duly authorized committee thereof or, in connection with any amendment, revision or modification of such minimum price or maximum Share number or amount, a new certificate with respect thereto and (ii) on each date specified in Section 3(j) and on such other dates as reasonably requested by Agent, the Agent shall have received a certificate of two executive officers of the Company, one of whom shall be the Chief Financial Officer or Chief Accounting Officer, dated as of the date thereof, to the effect that (A) there has been no Material Adverse Effect since the date as of which information is given in the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented, (B) the representations and warranties in Section 1 hereof are true and correct as of such date and (C) the Company has complied with all of the agreements entered into in connection with the transaction contemplated herein and satisfied all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied.
(f) Since the date of the latest audited financial statements then included or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus and the General Disclosure Package, no Material Adverse Effect shall have occurred.
(g) The Company shall have complied with the provisions of Section 3(c) hereof with respect to the timely furnishing of prospectuses.
(h) On such dates as reasonably requested by the Agent, the Company shall have conducted due diligence sessions, in form and substance satisfactory to the Agent.
(i) All filings with the Commission required by Rule 424 under the 1933 Act to have been filed by each Applicable Time or related Settlement Date shall have been made within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 424 under the 1933 Act (without reliance on Rule 424(b)(8) under the 1933 Act).
(j) The Shares shall have received approval for listing on AMEX prior to the first Settlement Date.
Section 7. Indemnification.
(a) The Company and the Bank, jointly and severally, shall indemnify and hold harmless the Agent against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which the Agent may become subject, under the 1933 Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any “issuer information” filed or required to be filed pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the 1933 Act, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and will reimburse the Agent for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the

 

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Agent in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim as such expenses are incurred; provided, however, that neither the Company nor any Bank shall be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by the Agent expressly for use therein (provided that the Company and the Agent hereby acknowledge and agree that the only information that the Agent has furnished to the Company specifically for inclusion in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, is the Agent’s name appearing in the Prospectus in the section entitled “Plan of Distribution.” Notwithstanding the foregoing, the indemnification provided for in this paragraph (a) shall not apply to the Bank to the extent that such indemnification by the Bank is found in a final judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction to constitute a covered transaction under Section 23A of the Federal Reserve Act or Regulation W of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, or is otherwise prohibited by applicable law.
(b) The Agent shall indemnify and hold harmless the Company against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which the Company may become subject, under the 1933 Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Prospectus Supplement, or the Prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by the Agent expressly for use therein; and will reimburse the Company for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Company in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim as such expenses are incurred.
(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such subsection, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the commencement thereof; but the omission so to notify the indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have to any indemnified party otherwise than under such subsection except and then only to the extent such indemnifying party is materially prejudiced thereby. In case any such action shall be brought against any indemnified party and it shall notify the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent that it shall wish, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party, and, after

 

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notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of its election so to assume the defense thereof, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party under this Section 7 for any legal expenses of other counsel or any other expenses, in each case subsequently incurred by such indemnified party, in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation. No indemnifying party shall, without the written consent of the indemnified party, effect the settlement or compromise of, or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened action or claim in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified party is an actual or potential party to such action or claim) unless such settlement, compromise or judgment (i) includes an unconditional release of the indemnified party from all liability arising out of such action or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.
(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 7 is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Agent on the other from the offering of the Shares. If, however, the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence is not permitted by applicable law or if the indemnified party failed to give the notice required under subsection (c) above, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to such amount paid or payable by such indemnified party in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Agent on the other in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof), as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Agent on the other shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total compensation hereunder received by the Agent. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company on the one hand or the Agent on the other and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Company and the Agent agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this subsection (d) were determined by pro rata allocation or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this subsection (d). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) referred to above in this subsection (d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (d), the Agent shall not be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages which the Agent has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the 1933 Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.

 

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(e) The obligations of the Company and the Bank under this Section 7 shall be in addition to any liability which the Company and the Bank may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each person, if any, who controls (within the meaning of the 1933 Act) the Agent, or any of the respective partners, directors, officers and employees of the Agent or any such controlling person; and the obligations of the Agent under this Section 7 shall be in addition to any liability which the Agent may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each director of the Company (including any person who, with his or her consent, is named in the Registration Statement as about to become a director of the Company), each officer of the Company who signs the Registration Statement and to each person, if any, who controls the Company or the Bank, as the case may be, within the meaning of the 1933 Act.
Section 8. Representations, Warranties and Agreements to Survive Delivery. The respective indemnities, agreements, representations, warranties and other statements of the Company and the Agent, as set forth in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of them, respectively, pursuant to this Agreement, shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation (or any statement as to the results thereof) made by or on behalf of the Agent or any controlling person of the Agent, or the Company, or any officer or director or controlling person of the Company, and shall survive delivery of and payment for the Shares.
Section 9. No Advisory or Fiduciary Relationship. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (i) the Agent is acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length contractual counterparty to the Company with respect to the offering of Shares contemplated hereby (including in connection with determining the terms of such offering) and (ii) the Agent has not assumed an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the Company with respect to the offering contemplated hereby or the process leading thereto (irrespective of whether the Agent has advised or is currently advising the Company on other matters) or any other obligation to the Company except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement and (iii) the Company has consulted its own legal and financial advisors to the extent it deemed appropriate. The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Agent has rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary or similar duty to the Company, in connection with such transaction or the process leading thereto.
Section 10. Termination.
(a) The Company shall have the right, by giving written notice as hereinafter specified, to terminate this Agreement in its sole discretion at any time. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party, except that (i) with respect to any pending sale through the Agent for the Company, the obligations of the Company, including in respect of compensation of the Agent, shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination; and (ii) the provisions of Section 1, Section 5(b), Section 7 and Section 8 of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination.

 

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(b) The Agent shall have the right, by giving written notice as hereinafter specified, to terminate this Agreement in its sole discretion at any time. Any such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party except that the provisions of Section 1, Section 5(b), Section 7 and Section 8 of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect notwithstanding such termination.
(c) This Agreement shall remain in full force and effect until and unless terminated pursuant to Section 10(a) or (b) above or otherwise by mutual agreement of the parties; provided that any such termination by mutual agreement or pursuant to this clause (c) shall in all cases be deemed to provide that Section 1, Section 5(b), Section 7 and Section 8 of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.
(d) Any termination of this Agreement shall be effective on the date specified in such notice of termination; provided that such termination shall not be effective until the close of business on the date of receipt of such notice by the Agent or the Company, as the case may be. If such termination shall occur prior to the Settlement Date for any sale of Shares, such sale shall settle in accordance with the provisions of Section 2(h) hereof.
(e) In the case of any purchase by the Agent pursuant to a Terms Agreement, the Agent may terminate this Agreement, at any time at or prior to the Settlement Date (i) if there has been, since the time of execution of this Agreement or since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Prospectus or General Disclosure Package, any material adverse change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business affairs or business prospects of the Company and its subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, or (ii) if there has occurred any material adverse change in the financial markets in the United States or the international financial markets, any outbreak of hostilities or escalation thereof or other calamity or crisis or any change or development involving a prospective change in national or international political, financial or economic conditions, in each case the effect of which is such as to make it, in the judgment of the Agent, impracticable or inadvisable to market the Shares or to enforce contracts for the sale of Shares, or (iii) if trading in any securities of the Company has been suspended or materially limited by the Commission or AMEX, or if trading generally on AMEX or the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq has been suspended or materially limited, or minimum or maximum prices for trading have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices have been required, by any of said exchanges or by order of the Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. or any other governmental authority, or (iv) a material disruption has occurred in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States, or (v) if a banking moratorium has been declared by Federal, Ohio or New York authorities.

 

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Section 11. Notices. All statements, requests, notices and agreements hereunder shall be in writing, and if to the Agent shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to Sandler O’Neill & Partner’s, L.P., 919 Third Avenue, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10022, Attention: General Counsel; and if to the Company or to the Bank shall be delivered or sent by mail to the address of the Company set forth in the Registration Statement, Attention: Chief Financial Officer. Any such statements, requests, notices or agreements shall take effect upon receipt thereof.
Section 12. Parties. This Agreement shall be binding upon, and inure solely to the benefit of, the Agent and the Company and, to the extent provided in Sections 7 and 8 hereof, the officers and directors of the Company and the Agent and each person who controls the Company or the Agent, and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns, and no other person shall acquire or have any right under or by virtue of this Agreement. No purchaser of Shares through the Agent shall be deemed a successor or assign by reason merely of such purchase.
Section 13. Time of the Essence. Time shall be of the essence of this Agreement. As used herein, the term “business day” shall mean any day when the Commission’s office in Washington, D.C. is open for business.
Section 14. Waiver of Jury Trial. The Company and the Agent hereby irrevocably waive, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.
Section 15. Governing Law. THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAW OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK.
Section 16. Counterparts. This Agreement and any Terms Agreement may be executed by any one or more of the parties hereto and thereto in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all such respective counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument. This Agreement and any Terms Agreement may be delivered by any party by facsimile or other electronic transmission.
Section 17. Severability. The invalidity or unenforceability of any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement shall not affect the validity or enforceability of any other Section, paragraph or provision hereof. If any Section, paragraph or provision of this Agreement is for any reason determined to be invalid or unenforceable, there shall be deemed to be made such minor changes (and only such minor changes) as are necessary to make it valid and enforceable.

 

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If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument, along with all counterparts, will become a binding agreement among the parties hereto in accordance with its terms.
         
  Very truly yours,

Park National Corporation
 
 
  By:   /s/ C. Daniel DeLawder  
    Name:   C. Daniel DeLawder  
    Title:   Chairman of the Board and
Chief Executive Officer
 
 
  Very truly yours,

The Park National Bank
 
 
  By:   /s/ John W. Kozak  
    Name:   John W. Kozak  
    Title:   Chief Financial Officer  
         
Accepted as of the date hereof:    
 
       
Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.    
By:
  Sandler O’Neill & Partners Corp.,
the sole general partner
   
  By:   /s/ Mark W. Biché  
 
 
 
Name: Mark W. Biché
   
 
  Title: Authorized Signatory    

 

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Annex 1

Park National Corporation

Common Shares
(without par value)

TERMS AGREEMENT
Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.
919 Third Avenue, 6th Floor,
New York, New York 10022
Ladies and Gentlemen:
Park National Corporation, an Ohio corporation (the “Company”), proposes, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein and in the Distribution Agreement, dated May 27, 2009 (the “Distribution Agreement”), between the Company and Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P. (the “Agent”), to sell to the Agent the securities specified in the Schedule hereto (the “Purchased Securities”).
Each of the provisions of the Distribution Agreement not specifically related to the solicitation by the Agent, as agent of the Company, of offers to purchase securities is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and shall be deemed to be part of this Terms Agreement to the same extent as if such provisions had been set forth in full herein. Each of the representations and warranties set forth therein shall be deemed to have been made at and as of the date of this Terms Agreement and the Applicable Time, except that each representation and warranty in Section 1 of the Distribution Agreement which makes reference to the Prospectus (as therein defined) shall be deemed to be a representation and warranty as of the date of the Distribution Agreement in relation to the Prospectus, and also a representation and warranty as of the date of this Terms Agreement and the Settlement Date in relation to the Prospectus as amended and supplemented to relate to the Purchased Securities.
An amendment to the Registration Statement (as defined in the Distribution Agreement), or a supplement to the Prospectus, as the case may be, relating to the Purchased Securities in the form heretofore delivered to the Agent is now proposed to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein and in the Distribution Agreement which are incorporated herein by reference, the Company agrees to sell to the Agent and the latter agrees to purchase from the Company the number of Purchased Securities at the time and place and at the purchase price set forth in the Schedule hereto.

 

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If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument, along with all counterparts, will become a binding agreement between the Agent and the Company in accordance with its terms.
         
  Very truly yours,

Park National Corporation
 
 
  By:   /s/ C. Daniel DeLawder  
    Name:   C. Daniel DeLawder  
    Title:   Chairman of the Board and
Chief Executive Officer
 
         
Accepted as of the date hereof:    
 
       
Sandler O’Neill & Partners, L.P.    
By:
  Sandler O’Neill & Partners Corp.,
the sole general partner
   
By:   /s/ Mark W. Biché        
 
 
 
Name: Mark W. Biché
   
 
  Title: Authorized Signatory    

 

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