exv10w1






EXHIBIT 10.1




STOCK OPTION AGREEMENT




     THIS STOCK OPTION AGREEMENT (the “Agreement”), made this                      day of                                   
      , 20                    , between
Health Care REIT, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Corporation”), and                                          (the
“Participant”).



WITNESSETH:




     WHEREAS, the Participant is an employee and executive officer of the Corporation; and



     WHEREAS, the Corporation adopted the Amended and Restated Health Care REIT, Inc. 2005
Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) in order to provide non-employee directors and select
officers and key employees with incentives to achieve long-term corporate objectives; and



     WHEREAS, the Compensation Committee of the Corporation’s Board of Directors decided that the
Participant should be granted stock options to purchase shares of the Corporation’s common stock,
$1.00 par value per share (“Common Stock”), on the terms and conditions set forth below, and in
accordance with the terms of the Plan.



     NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the covenants and agreements herein contained and
intending to be legally bound hereby, the parties hereto agree as follows:



     1. Grant of Options.



          Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the Corporation hereby grants to the
Participant the right and option to purchase up to a total of                      shares of the Common Stock of
the Corporation, at the option price of $                     per share (the “Options”).




          The Options shall consist of options to purchase                      shares of Common Stock intended to
qualify as incentive stock options (“ISOs”) within the meaning of Section 422 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and options to purchase                      shares of Common
Stock not intended to qualify as ISOs (“Nonstatutory Options”).




     2. Period of Exercise.



     The Options shall become exercisable by the Participant in five installments. Subject to the
accelerated vesting provided for in Sections 8, 9, 10 and 11 below, at any time during the term of
the Options, the maximum number of shares of Common Stock the Participant may purchase by
exercising Nonstatutory Options, and the maximum number which the Participant may purchase by
exercising ISOs, shall be limited as specified in the following schedule:



	 	 	 	 	 
	 	 	MAXIMUM NUMBER OF SHARES	 	MAXIMUM NUMBER OF
	 	 	THAT MAY BE PURCHASED BY	 	SHARES THAT MAY BE
	 	 	EXERCISING NONSTATUTORY 	 	PURCHASED BY
	PERIOD	 	OPTIONS	 	EXERCISING ISOs
	 
	From                     , 20                     to

	 	Up to                      shares
	 	Up to                      shares
	                    , 20                    
	 	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	From                     , 20                     to
                    , 20                    

	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising
Nonstatutory Options)
	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising ISOs)
	 
	 	 	 	 
	From                     , 20                     to
                    , 20                    

	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising
Nonstatutory Options)
	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising ISOs)
	 
	 	 	 	 
	From                     , 20                     to
                    , 20                    

	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising
Nonstatutory Options)
	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising ISOs)






 









 






	 	 	 	 	 
	 	 	MAXIMUM NUMBER OF SHARES 	 	MAXIMUM NUMBER OF
	 	 	THAT MAY BE PURCHASED BY	 	SHARES THAT MAY BE
	 	 	EXERCISING NONSTATUTORY	 	PURCHASED BY
	PERIOD	 	OPTIONS	 	EXERCISING ISOs
	From                     , 20                     to
                    , 20                    

	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising
Nonstatutory Options)
	 	Up to                      shares
(less any shares
previously purchased
by exercising ISOs)






          If, during any of these periods, the Participant fails to exercise the Options with respect to
all or any portion of the shares that may be acquired at such time, the Participant shall be
entitled to exercise the Options with respect to the remaining portion of such shares at any
subsequent time prior to the termination date of the Options.




          The Options intended to be ISOs are subject to the $100,000 annual limit on vesting of ISOs as
set forth in Section 422(d) of the Code. To the extent the aggregate fair market value (determined
at the date of grant) of the shares of Common Stock with respect to which those ISOs first become
exercisable by the Participant during any calendar year under this Section 2 (when aggregated with
any prior ISOs granted to the Participant under stock option plans of the Corporation) exceeds
$100,000, whether by reason of accelerated vesting under Sections 8, 9, 10 or 11 or otherwise, the
Options shall consist of ISOs for the maximum number of shares that may be covered by ISOs without
violating Section 422(d) of the Code, and the remaining Options becoming exercisable in that year
shall be treated as Nonstatutory Options.




     3. Termination Date of Options.



          The Options granted herein shall terminate on                      , 20                    , the tenth anniversary of the
date of grant, and the Participant shall have no right to exercise the Options at any time
thereafter.




     4. Manner of Exercise.



          If the Participant elects to exercise the Options to purchase shares of Common Stock, the
Participant shall give written notice of such exercise to the Corporate Secretary of the
Corporation. The notice of exercise shall state the number of shares of Common Stock as to which
the Options are being exercised, and the Corporation shall determine whether the Options exercised
are ISOs or Nonstatutory Options.




          The Participant may exercise the Options to purchase all, or any lesser whole number, of the
number of shares of Common Stock that the Participant is then permitted to purchase under Section
2.




     5. Payment for Shares.



          Full payment of the option price for the shares of Common Stock purchased by exercising the
Options shall be due at the time the notice of exercise is delivered pursuant to Section 4. Such
payment may be made (i) in cash, (ii) by delivery of shares of Common Stock currently owned by the
Participant with a fair market value equal to the option price, or (iii) in any other form
acceptable to the Corporation.




          Alternatively, the Participant shall be deemed to have paid the full option price due upon
exercise of the Options, if the Participant’s notice of exercise is accompanied by an irrevocable
instruction to the Corporation to deliver the shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the
Options (less any shares withheld to satisfy the Participant’s tax obligations pursuant to Section
7 below) promptly to a broker-dealer designated by Participant, together with an irrevocable
instruction to such broker-dealer to sell at least that portion of the shares necessary to pay the
option price (and any tax withholding related expenses specified by the parties), and that portion
of the sale proceeds needed to pay the option price is delivered directly to the Corporation no
later than the close of business on the settlement date.




     6. Issuance of Stock Certificates for Shares.



          The stock certificates (or other evidence of ownership) for any shares of Common Stock
issuable to the Participant upon exercise of the Options shall be delivered to the Participant (or
to the person to whom the rights of the Participant shall have passed by will or the laws of
descent and distribution) as promptly after the date of exercise as is feasible, but not before the
Participant has paid the option price for such shares and made any arrangements for tax
withholding, as required by Section 7.




     7. Tax Withholding.



          Whenever the Participant exercises Options, the Corporation shall notify the Participant of
the amount of tax (if any) that must be withheld by the Corporation under all applicable federal,
state and local tax laws. With respect to each exercise of the Options, the Participant agrees to
make arrangements with the Corporation to (a) remit the required amount to the Corporation in cash,
(b) authorize the Corporation to withhold a portion of the shares of Common Stock otherwise
issuable upon the exercise with a value






 









 







equal to the required amount, (c) deliver to the
Corporation shares of Common Stock with a value equal to the required amount, (d) authorize the deduction of the required amount from the Participant’s compensation, or (e)
otherwise provide for payment of the required amount in any other manner satisfactory to the
Corporation.




     8. Termination of Employment; Change in Corporate Control.



          In the event of a Change in Corporate Control (as described below), or if the Participant’s
employment with the Corporation is terminated before the Options expire or have been exercised with
respect to all of the shares of Common Stock subject to the Options (as provided in subsections (a)
and (b) below), the Participant shall have the right to exercise the Options during a period of
ninety (90) days following the date of the Change in Corporate Control or termination of employment
(as applicable), but in no event later than                     , 20                    , and the Options shall expire at the end
of such period.





     (a) In the event of a Change in Corporate Control, or if the Participant’s employment is
terminated involuntarily without “Cause” (as defined in the Participant’s Employment
Agreement), any portion of the Options not previously exercisable under Section 2 shall
become immediately exercisable.




     (b) In the case of an involuntary termination not described in subsection (a) above, or
a voluntary termination by the Participant not following a Change in Corporate Control, the
maximum number of shares the Participant may purchase by exercising the Options shall be the
number of shares which could be purchased at the date of termination pursuant to Section 2.



          For purposes of this Section 8, termination of employment as a result of the expiration of the
Participant’s Employment Agreement shall be considered a voluntary termination if the notice of
non-renewal was delivered by the Participant and an involuntary termination if the notice of
non-renewal was delivered by the Corporation and in both instances, the Participant is no longer
employed by the Corporation.




          For purposes of this Section 8, a “Change in Corporate Control” shall have the meaning set
forth in the Participant’s Employment Agreement. To the extent that there is a conflict between
the definition set forth in the Participant’s Employment Agreement and the definition set forth in
the Plan, the definition of “Change in Corporate Control” set forth in the Participant’s Employment
Agreement shall control.




     9. Effect of Death.



          If the Participant dies before the Options expire or have been exercised with respect to all
of the shares of Common Stock subject to the Options, any portion of the Options not previously
exercisable under Section 2 shall become exercisable, and the Participant’s executor,
administrator, or any person to whom the Options may be transferred by the Participant’s will or by
the laws of descent and distribution, shall have the right to exercise the Options, to the extent
not previously exercised, at any time prior to the first anniversary of the date of death, but in
no event later than                     , 20                    . For this purpose, the terms of this Agreement shall be deemed
to apply to such person as if he or she was the Participant.




     10. Effect of Permanent and Total Disability.



          If the termination of the Participant’s employment occurs after a finding of the Participant’s
permanent and total disability, any portion of the Options not previously exercisable under Section
2 shall become exercisable, and the Options may be exercised at any time during the period of
twelve (12) months following the date of termination of employment, but in no event later than
                    , 20                    .




     11. Effect of Retirement.



          If the termination of the Participant’s employment occurs as a result of the Participant’s
retirement after age 55 and the sum of the Participant’s age and years of service to the
Corporation is equal to 65 or more, Options shall vest as provided in Section 2 and shall be
exercisable during the period of five (5) years following the date of termination of employment,
but in no event later than                     , 20                    .




 









 








     12. Nontransferability.



          The Participant’s rights under this Agreement may not be assigned or transferred by the
Participant other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution. The Options may not be
exercised by anyone other than the Participant or, in the case of the Participant’s death, by the
person to whom the rights of the Participant shall have passed by will or the laws of descent and
distribution.




     13. Securities Laws.



          The Corporation may from time to time impose any conditions on the exercise of the Options as
it deems necessary or advisable to ensure that the Options granted hereunder, and each exercise
thereof, satisfy the applicable requirements of federal and state securities laws. Such conditions
to satisfy applicable federal and state securities laws may include, without limitation, the
partial or complete suspension of the right to exercise the Options until the offering of the
shares covered by the Options have been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or
the printing of legends on all stock certificates issued to the Participant describing the
restrictions on transfer of such shares.




     14. Rights Prior to Issuance of Certificates.



          Neither the Participant nor any person to whom the rights of the Participant shall have passed
by will or the laws of descent and distribution shall have any of the rights of a stockholder with
respect to any shares of Common Stock until the date of the issuance to him or her of certificates
(or other evidence of ownership) for such Common Stock as provided in Section 6 above.




     15. Options Not to Affect Employment.



          Neither this Agreement nor the Options granted hereunder shall confer upon the Participant any
right to continued employment with the Corporation. This Agreement shall not in any way modify or
restrict any rights the Corporation may have to terminate such employment under the terms of the
Participant’s Employment Agreement.




     16. Miscellaneous.



          (a) This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts all of which taken together
will constitute one and the same instrument.




          (b) The terms of this Agreement may only be amended, modified or waived by a written agreement
executed by both of the parties hereto.




          (c) The validity, performance, construction and effect of this Agreement shall be governed by
the laws of the State of Ohio, without giving effect to principles of conflicts of law; provided,
however, that matters of corporate law, including the issuance of shares of the Common Stock, shall
be governed by the Delaware General Corporation Law.




     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement on the date and year first above
written.



	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 

	ATTEST:	 	 	 	HEALTH CARE REIT, INC.	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	 

	 	 	 	By:	 	 	 	 
	 


	 	 	 	 	 	 

	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 
	WITNESS:	 	 	 	PARTICIPANT: