Company: XXII
Filing Date: 2025-06-06
Form Type: PRER14A
Source: 0001641172-25-013953
Chunk: 107

Company: 22nd Century Group, Inc.
Filing Date: 2025-06-06
Form: PRER14A
Chunk 107
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 (C) the Participant’s dishonesty, misconduct, misappropriation of funds, or disloyalty or disparagement of the Company, any of its Affiliates or its management or employees; or (D) other proper cause determined in good faith by the Administrator; or (ii) with respect to Non-Employee Directors, (A) fraud or intentional misrepresentation; (B) embezzlement, misappropriation or conversion of assets or opportunities of the Company or any of its Affiliates; or (C) any other gross or willful misconduct as determined by the Committee, in its sole and conclusive discretion.

(f) “Change of Control” means the first to occur of the following with respect to the Company or any upstream holding company (which, for purposes of this definition, shall be included in references to “the Company”):

(i) Any “Person,” as that term is defined in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act, but excluding the Company, any trustee or other fiduciary holding securities under an employee benefit plan of the Company, or any corporation owned, directly or indirectly, by the stockholders of the Company in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of stock of the Company, is or becomes the “Beneficial Owner” (as that term is defined in Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of securities of the Company representing thirty-five percent (35%) or more of the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities; or

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(ii) The consummation of a transaction in which the Company is merged or consolidated with any other corporation or other entity, other than: (A) a merger or consolidation which would result in the voting securities of the Company outstanding immediately prior thereto continuing to represent (either by remaining outstanding or by being converted into voting securities of the surviving entity) more than sixty-five percent (65%) of the combined voting power of the voting securities of the Company or such surviving entity outstanding immediately after such merger or consolidation; or (B) the Company engages in a merger or consolidation effected to implement a recapitalization of the Company (or similar transaction) in which no “Person” (as defined above) acquires thirty-five percent (35%) or more of the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a merger or consolidation involving the Company shall not be considered a “Change of Control” if the Company is the surviving corporation and shares of