Document:

Exhibit 10.4

REFERENCE 10.4  MICHAEL KAZEE EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

EXECUTIVE EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

The Executive Employment Agreement (the “Agreement”) is between American Realty Funds Corporation, a Tennessee Corporation (the “Company”) and Michael Kazee (the “Employee”) effective as of July 1, 2010 (the “Effective Date”).

RECITALS:

WHEREAS, the Company desires that the Employee become the Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Company.

WHEREAS, the Employee desires to accept such role under the terms hereof:

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the promises and mutual agreements herein set forth, the parties hereby agree as follows:

1. 

Term of Employment. The period of employment of Employee by the Company under the Agreement (the Employment Period) shall be deemed to have commenced on the Effective Date and shall terminate at the will of the Board of Directors.

2. 

Duties. During his employment by the Company, the Employee shall perform such duties as are customary and typical by an officer of a publicly traded company, and shall discharge such duties in a professional and diligent manner at all times, to the best of his abilities. Employee’s employment shall also be subject to the policies maintained and established by the Company, if any, as the same may be amended from time to time. In keeping with these duties, Employee shall make full disclosure to the Board of Directors of all business opportunities pertaining to the business of the Company or its Affiliates and should not appropriate for Employee’s own benefit business opportunities that fall within the scope of the businesses conducted by the Company and its Affiliates.

3. 

Compensation. The Company shall pay to Employee a base salary of $3,500 per month, plus applicable bonuses as are awarded by the Board of Directors from time to time based on performance, which may either be paid in stock or cash at the discretion of the Board.

4. 

Reimbursement For Expenses. The Company shall reimburse the Employee within 30 days of the submission of appropriate documentation for all reasonable and approved travel and entertainment expenses and other disbursements incurred by him for or on behalf of the Company in the course and scope of his employment under the Agreement.

5. 

Termination of Agreement.

(a)   Death. The Agreement shall automatically terminate upon the death of Employee.

(b)   Disability. If, as a result of Employee’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness, Employee shall have been substantially unable, either with or without reasonable accommodation, to perform his duties hereunder for an entire period of one (1) consecutive months, and within thirty (30) days after written Notice of Termination is given after such one (1) month period, Employee shall not have returned to the substantial performance of his duties on a full-time basis, the Company shall have the right to terminate Employee’s employment hereunder for Disability, and such termination in and of itself shall not be, nor shall it be deemed to be, a breach of the Agreement. Any dispute between the Employee and the Company regarding whether Employee has a Disability shall be determined in writing by a qualified independent physician mutually acceptable to the Employee and the Company. If the Employee and the Company cannot agree as to a qualified independent physician, each shall appoint a physician and those two 

EX-10.4 – Pg. 1

physicians shall select a third who shall make such determination in writing. The determination of Disability made in writing to the Company and Employee shall be final and conclusive for all purposes of the Agreement. Employee acknowledges and agrees that a request by the Company for such a determination shall not be considered as evidence that the Company regarded the Employee as having a Disability.

(c)  Termination By Company For Cause. The Company may terminate the Agreement upon written notice to Employee at any time for “Cause” in accordance with the procedures provided below;

For purposes of the Agreement, “Cause” shall mean:

(i)  the material breach of any provision of the Agreement by Employee which has not been cured within five business (5) days after the Company provides notice of the breach to Employee; provided, however, if the act or omission that is the subject of such notice is substantially similar to an act or omission with respect to which Employee has previously received notice and an opportunity to cure, then no additional notice is required and the Agreement may be terminated immediately upon the Company’s election and written notice to Employee);

(ii)  the entry of a plea of guilty or judgment entered after trial finding Employee guilty of a crime punishable by imprisonment in excess of one year involving moral turpitude (meaning a crime that includes the commission of an act of gross dishonesty or bad morals);

(iii)  willfully engaging by Employee in conduct that the Employee knows or reasonably should know is detrimental to the reputation, character or standing or otherwise injurious to the Company or any of its shareholders, direct or indirect subsidiaries and Affiliates, monetarily or otherwise;

(iv)  without limiting the generality of Section 6(d)(i), the breach or threatened breach of any of the provisions of Sections 8, 9 or 10; or

(v)  a ruling in any state or federal court or by an arbitration panel that the Employee has breached the provisions of a non-compete or non-disclosure agreement, or any similar agreement or understanding which would in any way limit, as determined by the Board of Directors of the Company, the Employee’s ability to perform under the Agreement now or in the future.

(d) Termination By Company Without Cause. The Company, by a vote of a majority of the Board of Directors, may terminate the Agreement at any time, and for any reason, by providing at least 30 days written notice to Employee.

(e) Termination By Employee With Good Reason. Employee may terminate his employment with good reason anytime after Employee has actual knowledge of the occurrence, without the written consent of Employee, of one of the following events (each event being referred to herein as “Good Reason”):

(i) Any change in the duties or responsibilities (including reporting responsibilities) of Employee that is inconsistent in any adverse respect with Employee’s position(s), duties, responsibilities or status with the Company immediately prior to such change (including any diminution of such duties or responsibilities) or (B) an adverse change in Employee’s titles or offices (including, membership on the Board of Directors) with the Company;

(ii) a reduction in Employee’s Base Salary or Bonus opportunity;

(iii) the relocation of the Company’s principal executive offices out of Michigan;

EX-10.4 – Pg. 2

(iv)  the failure of the Company to continue in effect any material employee benefit plan, compensation plan, welfare benefit plan or fringe benefit plan in which Employee is participating immediately prior to the date of the Agreement or the taking of any action by the Company which would adversely affect Employee’s participation in or reduce Employee’s benefits under any such plan, unless Employee is permitted to participate in other plans providing Employee with substantially equivalent benefits;

(v)  any refusal by the Company to continue to permit Employee to engage in activities not directly related to the business of the Company which Employee was permitted to engage in prior to the date of the Agreement;

(vi)  the Company’s failure to provide in all material respects the indemnification set forth in the Company’s Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, or any other written agreement between Employee and Company;

(vii)  the failure of the Company to obtain the assumption agreement from any successor giving rise to a Change of Control as contemplated in Section 10;

(viii)  any other breach of a material provision of the Agreement by the Company.

For purposes of clauses (iii) through (vi) and (ix) above, an isolated, insubstantial and inadvertent action taken in good faith and which is remedied by the Company within ten (10) days after receipt of notice thereof given by Employee shall not constitute Good Reason. Employee’s right to terminate employment with Good Reason shall not be affected by Employee’s incapacity due to mental or physical illness and Employee’s continued employment shall not constitute consent to, or a waiver of rights with respect to, any event or condition constituting cause.

6. 

Effect of Termination. Upon the termination of the Agreement, no rights of Employee which shall have accrued prior to the date of such termination, including the right to receive any bonus Fully-Earned through the date of such termination, shall be affected in any way.

(a)  Upon Death of Employee. During the Term, if Employee’s employment is terminated due to his death, Employee’s estate shall be entitled to receive the Base Salary set forth in Section 3 accrued through the date of death and any bonus Fully-Earned (as herein defined) through the date of such termination; provided, however, Employee’s estate shall not be entitled to any other benefits (except as provided by law or separate agreement). “Fully-Earned” shall mean that for purposes of determining whether the Employee shall be entitled to a bonus, that such Employee shall be treated as if he had been employed through the last date of the regular period for determining whether or not a bonus is payable in the standard manner that all such employees are evaluated even though Employee is no longer employed by the Company, and him eligibility for an incentive bonus, if any, shall be determined accordingly. Further, a surviving spouse of Employee shall be eligible for continuation of family benefits pursuant to Section 3(c) subject to compliance with Plan provisions at the full premium rate (Company plus employee portion) for a one year period after the date of termination.

(b)  For Disability; By Company Without Cause; By Employee with Good Reason.

If the Agreement is terminated under Section 6 (b), (e) or (f):

(i)  Employee shall be entitled to receive his Base Salary set forth in Section 3 accrued through the date of such termination and any bonus Fully-Earned through the date of such termination, and shall receive a severance equal to 3 months salary, paid out in 3 equal monthly installments; and

EX-10.4 – Pg. 3

(ii)  Except as provided for in the Section 7(b), Employee shall not have any rights which have not previously accrued upon termination of the Agreement.

(c)  By Company With Cause. In the event of termination of Employee’s employment Section 6(c) Employee shall be entitled to receive the Base Salary and benefits set forth in Section 3 accrued through the date of termination, and he shall not be entitled to any other benefits (except as required by law).

8. 

Confidential Information.

(a)  The Company shall disclose to Employee, or place Employee in a position to have access to or develop, trade secrets or confidential information of Company or its Affiliates; and/or shall entrust Employee with business opportunities of Company or its Subsidiaries; and/or shall place Employee in a position to develop business good will on behalf of Company or its Subsidiaries.

(b)  The Employee acknowledges that in his employment hereunder he occupies a position of trust and confidence and agrees that he will treat as confidential and will not, without prior written authorization from the Company, directly or indirectly, disclose or make known to any person or use for her own benefit or gain, the methods, process or manner of accomplishing the business undertaken by the Company or its Subsidiaries, or any non-public information, plans, formulas, products, trade secrets, marketing or merchandising strategies, or confidential material or information and instructions, technical or otherwise, issued or published for the sole use of the company, or information which is disclosed to the Employee or in any way acquired by him during the term of the Agreement, or any information concerning the present or future business, processes, or methods of operation of the Company or its Subsidiaries, or concerning improvement, inventions or know how relating to the same or any part thereof, it being the intent of the Company, with which intent the Employee hereby agrees, to restrict him from disseminating or using for his own benefit any information belonging directly or indirectly to the Company which is unpublished and not readily available to the general public.

9. 

Successors and Assigns. The Agreement is personal in its nature and neither of the parties hereto shall, without the consent of the other, assign or transfer the Agreement or any rights or obligations hereunder, provided, however, that the provisions hereof shall inure to the benefit of, and be binding upon, each successor of the Company, whether by merger, consolidation, acquisition or otherwise, unless otherwise agreed to by the Employee and the Company.

10. 

Notices. Any notice required or permitted to be given to the Employee pursuant to the Agreement shall be sufficiently given if sent to the Employee by registered or certified mail addressed to the Employee 4757 Birmbaum Drive, Bay City, MI 48706 or at such other address as he shall designate by notice to the Company, and any notice required or permitted to be given to the Company pursuant to the Agreement shall be sufficiently given if sent to the Company by registered or certified mail addressed to it at 501 S Euclid Avenue, Bay City, MI 48706, or at such other address as it shall designate by notice to the Employee.

11. 

Invalid Provisions. The invalidity or unenforceability of a particular provision of the Agreement shall not affect the enforceability of any other provisions hereof and the Agreement shall be construed in all respects as if such invalid or unenforceable provision were omitted.

12. 

Amendments To The Agreement. The Agreement may only be amended in writing by an agreement executed by both parties hereto.

13. 

Entire Agreement. The Agreement contains the entire agreement of the parties hereto and supersedes any and all prior agreements, oral or written, and negotiations between said parties regarding the subject matter contained herein.

EX-10.4 – Pg. 4

14. 

Applicable Law and Venue. The Agreement is entered into under, and shall be governed for all purposes, by the laws of the State of Michigan, with venue of any lawsuit between the parties being in Bay City, Michigan.

15. 

No Waiver. No failure by either party hereto at any time to give notice of any breach by the other party of, or to require compliance with, any condition or provision of the Agreement shall be deemed a waiver of similar or dissimilar provisions or conditions at the same or at any prior or subsequent time.

16. 

Severability. If a Court of competent jurisdiction determines that any provision of the Agreement is invalid or unenforceable, then the invalidity or unenforceability of that provision shall not affect the validity or unenforceability of any other provision of the Agreement, and all other provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

17. 

Counterparts. The Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all of which together will constitute one in the same agreement.

18. Withholding of Taxes and Other Employee Deductions. The Company may withhold from any benefits and payments made pursuant to the Agreement all federal, state, city and other taxes as may be required pursuant to any law or governmental regulation or ruling.

19. 

Indemnification. The Company shall indemnify Employee from any claims, demands or liabilities of any kind or nature arising out of his employment with the Company, that are not the result of his own actions, or actions within his control.

20. 

Gender Correction and Neutrality. This Agreement may contain one or more references to he or she, or his or her. It is stipulated and agreed that Employee is a male, and all such references, to the extent they are inconsistent with this, shall be deemed to be corrected

In witness whereof, the parties hereto have executed the Agreement as of the day and year above written.

			
	American Realty Funds Corporation

	 
	Employee

	 
	 
	 

	Sign :     /s/ Joel Wilson  

	 
	Sign :    /s/ Michael Kazee

	Name:    Joel Wilson  

	 
	Name:    Michael Kazee

	Title:      Co - Chief Executive Officer

	 
	 

EX-10.4 – Pg. 5exv10w6w2

Exhibit 10.6.2

FIRST AMENDMENT

TO

EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

     Universal Technical Institute, Inc., (the “Company”), a Delaware corporation, and John C.
White (the “Employee”) entered into an Employment Agreement (“Agreement”) dated July 8, 2008 (the
“Effective Date”). By the execution of this First Amendment, Company and Employee hereby amend the
Agreement as provided below.

     1. The purpose of this First Amendment is to satisfy the documentation requirements of Section
409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (the “Code”). The Agreement has been and shall continue
to be administered in good faith compliance with the requirements of Section 409A from the
Effective Date through December 31, 2008. This First Amendment is effective as of January 1, 2009.

     2. Section 9.c. of the Agreement is hereby amended in its entirety to read as set out
below:

     c. Unless otherwise prohibited by law, Employee’s employment
with the Company will terminate on the effective date of Employee’s
Disability. The effective date of Employee’s Disability, which will
be Employee’s Termination Date for purposes of this Section 9.c, is
the last day of the third month on which Employee receives
disability benefits pursuant to a Company sponsored disability plan
or the day on which Employee is determined to be totally disabled by
the Social Security Administration. Employee shall be entitled to
the following items upon Employee’s Disability, so long as Employee
has signed the release described in Section 11 below and not revoked
it:

     (i) Severance payments as provided under Section 9.a.(ii); and

     (ii) All payments and benefits set forth in Section 9.a.(i),
(iv), (v), (vi) and (vii); and

     (ii) Disability benefits under the applicable plan or practice.

     3. Section 9.d.(i) of the Agreement is hereby amended in its entirety to read as set
out below:

     (i) Severance payments as provided under Section 9.a(ii),
provided however that the severance payments payable under Section
9.a(ii) shall begin on the first day of the month following the date
of Employee’s death; and

     4. Section 9.e. of the Agreement is hereby amended by adding the following new
sentence to the end thereof:

In all cases, the bonus payment to which Employee is entitled

 

 

pursuant to this Section 9.e, if any, will be paid to Employee on or
before the fifteenth (15th) day of the third
(3rd) month of Employee’s taxable year following the
taxable year in which Employee became entitled to the bonus.

     5. Section 9.f. of the Agreement is hereby amended by adding the following new paragraph (iv)
to the end thereof:

     (iv) To the extent any reduction of the Payments becomes
necessary pursuant to this Section 9.f, the reduction first shall
apply to amounts payable pursuant to this Section 9, or pursuant to
any other arrangement, that are not subject to Section 409A of the
Code. If the amount of the necessary reduction exceeds the amount
of the payments described in the preceding sentence, the reduction
will then apply on a proportional basis to amounts payable to
Employee that are subject to the requirements of Section 409A of the
Code.

     6. Section 9.j. of the Agreement is hereby amended in its entirety to read as set out below:

     j. For purposes of this Agreement, Employee’s Termination Date
shall be the date on which Employee incurs a “Separation from
Service.” For this purpose, the term “Separation from Service”
means either (1) the termination of Employee’s employment with the
Company and all affiliates, or (2) a permanent reduction in the
level of bona fide services that Employee provides to the Company
and all affiliates to an amount that is 20% or less of the average
level of bona fide services that Employee provided to the Company
and all affiliates in the immediately preceding 36 months, with the
level of bona fide services to be calculated in accordance with
regulations issued by the United States Treasury Department pursuant
to Section 409A of the Code.

     Employee’s relationship is treated as continuing while Employee
is on military leave, sick leave, or other bona fide leave of
absence (if the period of such leave does not exceed six months, or
if longer, so long as Employee’s right to reemployment with the
Company or an affiliate is provided either by statute or contract).
If Employee’s period of leave exceeds six months and Employee’s
right to reemployment is not provided either by statute or by
contract, the relationship between Employee and the Company is
deemed to terminate on the first day immediately following the
expiration of such six month period. Whether a termination has
occurred will be determined based on all of the facts and
circumstances.

     For purposes of this paragraph, the term “affiliate” shall

 

 

have the meaning set forth in 26 C.F.R. § 1.409A-1(h)(3) (which generally
requires 50% common ownership).

     If Employee is providing services to the Company in more than
one capacity, for example as both an employee and a member of the
Board of Directors or an independent contractor for the Company,
Employee must terminate employment with or services to the Company
in all capacities in order to have a Separation from Service for
purposes of this Agreement.

     7. Section 9 of the Agreement is hereby amended by adding the following new paragraph
k. to the end thereof:

     k. This Agreement shall be administered in compliance with
Section 409A of the Code or an exception thereto and each provision
of the Agreement shall be interpreted, to the extent possible, to
comply with Section 409A or an exception thereto.

     8. Section 9 of the Agreement is hereby amended by restating the last paragraph in its
entirety to read as set out below:

     Notwithstanding any of the foregoing, if the Employee is a
Specified Employee on the Termination Date, all bi-weekly payments,
if any, that are to be made following the fifteenth
(15th) day of the third (3rd) month of the
Employee’s taxable year following the Employee’s taxable year in
which the Termination Date occurred, but before the date which is
six months following the Termination Date, shall be paid in a
lump-sum on the first day of the seventh month following the
Employee’s Termination Date or, if earlier, the date the Employee
dies following the Termination Date.

     9. Section 17.a. of the Agreement is hereby amended in its entirety to read as set out
below:

     a. The Company will require any successor (whether direct or
indirect, by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all or
substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company, upon
or prior to such succession, to expressly assume and agree to
perform this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent
that the Company would have been required to perform it if no such
succession had taken place. A copy of such assumption and agreement
shall be delivered to Employee promptly after its execution by the
successor. Failure of the Company to obtain such agreement upon or
prior to the
effectiveness of any such succession shall be deemed to be a
material breach of this Agreement. As used in this Agreement,
“Company” shall mean the Company as hereinbefore defined and

 

 

any successor to its business and/or assets as aforesaid which executes
and delivers the agreement provided for in this Section 17 or which
otherwise becomes bound by the terms and provisions of this
Agreement by operation of law.

     10. Except as otherwise modified by this First Amendment, the Agreement shall continue in full
force and effect.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Employee and the Company have executed this First Amendment as of the date
set forth below.

	 	 	 	 	 

	 	 	UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTE, INC.
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 

	 	By:	 	 
	 

	 	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 

	 	Its:	 	 
	 

	 	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 

	 	Date:
	 	December _____, 2008
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	JOHN C. WHITE
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 	 	 
	 
	 	 	 	 
	 

	 	Date:
	 	December _____, 2008

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