Company: ADAMM
Filing Date: 2025-04-28
Form Type: DEF 14A
Source: 0001273685-25-000038
Chunk: 27

Company: ADAMAS TRUST, INC.
Filing Date: 2025-04-28
Form: DEF 14A
Chunk 27
---
 then outstanding and entitled to vote on the proposed amendment. |
| Chair of the Board of Directors is separate from the Chief Executive Officer.                                                            |     | No shareholder rights plan or “poison pill.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    |
| Independent Lead Director.                                                                                                               |     | Our Board of Directors has adopted a resolution exempting us from application of the Maryland Business Combination Act.                                                                                                                                                                                         |
| Independent directors met in executive sessions on four separate occasions.                                                              |     | Our Bylaws provide that we are not subject to the Maryland Control Share Acquisition Act.                                                                                                                                                                                                                       |
| Annual election of all directors.                                                                                                        |     | Directors and executive officers are subject to robust stock ownership guidelines.                                                                                                                                                                                                                              |
| Majority voting standard in uncontested director elections, with a resignation policy for directors who do not receive majority support. |     | Directors and executive officers are prohibited from engaging in short-selling, pledging or hedging transactions involving our securities.                                                                                                                                                                      |
| All three members of our Audit Committee qualify as “audit committee financial experts.”                                                 |     | “Double-trigger” vesting provisions in executive officer equity awards -- as such, all of the equity awards made to our NEOs will not accelerate or vest solely due to a change in control.                                                                                                                     |

| 27 |

#### Independence of Our Board of Directors
Our Corporate Governance Guidelines and the listing standards of the Nasdaq require that a majority of our directors be independent. Our Board of Directors has adopted the categorical standards prescribed by the Nasdaq to assist our Board of Directors in evaluating the independence of each of our directors. The categorical standards describe various types of relationships that could potentially exist between a board member and the Company and sets thresholds at which such relationships would be deemed to be material. Provided that no relationship or transaction exists that would disqualify a director under the categorical standards and our Board of Directors affirmatively determines that the director has no material relationship with the Company that would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director, including certain business relationships for which disclosure may be required in this proxy statement, our Board of Directors will deem such person to be independent. A director shall not be independent if he or she satisfies any one or more of the following criteria:

• A director who is, or who has been within the last three years, an employee of the Company, or whose immediate family member is, or has been within the last three years, employed as an executive officer of the Company;

• A director who has accepted or who has an immediate