“Company Group” means the Company and its Subsidiaries.
<omitted> (u)    “Company Material Adverse Effect” means any change, event, effect or circumstance (each, an “Effect”) that, individually or in the aggregate, is or could reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on (x) the ability of the Company and its Subsidiaries to perform its material obligations under, or to consummate the Transactions contemplated by, this Agreement or (y) the business, financial condition or results of operations of the Company Group, taken as a whole; provided, however, that, solely with respect to clause (y), none of the following Effects with respect to the following matters (by itself or when aggregated) will be deemed to be or constitute a Company Material Adverse Effect or will be taken into account when determining whether a Company Material Adverse Effect has occurred or could reasonably be expected to occur (subject to the limitations set forth below): (i)    general economic or business conditions in the United States or any other country or region in the world, or changes in conditions in the global economy generally; (ii)    conditions in the financial markets, credit markets or capital markets in the United States or any other country or region in the world, including (1) changes in interest rates or credit ratings in the United States or any other country; (2) changes in exchange rates for the currencies of any country; or (3) any suspension of trading in securities (whether equity, debt, derivative or hybrid securities) generally on any securities exchange or over-the-counter market operating in the United States or any other country or region in the world; (iii)    general conditions in the industries in which the Company Group generally conducts business; (iv)    regulatory, legislative or political conditions in the United States or any other country or region in the world; (v)    geopolitical conditions, outbreak of hostilities, acts of war, sabotage, terrorism or military actions (including any escalation or general worsening of any such hostilities, acts of war, sabotage, terrorism or military actions) in the United States or any other country or region in the world; (vi)    earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, floods, mudslides, wildfires or other natural disasters, pandemics (including SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19, any evolutions or mutations thereof or related or associated epidemics, pandemics or disease outbreaks (“COVID-19”)), epidemics or other outbreaks of diseases, quarantine restrictions, weather conditions and other force majeure events in the United States or any other country or region in the world (or escalation or worsening of any such events or occurrences, including, as applicable, subsequent wave(s)); (vii)    resulting from the announcement, pendency or consummation of this Agreement or the Transactions, including the impact thereof on the relationships, contractual or otherwise, of the Company Group with employees, suppliers, customers, partners, vendors or any other third Person; provided, however, that this clause (vii) shall not apply to any representation or warranty contained in this Agreement to the extent that such representation or warranty expressly addresses consequences resulting from the execution of this Agreement or the consummation or pendency of the Transactions; (viii)    the compliance by any Party with the terms of this Agreement, including the taking of any action expressly required to be taken or refraining from taking any action expressly prohibited by the terms of this Agreement; (ix)    arising from any action taken or refrained from being taken, in each case to which Parent has expressly approved, consented to or requested in writing following the date hereof;   4


(x)    changes in GAAP or other accounting standards or in any applicable Laws or regulations after the date hereof (or the official interpretation of any of the foregoing); (xi)    any quarantine, “shelter in place,” “stay at home,” social distancing, shut down, closure, sequester, safety or similar Law, directive, guidelines or recommendations promulgated by any Governmental Authority, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization, in each case, in connection with or in response to COVID-19 (“COVID-19 Measures”); (xii)    price or trading volume of the Company Common Stock, in and of itself (it being understood that any cause of such change may be deemed to constitute, in and of itself, a Company Material Adverse Effect and may be taken into consideration when determining whether a Company Material Adverse Effect has occurred) or any change, in and of itself, in the credit ratings or ratings outlook of any Company Group Member (provided that the underlying cause of such change in credit rating or rating outlook may be considered in determining if there has been a Company Material Adverse Effect); (xiii)    any failure, in and of itself, by the Company Group to meet (A) any public estimates or expectations of the Company’s revenue, earnings or other financial performance or results of operations for any period; or (B) any internal budgets, plans, projections or forecasts of its revenues, earnings or other financial performance or results of operations (it being understood that any cause of any such failure may be deemed to constitute, in and of itself, a Company Material Adverse Effect and may be taken into consideration when determining whether a Company Material Adverse Effect has occurred if not otherwise excluded hereunder); (xiv)    the availability or cost of equity, debt or other financing to Parent or Merger Sub; and (xv)    any Transaction Litigation; except, with respect to clauses (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), (x) and (xi), to the extent that such Effect has had a disproportionate adverse effect on the Company Group relative to other companies operating in the industry or industries in which the Company Group conducts business, in which case only the incremental disproportionate adverse impact may be taken into account in determining whether there has occurred a Company Material Adverse Effect. (Pages 8-9)

Question: MAE Definition
Category: Material Adverse Effect
Answer: "Could" (reasonably) be expected to