Document:

Unassociated Document

     

    

    SECOND
      AMENDMENT TO EXECUTIVE EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

    

    THIS
      SECOND
      AMENDMENT TO EXECUTIVE EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT (this
      “Second Amendment”)
      made
      this 24th
      day of
      May, 2005 by and between ACURA
      PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.,
      a New
      York corporation,
      formerly known as Halsey Drug Co., Inc.
      (the
“Corporation”),
      with
      offices at 616 N. North Court, Suite 120, Palatine, Illinois 60067 and
ANDREW
      D. REDDICK, residing
      at 297 North Cote Circle, Exton, Pennsylvania 19341 (the “Employee”).

    

    RECITALS

    

    
      	A.    
                   	
              The
                Corporation and the Employee executed an employment agreement dated
                as of
                August 26, 2003, which agreement was amended by an Amendment to Executive
                Employment Agreement between the Employee and the Corporation, dated
                May
                27, 2004 (as so amended, the “Employment Agreement”).

            

    

    

    
      	B.      	
              Pursuant
                to Section 2 of the Employment Agreement, the term of Employee’s
                employment under the Agreement is automatically extended for successive
                one (1) year periods, unless notice of non-renewal from either the
                Employee or the Corporation is
                received no later than (90) days prior to the expiration of the Initial
                Term and each Renewal Period (as defined in the Employment
                Agreement”).

            

    

    

    
      	C.      	
              The
                Corporation and the Employee now desire to further amend the Employment
                Agreement as provided herein. 

            

    

    

    NOW,
      THEREFORE,
      in
      consideration of the mutual covenants and undertakings herein contained, the
      parties agree as follows:

    

    1.  Section
      2
      of the Employment Agreement is hereby deleted in its entirety and the following
      is inserted in its place:

    

      
      “2. Term
      of Employment.
      The
      term of the Employee's employment under this Agreement shall commence on the
      date of this Agreement and shall expire two (2) years from the date hereof
      (the
      "Initial
      Term"),
      unless sooner terminated pursuant to Section 7 of this Agreement; provided,
      however,
      that
      the
      Employee’s term of
      employment hereunder
      shall automatically be extended for successive one (1) year periods (each,
      a
      "Renewal
      Period"
      and
      together with the Initial Term, the "Term"),
      unless either the Corporation or the Employee provides written notice of
      non-renewal of the Employee's employment with the Corporation (i) thirty (30)
      days prior to the expiration of the Initial Term or (ii) ninety (90) days prior
      to the expiration of any Renewal Period.”

    

    
      
        
        

      

      
        
        

        
          

        

      

      
        
        

      

    

    2.  The
      Corporation shall reimburse the Employee,
      on or
      before thirty (30) days following the date of execution of this Second
      Amendment,
      for the
      reasonable legal fees and expenses incurred by the Employee for review and
      negotiation of this Second Amendment and
      for
      review and analysis of the Employee’s stock option arrangements and certain
      related matters.

    

    3.  Except
      as
      expressly amended by this Second Amendment, the Employment Agreement remains
      unmodified and in full force and effect. Capitalized terms used herein shall
      have the same meaning as in the Employment Agreement unless otherwise defined
      herein. This Second Amendment shall be governed and construed and enforced
      in
      accordance with the local laws of the State of New York applicable to agreements
      made and to be performed entirely in New York.

    

    4.  This
      Second Amendment may be executed in one or more facsimile or original
      counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which taken
      together will constitute one and the same instrument.

    

    IN
      WITNESS WHEREOF,
      the
      parties have executed this Second Amendment as of the date first above
      written.

     

     

    
      
        	ATTEST:	 	 	ACURA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	
                By:

              	/s/ Peter
                A. Clemens
	
                

              	 	 	
                
Peter
                A. Clemens,
	 	 	 	Senior
                Vice President and
Chief Financial
                Officer

      

      
        	 	 	 	 
	 	 	 	 
	WITNESS:	 	 	EMPLOYEE
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	
                By:

              	/s/ Andrew
                D.
                Reddick
	
                

              	 	 	
                
Andrew
                D. ReddickUnassociated Document

    

     

    VOTING
      AGREEMENT

     

    This
      VOTING
      AGREEMENT
      (this
      "Agreement")
      dated
      as of December 22, 2005, is between Acura Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a New York
      corporation, having an office at 616 N. North Court, Suite 120, Palatine, IL
      60067 (the “Company”) and GCE Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability
      company, having an office at c/o Galen Partners III, LP, 610 5th
      Avenue,
      5th
      Floor,
      New York, New York 10019 (the “GCE Holdings”). The Company and GCE Holdings are
      referred to individually as a “Party” and collectively as the
“Parties.”

     

    WHEREAS,
      the
      Board of Directors of the Company has approved the Company’s 2005 Restricted
      Stock Unit Award Plan providing for the grant of restricted stock unit awards
      (“RSU Awards”) to select employees of the Company on such terms as the Board
      shall determine; and

     

    WHEREAS,
      the
      Board of Directors has approved RSU Awards to certain Company’s employees which,
      subject to the terms of the RSU Awards, provide for the issuance of up to
      27,500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.01 par value per share (the
“Common Stock”); and 

     

    WHEREAS,
      the
      Company will amend its 1998 Stock Option Plan to comply with the requirements
      of
      Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Section 409A”)
      and will present the 1998 Stock Option Plan, as amended to comply with Section
      409A, to the Board for approval (as so amended, the “Amended 1998 Stock Option
      Plan”); and

     

    WHEREAS,
      the
      Company will present to its shareholders at the Company’s 2006 Annual Meeting of
      Shareholders each of the RSU Plan and the Amended Plan 1998 Stock Option Plan
      for shareholder ratification; and

    

    WHEREAS,
      GCE
      Holdings desires to commit to vote its shares of the Company’s Common Stock so
      as to ratify each of the RSU Plan and the Amended 1998 Stock Option
      Plan.

    

    NOW,
      THEREFORE,
      in
      consideration of the foregoing and the mutual agreements herein contained,
      the
      Parties agrees as follows:

     

    1. Ratification
      of the RSU Plan and the Amended 1998 Stock Option Plan.
      At the
      Company's next upcoming meeting of shareholders, GCE Holdings will vote all
      of
      its shares of Common Stock in favor of the ratification of each of the RSU
      Plan
      and the Amended 1998 Stock Option Plan, as each such plan may be amended by
      the
      Company’s Board of Directors prior to the date of such meeting of shareholders.

     

    

    
      
        
        

      

      
        
        

        
          

        

      

      
        
        

      

    

    2.  Certain
      Remedies.
      Without
      intending to limit the remedies available to either of the Parties, each Party
      agrees that damages at law will be an insufficient remedy in the event such
      Party violates the terms hereof or the powers granted hereunder and each of
      the
      Parties hereto further agrees that each of the other Parties hereto may apply
      for and have injunctive or other equitable relief in any court of competent
      jurisdiction to restrain the breach or threatened breach of, or otherwise
      specifically to enforce, any of such Party's agreements or the powers granted
      hereunder set forth herein.

     

    3.  Representations.
      Each
      Party represents and warrants to each other Party that this Agreement is its
      legal, valid and binding obligation, enforceable against such Party in
      accordance with its terms, and will not result in any (a) violation or breach
      of, or be in conflict with, each Party's respective organizational documents
      or
      material contracts, or (b) violation of any statutes, laws, rules, regulations,
      orders or judgments applicable to such Party.

     

    4.  Transfer
      of Securities.
      Nothing
      shall prohibit or in any manner restrict GCE Holdings’ ability to freely
      transfer, assign, convey, or otherwise dispose of or convert its shares of
      Common Stock; provided,
      that
      upon the transfer, assignment, conveyance or disposition of any Common Stock
      by
      GCE Holdings, GCE Holdings shall cause the transferee to which the Common Stock
      are transferred, assigned, conveyed or otherwise disposed to agree to be bound
      by the terms hereof.

     

    5.  Term.
      This
      Agreement and the Parties' obligations hereunder shall continue in effect until
      the completion of the Company’s next annual meeting of shareholders at which
      each of the RSU Plan and the Amended 1998 Stock Option Plan are presented for
      ratification.

     

    6.  Amendment.
      Any
      term of this Agreement or the powers granted hereunder may be amended and the
      observance of any such term or power may be waived (either generally or in
      a
      particular instance and either retroactively or prospectively) only with the
      written consent of the Parties.

     

    7.  Binding
      Effect.
      This
      Agreement and the powers granted hereunder shall be binding upon, and shall
      inure to the benefit of the Company and GCE Holdings. 

     

    8.  Notices.
      All
      notices, demands or other communications given hereunder shall be in writing
      and
      shall be sufficiently given if transmitted by facsimile or delivered either
      personally or by a nationally recognized courier service marked for next
      business day delivery or sent in a sealed envelope by first class mail, postage
      prepaid and either registered or certified, return receipt requested, to the
      address for each Party as provided in the introductory paragraph of this
      Agreement, or to such other address as any such Party shall designate in
      writing. Any such notice, demand or communication shall be deemed to have been
      given (a) on the date of delivery, if delivered personally, (b) on the date
      of
      facsimile transmission, receipt confirmed, (c) one business day after delivery
      to a nationally recognized overnight courier service, if marked for next day
      delivery or (d) five business days after the date of mailing, if
      mailed.

     

    
      
        
        

      

      
        
        

        
          

        

      

      
        
        

      

    

    9.  Miscellaneous.
      The
      section headings herein are inserted for convenience of reference only and
      shall
      not affect the meaning or interpretation hereof. This Agreement and the powers
      granted hereunder contain the entire agreement among the Parties hereto with
      respect to the matters contemplated herein. If for any reason any provision
      hereof shall be invalid, unenforceable or inoperative, the validity and effect
      of the other provisions hereof shall not be affected herein. This Agreement
      may
      be executed in one or more counterparts, and by the Parties hereto in separate
      counterparts, each of which, when so executed and delivered, shall be deemed
      to
      be an original but all of which taken together shall constitute one and the
      same
      agreement. This Agreement shall become effective as to each signatory hereto
      upon the execution and delivery hereof by such signatory. This Agreement and
      the
      powers granted hereunder shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the
      State of New York wherein the terms of this Agreement were negotiated, excluding
      to the greatest extent permitted by law any rule of law that would cause the
      application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of New
      York.

     

    

     

    [SIGNATURE
      PAGES FOLLOW]

     

    
      
        
        

      

      
        
        

        
          

        

      

      
        
        

      

    

    IN
      WITNESS WHEREOF,
      each of
      the Parties hereto has executed this Agreement on the date first above
      written.

     

    
      	 	 	 
	 	ACURA
              PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
	 
 	 
 	 
 
	 	By:  	/s/ Andrew
              Reddick  12/22/05
	 	
              
Name:
              Andrew Reddick
	 	Title:
              President and Chief Executive Officer

    

    
      
        	 	 	 
	 	GCE
                Holdings, LLC  
	 
 	 
 	 
 
	 	By:  	/s/ Bruce
                F.
                Wesson
	 	
                
Name:
                Bruce F. Wesson
	 	Title:

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