Document:

blfs_ex41.htm

Exhibit 4.1 – Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation 

 

AMENDED AND RESTATED

 

CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

 

OF

 

BIOLIFE SOLUTIONS, INC.

 

BioLife Solutions, Inc., a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Corporation”), does hereby certify as follows:

 

1. The original Certificate of Incorporation was filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on November 5, 1987, and the name under which it was originally incorporated is Trans Time Medical Products, Inc. The Certificate of Incorporation is amended by that certain Certificate of Amendment filed on February 4, 1988; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on October 27, 1988; those certain Certificates of Amendments filed on August 18, 1989; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on August 25, 1995; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on January 5, 1996; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on September 17, 1996; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on February 4, 1997; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on October 1, 1998; that certain Certificate of Amendment filed on June 5, 2000; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on July 31, 2001; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on October 3, 2001; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on January 7, 2002; that certain Certificate of Ownership filed on September 27, 2002; that certain Certificate of Designation filed on November 13, 2003; that certain Certificate of Amendment filed on October 19, 2005; and that certain Certificate of Designation filed on June 9, 2006.

 

2. This Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation was duly proposed by the Board of Directors of the Corporation and adopted by the Stockholders of the Corporation in accordance with the provisions of Sections 242 and 245 of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

 

3. The text of the Certificate of Incorporation is amended and restated to read as set forth in Exhibit A attached hereto.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has caused this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to be signed on this 25th day of April, 2013.

 

	 	BIOLIFE SOLUTIONS, INC.	 
	 	 	 	 
	 	
By: 

	/s/ Daphne Taylor	 
	 	Name: 	Daphne Taylor	 
	 	Title: 	
Chief Financial Officer and Secretary

	 

 

  

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EXHIBIT A

FIRST: The name of the corporation is:

 

BioLife Solutions, Inc. (the “Corporation”)

 

SECOND: The address of the Corporation’s registered office in the State of Delaware is c/o United Corporate Services, 874 Walker Road, Suite C, Dover, Delaware 19901, County of Kent. The name of the registered agent of the Corporation is United Corporate Services, Inc.

 

THIRD:  The purpose of the Corporation is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware.

 

FOURTH: (a)  The aggregate number of shares of stock which the Corporation shall have the authority to issue shall be:

 

One hundred fifty million (150,000,000) shares of common stock, each having a par value of $.001 (the “Common Stock”), and one million (1,000,000) shares of preferred stock, each having a par value of $.001 (the “Preferred Stock”). The Board of Directors, in its sole discretion, shall have full and complete authority, by resolution, from time to time, to establish one or more series or classes and to issue shares of Preferred Stock, and to fix, determine and vary the voting rights, designations, preferences, restrictions, qualifications, privileges, limitation, options, conversion rights and other special rights of each series or class of Preferred Stock, including, but not limited to, dividend rates and manner of payment, preferential amounts payable upon voluntary or involuntary liquidation, voting rights, conversion rights, redemption prices, terms and conditions, and sinking fund and stock purchase prices, terms and conditions.

 

(b) Increase or Decrease in Amount of Authorized Shares: The amount of the authorized Common Stock or Preferred Stock may be increased or decreased by an Amendment to this Certificate of Incorporation authorized by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the stock outstanding.

 

(c) Rights and Restrictions of Common Stock: The powers, preferences and rights and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof in respect of the said Common Stock, are as follows:

 

The holder of the Common stock shall be entitled to a notice of meeting of stockholders of the Corporation and shall be entitled to participate equally in such meetings, each stockholder entitled to one (1) vote for each share of Common Stock held as reflected on the books of the Corporation. There shall be no cumulative voting with respect to Common Stock or Preferred Stock.

 

FIFTH:  No stockholder of this Corporation shall have a pre-emptive right because of his stock holdings to have first offered to him any part of any stock of this Corporation hereafter issued, optioned, or sold, or any part of any debentures, bonds and securities of this Corporation convertible into stock hereafter issued, optioned, or sold by the Corporation. This provision shall operate to defeat pre-emptive rights in all stock now authorized and in all debentures, bonds or securities of this Corporation which may be convertible into stock, and also to defeat pre-emptive rights in any and all stock, and classes of stock, and securities convertible into stock, which this Corporation may be hereafter authorized to issue by an amended certificate duly filed. Thus, any and all of the stock of this Corporation presently authorized, and any and all debentures, bonds or securities of this Corporation, convertible into stock and any and all of the stock of this Corporation which may hereafter be authorized, may at any time be issued, optioned and contracted for sale and/or sold and disposed of by direction of the directors of this Corporation to such persons and upon such terms and conditions as may, to the directors, seem proper and advisable, without first offering the said stock or securities, or any part thereof, to existing stockholders.

 

  

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SIXTH:   Election of directors need not be by written ballot.

 

SEVENTH: The following provisions are inserted to limit the liability of directors and officers of the Corporation to the full extent of the law allowable and for the conduct of the affairs of the Corporation and it is expressly provided that they are intended to be in furtherance and not in limitation or exclusion of the powers and rights conferred by law.

 

(a) No director shall be personally liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of his or her fiduciary duty as a director, except (i) for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the Corporation or its stockholders; (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) for paying a dividend or approving a stock repurchase which was illegal under section 174 of Title 8 of the Delaware Code relating to the Delaware General Corporation Law; or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

 

(b)  No contract or other transaction between the Corporation and any other firm or corporation shall be affected or invalidated by reason of the fact that any one or more of the directors or officers of this Corporation is or are interested in, or is a member, stockholder, director or officer or are members, stockholders, directors or officers, individually or jointly, may be a party or parties to, or may be interested in, any contract or transaction of this Corporation or in which this Corporation is interested, and no contract, act, or transaction of this Corporation with any person or persons, firm, association or corporation, shall be affected or invalidated by reason of the fact that any director or officer or officers of this Corporation is a party, or are parties to, or interested, such contract, act of transaction, or in any way connected, with such person or persons, firms, association or corporation, and each and every person who may become a director or officer of this Corporation is relieved from any liability that might otherwise exist from thus contracting with this Corporation for the benefit of himself or any firm, association, or corporation in which he may be in any way interested.

 

  

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(c) Subject to such restrictions and regulations contained in by-laws adopted by the stockholders, the Board of Directors may make, alter, amend and rescind the By-Laws, and may provide therein for the appointment of an executive committee from their own members, to exercise all or any of the powers of the board, which may be amended or repealed, at any time, by the stockholders.

 

(d) The Board of Directors shall have power, in its discretion, to provide for and to pay for directors rendering unusual or exceptional services to the Corporation, special compensation appropriate to the value of such services.

 

(e) By resolution duly adopted by the holders of not less than a majority of the shares of stock then issued and outstanding and entitled to vote at any regular or special Meeting of the Stockholders of the Corporation duly called and held as provided in the By-Laws of the Corporation, any director or directors of the Corporation may be removed from office at any time or times, with or without cause. The Board of Directors may at any time remove any officers of the Corporation with or without cause.

 

(f)  The Corporation shall indemnify each person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the Corporation) by reason of the fact that he is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) , judgments, fines and amount paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he acted in good faith in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interest of the Corporation, and with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction or upon a plea of nolo contenders or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner which he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Corporation, and with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that his conduct was unlawful.

 

  

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(g) The Corporation shall indemnify each person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a part to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the Corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that he is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the Corporation, as a director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Corporation, except that no indemnification shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the Corporation unless and only to the extent that the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application, that despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnify for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other Court shall deem proper.

 

(h) To the extent that a director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation has been successful on the merits or otherwise in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to herein or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, he shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection therewith.

 

(i) Any indemnification under paragraphs herein (unless ordered by a Court) shall be made by the Corporation only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the director, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because he has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in said paragraphs. Such determination shall be made (1) by the Board of Directors by a majority vote of a quorum consisting of directors who were not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, or (2) if such a quorum of disinterested directors so directs, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion, or (3) by the stockholders.

 

(j) The Corporation shall pay expenses incurred by defending a civil or criminal action, suit or proceeding in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding in the manner provided herein upon receipt of any undertaking by or on behalf of the director, officer, employee or agent to repay such amount if it shall be ultimately determined that he is not entitled to be indemnified by the Corporation as authorized in this section.

The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided for herein shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.

 

(k) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided herein or granted pursuant to this provision shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any by-law, agreement, vote of stockholders or of any disinterested directors or otherwise, both as to action in his official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office.

 

(l) The Corporation may purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was serving the Corporation in any capacity referred to hereinabove against any liability asserted against him and incurred by him in such capacity, or arising out of his status as such, whether or not the Corporation would have the power to indemnify him against such liability under the provisions herein.

 

(m) The provisions herein shall be applicable to all claims, action, suits, or proceedings made or commenced after the adoption hereof, whether arising from acts or omissions to act occurring before or after the adoption hereof.

 

EIGHTH: The Corporation reserves the right to amend, alter, change or repeal any provision contained in this Certificate of Incorporation, in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by statute, and all rights conferred upon stockholders herein are granted subject to this reservation.

 

NINTH: The Board of Directors is authorized to adopt, amend or repeal By-Laws of the Corporation.

 

 

 

5blfs_ex43.htm

Exhibit 4.3 - BioLife Solutions, Inc. 1998 Stock Option Plan, as amended 

BIOLIFE SOLUTIONS, INC.

1998 STOCK OPTION PLAN

(as amended through September 28, 2005)

1. Purpose of Plan. The purpose of this 1998 Stock Option Plan (the “Plan”) is to further the growth and development of BioLife Solutions, Inc. (the “Company”) by encouraging and enabling employees, officers, and directors of, and consultants and advisors to, the Company to obtain a proprietary interest in the Company through the ownership of stock (thereby providing such persons with an added incentive to continue in the employ or service of the Company and to stimulate their efforts in promoting the growth, efficiency, and profitability of the Company), and affording the Company a means of attracting to its service persons of outstanding quality.

 

2. Shares of Stock Subject to the Plan. Subject to the provisions of Section 12 hereof, an aggregate of (10,000,000) shares of the common stock, par value $.001 per share, of the Company (“Common Stock”) shall be reserved for issuance upon the exercise of options which may be granted from time to time in accordance with the Plan. As the Board of Directors of the Company (“Board of Directors”) shall from time to time determine, such shares may be, in whole or in part, authorized but unissued shares or issued shares which have been reacquired by the Company. If, for any reason, an option shall lapse, expire, or terminate without having been exercised in full, the unpurchased shares underlying such option shall (unless the Plan shall have been terminated) again be available for issuance pursuant to the Plan.

 

3. Administration.

 

(a) The Board of Directors shall administer the Plan and, subject to the provisions of the Plan, shall have authority to determine and designate from time to time those persons eligible for a grant of options under the Plan, those persons to whom options are to be granted, the purchase price of the shares covered by each option, the time or times at which options shall be granted, and the manner in which said options are exercisable. In making such determination, the Board of Directors may take into account the nature of the services rendered by the respective persons, their present and potential contributions to the Company’s success, and such other factors as the Board of Directors in its sole discretion shall deem relevant. Subject to the express provisions of the Plan, the Board of Directors also shall have authority to interpret the Plan, to prescribe, amend, and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan, to determine the terms and provisions of the instruments by which options shall be evidenced (which shall not be inconsistent with the terms of the Plan), and to make all other determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of the Plan, all of which determinations shall be final, binding, and conclusive.

 

(b) The Board of Directors may, at its discretion, in accordance with the provisions of the Company’s By-Laws, appoint from among its members a Stock Option or Compensation Committee (the “Committee”). The Committee shall be composed of two or more directors and shall have and may exercise any and all of the powers relating to the administration of the Plan and the grant of options hereunder as are set forth above in Section 3(a), as the Board of Directors shall confer and delegate. The Board of Directors shall have the power at any time to fill vacancies in, to change the membership of, or to discharge, the Committee. The Committee shall select one of its members as its Chairman and shall hold its meetings at such time and at such places as it shall deem advisable. A majority of the Committee shall constitute a quorum and such majority shall determine its action. The Committee shall keep minutes of its proceedings and shall report the same to the Board of Directors at the meeting next succeeding. No director or member of the Committee shall be liable for any action or determination made in good faith with respect to the Plan or any option granted thereunder.

 

4. Persons To Whom Shares May Re Granted.

 

(a) Options may be granted to persons who are, at the time of the grant, employees (including part-time employees), officers, and directors of, or consultants or advisors to, the Company or any subsidiary corporation (as defined in Section 425 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), a “Subsidiary”) as the Board of Directors (or Committee) shall select from time to time from among those nominated by the Board of Directors (or Committee). For the purposes of the Plan, options only may be granted to those consultants and advisors who shall render bona fide services to the Company and such services must not be in connection with the offer or sale of securities in a capital raising transaction. Subject to the provisions hereinafter set forth, options granted under the Plan shall be designated either (i) “Incentive Stock Options” (which term, as used herein, shall mean options intended to be “incentive stock options” within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code) or (ii) “Non-Incentive Stock Options” (which term, as used herein, shall mean options not intended to be incentive stock options” within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code). Each option granted to a person who is solely a director of, or consultant or advisor to, the Company or a Subsidiary on the date of the grant shall be designated a Non-Incentive Stock Option.

 

  

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(b) The Board of Directors (or Committee) may grant, at any time, new options to a person who has previously received options, whether such prior options are still outstanding, have previously been exercised in whole or in part, have expired, or are canceled in connection with the issuance of new options. The purchase price of the new options may be established by the Board of Directors (or Committee) without regard to the existing option price.

5. Option Price.

(a) The purchase price of the Common Stock underlying each option shall be determined by the Board of Directors (or Committee), which determination shall be final, binding, and conclusive; provided, however, in no event shall the purchase price of Incentive Stock Options be less than 100% (110% in the case of optionees who own more than 10% of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the Company) of the fair market value of the Common Stock on the date the option is granted. In determining such fair market value, the Board of Directors (or Committee) shall consider (i) the last sale price of the Common Stock on the date on which the option is granted or, if no such reported sale takes place on such day, the last reported bid price on such day, on NASDAQ or on the principal national securities exchange on which the Common Stock is admitted to trading or listed, or (ii) if not listed or admitted to trading on NASDAQ or a national securities exchange, the closing bid price as quoted by the National Quotation Bureau or a recognized dealer in the Common Stock on the date of grant. If the Common Stock is not publicly traded at the time an option is granted, the Board of Directors (or Committee) shall deem fair market value to be the fair value of the Common Stock after taking into account appropriate factors which may be relevant under applicable federal tax laws and Internal Revenue rules and regulations. For purposes of the Plan, the date of grant of an option shall be the date specified by the Board of Directors (or Committee) at the time it grants such option; provided, however, such date shall not be prior to the date on which the Board of Directors (or Committee) acts to approve the grant.

(b) The aggregate fair market value (determined at the time the Incentive Stock Options are granted) of the Common Stock with respect to which Incentive Stock Options are exercisable for the first time by an employee during any calendar year shall not exceed $100,000. Non-Incentive Stock Options shall not be subject to the limitations of this paragraph 5(b).

6. Exercise of Options.

 

(a) The number of shares which are issued pursuant to the exercise of an option shall be charged against the maximum limitations on shares set forth in Section 2 hereof.

 

(b) The exercise of an option shall be made contingent upon receipt by the Company from the holder thereof of (i) if deemed necessary by the Company, a written representation and acknowledgement that (1) at the time of such exercise it is the holder’s then present intention to acquire the option shares for investment and not with a view to distribution or resale thereof, (2) the holder knows that the Company is not obligated to register the option shares and that the option shares may have to be held indefinitely unless an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”), is available or the Company has registered the shares underlying the options, and (3) the Company may place a legend on the certificate(s) evidencing the option shares reflecting the fact that they were acquired for investment and cannot be sold or transferred unless registered under the Act, and (ii) payment in full of the purchase price of the shares being purchased. Payment may be made in cash; by certified check payable to the order of the Company in the amount of such purchase price; by delivery to the Company of shares of Common Stock having a fair market value equal to such purchase price; by irrevocable instructions to a broker to sell shares of Common Stock to be issued upon exercise of the option and to deliver to the Company the amount of sale proceeds necessary to pay such purchase price and to deliver the remaining cash proceeds, less commissions and brokerage fees, to the optionee; or by any combination of such methods of payment.

 

  

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7. Term of Options. The period during which each option granted hereunder shall be exercisable shall be determined by the Board of Directors (or Committee); provided, however, no option shall be exercisable for a period exceeding ten (10) years from the date such option is granted.

 

8. Non-Transferability of Options. No option granted pursuant to the Plan shall be subject to anticipation, sale, assignment, pledge, encumbrance, or charge, or shall be otherwise transferable except by will or the laws of descent and distribution or pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order (as defined by the Code or Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act or the rules thereunder), and an option shall be exercisable during the lifetime of the holder thereof only by such holder.

 

9. Termination of Services. If an employee, officer, or director to whom an option has been granted under the Plan shall cease to be an employee, officer, or director of the Company or a Subsidiary by reason of a termination of such relationship without cause and other than by reason of death or disability, such holder may exercise such option at any time prior to the expiration date of the options or within three months (or such longer period as the Board of Directors (or Committee) may decide on a case by case basis) after the date of termination, whichever is earlier, but only to the extent the holder had the right to exercise such option on the date of termination. If an employee, officer, or director to whom an option has been granted under the Plan shall cease to be an employee, officer, or director of the Company or a Subsidiary by reason of a termination of such relationship for cause and other than by reason of death or disability, such options shall terminate, lapse, and expire forthwith and automatically. So long as the holder of an option shall continue to be in the employ, or continue to be a director, of the Company or one or more of its Subsidiaries, such holder’s option shall not be affected by any change of duties or position. Absence on leave approved by the employing corporation shall not be considered an interruption of employment for any purpose under the Plan. The granting of an option in any one year shall not give the holder of the option any rights to similar grants in future years or any right to be retained in the employ or service of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries or interfere in any way with the right of the Company or any such Subsidiary to terminate such holder’s employment or services at any time. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no option may be exercised after ten years from the date of its grant.

10. Disability of Holder of Option. If any employee, officer, or director to whom an option has been granted under the Plan shall cease to be an employee, officer, or director of the Company or a Subsidiary by reason of disability, such holder may exercise such option at any time prior to the expiration date of the option or within one year after the date of termination for such reason, whichever is earlier, but only to the extent the holder had the right to exercise such option on the date of termination. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no option may be exercised after ten years from the date of its grant. For the purposes of the Plan, “disability” shall mean “permanent and total disability” as defined in Section 22(e)(3) of the Code.

 

11. Death of Holder of Option. If any employee, officer, or director to whom an option has been granted under the Plan shall cease to be an employee, officer, or director of the Company or a Subsidiary by reason of death, or such holder of an option shall die within three months after termination, or in the case of the death of an advisor or consultant to whom an option has been granted under the Plan, the option may be exercised by the person or persons to whom the optionee’s rights under the option are transferred by will or by the laws of descent and distribution at any time prior to the expiration date of the option or, in the case of an employee, officer, or director, within three months from the date of death, whichever is earlier, but only to the extent the holder of the option had the right to exercise such option on the date of such termination. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no option may be exercised after ten years from the date of its grant.

 

12. Adjustments Upon Changes in Capitalization.

 

(a) If the shares of Common Stock outstanding are changed in number, kind, or class by reason of a stock split, combination, merger, consolidation, reorganization, reclassification, exchange, or any capital adjustment, including a stock dividend, or if any distribution is made to stockholders other than a cash dividend and the Board of Directors (or Committee) deems it appropriate to make an adjustment, then (i) the aggregate number and class of shares that may be issued or transferred pursuant to Section 2, (ii) the number and class of shares which are issuable under outstanding options, and (iii) the purchase price to be paid per share under outstanding options, shall be adjusted as hereinafter provided. In the event any distribution consists of common stock held by the Company in any subsidiary, then each holder of options under this Plan on the record date for such distribution shall be entitled to receive options to purchase such number of shares of such common stock as is equal to the number of shares of common stock such holder would have received had such holder exercised all of such holder’s options under this Plan (vested and unvested) and owned the common stock in the Company underlying such options, which options in the subsidiary shall be vested or shall vest to the same extent as such holder’s options in the Company, and, generally, shall contain such provisions as to put such holder in the same equitable position such holder was in prior to the distribution, including an allocation of the exercise price for the options issued under this Plan to both such options and the options in the subsidiary.

 

  

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(b) Adjustments under this Section 12 shall be made in a proportionate and equitable manner by the Board of Directors (or Committee), whose determination as to what adjustments shall be made, and the extent thereof, shall be final, binding, and conclusive. In the event that a fraction of a share results from the foregoing adjustment, said fraction shall be eliminated and the price per share of the remaining shares subject to the option adjusted accordingly.

(c) In the event of a liquidation of the Company, or a merger, reorganization, or consolidation of the Company with any other corporation in which the Company is not the surviving corporation or the Company becomes a wholly-owned subsidiary of another corporation, any unexercised options theretofore granted under the Plan shall be deemed canceled unless the surviving corporation in any such merger, reorganization, or consolidation elects to assume the options under the Plan or to issue substitute options in place thereof; provided, however, if such options would otherwise be canceled in accordance with the foregoing, the optionee shall have the right, exercisable during a ten-day period immediately prior to such liquidation, merger, or consolidation, to exercise the option, in whole or in part. The granting of an option pursuant to the Plan shall not affect in any way the right or power of the Company to make adjustments, reorganizations, reclassifications, or changes of its capital or business structure or to merge, consolidate, dissolve, liquidate, or sell or transfer all or any part of its business or assets.

13. Vesting of Rights Under Options. Nothing contained in the Plan or in any resolution adopted or to be adopted by the Board of Directors (or Committee) or the stockholders of the Company shall constitute the vesting of any rights under any option. The vesting of such rights shall take place only when a written agreement shall be duly executed and delivered by and on behalf of the Company to the person to whom the option shall be granted.

14. Rights as a Stockholder. A holder of an option shall have no rights of a stockholder with respect to any shares covered by such holder’s option until the date of issuance of a stock certificate to such holder for such shares.

15. Termination and Amendment. The Plan was adopted by the Board of Directors on August 31, 1998, subject, with respect to the validation of Incentive Stock Options granted under the Plan, to approval of the Plan by the stockholders of the Company at the next Meeting of Stockholders or, in lieu thereof, by written consent. If the approval of stockholders is not obtained prior to August 30 1999, any grants of Incentive Stock Options under the Plan made prior to that date will be rescinded. The Plan shall expire at the end of the day on August 30, 2008 (except as to options outstanding on that date). Options may be granted under the Plan prior to the date of stockholder approval of the Plan. The Board of Directors (or Committee) may terminate or amend the Plan in any respect at any time, except that, without the approval of the stockholders obtained within 12 months before or after the Board of Directors (or Committee) adopts a resolution authorizing any of the following actions, (a) the total number of shares that may be issued under the Plan may not be increased (except by adjustment pursuant to paragraph 12); (b) the provisions regarding eligibility for grants of Incentive Stock Options may not be modified; (c) the provisions regarding the exercise price at which shares may be offered pursuant to Incentive Stock Options may not be modified except by adjustment pursuant to paragraph 12), and (d) the expiration date of the Plan may not be extended~ Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph 15, in no event may action of the Board of Directors (or Committee) or stockholders alter or impair the rights of an optionee, without such optionee’s consent, under any option previously granted to such optionee.

 

  

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16. Modification, Extension and Renewal of Options. Subject to the terms and conditions and within the limitations of the Plan, the Board of Directors (or Committee) may modify, extend, or renew outstanding options granted under the Plan, or accept the surrender of outstanding options (to the extent not theretofore exercised) and authorize the granting of new options in substitution therefor. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no modification of an option shall, without the consent of the holder thereof, alter or impair any rights or obligations under any option theretofore granted under the Plan.

17. Conversion of Incentive Stock Options into Non-Qualified Options. Without the prior written consent of the holder of an Incentive Stock Option, the Board of Directors (or Committee) shall not alter the terms of such Incentive Stock Option (including the means of exercising such Incentive Stock Option) if such alteration would constitute a modification within the meaning of Section 424(h)(3) of the Code. The Board of Directors (or Committee), at the written request or with the written consent of any optionee, may in its discretion take such actions as may be necessary to convert such optionee’s Incentive Stock Options (or any installments or portions of installments thereof) that have not been exercised on the date of conversion into Non-Incentive Stock Options at any time prior to the expiration of such Incentive Stock Options, regardless of whether the optionee is an employee of the Company at the time of such conversion. Such actions may include, but shall not be limited to, extending the exercise period or reducing the exercise price of the appropriate installments of such Incentive Stock Options. At the time of such conversion, the Board of Directors (or Committee) (with the consent of the optionee) may impose such conditions on the exercise of the resulting Non-Incentive Stock Options as the Board of Directors (or Committee) in its discretion may determine, provided that such conditions shall not be inconsistent with the Plan. Nothing in the Plan shall be deemed to give any optionee the right to have such optionee’s Incentive Stock Options converted into Non-Incentive Stock Options, and no such conversion shall occur until and unless the Board of Directors (or Committee) takes appropriate action.

18. Withholding of Additional Income Taxes. Upon the exercise of a Non-Incentive Stock Option, the transfer of a Non-Incentive Stock Option pursuant to an arm’s length transaction, the making of a Disqualifying Disposition (as described in Sections 421,422 and 424 of the Code and regulations thereunder), the vesting of transfer of restricted stock or securities acquired on the exercise of an option hereunder, or the making of a distribution or other payment with respect to such stock or securities, the Company may withhold taxes in respect of amounts that constitute compensation includible in gross income. The Board of Directors (or Committee) in its discretion may condition the exercise of an option, the transfer of a Non-Incentive Stock Option, or the vesting or transferability of restricted stock or securities acquired by exercising an option on the optionee’s making satisfactory arrangement for such withholding. Such arrangement may include payment by the optionee in cash or by check of the amount of the withholding taxes or, at the discretion of the Board of Directors (or Committee), by the optionee’s delivery of previously held shares of Common Stock or the withholding from the shares of Common Stock otherwise deliverable upon exercise of option shares having an aggregate fair market value equal to the amount of such withholding taxes.

19. Indemnification. In addition to such other rights of indemnification as they may have as members of the Board of Directors (or Committee), the members of the Board of Directors (or Committee) administering the Plan shall be indemnified by the Company against reasonable expenses, including attorneys’ fees, actually and necessarily incurred in connection with the defense of any action, suit, or proceeding, or in connection with any appeal therein, to which they or any of them may be a party by reason of any action taken or failure to act under or in connection with the Plan or any option granted thereunder, and against all amounts paid by them in settlement thereof (provided such settlement is approved by independent legal counsel selected by the Company) or paid by them in satisfaction of a judgment in any action, suit, or proceeding, except in relation to matters as to which it shall be adjudged in such action, suit, or proceeding that such member is liable for negligence or misconduct in the performance of his duties, and provided that within 60 days after institution of any such action, suit, or proceeding, the member shall in writing offer the Company the opportunity, at its own expense, to handle and defend the same.

20. Governing Law. The validity and construction of the Plan and the instruments evidencing options shall be governed by the laws of Delaware, or the laws of any jurisdiction in which the Company or its successors in interest may be organized.

 

 

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