SEC Contract Filing

Filing Date: 2021-08-11

Document Content:
<DOCUMENT>
<TYPE>EX-10.1
<SEQUENCE>2
<FILENAME>tm2124824d1_ex10-1.htm
<DESCRIPTION>EXHIBIT 10.1
<TEXT>
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<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: right"><B>Exhibti 10.1</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: center">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: center"><FONT STYLE="text-transform: uppercase"><B>Verona
Pharma plc</B></FONT></P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: center">(the &ldquo;Company&rdquo;)</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: center"><FONT STYLE="text-transform: uppercase"><B><BR>
EMPLOYEE CHANGE IN CONTROL SEVERANCE BENEFIT PLAN</B></FONT></P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: center"><B>Adopted by the Remuneration Committee on August&nbsp;9,
2021</B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="text-align: justify; font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin-top: 0pt; margin-bottom: 0pt"> <FONT STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif"><B>Section</B></FONT> <FONT STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif"><B>1.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</B></FONT><B><FONT STYLE="font-variant: small-caps">Introduction.</FONT></B></P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1in">This Verona Pharma Employee
Change in Control Severance Benefit Plan (the &ldquo;<B><I>Plan</I></B>&rdquo;) is hereby adopted effective as of August&nbsp;9, 2021
(the &ldquo;<B><I>Effective Date</I></B>&rdquo;). The purpose of the Plan is to provide for the payment of severance benefits to certain
eligible employees of Verona Pharma plc (the <B><I>&ldquo;Company&rdquo;</I></B>) and its Affiliates that have been designated by the
Company on the attached Appendix A as eligible to participate in the Plan (each of the Company and any such Affiliate, a &ldquo;<B><I>Participating
Employer</I></B>&rdquo; and collectively, the &ldquo;<B><I>Participating Employers</I></B>&rdquo;) in the event such persons incur a qualifying
involuntary termination of employment with a Participating Employer in connection with a change in control of the Company in accordance
with the terms of this Plan and who meet the additional criteria set forth in Section&nbsp;3 of the Plan (each an &ldquo;<B><I>Eligible
Employee</I></B>&rdquo; and collectively &ldquo;<B><I>Eligible Employees</I></B>&rdquo;). This Plan supplements and does not supersede
any other change in control related severance benefit plan, policy or practice maintained by the Company or any Affiliate of the Company
for Eligible Employees. In particular this Plan does not replace or supersede any change in control entitlements in the contract of employment
of any Eligible Employee to the extent that the entitlement in the Eligible Employee&rsquo;s contract of employment is more generous than
the payments and benefits envisaged in this Plan. However, the payments and benefits received under this Plan and any plan, contract (including
any offer letter or contract of employment), agreement, practice, policy or program maintained by the Company or any Affiliate of the
Company (an &ldquo;<B><I>Other Arrangement</I></B>&rdquo;) shall not be duplicative, and an Eligible Employee will not be entitled to
receive any payments or benefits under this Plan to the extent that they are duplicative of any payments or benefits under an Other Arrangement.
This Plan document also is the Summary Plan Description for the Plan.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: justify"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt"><B>Section&nbsp;2.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</B></FONT><B><FONT STYLE="font-variant: small-caps">Definitions.</FONT></B></P>

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<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 0.5in">For purposes of this Plan,
the following capitalized terms shall have the meanings set forth below:</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1in"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt"><B>(a)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</B></FONT><B><I>&ldquo;Affiliate&rdquo;</I></B>
means, at the time of determination, any &ldquo;parent&rdquo; or &ldquo;subsidiary&rdquo; of the Company as such terms are defined in
Rule&nbsp;405 promulgated under the Securities Act.</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0">&nbsp;</P>

<P STYLE="font: 10pt Times New Roman, Times, Serif; margin: 0pt 0; text-align: justify; text-indent: 1in"><FONT STYLE="font-family: Times New Roman, Times, Serif; font-size: 10pt"><B>(b)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</B></FONT><B>&ldquo;<I>Base
Salary</I>&rdquo;</B> shall mean the Eligible Employee&rsquo;s base pay (excluding incentive pay, premium pay, commissions, overtime,
bonuses and other forms of variable compensation or pension contributions), at the rate in effect during the last regularly scheduled
payroll period im