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                                                                   Exhibit 10.10

                             EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT


     AGREEMENT, dated as of November 27, 2000 by and among CORNERSTONE BANCORP,
INC., a Connecticut corporation which is a holding company organized under the
provisions of Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 36a-181, with a principal place of business
at 550 Summer Street, Stamford, Connecticut 06901 ("Holdings"), CORNERSTONE
BANK, a Connecticut state chartered Bank with its principal executive offices at
550 Summer Street, Stamford, Connecticut 06901 (the "Bank"), (Holdings and Bank
may be referred to together as "Employer") and JAY M. FORGOTSON, residing at 7
Bayberry Lane, Westport, Connecticut 06880 (the "Employee").

     WHEREAS, Holdings, Bank and the Employee desire to enter into an employment
agreement on the terms and conditions set forth herein; and

     WHEREAS, Employee commenced employment with Holdings and Bank on November
27, 2000 prior to the execution of this Agreement, and

     WHEREAS, in consideration of the execution of this Agreement, Employee has
agreed to remain employed by Holdings and Bank.

     NOW, THEREFORE, it is AGREED as follows:

     1.   Employment.  (a) The Employee is employed as President and Chief
          ----------
          Executive Officer of Holdings. As an executive officer of the
          Holdings, the Employee shall render executive, policy, and other
          management services to Holdings of the type customarily performed by
          persons serving in similar executive officer capacities with bank
          holding companies engaging in the business of the banking and related
          services. The Employee shall also perform such duties as the Board of
          Directors of the Holdings (the "Board") may from time to time
          reasonably direct. Employee shall also serve as the Vice Chairman of
          the Board of Directors of the Bank. Employee shall also serve as
          Counsel to the Bank. During the term of this agreement, there shall be
          no material increase or decrease in the duties and responsibilities of
          the Employee otherwise than as provided herein, unless the parties
          otherwise agree in writing. During the term of this Agreement, the
          Employee shall not be required to relocate more than 25 miles from
          Stamford, Connecticut, in order to perform the services hereunder.
          Should the Employee be required to relocate more than 25 miles from
          Stamford in order to maintain his position or compensation at least
          its present level, then the employee's employment shall be considered
          as

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     involuntarily terminated without cause for purposes of sections 8 and 9 of
     this Agreement unless the Employee provides Holdings with a written waiver
     of his rights to consider his employment as involuntarily terminated.

               (b)  Holdings or the Bank may, at their option, select which
     party will fulfill each of the obligations due to the Employee under this
     Agreement, but shall be jointly and severally liable to the Employee
     hereunder.

2.   Compensation. Employer agrees to pay the Employee during the term of this
     ------------
     Agreement an initial salary at an annual rate equal to $$187,500, with the
     salary to be increased as determined by the Board. At least once during
     each calendar year during the period in which this Agreement is in effect,
     the Board shall consider increasing the employee's salary then in effect;
     provided, however, that the Board shall be under no obligation to grant any
     such increase. In considering salary increases, the Board shall take into
     account increases in the cost of living and shall also consider performance
     or merit increases. The salary of the Employee shall not be decreased at
     any time during the term of this Agreement from the amount then in effect,
     unless the Employee otherwise agrees in writing. Participation in deferred
     compensation, discretionary bonus, retirement, and other employee benefit
     plans and in fringe benefits shall not reduce the salary then in effect,
     payable to the Employee under this Section 2. The salary under this Section
     2 shall be payable to the Employee not less frequently than monthly. The
     Employee shall not be entitled to receive fees for serving as a director of
     Holdings or the Bank or for serving as a member of any committee of the
     Board.

3.   Discretionary Bonuses. During the term of this Agreement, the Employee
     ---------------------
     shall be entitled to participate in such discretionary bonus arrangements
     as may be authorized by the Board. No other compensation provided for in
     this Agreement shall be deemed a substitute for the Employee's right to
     participate in such bonuses when and as authorized by the Board.

4.   Participation in Retirement and Employee Benefit Plans; Fringe Benefits;
     -----------------------------------------------------------------------
     Automobile. The Employee shall be entitled to participate in any plan of
     ----------
     Holdings or the Bank relating to stock options, stock purchases, pension,
     thrift, profit sharing, group life insurance,

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     supplemental life insurance, medical coverage, disability, education, or
     other retirement or employee benefits which Holdings or the Bank has
     adopted or may adopt for the benefit of its executive employees. The
     Employee shall also be entitled to participate in any other fringe benefits
     which are now or may become applicable to Holdings' or the Bank's executive
     employees, including the payment of reasonable business related expenses
     and expenses for attending annual and periodic meetings of trade
     associations, annual country club dues, fees, expenses and assessments, and
     any other benefits which are commensurate with the duties and
     responsibilities to be performed by the Employee under this Agreement. The
     Employee shall also be entitled to the use of an automobile which shall be
     provided by Holdings or the Bank and as to which the Bank shall bear all
     expenses of operation, including but not limited to repairs, fuel, and
     parking charges. At Employee's option, Holdings or the Bank shall assume
     Employee's existing automobile lease and all obligations thereunder,
     including wear and tear and operating expenses, and shall be responsible
     for substitute leases during the term of this Agreement.

5.   Term. The term of employment under this Agreement shall be for the period
     ----
     commencing on November 27, 200O and ending on the first to occur of(i) the
     Employee's death or Disability, (ii) the Employee's voluntary termination
     employment, or (iii) the termination of the Employee's employment by
     Holdings or the Bank (either for cause or otherwise), all as herein
     provided. For the purposes of this Agreement, "Disability" shall mean the
     absence of the Employee from the Employee's duties with Holdings or the
     Bank on a full-time basis for 180 consecutive business days, as a result of
     incapacity owing to mental or physical illness which is determined to be
     total and permanent by a physician selected by Employer or its insurers and
     acceptable to the Employee or Employee's legal representative.

6.   Standards. (a) The Employee shall perform the Employee's duties and
     --------------
     responsibilities under this Agreement in accordance with such reasonable
     standards as may be established from time to time by the Board. The
     reasonableness of such standards shall be measured against standards for
     executive performance generally prevailing in the banking industry

                (b) Performance of duties as an officer, director or

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     employee of any affiliate of Holdings or performance of acts to effect
     organization of such affiliate shall not be considered to violate any duty
     Employee may have to Holdings or the Bank.

7.   Voluntary, Absences. Vacations. The Employee shall be entitled, without
     -------------------------------
     loss of pay, to be absent voluntarily for reasonable periods of time from
     the performance of Employee's duties and responsibilities under this
     Agreement. All such voluntary absences shall be considered paid vacation
     time, unless the Board otherwise approves. The Employee shall be entitled
     to an annual paid vacation of at least 5 weeks per year or such longer
     period as the Board may approve. The timing of paid vacations shall be
     scheduled in a reasonable manner by the Employee. The Employee shall not be
     entitled (i) to receive any additional compensation from Holdings or the
     Bank on account of failure to take a paid vacation or (ii) to accumulate
     unused paid vacation time from one fiscal year to the next.

8.   Termination of Employment.
     -------------------------

 (a)

     (i)   The board may terminate the Employee's employment at any time. The
           Employee shall have no right to receive compensation or other
           benefits for any period after termination for cause or after
           voluntary termination by the Employee except as provided in Section
           9. The term "termination for cause" shall mean termination by
           Holdings or the Bank because of the Employee's personal dishonesty,
           incompetence, willful misconduct, breach of fiduciary duty involving
           personal profit, intentional failure to perform stated duties,
           willful violation of any law, rule, or regulation (other than traffic
           violations or similar offenses) or final cease and desist order, or
           material breach of any provision of this Agreement. In determining
           incompetence, the acts or omissions shall be measured against
           standards generally prevailing in the banking industry; provided,
                                                                   ---------
           that it shall be Holding's or the Bank's burden to prove the alleged
           acts and omissions and the prevailing nature of the standards the
           Bank shall have alleged are violated by such acts and/or omissions.

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     (i)   The parties acknowledge and agree that damages which will result to
           Employee for termination by Holdings and/or the Bank without cause
           shall be extremely difficult or impossible to establish or prove, and
           agree that, unless the termination is voluntary or for cause,
           Holdings and/or the Bank shall be obligated, concurrently with such
           termination, to make a lump sum cash payment to the Employee as
           liquidated damages of an amount equal to the sum of(x) 1 times the
           Employee's then current annual salary under Section 2 of this
           Agreement, plus (y) 1 times the highest bonus awarded to the Employee
           under Section 3 of this Agreement at any time during the 36-month
           period ending with the date of termination. In the event Employee has
           not completed 36 months of service at such time the dollar amount of
           the bonus attributable to this subsection shall be conclusively
           presumed to be no less than $50,000. Employee agrees that, except for
           such other payments and benefits to which the Employee may be
           entitled as expressly provided by the terms of this Agreement, such
           liquidated damages shall be in lieu of all other claims which
           Employee may make by reason of such termination.

     (ii)  In addition to the liquidated damages above described that are
           payable to the Employee for termination without cause, the following
           shall apply (the applicable period being referred to herein as the
           "Benefits continuation Period") (x) for 12 months following any
           termination without cause and (y) for 36 months following the period
           referred to in Section 9(a) (iii) hereof:

           (1)  the Employee shall continue to participate in, and accrue
                benefits under, all retirement, pension, profit-sharing,
                employee stock ownership, thrift, and other deferred
                compensation plans of Holdings or the Bank as if the termination
                of Employment of the Employee had not occurred (with the
                Employee being deemed to receive annually for the purposes of
                such plans the Employee's then current salary (at the time of
                Employee's termination) under Section 2 of this Agreement),
                except to the extent that such continued participation and
                accrual is expressly prohibited by law, or if such plan
                constitutes a "qualified plan" (a "Qualified Plan") under
                Section 401 of the Internal Revenue Code of

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               1986, as amended (the "Code"), to the extent such continued
               participation and accrual is expressly prohibited by the terms of
               the Qualified Plan;

          (2)  the Employee shall be entitled to continue to receive all other
               employee benefits and then existing fringe benefits referred to
               in Section 4 hereof as if the termination of employment had not
               occurred, provided however, that life, health, and disability
               coverage will terminate upon the Employee becoming eligible for
               comparable benefits in connection with the Employee's full-time
               employment by another employer and further provided, that if the
               Employee dies during the Benefits Continuation Period and prior
               to becoming eligible for comparable benefits in connection with
               the Employee's full-time employment by another employer, the
               health coverage provided to Employee's spouse and dependents
               shall be continued, at Holding's or the Bank's expense,
               throughout the period ending with the last day of the calendar
               month in which occurs the second anniversary of the Employee's
               death;

          (3)  Holdings or the Bank shall, on the date of the Employee's
               termination of employment, establish an irrevocable trust that
               meets the guidelines set forth in Rev. Proc. 92-64 published by
               the Internal Revenue Service (as the same may be modified or
               supplemented from time to time) (the "Trust"), the assets of
               which will be held, subject to the claims of judgment creditors
               of Holdings or the Bank, solely to fund the benefits that the
               Employee is entitled to under this Section 8(a) (iii), and
               Holdings or the Bank shall transfer to the Trust an amount
               sufficient (x) to fund any benefit accrued by the Employee under
               any defined benefit pension plan maintained by Holdings or the
               Bank to the extent that such defined benefit pension plan is not
               fully funded on a termination basis, as determined under the
               rules and regulations published by the Pension Benefit Guaranty
               Corporation, at the time of termination of the Employee's
               employment; and (y) to fund fully all

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                    benefits accrued by the Employee under any defined
                    contribution plan maintained by Holdings or the Bank to the
                    extent that such benefits are not fully funded at the time
                    of termination of the Employee's employment;

               (4)  all insurance or other provisions for indemnification,
                    defense or hold-harmless of officers or directors of
                    Holdings or the Bank which are in effect on the date the
                    notice of termination is sent to the Employee shall continue
                    for the benefit of the Employee with respect to all of
                    Employee's acts and omissions while an officer or director
                    as fully and completely as if such termination had not
                    occurred, and until the final expiration or running of all
                    periods of limitation against action which may be applicable
                    to such acts or omissions;

               (5)  Holdings or the Bank shall, at its sole expense as incurred,
                    provide the Employee with outplacement services, the scope
                    and provider of which shall be selected by either Holdings
                    or the Bank in its sole, reasonable discretion; and

               (6)  the Employee may, at the expense of Holdings or the Bank,
                    hire an accounting firm, law firm and/or financial planning
                    firm, selected by the Employee, to provide the Employee with
                    advice with respect to the Employee's benefits under this
                    Agreement.

     (b)  If the Employee is suspended and/or temporarily prohibited from
          participating in the conduct of Holdings' affairs or the Bank's
          affairs by a notice served under section 8 (e) or 8 (g) of the Federal
          Deposit Insurance Act, or any successor statutes thereto, Holdings' or
          the Bank's obligations under this Agreement shall be suspended as of
          the date of service, unless stayed by appropriate proceedings. If the
          charges in the notice are dismissed, Holdings or the Bank may in its
          discretion (i) pay the Employee all or part of the compensation
          withheld while such contractual obligations were suspended, and (ii)

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               reinstate in whole or in part any of the obligations which were
               suspended.

          ( c) If the Employee is removed and/or permanently prohibited from
               participating in the conduct of Holdings' or the Bank's affairs
               by an order issued under section 8 (e) or 8(g) of the Federal
               Deposit Insurance Act or any successor statutes thereto, all
               obligations of Holdings or the Bank under this Agreement shall
               terminate as of the effective date of the order, but vested
               rights of the parties shall not be affected.

          (d)  Notwithstanding any other provision in this Agreement, Holdings
               or the Bank may terminate or suspend this Agreement and the
               employment of the Employee hereunder, as if such termination were
               for cause under Section 8(a) (i), to the extent required by the
               laws of the State of Connecticut related to banking, by
               applicable federal law relating to deposit insurance or by
               regulations or orders issued by the Banking Commission of the
               State of Connecticut or the Federal Deposit Insurance
               Corporation, or any successor to any of the foregoing, provided
                                                                      --------
               that it shall be the burden of Holdings or the Bank to prove that
               any such action was so required.

          (e)  In the event the employment of the Employee is terminated by the
               Bank without cause under Section 8(a) hereof or the Employee's
               employment is terminated voluntarily or involuntarily in
               accordance with Section 9 hereof, and the Bank fails to make
               timely payment of the amounts then owed to the Employee under
               this Agreement, the Employee shall be entitled to reimbursement
               for all reasonable costs, including attorneys' fees, incurred by
               the Employee in taking action to collect such amounts or
               otherwise to enforce this Agreement, plus interest on such
               amounts at the rate of one percent above the prime rate (defined
               as the base rate on corporate loans at large U.S. money center
               commercial banks as published by The Wall Street Journal),
                                                -----------------------
               compounded monthly, for the period from the date of employment
               termination until payment is made to the Employee. Such
               reimbursement and interest shall be in addition to all rights to
               which the Employee is otherwise entitled under this Agreement.

          (f)  During the one-year period following termination of employment
               for any reason, the Employee may not (i) solicit the employment
               of any person who was, at the time of such termination or during
               the one-year period preceding the Employee's termination, an
               employee of the

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               bank, or (ii) disclose or use in any manner confidential
               information of the Bank.

          9.   Change in Control.
               -----------------

               (a)  If, either (x) during the term of this Agreement, there is a
                    change in control of Holdings or the Bank, or (y) Holdings
                    or Bank seeks to terminate this Agreement following
                    knowledge of a potential change in control, but prior to the
                    potential change in control being terminated or consummated,
                    as the case may be, the Employee shall be entitled to the
                    following:

                         (i)    An adjustment in the Employee's then current
                                salary to give the Employee cumulative cost of
                                living increases (based on increases in the
                                Consumer Price Index -"CPI" - for such period)
                                for the period from the date of execution of
                                this Agreement through the date of the change in
                                control ("CPI Adjusted Salary"), and annual
                                increases based on the CPI on each anniversary
                                of the change in control.

                         (ii)   The crediting to the Employee for years of
                                service with Holdings or the Bank, plus 5
                                additional years, for purposes of vesting and
                                calculation of rights and/or benefits under any
                                401(k) plan, stock option, stock purchase,
                                pension, thrift, profit sharing, group life
                                insurance, supplemental life insurance, medical
                                coverage, disability, education or other
                                retirement or employee benefit plan of Holdings
                                or the Bank or of any successor entity.

                         (iii)  18 months notice of termination of employment
                                (the "18 month period") during which period the
                                Employee shall be entitled to receive, without
                                offset for any reason, (i) payment of the
                                Employee's CPI Adjusted Salary plus (ii) the
                                highest bonus received by the Employee during
                                the period commencing with the 36/th/ month
                                preceding the change in control and ending with
                                the date of termination. In the event Employee
                                has not completed 36 months of service at such
                                time the dollar amount of the bonus attributable
                                to this subsection shall be

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               conclusively presumed to be no less than $50,000. The Employee
               shall be entitled at his option to terminate his employment with
               the Bank prior to the expiration of the 18 month period. If the
               Employee does terminate his employment prior to the expiration of
               the 18 month period, he shall not be entitled to salary for the
               portion of the 18 month period he is not employed Holdings or by
               the Bank, nor shall he be entitled to that portion of the bonus
               which corresponds to the period that the Employee is not employed
               by Holdings or the Bank. The portion of the bonus to which the
               Employee is not entitled as a result of his termination of his
               employment shall be determined by multiplying the bonus by a
               fraction, the numerator of which shall be the number of days of
               the 18 month period during which the Employee was not employed by
               Holdings or the Bank and the denominator of which shall be 548.
               Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Employee shall under all
               circumstances, to include termination of employment at his
               request prior to the expiration of the 18 month period, be
               entitled to the amounts described in Section 9(a)(iv) below.
               Should the Employee elect to terminate his employment prior to
               the expiration of the 18 month period, all benefits, rights, and
               entitlements of the Employee which would commence at the
               conclusion of the 18 month period shall commence at the date of
               termination of employment. The 18 month period or such shorter
               period as may occur as a result of voluntary termination in
               accordance with the preceding provisions of this subsection shall
               be referred to elsewhere in this Agreement as "the period
               referred to in Section 9(a)(iii)".

          (iv) Following the period referred to in (iii) above, at the
               Employee's election given in writing to Holdings or the Bank at
               least 30 days prior to the end of such period referred to in
               Section 9(a)(iii), either a lump sum cash payment or 36 monthly
               periodic payments, upon termination, or commencing upon
               termination, as the case may be, in an amount equal to the sum of
               (x) 3 times the Employee's CPI Adjusted Salary, plus (y) 3

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               times the highest bonus received by the Employee during the
               period commencing with the 36/th/ month preceding the change in
               control and ending with the date of termination.

      (b) A "change in control", for purposes of this Agreement, shall be deemed
          to have taken place if any of the following events (the Events) occur:
          (i) any person or group of persons with a unity of interest or other
          affiliation sufficient for them to act in concert becomes the
          beneficial owner of 25 percent or more of the total number of voting
          shares of Holdings or the Bank; (ii) any person (other than the
          persons named as proxies solicited on behalf of the Board) holds
          revocable or irrevocable proxies, as to the election or removal of
          directors of Holdings or the Bank, for 25 percent or more of the total
          number of voting shares of Holdings or the Bank; (iii) any person has
          entered into an agreement or received an option for the acquisition
          of, beneficial ownership of 25 percent or more of the total number of
          voting shares of the Bank, whether or not the requisite approval for
          such acquisition has been received under applicable laws or the
          respective regulations issued there-under; or (iv) as the result of,
          or in connection with, any cash tender or exchange offer, merger, or
          other business combination, sale of assets or contested election, or
          any combination of the foregoing transactions, the persons who were
          directors of Holdings or the Bank before such transaction shall cease
          to constitute at least two-thirds of the Board of Directors of
          Holdings or the Bank or any successor corporation. For purposes of
          this Section 9(b), a "person" includes an individual, corporation,
          partnership, trust, association, joint venture, pool, syndicate,
          unincorporated organization, joint-stock company, or similar
          organization or group acting in concert. For purposes of this Section
          9, a person shall be deemed to be a beneficial owner as that term is
          used in Rule 13d-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The
          parties recognize that Holdings is a holding company organized by the
          Bank pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 36a-181. Notwithstanding all of
          the foregoing, a "change in control" shall not include the acquisition
          of Holdings' and/or the Bank's voting stock by any other holding
          company organized by Holdings and/or the Bank pursuant to Conn. Gen.
          Stat. Sec. 36a-181 (Holding Company), unless one or more of the Events
          described in the preceding portion of this paragraph occurs prior to
          the organization of another Holding Company or as part of a plan

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          which involves the organization of another Holding Company.
          Furthermore, should the Bank organize another Holding Company, and
          should one of the Events described in the preceding portion of this
          paragraph occur with respect to the other Holding Company (instead of
          the Bank), then a change in control shall be deemed to have taken
          place.

      (c) A "potential change in control", for the purposes of this Agreement,
          shall be deemed to have taken place, if: (i) any person commences a
          tender which, if consummated, would result in such person being the
          beneficial owner of at least 25% of the voting shares of Holdings or
          the Bank; (ii) Holdings or the Bank enters into an agreement the
          consummation of which will constitute a change in control; (iii)
          proxies are solicited by anyone other than the Board, or (iv) any
          other event occurs which is deemed by the Board to be a potential
          change in control. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a "potential change
          in control" shall not include events which are part of the acquisition
          of the Bank's voting stock by a Holding Company organized by the Bank
          pursuant to Conn. Gen. Stat. Section 36a-181, unless the Board deems
          these events to be a potential change in control.

      (d) A potential change in control, for purposes of this Agreement,
          shall be deemed to have terminated, if the Board determines in good
          faith that a change in control is not likely to occur from such
          potential change in control.

      (e) In the event that any payment or benefit received by the Employee
          under this Section 9 shall constitute an "excess parachute payment"
          within the meaning of Section 280G(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of
          1986, as amended (the "Code"), the Bank shall pay the Employee such
          amount or amounts (collectively, the "indemnification amount") as are
          equal to the amount of any income, excise or other tax or taxes
          assessed against the Employee as a result of the Employee's receipt of
          the "excess parachute payment", whether assessed under Section 4999 of
          the Code or under any other federal or state tax laws.

10.  No Assignment. This Agreement is personal to each of the parties hereto. No
     -------------
     party may assign or delegate any rights or obligations hereunder without
     first obtaining the written consent of the other party hereto. However, in
     the

                                       12
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     event of the death of the Employee all rights to receive payments hereunder
     shall become rights of the Employee's estate.

11.  Other Contracts. The Employee shall not, except as provided in Section
     ---------------
     9(a)(iii), during the term of this Agreement, have any other paid
     employment other than with an affiliate of Holdings or the Bank, except
     with the prior approval of the Board.

12.  Amendments or Additions: Action by Board. No amendments or additions to
     ----------------------------------------
     this Agreement shall be binding unless in writing and signed by all parties
     hereto. The prior approval by a two-thirds affirmative vote of the full
     Board shall be required in order for the Board to authorize any amendments
     or additions to this Agreement, to give any consents or waivers of
     provisions of this Agreement, or to take any other action under this
     Agreement, including any termination of employment with or without cause
     under Section 8(a) hereof.

13.  Section Headings. The section headings used in this Agreement are included
     ----------------
     solely for convenience and shall not affect, or be used in connection with,
     the interpretation of this Agreement.

14.  Severability. The provisions of this Agreement shall be deemed severable
     ------------
     and the invalidity or unenforceability of any provision shall not affect
     the validity or enforceability of the other provisions hereof.

15.  Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of
     -------------
     Connecticut to the extent applicable, and otherwise by the laws of the
     United States.

                                     CORNERSTONE BANCORP, INC.


                                     By /s/ Norman H. Reader Vice Chairman
                                       ------------------------------------
                                     Name and Title:

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<PAGE>

                                              CORNERSTONE BANK


                                              By /s/ James P. Jakubek President
                                                -------------------------------
                                              Name and Title:



                                               /s/ Jay M. Forgotson   1/23/01
                                              ---------------------------------
                                              Jay M. Forgotson

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