Exhibit 2.1
Execution
Version
AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF
MERGER
by and among
WINSTON HOTELS,
INC.,
WINN LIMITED
PARTNERSHIP,
INLAND AMERICAN REAL ESTATE
TRUST, INC.
and INLAND AMERICAN ACQUISITION
(WINSTON), LLC
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Page
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RECITALS
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1
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ARTICLE I
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DEFINITIONS
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2
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ARTICLE II
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THE MERGER
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14
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Section 2.1 General
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14
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Section 2.2 Effective
Time
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14
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Section 2.3 Certificate of
Formation; Limited Liability Company Agreement
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14
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Section 2.4 Closing
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14
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Section 2.5 Manager and
Officers; General Partner and Limited Partners
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15
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ARTICLE III
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EFFECTS OF THE MERGER
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15
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Section 3.1 Effects on
Shares
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15
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Section 3.2 Effect on
Partnership Units
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17
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Section 3.3 Exchange
Procedures; Stock Transfer Books
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17
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Section 3.4 Withholding
Rights
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20
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Section 3.5 Termination of
DRIP
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20
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Section 3.6 Further
Actions
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20
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ARTICLE IV
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REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE COMPANY
PARTIES
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21
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Section 4.1 Organization and
Good Standing
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21
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Section 4.2 Authority; No
Conflict
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22
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Section 4.3
Capitalization
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24
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Section 4.4 SEC
Reports
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25
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Section 4.5 Financial
Statements
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25
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Section 4.6 Intellectual
Property
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25
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Section 4.7 Personal
Property
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26
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Section 4.8 Real Property;
Leaseholds
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26
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Section 4.9 Management
Agreements
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28
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Section 4.10 Unexpired Option
Agreements
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28
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Section 4.11 Taxes
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28
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Section 4.12 Employee
Benefits
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32
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Section 4.13 Compliance with
Legal Requirements; Governmental Authorizations; Permits
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35
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Section 4.14 Internal
Controls
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36
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Section 4.15 Absence of Certain
Changes and Events
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36
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Section 4.16 Contracts; No
Defaults
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37
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Section 4.17
Insurance
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40
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Section 4.18 Labor
Matters
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40
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Section 4.19 Environmental Laws
and Regulations
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41
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i
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Page
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Section 4.20 Opinion of
Financial Advisor
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42
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Section 4.21 Brokers
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42
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Section 4.22 Special Committee
Approval; Board Recommendation
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43
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Section 4.23 Proxy
Statement
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43
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Section 4.24 Related Party
Transactions
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43
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Section 4.25 Investment Company
Act of 1940
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44
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Section 4.26 State Takeover
Statutes
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44
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Section 4.27 Absence of
Litigation
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44
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Section 4.28 No Undisclosed
Liabilities
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44
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Section 4.29 Third Party
Loans
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44
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Section 4.30 Ownership
Limitation
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45
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Section 4.31 Disclaimer of
Other Representations and Warranties
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45
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ARTICLE V
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REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE BUYER
PARTIES
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45
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Section 5.1
Organization
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45
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Section 5.2 Ownership of
MergerCo; No Prior Activities
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46
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Section 5.3
Authority
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46
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Section 5.4 No Conflict;
Required Filings and Consents
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46
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Section 5.5 Information
Supplied for Proxy Statement
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47
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Section 5.6
Financing
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47
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Section 5.7 Brokers
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47
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Section 5.8 Disclaimer of Other
Representations and Warranties
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47
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ARTICLE VI
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CONDUCT OF BUSINESS PENDING THE
MERGER
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48
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Section 6.1 Access to
Information
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48
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Section 6.2 Operation of the
Business; Certain Notices; Tax Returns
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49
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Section 6.3 No
Solicitation
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54
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Section 6.4 Options
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56
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Section 6.5 Common
Units
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56
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Section 6.6 Mailing
Notice
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56
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ARTICLE VII
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ADDITIONAL COVENANTS OF THE PARTIES
HERETO
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57
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Section 7.1 Proxy
Statement
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57
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Section 7.2 Company
Shareholders Meeting
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58
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Section 7.3 Regulatory
Approvals; Consents
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58
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Section 7.4 Employee
Benefits
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60
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Section 7.5 Indemnification of
Officers and Directors
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60
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Section 7.6 Public
Announcements
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62
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ii
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Page
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Section 7.7 Transfer
Taxes
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62
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Section 7.8 Intentionally
Omitted
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62
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Section 7.9 Takeover
Statutes
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62
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Section 7.10 Delisting and
Deregistering of Securities
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62
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Section 7.11 Shareholder and
Limited Partner Litigation
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62
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Section 7.12 Third Party
Consents
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63
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Section 7.13 Alternative
Structure
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63
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Section 7.14 2005 GE Loan
Agreement
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64
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Section 7.15 Wilbur Break-up
Fee
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64
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ARTICLE VIII
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CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF EACH
PARTY HERETO
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64
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Section 8.1 Shareholder
Approval
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64
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Section 8.2 HSR Act
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64
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Section 8.3 No
Restraints
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64
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ARTICLE IX
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CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE BUYER
PARTIES
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64
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Section 9.1 Accuracy of
Representations
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64
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Section 9.2 Performance of
Covenants
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65
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Section 9.3 Company
Officer’s Certificate
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65
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Section 9.4 Tax
Opinion
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65
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Section 9.5 Options
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65
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Section 9.6 Limited Partners of
Operating Partnership
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65
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Section 9.7 Common
Units
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65
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Section 9.8 Third Party
Consents
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66
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Section 9.9 Absence of Material
Adverse Change
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66
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Section 9.10 Repayment of
Indebtedness; Release of Liens
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66
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ARTICLE X
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CONDITIONS PRECEDENT TO OBLIGATIONS OF THE
COMPANY PARTIES
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66
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Section 10.1 Accuracy of
Representations
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66
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Section 10.2 Performance of
Covenants
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66
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Section 10.3 Parent
Officer’s Certificate
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67
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ARTICLE XI
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TERMINATION
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67
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Section 11.1
Termination
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67
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Section 11.2 Effect of
Termination
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68
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Section 11.3 Expenses;
Termination Fees
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69
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ARTICLE XII
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MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
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73
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Section 12.1
Amendment
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73
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Section 12.2 Waiver
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73
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iii
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Page
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Section 12.3 No
Survival
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74
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Section 12.4 Entire
Agreement
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74
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Section 12.5 Execution of
Agreement; Counterparts
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74
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Section 12.6 Governing
Law
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74
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Section 12.7 Jurisdiction;
Service of Process
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74
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Section 12.8 WAIVER OF JURY
TRIAL
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75
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Section 12.9 Remedies; Specific
Performance
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75
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Section 12.10 Disclosure
Letter
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75
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Section 12.11 Assignments and
Successors
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75
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Section 12.12 No Third Party
Rights
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76
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Section 12.13
Notices
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76
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Section 12.14
Cooperation
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77
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Section 12.15 Legal
Representation of the Parties
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78
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Section 12.16
Headings
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78
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Section 12.17
Severability
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78
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Section 12.18
Interpretation
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78
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Exhibit A – JV Entities
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Exhibit B – Form of Tax Opinion
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iv
AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF
MERGER
This AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER
(this “ Agreement ”) is made and entered into as
of April 2, 2007, by and among Winston Hotels, Inc., a North
Carolina corporation operating so as to qualify as a real estate
investment trust (the “ Company ”), WINN Limited
Partnership, a North Carolina limited partnership whose sole
general partner is the Company (the “ Operating
Partnership ” and together with the Company the “
Company Parties “), Inland American Real Estate Trust,
Inc., a Maryland corporation (the “ Parent ”),
Inland American Acquisition (Winston), LLC, a Delaware limited
liability company and a wholly-owned Subsidiary of Parent (“
MergerCo ” and together with Parent, the “
Buyer Parties ”).
RECITALS
WHEREAS, the parties hereto wish to
effect a business combination through a merger of the Company with
and into MergerCo, on the terms and subject to the conditions set
forth in this Agreement and in accordance with the Delaware Limited
Liability Company Act (the “ DLLCA ”) and the
North Carolina Business Corporation Act (the “ NCBCA
”), pursuant to which the separate corporate existence of the
Company shall thereupon cease (the “ Merger
”);
WHEREAS, the Special Committee has
(a) determined that this Agreement, the Merger and the other
transactions contemplated by this Agreement (the “
Contemplated Transactions ” and, together with the
Merger, the “ Merger Transactions ”) are
advisable and fair to, and in the best interests of, the Company
and its shareholders on the terms and subject to the conditions set
forth herein and (b) recommended the adoption and approval of
this Agreement and the Merger Transactions by the board of
directors of the Company (the “ Company Board
”);
WHEREAS, the Company Board, based on
the unanimous recommendation of the Special Committee, has
(a) approved this Agreement and the Merger Transactions,
(b) determined that this Agreement and the Merger Transactions
are advisable and fair to, and in the best interests of, the
Company and its shareholders on the terms and subject to the
conditions set forth herein, (c) directed that this Agreement
and the Merger and the Contemplated Transactions be submitted for
consideration at a meeting of the Company’s shareholders (the
“ Company Shareholders Meeting ”) and (d)
recommended the adoption and approval of this Agreement and the
Merger and the Contemplated Transactions by the Company’s
shareholders;
WHEREAS, the Company, as the sole
general partner of the Operating Partnership, has approved this
Agreement and deemed it advisable and in the best interests of the
Operating Partnership to enter into this Agreement and to
consummate the Merger Transactions on the terms and subject to the
conditions set forth herein;
WHEREAS, the board of directors of
Parent have approved this Agreement, the Merger and the
Contemplated Transactions and declared that this Agreement, the
Merger and the Contemplated Transactions are advisable and in the
best interests of Parent and its shareholders on the terms and
subject to the conditions set forth herein;
WHEREAS, Parent, as the manager and
sole member of MergerCo, has approved this Agreement, the Merger
and the Contemplated Transactions and declared that this Agreement,
the Merger and the Contemplated Transactions are advisable and in
the best interests of MergerCo and its sole member on the terms and
subject to the conditions set forth herein;
WHEREAS, the parties hereto desire
to make certain representations, warranties, covenants and
agreements in connection with the Merger Transactions as set forth
herein and to prescribe various conditions thereto as set forth
herein.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of
the foregoing and the representations, warranties, covenants and
agreements set forth herein, and other good and valuable
consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby
acknowledged, and intending to be legally bound hereby, the parties
hereto hereby agree as follows.
ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS
Section 1.1 Definitions
. Each of the following terms is defined as
follows:
“ 2005 GE Loan
Agreement ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.14.
“ Acquired Company
” means each of the Company and each Subsidiary of the
Company, and “Acquired Companies” means the Company and
the Subsidiaries of the Company, collectively.
“ Acquisition Agreement
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 6.3(c).
“ Acquisition Proposal
” means any offer, proposal, inquiry or indication of
interest (other than an offer, proposal, inquiry or indication of
interest by Parent or its Affiliates) contemplating or otherwise
relating to any Acquisition Transaction.
“ Acquisition
Transaction ” means, other than any of the Merger
Transactions, any transaction or series of related transactions
involving any (i) reorganization, dissolution, liquidation or
recapitalization of any of the Acquired Companies,
(ii) merger, consolidation, share exchange, business
combination, tender offer, exchange offer or other similar
acquisition of any of the Acquired Companies, (iii) sale,
lease, exchange, transfer, license, acquisition or disposition of
more than twenty percent (20%) of the assets of the Acquired
Companies, taken as a whole, (iv) direct or indirect acquisition or
purchase of more than twenty percent (20%) of the shares of capital
stock, partnership interests or other equity interests of the
Acquired Companies, taken as a whole, except for any purchase by
the Company of Company Common Stock, (v) similar transaction
or business combination involving any Acquired Company or any of
their businesses, shares of capital stock, partnership interests,
other equity interests or assets, (vi) public announcement of
a proposal, plan or intention to do any of the foregoing or any
agreement to engage in any of the foregoing or (vii) any
combination of any of the foregoing.
2
“ Affiliate ”
means, as to any specified Person, (i) any trust, shareholder,
equity owner, officer or director of such Person and their
associates (as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act)
or (ii) any other Person which, directly or indirectly,
through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by,
employed by or is under common control with, the specified
Person. For the purposes of this definition and the
definition of Subsidiary, “ control “ means the
possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause
the direction of the management and policies of such Person,
whether through the ownership of voting securities, by Contract or
otherwise.
“ Agreement ” has
the meaning set forth in the preamble hereto.
“ Articles of Merger
” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.2.
“ Balance Sheet ”
means the balance sheet of the Acquired Companies included in the
Company’s Annual Report on
Form 10-K filed with the SEC for the year ended
December 31, 2006.
“ Balance Sheet Date
” means December 31, 2006.
“ Buyer Parties ”
means Parent and MergerCo.
“ CERCLA ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 4.19(c).
“ Certificate of
Formation ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 2.3(a).
“ Closing ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 2.4.
“ Closing Date ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 2.4.
“ Code ” means
the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended.
“ Common Unit
Consideration ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.2(b).
“ Common Unit Holders
” means the holders of Common Units (other than the Company
and Parent) immediately prior to the Merger Effective
Time.
“ Common Units ”
means all partnership interests in the Operating Partnership that
are not specifically designated as Series B Preferred Units in
the Operating Partnership Agreement.
“ Company ” means
Winston Hotels, Inc., a North Carolina corporation operating so as
to qualify as a real estate investment trust.
“ Company Board ”
has the meaning set forth in the Recitals hereto.
“ Company Board
Recommendation ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.2(b).
“ Company Common Share
Merger Consideration ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(c).
3
“ Company Common Stock
” means the Company’s Common Stock, $0.01 par value per
share.
“ Company Expenses
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.3(a)(v).
“ Company Intellectual
Property ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.6.
“ Company Parties
” means the Company and Operating Partnership.
“ Company Plan ”
means the Winston Hotels, Inc. Stock Incentive
Plan.
“ Company Series A
Preferred Stock ” means the Company’s 9.25%
Series A Cumulative Preferred Stock, $0.01 par value per
share.
“ Company Preferred Share
Merger Consideration ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(g).
“ Company Series B
Preferred Stock ” means the Company’s 8.00%
Series B Cumulative Preferred Stock, $0.01 par value per
share.
“ Company SEC Reports
” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.4.
“ Company Shareholders
Meeting ” has the meaning set forth in the Recitals
hereto.
“ Company Termination
Fee ” means an amount equal to $11,000,000 in
cash.
“ Company Triggering
Event ” means (i) (x) the failure of the Company
Board to recommend that the Company’s shareholders vote to
adopt this Agreement, (y) a Recommendation Withdrawal or
(z) any statement by the Company Board, the Special Committee
or the Company, in any written material filed with the SEC, that
the Company Board or the Special Committee does not believe that
this Agreement and the Merger Transactions are in the best
interests of the Company’s shareholders; (ii) the
failure of the Company to include in the Proxy Statement the
Company Board Recommendation or a statement to the effect that the
Company Board and the Special Committee has determined and believes
that this Agreement and the Merger Transactions are in the best
interests of the Company’s shareholders; (iii) the
approval, endorsement or recommendation of the Company Board and
the Special Committee of, or the public announcement of its intent
to approve, endorse or recommend, any Acquisition Proposal;
(iv) the entry into a Contract (other than a confidentiality
agreement entered into in compliance with Section 6.3(a)) by
any of the Acquired Companies relating to an Acquisition Proposal,
or the public announcement of its intent to do so; (v) the
failure of the Company to comply with Section 6.3(a); or
(vi) a tender or exchange offer relating to securities of any
of the Acquired Companies shall have been commenced by someone
other than Parent or its Affiliates and the Company shall not have
sent to its security holders, within ten (10) business days
after the commencement of such tender or exchange offer, a
statement disclosing that the Company Board recommends rejection of
such tender or exchange offer.
“ Confidentiality
Agreement ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 6.1(b).
4
“ Consent ” means
any approval, consent, ratification, permission, waiver or
authorization by, filing with or notification to, any Person
(including any Governmental Authorization).
“ Contemplated
Transactions ” has the meaning set forth in the Recitals
hereto.
“ Continuing Employees
” has the meaning set forth in Section 7.4.
“ Contract ”
means any written, oral or other agreement, contract, subcontract,
lease, understanding, arrangement, instrument, note, option,
warranty, purchase order, license, sublicense, insurance policy,
benefit plan or legally binding commitment or undertaking of any
nature, including, in each case, any amendments, supplements or
modifications thereto.
“ Covered Parties
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.5(a).
“ Current Policy
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.5(c).
“ DLLCA ” has the
meaning set forth in the Recitals hereto.
“ Debt ” means,
as to any Person, at a particular time, (i) indebtedness for
borrowed money or for the deferred purchase price of property
(which shall not include accounts payable incurred in the ordinary
course of business) in respect of which such Person is liable,
contingently or otherwise, as obligor, guarantor or otherwise, or
in respect of which such Person otherwise assures a creditor
against loss, (ii) obligations under leases which shall have
been or should be, in accordance with GAAP, recorded as capital
leases in respect of which obligations such Person is liable,
contingently or otherwise, as obligor, guarantor or otherwise, or
in respect of which obligations such Person assures a creditor
against loss, (iii) obligations of such Person to purchase or
repurchase accounts receivable, chattel paper or other payment
rights sold or assigned by such Person, (iv) obligations
secured by a purchase money mortgage or other Encumbrance to secure
all or part of the purchase price of the property or services
subject to such mortgage or Encumbrance, (v) obligations for
any amounts under any deferred compensation programs, (vi)
indebtedness or obligations of such Person under or with respect to
letters of credit, notes, bonds, debentures or other debt
instruments, (vii) obligations of such Person under any
interest rate swap, cap or collar agreement, currency or hedging
arrangements or other similar agreement or arrangement designed to
alter the risks of that Person arising from fluctuations in
interest rates, in each case whether contingent or matured and
including all breakage, termination or prepayment fees and
(viii) obligations for penalty payments, redemption premiums,
charges, breakage costs, yield maintenance amounts and other
expenses relating to the prepayment of any obligations of the types
referred to in this definition of Debt.
“ Disclosure Letter
” means the disclosure letter in respect of the Acquired
Companies as delivered by the Company to Parent on the date hereof
simultaneously with the execution and delivery of this
Agreement.
“ DRIP ” has the
meaning set forth in Section 3.5.
“ Employee Benefit
Plans ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.12(a).
5
“ Encumbrance ”
means any lien, pledge, hypothecation, charge, mortgage, easement,
security interest, encumbrance, claim, infringement, interference,
option, right of first refusal, preemptive right, community
property interest or restriction of any kind or nature (including
any restriction on the voting of any security, any restriction on
the transfer of any security or other asset, any restriction on the
receipt of any income derived from any asset, any restriction on
the use of any asset and any restriction on the possession,
exercise, transfer or pledge of any other attribute of ownership of
any asset).
“ End Date ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 11.1(b).
“ Environmental Claim
” means any claim, action, cause of action, investigation or
notice (written or oral) by any Person alleging potential liability
(including potential liability for investigatory costs, cleanup
costs, governmental response costs, natural resources damages,
property damages, personal injuries, or penalties) arising out of,
based on or resulting from (a) the presence, or release into the
environment, of any Hazardous Substance at any location, whether or
not owned or operated by any of the Acquired Companies or JV
Entities or (b) any violation, or alleged violation, of any
Environmental Law.
“ Environmental Laws
” means all applicable Legal Requirements relating to
pollution or protection of human health or the environment,
including ambient air, surface water, ground water, land surface or
subsurface strata, including laws and regulations relating to
emissions, discharges, releases or threatened releases of Hazardous
Substances, or otherwise relating to the manufacture, processing,
distribution, use, treatment, storage, disposal, transport or
handling of Hazardous Substances.
“ Environmental Permits
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.19(a).
“ ERISA ” means
the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended,
and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
“ ERISA Affiliate
” means, with respect to any entity, trade or business, any
other entity, trade or business that is a member of a group
described in Section 414(b), (c), (m) or (o) of the Code
or Section 4001(b)(1) of ERISA that includes the first entity,
trade or business, or that is a member of the same
“controlled group” as the first entity, trade or
business pursuant to Section 4001(a)(14) of ERISA.
“ Exchange Act ”
means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the
rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
“ Exchange Fund ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 3.3(a).
“ Facilities ”
means any real property, including the Properties, leaseholds or
other interests currently or formerly owned in fee simple or
pursuant to a ground leasehold interest or operated by any Acquired
Company, together with any buildings, plants, structures or
equipment located thereon, including hotels, parking lots and
structures, convention centers, meeting facilities, restaurant, bar
and lounge facilities, and all furnishings, fixtures and equipment
located therein or thereon.
6
“ Franchise Agreements
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.8(f).
“ GAAP ” means
the generally accepted accounting principles in the United States
of America.
“ Governmental
Authorization ” means any (i) permit, license,
certificate, franchise, approval, consent, ratification, waiver,
certification, decree, decision, permission, variance, clearance,
registration, qualification or authorization issued, granted, given
or otherwise made available or the expiration or termination of any
applicable waiting period by or under the authority of any
Governmental Body or pursuant to any Legal Requirement or
(ii) right under any Contract with any Governmental
Body.
“ Governmental Body
” means any (i) nation, state, commonwealth, province,
territory, county, municipality, district or other jurisdiction of
any nature, (ii) federal, state, local, municipal, foreign or
other government or (iii) governmental or quasi-governmental
regulatory or administrative authority of any nature (including any
governmental division, department, agency, commission,
instrumentality, official, organization, unit, body or other Person
and any court, arbitral body, self-regulated entity or other
tribunal).
“ Ground Leased
Properties ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.8(a).
“ Ground Leases ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 4.8(a).
“ H&W ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 9.4.
“ Hazardous Substances
” means chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, wastes, toxic
substances, hazardous substances, radioactive materials, asbestos,
petroleum and petroleum products.
“ HSR Act ” means
the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as
amended.
“ Indemnification Event
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.5(a).
“ Insurance Amount
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.5(c).
“ Intellectual Property
” means (i) trademarks, service marks, trade names and
Internet domain names, together with all goodwill connected
therewith or symbolized thereby, (ii) patents (including any
continuations and continuations in part), (iii) copyrights,
(iv) trade secrets and know-how, (v) copyrightable works
and copyrights and (vi) registrations and applications for
registration of any of the foregoing.
“ IRS ” means the
Internal Revenue Service of the United States federal
government.
“ JV Entities ”
means the joint venture entities of the Company set forth on
Exhibit A attached hereto, including the Minority JV
Entities as specified on Exhibit A attached
hereto.
“ knowledge ”: An
individual will be deemed to have “knowledge” of a
particular fact or
7
other matter if such individual is
actually aware of such fact or other matter, following reasonable
inquiry. A Person (other than an individual) will be deemed
to have “knowledge” of a particular fact or other
matter if any individual who is currently serving as an executive
officer (as defined in Rule 3b-7 promulgated under the
Exchange Act and in the case of the Company Parties, limited to
such Persons listed as such in the Company’s proxy statement
for its 2006 annual meeting of shareholders filed with the SEC on
March 17, 2006) of such Person is actually aware of such fact
or other matter, following reasonable inquiry.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to any Person’s
knowledge concerning circumstances pertaining to or affecting the
Minority JV Entities, the parties hereto hereby acknowledge and
agree that such Person’s duty of reasonable inquiry shall not
include a duty to make inquiries of the Minority JV
Entities.
“ Legal Proceeding
” means any action, suit, litigation, claim, arbitration,
proceeding (including any civil, criminal, administrative,
investigative or appellate proceeding), hearing, inquiry, audit,
examination or investigation commenced, brought, conducted or heard
by or before, or otherwise involving, any court or other
Governmental Body or any arbitrator or arbitration
panel.
“ Legal Requirement
” means any federal, state, local, municipal, foreign or
other law, statute, constitution, principle of common law,
resolution, ordinance, code, edict, decree, executive order, rule,
regulation, ruling or requirement issued, enacted, adopted,
promulgated, applied, implemented or otherwise put into effect by
or under the authority of any Governmental Body (or under the
authority of NYSE or any other stock exchange, if
applicable).
“ Liabilities ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 4.28.
“ Limited Liability Company
Agreement ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 2.3(b).
“ Loan Documents
” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.29.
“ Loans ” has the
meaning set forth in Section 4.29.
“ Mailing Notice
” has the meaning set forth in Section 6.6.
“ Management Agreement
Documents ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.9.
“ Material Adverse
Effect ”: An event, change, effect or development will be
deemed to have a “Material Adverse Effect” on the
Acquired Companies if such event, change, effect, development or
other matter (a) has had, or would reasonably be expected to
have, a material adverse effect, individually or in the aggregate,
on the business, financial condition, capitalization, assets,
liabilities, operations or financial performance of the Acquired
Companies, taken as a whole, excluding any effects arising out of
or resulting from any adverse change following the date of this
Agreement in the financial credit or real estate markets, or other
change following the date of this Agreement in general economic
conditions, or an outbreak or escalation of hostilities, a national
emergency or war, or the occurrence of any act of terrorism, in
each case, except if the Acquired Companies, taken as a whole, are
materially and disproportionately affected thereby, (b) has
had, or would reasonably be expected to have, a material adverse
effect on the ability of the Company Parties to timely consummate
the Merger
8
Transactions or to timely perform
any of their respective obligations under this Agreement, or (c)
has prevented or materially delayed, or would reasonably be
expected to prevent or materially delay, the consummation of the
Merger Transactions. An event, change, effect, development or
other matter will be deemed to have a “Material Adverse
Effect” on Parent if such event, change, effect, development
or other matter (i) has had, or would reasonably be expected
to have, a material adverse effect on the ability of the Buyer
Parties to timely consummate the Merger Transactions or to timely
perform any of their respective obligations under this Agreement,
or (ii) has prevented or materially delayed, or would
reasonably be expected to prevent or materially delay, the
consummation of the Merger Transactions. For purposes of
clarification, no event, change, effect, development or other
matter attributable to compliance with the terms of, or the taking
of any action expressly required by, this Agreement or any of the
Merger Transactions, including the payment of the Wilbur Break-up
Fee and the loss by the Acquired Companies of certain customers,
suppliers, franchisors or employees solely as a result of the
performance of this Agreement or the announcement of the Merger
Transactions, solely to the extent that such losses are reasonably
consistent in scope and magnitude with the average losses
experienced by companies operating in the industry in which the
Company Parties operate in connection with change-of-control
transactions, shall be deemed in itself, or in any combination, to
constitute, and shall not be taken into account in determining
whether there has been or will be, a Material Adverse Effect on the
Acquired Companies; provided, however , that with respect to
the representations and warranties set forth in
Sections 4.2(d) and 5.4(b), only the language in the first two
(2) sentences of this paragraph shall be applied in
determining whether a “Material Adverse Effect” has
occurred with respect to such Sections 4.2(d) and
5.4(b).
“ Material Contract
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.16(a).
“ Merger ” has
the meaning set forth in the Recitals hereto.
“ Merger Effective Time
” has the meaning set forth in Section 2.2.
“ Merger Transactions
” has the meaning set forth in the Recitals
hereto.
“ MergerCo ”
means Inland American Acquisition (Winston), LLC, a Delaware
limited liability company and wholly-owned Subsidiary of
Parent.
“ MergerCo Common Units
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(a).
“ Minority JV Entity
” means any JV Entity that does not qualify as a Subsidiary
of the Company per the first sentence of the definition of
“Subsidiary” and is therefore not a Subsidiary of the
Company. The term “Minority JV Entity” shall
include all Subsidiaries of such Minority JV Entity, and shall
include each of the JV Entities specified as a Minority JV Entity
on Exhibit A attached hereto.
“ Multiemployer Plan
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.12(g).
“ NCBCA ” has the
meaning set forth in the Recitals hereto.
“ New Employee Benefit
Plans ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.4.
9
“ NYSE ” has the
meaning set forth in Section 7.1.
“ Operating Partnership
” means WINN Limited Partnership, a North Carolina limited
partnership whose sole general partner is the Company.
“ Operating Partnership
Agreement ” means that certain Second Amended and
Restated Agreement of Limited Partnership of the Operating
Partnership, dated July 11, 1997, as amended from time to
time.
“ Option Holder Notice
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(d).
“ Option Merger
Consideration ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(d).
“ Options ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 3.1(d).
“ Organizational
Documents ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.1(b).
“ Owned Real Properties
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.8(a).
“ Ownership Limitation
” has the meaning set forth in the Articles of Incorporation
of the Company, as amended from time to time, as in effect on the
date hereof.
“ Parent ” means
Inland American Real Estate Trust, Inc., a Maryland
corporation.
“ Parent Expenses
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.3(a)(ii).
“ Parent Termination
Fee ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.3(a)(v).
“ Paying Agent ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 3.3(a).
“ Permits ” has
the meaning set forth in Section 4.13(b).
“ Permitted
Encumbrances ” means (i) Encumbrances for Taxes,
assessments, governmental charges or levies or mechanics and other
statutory liens (A) that are not material in amount relative
to the property affected and (B) that are not yet delinquent
or are being contested in good faith and by appropriate proceedings
in respect thereof during which collection or enforcement is
stayed, (ii) inchoate mechanics’ and materialmen’s
liens for construction in progress and arising in the ordinary
course of business of the Acquired Companies, (iii) inchoate
workmen’s, repairmen’s, warehousemen’s and
carriers’ liens arising in the ordinary course of business of
the Acquired Companies, (iv) with respect to real property,
zoning restrictions, survey exceptions, utility easements, rights
of way and similar Encumbrances that are imposed by any
Governmental Body having jurisdiction thereon or that otherwise are
typical for the applicable property type and locality and that,
individually or in the aggregate, do not interfere materially, or
would not reasonably be expected to interfere materially, with the
current use and operation of such property (assuming its continued
use in the manner in which it is currently used) or, with respect
to unimproved or vacant real property, interfere materially with
the intended use of such property, (v) with respect to real
property, any title exception (whether material or immaterial)
disclosed in any Title Policy provided or made available to Parent
prior
10
to the date hereof, Encumbrances and
obligations arising under the Material Contracts (including any
Encumbrance securing mortgage debt disclosed in the Disclosure
Letter), the Ground Leases and any other Encumbrance that does not
interfere materially with the current use of such property
(assuming its continued use in the manner in which it is currently
used) or materially adversely affect the value or marketability of
such property and/or (vi) other Encumbrances being contested
in the ordinary course of business in good faith and which,
individually or in the aggregate, do not materially impair, or
would not reasonably be expected to impair, the continued use and
operation of the assets to which they relate in the conduct of the
business of any Acquired Company.
“ Person ” means
any individual, corporation (including any non-profit corporation),
general or limited partnership, limited liability company, joint
venture, estate, trust, association, organization, labor union or
other entity or Governmental Body.
“ Pre-Closing Period
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 6.1(a).
“ Properties ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 4.8(a).
“ Proxy Statement
” has the meaning set forth in Section 4.23.
“ Qualified Plans
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.12(d).
“ Qualifying Income
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.3(b).
“ Recommendation
Withdrawal ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 7.2(b).
“ REIT ” has the
meaning set forth in Section 4.11(b).
“ Representatives
” means, with respect to any Person, the equity holders,
partners, employees, consultants, officers, directors, agents,
attorneys, accountants, advisors, debt and equity financing sources
and representatives of such Person.
“ Required Company
Shareholder Vote ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.2(b).
“ Restricted Shares
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 3.1(e).
“ Sarbanes-Oxley Act
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.14(a).
“ SEC ” means the
United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
“ Securities Act
” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules
and regulations promulgated thereunder.
“ Series B Preferred
Units ” means all partnership interests in the Operating
Partnership specifically designated as Series B Preferred
Units in the Operating Partnership Agreement.
“ Space Leases ”
has the meaning set forth in Section 4.8(c).
11
“ Special Committee
” means the special committee of the Company Board appointed
to evaluate, negotiate and recommend actions with respect to
Acquisition Transactions involving the Company, including the
Merger Transactions, and to represent the Company in connection
therewith.
“ Subsidiary ”
means, with respect to any Person, any corporation, limited
liability company, partnership, association, joint venture or other
business entity of which (i) if a corporation, (x) a
majority of the total voting power of shares of stock entitled
(without regard to the occurrence of any contingency) to vote in
the election of directors, managers or trustees thereof is at the
time owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by that Person or
one or more of the other Subsidiaries of that Person or a
combination thereof or (y) that Person otherwise has direct or
indirect control thereof, by Contract or otherwise or (ii) if
a limited liability company, partnership, association, joint
venture or other business entity (other than a corporation),
(x) a majority of the partnership or other similar ownership
interests thereof is at the time owned or controlled, directly or
indirectly, by that Person or one or more Subsidiaries of that
Person or a combination thereof, and for this purpose, a Person or
Persons own a majority ownership interest in such a business entity
(other than a corporation) if such Person or Persons shall be
allocated a majority of such business entity’s gains or
losses, (y) that Person shall be or control any managing
director or general partner of such business entity (other than a
corporation) or (z) that Person otherwise has direct or
indirect control thereof, by Contract or otherwise. The term
“Subsidiary” shall include all Subsidiaries of such
Subsidiary, and, when used with respect to the Company, shall
include each of the Acquired Companies listed on
Section 4.1(b) of the Disclosure Letter, including each of the
JV Entities (except for the Minority JV Entities), in each case, as
specified and listed on Exhibit A attached
hereto.
“ Superior Proposal
” means an unsolicited, bona fide written Acquisition
Proposal (except that references to twenty percent (20%) within the
definition of “Acquisition Proposal” will be deemed to
be references to “more than fifty percent (50%)”) made
by a third party on terms that the Company Board (acting through
the Special Committee) determines, in its good faith judgment,
after consultation with its or the Special Committee’s, as
applicable, financial advisors and outside legal counsel, taking
into account, among other things, all of the terms, conditions and
circumstances of the Acquisition Proposal, to be more favorable to
the Company’s shareholders from a financial point of view
than the terms of the Merger Transactions (after giving effect to
any modification to this Agreement proposed by the Buyer Parties)
and to be reasonably capable of being consummated.
“ Superior Proposal
Notice ” means the at least three (3) business
days’ written notice from the Company to Parent that the
Company or its Special Committee is in receipt of an unsolicited
Superior Proposal and is prepared to approve, authorize or
recommend such Superior Proposal or the applicable amendment to a
Superior Proposal, specifying the material terms and conditions of
such Superior Proposal or amendment thereto (and a copy thereof, if
available) and identifying the third party making such Superior
Proposal or amendment thereto.
“ Superior Proposal
Termination Procedures ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.1(f).
“ Surviving Entity
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 2.1(a).
12
“ Tax ” means
(i) any tax (including any income tax, franchise tax, capital
gains tax, gross receipts tax, value-added tax, surtax, excise tax,
ad valorem tax, transfer tax, stamp tax, sales tax, use tax,
property tax, business tax, withholding tax or payroll tax), levy,
assessment, tariff, duty (including any customs duty),
(ii) any related charge or amount (including any fine, penalty
or interest), imposed, assessed or collected by or under the
authority of any Taxing Authority and (iii) any liability
pursuant to any statute or agreement for an amount described in
clauses (i) or (ii) above owed by another
party.
“ Tax Protection
Agreement ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.11(t).
“ Tax Return ”
means any return (including any information return), report,
statement, estimate, schedule, notice, notification, form,
election, certificate or other document filed with, or required to
be filed with, any Taxing Authority in connection with the
determination, assessment, collection or payment of any Tax or in
connection with the administration, implementation or enforcement
of or compliance with any Legal Requirement relating to any
Tax.
“ Taxing Authority
” means a Governmental Body responsible for the imposition,
administration or collection of any Tax.
“ Title Policies
” has the meaning set forth in
Section 4.8(b).
“ Transfer Taxes
” has the meaning set forth in Section 7.7.
“ Treasury Regulations
” means the final and temporary income tax regulations
promulgated under the Code, as such regulations may be amended from
time to time. References to specific provisions of the
Treasury Regulations shall be deemed to include the corresponding
provisions of succeeding provisions of the Treasury
Regulations.
“ Tribeca Contract
” means the Agreement of Purchase and Sale, dated as of
February 13, 2006 and amended as of May 2, 2006 and October 4,
2006, by and between the Operating Partnership and York Street,
LLC, as amended as of February 21, 2007.
“ Wilbur Break-up Fee
” means the Company Termination Fee and Parent Expenses, each
as defined in the Wilbur Merger Agreement, that is to be paid to
Wilbur Acquisition Holding Company, LLC at or prior to the time of
the effectiveness of the termination of the Wilbur Merger
Agreement.
“ Wilbur Break-up Fee
Reimbursement ” has the meaning set forth in
Section 11.3(b).
“ Wilbur Merger
Agreement ” means the Agreement and Plan of Merger dated
as of February 21, 2007 by and among the Company, the Operating
Partnership, Wilbur Acquisition Holding Company, LLC and Wilbur
Acquisition, Inc.
13
ARTICLE II
THE MERGER
Section 2.1 General
.
(a) Subject to the terms and
conditions of this Agreement, and in accordance with the DLLCA and
the NCBCA, at the Merger Effective Time, MergerCo and the Company
shall consummate the Merger pursuant to which (i) the Company
shall be merged with and into MergerCo and the separate existence
of the Company shall thereupon cease and (ii) MergerCo shall
be the surviving entity in the Merger (the “ Surviving
Entity ”). The Merger shall have the effects
specified in the DLLCA and the NCBCA.
(b) Subject to the terms and
conditions of this Agreement, at the Merger Effective Time, Parent
shall purchase one hundred (100) Common Units of the Operating
Partnership for a cash purchase price of one hundred dollars
($100.00) and Parent shall become a limited partner of the
Operating Partnership.
Section 2.2 Effective
Time . At the Closing and immediately prior to the Merger
Effective Time, MergerCo and the Company shall duly execute and
file a certificate of merger and articles of merger with respect to
the Merger in a form that complies with the DLLCA and the NCBCA,
respectively (collectively, the “ Articles of Merger
”) with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware and
the Secretary of State of the State of North Carolina,
respectively, in accordance with the DLLCA and the NCBCA,
respectively. The Merger shall become effective upon such
time as the Articles of Merger have been accepted for record by the
Secretary of State of the State of Delaware and the Secretary of
State of the State of North Carolina, respectively, or such later
time which the parties hereto shall have agreed upon and designated
in such filing in accordance with the DLLCA and the NCBCA as the
effective time of the Merger but not to exceed thirty
(30) days after the Articles of Merger are accepted for record
by the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware and the
Secretary of State of the State of North Carolina, respectively
(the “ Merger Effective Time ”).
Section 2.3 Certificate of
Formation; Limited Liability Company Agreement .
(a) At the Merger Effective
Time, the Certificate of Formation of MergerCo, as in effect
immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time, shall be the
Certificate of Formation of the Surviving Entity until thereafter
amended as provided therein or by applicable law (the “
Certificate of Formation ”).
(b) The limited liability
company agreement of the Company, as in effect immediately prior to
the Merger Effective Time, shall be the limited liability company
agreement of the Surviving Entity until thereafter amended as
provided therein or by applicable law (the “ Limited
Liability Company Agreement ”).
Section 2.4 Closing .
Unless this Agreement shall have been terminated in accordance with
Article XI, the closing of the Merger (the “
Closing ”) shall occur as promptly as practicable (but
in no event later than the third business day) after all of the
conditions set forth in Articles VIII, IX and X (other than
conditions which by their terms are required to be satisfied or
waived
14
at the Closing, but subject to the
satisfaction or waiver thereof) shall have been satisfied or waived
by the party hereto entitled to the benefit of the same, or at such
other time and on a date as agreed to by the parties hereto (the
“ Closing Date ”). The Closing shall take
place at the offices of DLA Piper US LLP, Raleigh, North Carolina,
or at such other place as agreed to by the parties
hereto.
Section 2.5 Manager and
Officers; General Partner and Limited Partners .
(a) (i) The manager of MergerCo
immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time shall be the manager
of the Surviving Entity, and (ii) the officers of MergerCo
immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time shall be the
officers of the Surviving Entity, in each case, to hold such
position in accordance with the Certificate of Formation and
Limited Liability Company Agreement.
(b) The general partner of the
Operating Partnership immediately after the Merger Effective Time
shall be the Surviving Entity and the limited partner of the
Operating Partnership immediately after the Merger Effective Time
shall be Parent.
ARTICLE III
EFFECTS OF THE MERGER
Section 3.1 Effects on
Shares . At the Merger Effective Time, by virtue of the Merger
and without any action on the part of Parent, MergerCo, the Company
or any of their respective shareholders or unitholders:
(a) Each common unit of
MergerCo (the “ MergerCo Common Units ”), shall
be converted into one validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable
common unit of the Surviving Entity.
(b) Except for each share of
Company Common Stock as of the Merger Effective Time held in the
name of the Company, as trustee, for the benefit of the individual
participants in the Winston Hotels, Inc. Executive Deferred
Compensation Plan, each share of Company Common Stock and Company
Series B Preferred Stock that is owned by any of the Acquired
Companies or by Parent, MergerCo or any other Subsidiary of Parent
immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time shall automatically
be canceled and retired and shall cease to exist, and no payment
shall be made with respect thereto.
(c) Each share of Company
Common Stock issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Merger
Effective Time (other than shares to be canceled in accordance with
Section 3.1(b)) shall automatically be converted into, and
canceled in exchange for, the right to receive an amount in cash to
be paid by Parent equal to $15.00 without interest (the “
Company Common Share Merger Consideration
”).
(d) Not later than the earlier
of the time at which the Company gives notice of the Contemplated
Transactions to its shareholders and the date that is thirty
(30) days prior to the Merger Effective Time, the Company
shall notify each holder of the options granted pursuant to the
Company Plan (“ Options ”), in writing, of the
Contemplated Transactions in accordance with the Company Plan (the
“ Option Holder Notice ”). Immediately
prior to the Merger Effective
15
Time, all such Options that remain
unvested automatically shall become fully vested. The Option
Holder Notice shall (i) apprise the holders of outstanding
Options of their ability to exercise the Options in accordance with
the Company Plan prior to the Merger Effective Time,
(ii) disclose that, if not exercised, such Options will
terminate at the Merger Effective Time and (iii) disclose that
if any Options are not exercised prior to the Merger Effective Time
and terminate as contemplated in clause (ii), the holders of such
Options will be entitled to receive the Option Merger Consideration
in respect of such Options. As of the Merger Effective Time,
each outstanding Option shall be terminated by virtue of the Merger
and each holder of an Option shall cease to have any rights with
respect thereto, other than the right to receive, in respect of
each such terminated Option, a single lump sum payment (without
interest and subject to the deduction and withholding of such
amounts as Parent, the Surviving Entity or the Paying Agent, as
applicable, is required to deduct and withhold with respect to the
making of such payment under the Code, or any provision of state,
local or foreign tax law) in cash an amount equal to the Company
Common Share Merger Consideration, minus the exercise price for
such Option (the “ Option Merger Consideration
”). Payment of the Option Merger Consideration to each
of the holders of Options entitled thereto shall be made as soon as
practicable after the Merger Effective Time, subject to the terms
and conditions of this Agreement. Any amounts withheld and
paid over to the appropriate taxing authority by Parent, the
Surviving Entity or the Paying Agent will be treated for all
purposes of this Agreement as having been paid to the holder of the
Option in respect of whom such deduction and withholding was
made. If the exercise price per share of any such Option is
equal to or greater than the Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, such Option shall be canceled without any cash
payment being made in respect thereof. Prior to the Merger
Effective Time, the Company shall take all actions required by the
Company Plan under which such Options were granted to cause such
Company Plan and all Options granted thereunder to terminate at the
Merger Effective Time, including adopting any plan amendments and
resolutions and obtaining any required Consents, without paying any
consideration or incurring any debts or obligations on behalf of
the Company or the Surviving Entity.
(e) Immediately prior to the
Merger Effective Time, all restricted share awards (“
Restricted Shares ”) granted pursuant to the Company
Plan or otherwise that remain unvested automatically shall become
fully vested and free of any forfeiture restrictions and each
Restricted Share shall be considered an outstanding share of
Company Common Stock for all purposes of this Agreement, including
the right to receive the Company Common Share Merger
Consideration. Prior to the Merger Effective Time, the
Company will adopt such resolutions and will take such other
actions, including adopting any plan amendments and obtaining any
required Consents, as shall be required to effectuate the actions
contemplated by this Section 3.1(e), without paying any
consideration or incurring any debts or obligations on behalf of
the Company or the Surviving Entity.
(f) If, subsequent to the date
of this Agreement but prior to the Merger Effective Time, the
outstanding shares of Company Common Stock shall have been changed
into a different number of shares as a result of a stock split,
reverse stock split, stock dividend, subdivision, reclassification,
split, combination, exchange, recapitalization, or any dividend or
other distribution payable in stock or other securities is declared
thereon or rights issued in respect thereof with a record date
within such period, or other similar transaction, the
Company
16
Common Share Merger Consideration,
the Option Merger Consideration and the Common Unit Consideration
shall be appropriately adjusted so that the aggregate amount
payable pursuant to this Agreement to effect the Merger
Transactions shall not have increased as a result of such
adjustment.
(g) Each share of Company
Series B Preferred Stock issued and outstanding immediately
prior to the Merger Effective Time (other than shares to be
canceled in accordance with Section 3.1(b)) shall
automatically be converted into, and canceled in exchange for, the
right to receive an amount in cash to be paid by Parent equal to
the sum of (i) $25.44 per share (if the Merger Effective Time
occurs on or prior to June 30, 2007) or $25.38 per share (if the
Merger Effective Time occurs after June 30, 2007 and on or prior to
September 30, 2007) plus (ii) any accrued and unpaid dividends as
of the Merger Effective Time (the “ Company Preferred
Share Merger Consideration ”).
Section 3.2 Effect on
Partnership Units .
At the Merger Effective
Time:
(a) Parent shall purchase one
hundred (100) Common Units of the Operating Partnership for a
cash purchase price of one hundred dollars ($100.00) and Parent
shall be a limited partner of the Operating Partnership.
(b) Each Common Unit issued and
outstanding immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time that is
held by the Common Unit Holders shall automatically be converted
into, and canceled in exchange for, the right to receive, at the
Merger Effective Time, an amount in cash to be paid by Parent equal
to the Company Common Share Merger Consideration, without interest,
multiplied by the Conversion Factor (as defined in the Operating
Partnership Agreement) for each Common Unit held by such Common
Unit Holder (the “ Common Unit Consideration
”).
(c) Each Series B
Preferred Unit outstanding under the Operating Partnership
immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time shall automatically
be canceled and retired and shall cease to exist, and no payment
shall be made with respect thereto.
Section 3.3 Exchange
Procedures; Stock Transfer Books .
(a) Prior to the Merger
Effective Time, Parent shall appoint a bank or trust company
reasonably acceptable to the Company to act as paying and exchange
agent hereunder (the “ Paying Agent ”). At
the Merger Effective Time, Parent shall, or shall cause any of the
Acquired Companies to, deposit with the Paying Agent cash in an
amount necessary to pay all of the Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Option
Merger Consideration and Common Unit Consideration. The
amounts deposited pursuant to the prior sentence shall hereinafter
be referred to as the “ Exchange Fund. ”
Parent shall cause the Paying Agent to make, and the Paying Agent
shall make, payments of the Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Option
Merger Consideration and Common Unit Consideration out of the
Exchange Fund in accordance with this Agreement. The Exchange
Fund shall not be used for any other purpose. Any and all
interest earned on cash deposited in the Exchange Fund shall
be
17
paid to the Surviving
Entity.
(b) As soon as reasonably
practicable, and in no event more than five (5) business days
after the Merger Effective Time, Parent shall cause the Paying
Agent to send (i) to each Person who was, immediately prior to
the Merger Effective Time, a holder of record of certificates of
Company Common Stock, Common Units and/or Company Series B
Preferred Stock (A) a letter of transmittal in customary form
and containing such provisions as Parent may reasonably specify
including (1) a provision confirming that delivery of
certificates shall be effected, and risk of loss and title to
certificates shall pass to the Paying Agent, only upon delivery of
such certificates to the Paying Agent, and (2) a form of
certification by the Person executing such letter of transmittal to
the effect that either (x) such Person is not
“foreign” for purposes of Sections 897 and 1445 of
the Code or (y) such Person has not owned, directly or
indirectly, more than five percent (5%) of the outstanding Company
Common Stock or Company Series B Preferred Stock at any time during
the five (5) years preceding the Merger Effective Time, and
(B), if applicable, instructions for use in effecting the surrender
of certificates in exchange for either Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration or
Common Unit Consideration to which the holder thereof is entitled,
and (ii) to each holder of an Option, a check in an amount
equal to the Option Merger Consideration due and payable to such
holder pursuant to Section 3.1(d) in respect of such
Option. Upon surrender of a certificate for cancellation to
the Paying Agent, if applicable, together with a duly executed
letter of transmittal (completed in accordance with the
instructions thereto) and such other documents as may be reasonably
required by the Paying Agent or Parent, (A) the holder shall
be entitled to receive in exchange therefor the applicable Company
Common Share Merger Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger
Consideration or Common Unit Consideration payable in respect of
the shares of Company Common Stock, Company Series B Preferred
Stock or Common Units, as applicable, pursuant to the provisions of
this Article III and (B) the certificates (if any) so
surrendered shall be canceled. Until surrendered as
contemplated by this Section 3.3(b), each certificate shall be
deemed from and after the Merger Effective Time to represent only
the right to receive, upon such surrender, the applicable Company
Common Share Merger Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger
Consideration or Common Unit Consideration as contemplated by this
Section 3.3(b). No interest shall be paid or accrue on
any of the Company Common Share Merger Consideration, Company
Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Option Merger Consideration
or Common Unit Consideration. In the event of a transfer of
ownership of Company Common Stock, Company Series B Preferred Stock
or Common Units that is not registered in the transfer records of
the Company or the Operating Partnership, if applicable, payment
may be made to a Person other than the Person in whose name the
certificate (if any) so surrendered is registered, if such
certificate shall be properly endorsed or otherwise be in proper
form for transfer and the Person requesting such payment shall pay
any transfer or other Taxes required by reason of the payment to a
Person other than the registered holder of such certificate or
establish to the satisfaction of Parent that such Tax has been paid
or is not applicable. If any certificate shall have been
lost, stolen or destroyed, Parent may, in its discretion and as a
condition precedent to the payment of any portion of the Exchange
Fund, require the owner of such lost, stolen or destroyed
certificate to provide an appropriate affidavit and to deliver a
bond (in such sum as Parent may reasonably direct) as indemnity
against any claims that may be made against the Paying Agent,
Parent or the Surviving Entity with respect to such
certificate.
18
(c) As of the Merger Effective
Time, all shares of Company Common Stock (other than shares of
Company Common Stock to be canceled and retired in accordance with
Section 3.1(b)) and Company Series B Preferred Stock (other
than shares of Company Series B Preferred Stock to be canceled and
retired in accordance with Section 3.1(b)) issued and
outstanding immediately prior to the Merger Effective Time shall
cease to be outstanding and shall automatically be canceled and
retired and shall cease to exist, and each holder of any such
shares shall cease to be holders thereof and to have any rights
with respect thereto, except the right to receive the Company
Common Share Merger Consideration or Company Preferred Share Merger
Consideration, as applicable, upon surrender of the certificate (if
any) representing such shares in accordance with this
Section 3.3. The Company Common Share Merger
Consideration and Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration paid
upon the surrender of certificates (if any) in accordance with the
terms of this Section 3.3 shall be deemed to have been
delivered (and paid) in full satisfaction of all rights and
privileges pertaining to the Company Common Stock and Company
Series B Preferred Stock exchanged therefor and, if applicable,
represented by such certificates exchanged therefor. The
Option Merger Consideration paid with respect to the Options in
accordance with the terms of this Article III shall be deemed
to have been paid in full satisfaction of all rights and privileges
pertaining to the canceled Options, and on and after the Merger
Effective Time the holder of an Option shall have no further rights
with respect to any Option, other than the right to receive the
Option Merger Consideration as provided in
Section 3.1(d).
(d) As of the Merger Effective
Time, all Common Units shall cease to be outstanding and shall
automatically be cancelled and retired and shall cease to exist,
and each Common Unit Holder shall cease to be a holder thereof and
to have any rights with respect thereto, except the right to
receive Common Unit Consideration. The Common Unit
Consideration paid upon the surrender of certificates (if any) in
accordance with the terms of this Section 3.3 shall be deemed
to have been delivered (and paid) in full satisfaction of all
rights and privileges pertaining to the Common Units to be redeemed
therefor and, if applicable, represented by such certificates
exchanged therefor.
(e) At the Merger Effective
Time, the stock transfer books of the Company shall be closed and
thereafter there shall be no further registration of transfers of
shares of the Company Common Stock and Company Series B Preferred
Stock on the records of the Company.
(f) The Paying Agent shall
invest any cash included in the Exchange Fund in liquid debt
securities rated AA or higher by at least two nationally-recognized
rating agencies or as otherwise directed by Parent; provided
, that no such investment or loss thereon shall affect the amounts
payable to the Company’s shareholders and Option holders
pursuant to this Section 3.3. To the extent that there
are losses with respect to such investments, or the Exchange Fund
diminishes for any other reasons below the level required to make
prompt payments of the Company Common Share Merger Consideration,
Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Option Merger
Consideration or Common Unit Consideration as contemplated hereby
(other than as a result of the failure of the representation and
warranty set forth in Section 4.3 to be true and correct),
Parent shall promptly replace or restore the portion of the
Exchange Fund lost though investments or other events so as to
ensure that the Exchange Fund is, at all times, maintained at a
level sufficient to make all such payments in full. Any
interest
19
and other income resulting from such
investments shall promptly be paid to Parent.
(g) Any portion of the Exchange
Fund that remains undistributed to holders of shares of Company
Common Stock, Company Series B Preferred Stock, Common Units or
Options as of the date twelve (12) months after the Merger
Effective Time shall be delivered to Parent or the Surviving
Entity, and any holders of shares of Company Common Stock, Company
Series B Preferred Stock, Common Units or Options prior to the
Merger who have not theretofore complied with this Section 3.3
shall thereafter look only to the Surviving Entity or Parent for
payment of any portion of the Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Option
Merger Consideration or Common Unit Consideration, as
applicable.
(h) None of the Buyer Parties,
the Company Parties, the Paying Agent or the Surviving Entity, or
any of their respective Representatives or Affiliates shall be
liable to any holder or former holder of Company Common Stock,
Company Series B Preferred Stock, Options, Common Units, or to any
other Person, with respect to any portion of the Company Common
Share Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration,
Common Unit Consideration or Option Merger Consideration, or for
any cash amounts, if the Exchange Fund has properly been delivered
to any public official pursuant to any applicable abandoned
property law, escheat law or similar Legal Requirement. If
any certificate has not been surrendered prior to three
(3) years after the Merger Effective Time (or immediately
prior to such earlier date on which any Company Common Share Merger
Consideration, Company Preferred Share Merger Consideration, Common
Unit Consideration or Option Merger Consideration in respect of
such certificate would otherwise escheat to or become the property
of any Governmental Body), any such shares, cash, dividends or
distributions in respect of such certificate shall, to the extent
permitted by applicable Legal Requirements, become the property of
the Surviving Entity, free and clear of all claims or interest of
any Person previously entitled thereto.
Section 3.4 Withholding
Rights . Parent, the Surviving Entity or the Paying Agent, as
applicable, shall be entitled to deduct and withhold from the
consideration otherwise payable pursuant to this Agreement such
amounts required to be deducted and withheld with respect to the
making of such payments under the Code, the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder or any provision of state, local or foreign
Tax law. To the extent that amounts are so withheld by
Parent, the Surviving Entity or the Paying Agent, as applicable,
such withheld amounts shall be treated for all purposes of this
Agreement as having been paid to such holder in respect of whom
such deduction and withholding was made by Parent, the Surviving
Entity or the Paying Agent, as applicable.
Section 3.5 Termination of
DRIP . The Company shall take all actions necessary to
terminate its Dividend Reinvestment and Share Purchase Plan (the
“ DRIP “), effective as soon as possible after
the date of this Agreement, and ensure that no purchase or other
rights under the DRIP enable the holder of such rights to acquire
any interest in the Surviving Entity or any other Company Party or
Buyer Party as a result of such purchase or the exercise of such
rights at or after such date.
Section 3.6 Further
Actions . If at any time after the Merger Effective Time, the
Surviving Entity shall consider or be advised that any deeds, bills
of sale, assignments or assurances or any
20
other acts or things are necessary,
desirable or proper (i) to vest, perfect or confirm, of record
or otherwise, in the Surviving Entity its right, title or interest
in, to or under any of the rights, privileges, powers, franchises,
properties or assets of any of the Acquired Companies or MergerCo
or (ii) otherwise to carry out the purposes of this Agreement,
the Surviving Entity and its proper officers and directors or its
designees shall be authorized to execute and deliver, in the name
and on behalf of the Company, MergerCo and the Operating
Partnership, all such deeds, bills of sale, assignments and
assurances and do, in the name and on behalf of the Company,
MergerCo and the Operating Partnership all such other acts and
things necessary, desirable or proper to vest, perfect or confirm
its right, title or interest in, to or under any of the rights,
privileges, powers, franchises, properties or assets of any of the
Acquired Companies or MergerCo, as applicable, and otherwise to
carry out the purposes of this Agreement.
ARTICLE IV
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF THE COMPANY
PARTIES
Except as set forth in the
Disclosure Letter, the Company and the Operating Partnership hereby
(a) jointly and severally represent and warrant to the Buyer
Parties as of the date hereof and (b) shall jointly and severally
represent and warrant to the Buyer Parties as of the Closing Date
(or, in each case, if made as of a specific date, as of such date),
as follows:
Section 4.1 Organization and
Good Standing .
(a) Each Acquired Company, and
to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, each Minority JV
Entity, is duly organized, validly existing and in good standing
under the laws of its jurisdiction of incorporation or formation,
with all requisite power and authority to conduct its business as
now being conducted, to own or use the respective properties and
assets that it purports to own or use, and to perform all of its
obligations under all Material Contracts to which it is a
party. Each Acquired Company, and to the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, each Minority JV Entity, is duly qualified to
do business as a foreign corporation or other foreign entity and is
in good standing under the laws of each state or other jurisdiction
in which either the ownership or use of the properties owned or
used by it, or the nature of the activities conducted by it,
requires such qualification, except where the failure to be so
qualified or in good standing would not, individually or in the
aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired
Companies.
(b) Section 4.1(b) of the
Disclosure Letter lists all the Acquired Companies and indicates as
to each its jurisdiction of organization, the percentage of its
outstanding capital stock or other equity interests that is held by
any Acquired Company, and, except in the case of the Company, its
shareholders or unit holders. The Company has made available
to Parent prior to the date hereof copies of the articles or
certificate of incorporation, bylaws and other organizational
documents, in each case, as amended to date and as currently in
effect (collectively, the “ Organizational Documents
”), of each of the Acquired Companies.
(c) Section 4.1(c) of the
Disclosure Letter sets forth a complete list of Persons, other than
those set forth in Section 4.1(b) of the Disclosure Letter, in
which any Acquired Company has a direct or indirect interest,
together with (i) the jurisdiction of organization of each
Person listed, (ii) the names of the other members and
partners in each Person listed and (iii) the
respective
21
percentage interests of each such
members or partners in each Person listed. The Company has
made available to Parent prior to the date hereof copies of the
Organizational Documents of each JV Entity listed in
Section 4.1(c) of the Disclosure Letter.
(d) All Organizational
Documents of the Acquired Companies and, to the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, the Minority JV Entities are in full force and
effect. None of the Acquired Companies are in material
violation of the Organizational Documents of any of the Acquired
Companies.
(e) The Company has made
available to Parent prior to the date hereof copies of the charters
of each committee of the Company Board and any code of conduct or
similar policy adopted by the Company.
Section 4.2 Authority; No
Conflict .
(a) The Company has all
necessary corporate power and authority to execute and deliver this
Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder, and, subject to
the approvals described in Section 4.2(b), to consummate the Merger
Transactions. The Company Parties have taken all steps
necessary to (i) cause the Merger Transactions to comply with
or be exempted from any Organizational Document of any of the
Acquired Companies that would otherwise prohibit, hinder or delay
such transactions and (ii) render any and all limitations on
ownership of (A) Company Common Stock and (B) Common
Units, including the ownership limit set forth in the
Organizational Documents of the Company and the Operating
Partnership Agreement, inapplicable to the Merger
Transactions.
(b) Except for the approvals
described in the following sentence, the execution, delivery and
performance by the Company of this Agreement and the consummation
of the Merger Transactions have been duly and validly authorized by
all necessary corporate action on behalf of the Company. No
other corporate proceeding on the part of the Company is necessary
to authorize this Agreement or to consummate the Merger
Transactions, other than (i) the affirmative approval of the
Merger by at least a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast
on the matter by the holders of all outstanding shares of Company
Common Stock (the “ Required Company Shareholder Vote
”) and (ii) the execution, filing with, and the
acceptance for record by the Secretary of State of the State of
North Carolina of the Articles of Merger as required by the
Secretary of State of the State of North Carolina. This
Agreement has been duly and validly executed and delivered by the
Company and, assuming the due authorization, execution and delivery
by each of the Buyer Parties, constitutes a legal, valid and
binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company
in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be
limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization,
moratorium, fraudulent transfer and other similar laws of general
applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights or
by general equitable principles.
(c) The Operating Partnership
(through the Company as its sole general partner) has all necessary
partnership power and authority to execute and deliver this
Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder and to consummate
the Merger Transactions. The execution, delivery and
performance by the Operating Partnership of this Agreement and the
consummation by the Operating Partnership of the Merger
Transactions, have been duly and validly authorized by
all
22
necessary partnership proceedings on
behalf of the Operating Partnership, including by all necessary
action of the general partner of the Operating Partnership, and no
other partnership proceedings are necessary to authorize this
Agreement or to consummate the Merger Transactions. Other
than the approval of the general partner of the Operating
Partnership, which approval has been obtained, and the Required
Company Shareholder Vote, no other vote or approval of the holders
of any class or series of the capital stock, partnership interests
or other equity interest of any of the Acquired Companies are
necessary to approve the Merger Transactions. This Agreement
has been duly and validly executed and delivered by the Operating
Partnership (and by the Company on behalf of the Operating
Partnership) and, assuming the due authorization, execution and
delivery by each of the Buyer Parties, constitutes a legal, valid
and binding obligation of the Operating Partnership, enforceable
against it in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability
may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency,
reorganization, moratorium, fraudulent transfer and other similar
laws of general applicability relating to or affecting
creditors’ rights or by general equitable
principles.
(d) Subject to the Required
Company Shareholder Vote, except as set forth in
Section 4.2(d) of the Disclosure Letter, neither the execution
and delivery of this Agreement nor the consummation of any of the
Merger Transactions do or will, directly or indirectly (with or
without notice or lapse of time or both): (i) contravene,
conflict with, or result in a violation of (A) any provision
of the Organizational Documents of any of the Acquired Companies
or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, the Organizational
Documents of any of the Minority JV Entities, or (B) any
resolution adopted by the board (or similar governing body) or the
shareholders (or similar holders of equity therein) of any of the
Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
such resolutions of any of the Minority JV Entities;
(ii) contravene, conflict with or result in a violation of any
Legal Requirement or any order, writ, injunction or decree to which
any of the Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any of the Minority JV Entities, or any of the assets
owned or used by any of the Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge
of the Acquired Companies, any of the Minority JV Entities, is or
may be subject; (iii) contravene, conflict with or result in a
violation of any of the terms or requirements of, or give any
Governmental Body the right to revoke, withdraw, suspend, cancel,
terminate or modify, any Governmental Authorization that is held by
any of the Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any of the Minority JV Entities, or that otherwise
relates to the business of, or any of the assets owned or used by,
any of the Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any of the Minority JV Entities; (iv) cause any of
the Acquired Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any of the Minority JV Entities, to become subject to,
or to become liable for the payment of, any Tax; (v) cause any
of the assets owned by any of the Acquired Companies or, to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any of the Minority JV
Entities, to be reassessed or revalued by any Taxing Authority or
other Governmental Body; (vi) contravene, conflict with or result
in a violation or breach of any provision of, or result in the loss
of any material right or benefit under, or give any Person the
right to declare a default or exercise any remedy under, or to
accelerate the maturity or performance of, or to cancel, terminate
or modify, any Material Contract; (vii) require a Consent from
any Person; or (viii) result in the imposition or creation of
any Encumbrance, other than any Permitted Encumbrance, upon or with
respect to any of the assets owned or used by any of the Acquired
Companies or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any of
the Minority JV Entities, except, in the case of clauses (iii),
(iv),
23
(v), (vi), (vii) and
(viii) above, for any such contraventions, conflicts,
violations, breaches, defaults or other occurrences that would not,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on
the Acquired Companies or any of the Merger
Transactions.
(e) The execution and delivery
of this Agreement by the Company Parties does not, and the
performance of this Agreement and the consummation of the Merger
Transactions will not, require any Consent of, or filing with or
notification to, any Governmental Body, except (i) for
(A) applicable requirements, if any, of the Exchange Act, the
Securities Act and state securities or “blue sky” laws,
(B) the pre-merger notification requirements of the HSR Act,
if any, (C) the filing with the SEC of the Proxy Statement
relating to the Merger to be sent to the Company’s
shareholders, (D) any filings required under any securities
exchange or quotation service and (E) filing of the Articles
of Merger as required by the DLLCA and the NCBCA, respectively, and
appropriate corresponding documents with the appropriate
authorities in other states in which the Company is qualified as a
foreign corporation to transact business; and (ii) where the
failure to obtain such Consents, or to make such filings or
notifications, would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a
Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies or any of the
Merger Transactions.
Section 4.3
Capitalization .
(a) The authorized capital
stock of the Company consists of 50,000,000 shares of Company
Common Stock, 3,000,000 shares of Company Series A Preferred
Stock and 5,000,000 shares of Company Series B Preferred
Stock. As of the date hereof, (i) 29,414,967 shares of
Company Common Stock are issued and outstanding, all of which are
duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable,
(ii) no shares of Company Series A Preferred Stock are
issued and outstanding, (iii) 3,680,000 shares of Company
Series B Preferred Stock are issued and outstanding, all of
which are duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and
nonassessable, (iv) 10,000 shares of Company Common Stock are
reserved for issuance upon the exercise of outstanding Options
granted pursuant to the Company Plan, (v) 1,298,480 shares of
Company Common Stock are reserved for issuance upon the conversion
of Common Units into shares of Company Common Stock pursuant to the
terms of the Operating Partnership Agreement, and (vi) no
shares of Company Common Stock are reserved for issuance upon the
exercise of outstanding warrants. As of the date hereof, the
Conversion Factor (as defined in the Operating Partnership
Agreement) is equal to 1.0.
(b) There are no bonds,
debentures, notes or other Debt or, other than the capital stock
and options described in Section 4.3(a), securities of the
Company having the right to vote (or convertible into, or
exchangeable for, securities having the right to vote) on any
matters on which shareholders of the Company may vote.
(c) Set forth in
Schedule 4.3(c) of the Disclosure Letter is, with respect to
each Option granted by the Company as of the date of this
Agreement, information regarding the identity of the grantee, the
number of Options subject to the grant, the exercise/conversion
price and expiration date and the Company Plan under which it was
issued. All shares of Company Common Stock subject to
issuance as described in Section 4.3(a) will, upon issuance on
the terms and conditions specified in the instruments pursuant to
which they are issuable, be duly authorized, validly issued, fully
paid, nonassessable and not subject to any preemptive
rights.
24
All Options, when issued, had an
exercise price equal to no less than the fair market value of the
underlying shares of Company Common Stock. As of the Merger
Effective Time, all outstanding Options will be terminated by
virtue of the Merger and each holder of an Option shall cease to
have any rights with respect thereto, other than the right to
receive, in respect of each such terminated Option, the Option
Merger Consideration.
(d) Except as set forth in
Section 4.3 of the Disclosure Letter, there are no outstanding
contractual obligations of any of the Acquired Companies or, to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any of the Minority JV
Entities to repurchase, redeem or otherwise acquire any shares of
capital stock of any of the Acquired Companies.
(e) The Company does not have a
“poison pill” or similar stockholder rights
plan.
Section 4.4 SEC Reports
. The Company has filed all forms, reports, schedules, statements
and other documents (including all exhibits) required to be filed
by it with the SEC since January 1, 2002 (as amended to date,
collectively, the “ Company SEC Reports
”). The Company SEC Reports at the time they were
filed, or if amended or restated prior to the date hereof, at the
time of such later amendment or restatement, (a) complied in
all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act
or the Exchange Act, as the case may be, and (b) did not
contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a
material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order
to make the statements made therein, in the light of the
circumstances under which such statements were made, not
misleading. No Subsidiary of the Company is, or has been,
subject to the periodic reporting requirements of the Exchange Act
or is or has been otherwise required to file any forms, reports,
schedules, statements or other documents with the SEC, any foreign
Governmental Body that performs a similar function to that of the
SEC or any securities exchange or quotation service. The
Company has made available to Parent prior to the date hereof
copies of all material correspondence between the SEC, on the one
hand, and the Acquired Companies, on the other hand, since
January 1, 2004 through the date of this Agreement. As
of the date of this Agreement, the Company has no outstanding and
unresolved comments from the SEC with respect to any of the Company
SEC Reports.
Section 4.5 Financial
Statements . The audited consolidated financial statements and
unaudited consolidated interim financial statements of the Company
and its consolidated Subsidiaries included or incorporated by
reference into the Company SEC Reports (including, in each case,
any notes thereto): (a) were prepared in accordance with GAAP
(except, in the case of unaudited statements, as permitted by the
applicable rules and regulations of the SEC) applied on a
consistent basis throughout the periods indicated (except as may be
indicated in the notes thereto), (b) complied in all material
respects with applicable accounting requirements and the rules and
regulations of the SEC and (c) fairly presented in all
material respects the consolidated financial position, results of
operations and cash flows of the Company and its consolidated
Subsidiaries, as the case may be, as of the dates thereof and for
the periods indicated therein except as otherwise noted therein
(subject, in the case of unaudited statements, to normal year-end
adjustments). Except as set forth in Section 4.5 of the
Disclosure Letter, all of the Subsidiaries of the Company are
consolidated in accordance with GAAP.
Section 4.6 Intellectual
Property . Except as disclosed in Section 4.6 of the
Disclosure
25
Letter, (i) with respect to
Intellectual Property used by, owned by or licensed to any of the
Acquired Companies (“ Company Intellectual Property
”), the Acquired Companies own the entire right, title and
interest in or have the valid right to use the Company Intellectual
Property in the continued operation of its business as currently
conducted, and (ii) all fees and filings required to maintain
any registration of any Intellectual Property used by the Company
have been paid or timely filed, are current and are not in default
or in arrears. Except as would not, individually or in the
aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired
Companies, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, (a) the
conduct of the business of the Acquired Companies as currently
conducted does not infringe or otherwise violate the Intellectual
Property rights of any third party, and (b) no third party is
infringing or otherwise violating the Company Intellectual Property
rights.
Section 4.7 Personal
Property . Except as set forth in Section 4.7 of the
Disclosure Letter, the Acquired Companies have good and marketable
title to, or a valid and enforceable leasehold interest in, all
personal assets owned, used or held for use by them, except as
would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies. Except as set forth
in Section 4.7 of the Disclosure Letter, none of the Acquired
Company’s ownership of or leasehold interest in any such
personal property is subject to any Encumbrances, except for
(a) assets that, collectively, have a book value of less than
$500,000, (b) Permitted Encumbrances or (c) Encumbrances
that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies.
Section 4.8 Real Property;
Leaseholds .
(a) Section 4.8(a)(i) of
the Disclosure Letter sets forth a true and complete list of the
real property currently owned by any Acquired Company, or to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any Minority JV Entity, and
sets forth the Acquired Company (or the Minority JV Entity, as
applicable) owning such properties (collectively, the “
Owned Real Properties ”). Section 4.8(a)(ii) of
the Disclosure Letter sets forth a true and complete list of the
real property currently ground leased by any Acquired Company, and
to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any Minority JV Entity
(collectively, the “ Ground Leased Properties ”
and, together with the Owned Real Properties, the “
Properties ”), and sets forth the Acquired Company (or
the Minority JV Entity, as applicable) holding such leasehold
interest, with the name of the lessor and the date of the lease,
any subleases and assignments, any guarantees given and each
amendment to any of the foregoing (collectively, the “
Ground Leases ”). The Acquired Company (or, to
the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, the Minority JV Entity, as
applicable) as set forth in Section 4.8(a)(i) of the
Disclosure Letter owns good, valid and marketable fee simple title
to the Owned Real Properties, and the Acquired Company (or, to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, the Minority JV Entity, as
applicable) set forth in Section 4.8(a)(ii) of the Disclosure
Letter owns good, valid and subsisting leasehold title to the
Ground Leased Properties, in each case, free and clear of all
Encumbrances, except for Permitted Encumbrances, except as would
not have a Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies.
None of the Properties is (i) subject to any decree or order
of any Governmental Body to be sold nor is being condemned,
expropriated or otherwise taken by any public authority with or
without payment of compensation therefore or (ii) subject to
any pending or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
threatened rezoning proceedings, which would reasonably be expected
to have a
26
Material Adverse Effect on the
Acquired Companies (or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
the applicable Minority JV Entity). No Acquired Company or,
to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any Minority JV Entity,
as applicable, has received notice of any violation in any material
respect of any covenants, conditions or restrictions affecting any
Properties.
(b) Except as set forth in
Section 4.8(b) of the Disclosure Letter, and except as would
not have a Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies, all
Title Policies and surveys for the real property currently owned by
any Acquired Company and, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any Minority JV Entity have been provided or made
available to Parent prior to the date hereof. No Acquired
Company or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any
Minority JV Entity, has received any written notice and is not
otherwise aware that valid policies of title insurance or title
commitments for which premiums have been paid (collectively, the
“ Title Policies ”) insuring the Acquired
Companies’ (or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
the Minority JV Entities’, as applicable) fee simple or
leasehold title to the Properties owned or ground leased by any
Acquired Company (or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
any Minority JV Entity, as applicable) are not in full force and
effect.
(c) Except as set forth in
Section 4.8(c) of the Disclosure Letter, and except as would
not have a Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies, each
real property lease or sublease (other than the Ground Leases) to
which any Acquired Company and, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, any Minority JV Entity, is a party or subject, as either
a tenant, landlord, lessee, lessor, sublandlord or subtenant, has
been provided or made available to Parent prior to the date hereof
(collectively, the “ Space Leases ”).
(d) Except as would not have a
Material Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies, each of the
Ground Leases and the Space Leases is valid, binding and in full
force and effect as against the Acquired Companies (or, to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, the Minority JV Entities, as
applicable). No Acquired Company or, to the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, no Minority JV Entity, as applicable, has
(i) received notice under any of the Ground Leases or the
Space Leases of any default, and, to the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, no event has occurred which, with notice or lapse of
time or both, would constitute a material default by any Acquired
Company (or any Minority JV Entity, as applicable) thereunder or
(ii) assigned its interest in any of the Ground Leases or
Space Leases or sublet any part of the premises thereby or
exercised any option or right thereunder except as, in each case,
would not individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse
Effect on the Acquired Companies. No penalties are accrued or
unpaid under any Ground Lease or Space Lease, except for penalties
that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material
Adverse Effect on the Acquired Companies.
(e) Except as set forth in
Section 4.8(e) of the Disclosure Letter or as would not,
individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect on
the Acquired Companies, and except for capital improvements in the
ordinary course of business consistent with past practice and
reflected on the capital expenditures budget of the Acquired
Companies as made available to Parent prior to the date hereof and
ongoing product improvement plan (PIP) obligations as set
forth in Section 4.8(e) of the Disclosure Letter, to the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, (i) there is no Property
whose building systems are not in working order, (ii) there is
no physical
27
damage to any Property,
(iii) there is no pending and incomplete renovation or
restoration to any Property, and (iv) there are no material
structural defects relating to any Property.
(f) Section 4.8(f) of the
Disclosure Letter sets forth (i) a true and complete list of
the real property in respect of which any Acquired Company, or to
the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, any Minority JV Entity,
has the right, pursuant to a franchise, license, satellite
agreement, franchise development agreement, area development
agreement, development incentive agreement or other Contract
(together with any amendment, guarantees and any ancillary
documents and agreements related thereto, the “ Franchise
Agreements ”) to utilize a brand name or other rights of
a hotel chain or system from any Person and (ii) the
applicable brand of such property. Each such Franchise
Agreement has been provided or made available to Parent prior to
the date hereof and is valid, binding and in full force and effect
as against the Acquired Companies (or the Minority JV Entities, as
applicable). Except as expressly and specifically disclosed
in the Company’s filings under the Exchange Act filed prior
to the date hereof or as otherwise disclosed on Section 4.8(f)
of the Disclosure Letter, no Acquired Company (or, to the knowledge
of the Acquired Companies, the Minority JV Entities, as applicable)
has received or delivered written notice under any of the Franchise
Agreements of any material default, including any failure to meet
any inspection under any Franchise Agreement, and, to the knowledge
of the Acquired Companies, no event has occurred which, with notice
or lapse of time or both, would constitute a material default by
any Acquired Company (or any Minority JV Entity, as
applicable).
Section 4.9 Management
Agreements . Section 4.9 of the Disclosure Letter lists
each management agreement pursuant to which any third party manages
or operates any Properties or Space Leases on behalf of any of the
Acquired Companies (or, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
any of the Minority JV Entities, as applicable), and describes the
property that is subject to such management agreement, the Acquired
Company that is a party, the date of such management agreement and
each material amendment, guaranty or other agreement binding on any
Acquired Company and relating thereto (collectively, the “
Management Agreement Documents ”). True, correct
and complete copies of all Management Agreement Documents have been
made available to Parent prior to the date hereof. Each of
the Management Agreement Documents is valid, binding and in full
force and effect as against the Acquired Company that is a party
thereto.
Section 4.10 Unexpired
Option Agreements . Except as set forth in Section 4.10 of
the Disclosure Letter, as of the date of this Agreement neither the
Acquired Companies nor, to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies,
the Minority JV Entities have granted any unexpired option
agreements or rights of first refusal with respect to the purchase
of Properties or any portion thereof or any other unexpired rights
in favor of any third party to purchase or otherwise acquire a
Property which would be triggered by any of the Merger
Transactions.
Section 4.11 Taxes
.
(a) Each of the Acquired
Companies (i) has timely filed (or had filed on their behalf)
all material Tax Returns required to be filed by any of them (after
giving effect to any filing extension granted by a Governmental
Body) and (ii) has paid (or had paid on their behalf) or will
timely pay Taxes (whether or not shown on such Tax Returns) that
are required to be paid by it.
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Such Tax Returns are true, correct
and complete in all material respects. The most recent
financial statements contained in the Company SEC Reports filed
prior to the date hereof reflect an adequate reserve (excluding any
reserve for deferred Taxes established to reflect timing
differences between book and Tax income) for all Taxes payable by
the Acquired Companies for all taxable periods and portions thereof
through the date of such financial statements, and Taxes payable by
the Acquired Companies on the Closing Date will not exceed such
reserve as adjusted through the Closing Date in accordance with the
past custom and practice of any of the Acquired Companies in filing
their Tax Returns. True and complete copies of all federal
Tax Returns that have been filed with the IRS by the Company
Parties with respect to the taxable years commencing on or after
January 1, 2004, have been provided or made available to
Representatives of Parent prior to the date hereof. None of
the Acquired Companies has executed or filed with the IRS or any
other Taxing Authority any agreement, waiver or other document or
arrangement extending the period for assessment or collection of
material Taxes (including any applicable statute of limitation),
which waiver or extension is currently in effect, and, except as
set forth in Section 4.11(a) of the Disclosure Letter, no
power of attorney with respect to any Tax matter is currently in
force with respect to any of the Acquired Companies.
(b) The Company, (i) for
each taxable year of its existence has been subject to taxation as
a real estate investment trust (“ REIT ”) within
the meaning of Section 856 of the Code and has been organized
and operated in conformity with the requirements for qualification
and taxation as a REIT for such years, (ii) has operated to
the date hereof in a manner that will permit it to qualify as a
REIT for the taxable year that includes the date hereof, and
(iii) shall continue to operate in such a manner as to permit
it to continue to qualify as a REIT for the taxable year of the
Company that includes the Closing Date (excluding, in the case of
clause (iii), the distribution requirements). The Company has
not taken any action or omitted to take any action that would
reasonably be expected to result in a successful challenge by the
IRS to its status as a REIT, and no challenge to the
Company’s status as a REIT is pending or has been threatened
in a writing delivered to the Company or, to the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, otherwise threatened. Excluding any
Person in which the Company holds an equity interest of ten percent
(10%) or less by both vote and value, within the meaning of Code
Section 856(c)(4)(B)(iii), the Company does not own any interest
(including through any Acquired Company) in any Person that is a
corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, other than
a corporation that qualifies as a “qualified REIT
subsidiary,” within the meaning of Section 856(i)(2) of the
Code, or as a “taxable REIT subsidiary,” within the
meaning of Section 856(1) of the Code. The Company is
not receiving or accruing any amount, directly or indirectly, that
would be excluded from “rents from real property”
pursuant to Section 856(d)(2)(B) of the Code.
(c) Each Subsidiary of the
Company that is a partnership, joint venture, or limited liability
company and that has not elected to be a “taxable REIT
subsidiary” within the meaning of Code Section 856(1)
(i) has been since its formation treated for U.S.
federal income tax purposes as a partnership or disregarded entity,
as the case may be, and not as a corporation or an association
taxable as a corporation and (ii) has not, since the later of
its formation or the acquisition by the Company of a direct or
indirect interest therein, owned any assets (including securities)
that have caused the Company to violate Section 856(c)(4) of
the Code or would cause the Company to violate
Section 856(c)(4) of the Code on the last day of any calendar
quarter after the date hereof.
29
(d) None of the Acquired
Companies holds any asset the disposition of which would be subject
to rules similar to Section 1374 of the Code.
(e) The Acquired Companies have
not incurred any liability for material Taxes under sections
856(c), 856(g), 857(b), 860(c) or 4981 of the Code or any rules
similar to Section 1374 of the Code and (ii) none of the
Acquired Companies has incurred any liability for Taxes that have
become due and that have not been previously paid other than in the
ordinary course of business. To the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, no event has occurred, and no condition or circumstance
exists, which would reasonably be expected to result in any Tax
described in the preceding sentence being imposed on the
Company. None of the Acquired Companies has engaged at any
time in any “prohibited transactions” within the
meaning of Section 857(b)(6) of the Code. To the
knowledge of the Acquired Companies, none of the Acquired Companies
has engaged in any transaction that would give rise to
“redetermined rents, redetermined deductions and excess
interest” described in section 857(b)(7) of the Code.
To the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, no event has occurred,
and no condition or circumstance exists, that presents a risk that
any Tax described in the preceding two (2) sentences will be
imposed on any of the Acquired Companies.
(f) All deficiencies asserted
or assessments made with respect to any of the Acquired Companies
by the IRS or any other Taxing Authority covering or including any
of the Acquired Companies have been fully paid, and, to the
knowledge of the Company, there are no other material audits,
examinations or other proceedings relating to any Taxes of the
Acquired Companies by any Taxing Authority in progress.
Except as set forth in Section 4.11(f) of the Disclosure
Letter, none of the Acquired Companies has received any written
notice from any Taxing Authority that it intends to conduct such an
audit, examination or other proceeding in respect of Taxes or make
any assessment for Taxes. To the knowledge of the Acquired
Companies, no audit, examination, or other proceeding is
threatened. None of the Acquired Companies is a party to any
litigation or pending litigation or administrative proceeding
relating to Taxes.
(g) The Acquired Companies have
complied, in all material respects, with all applicable Legal
Requirements relating to the payment and withholding of Taxes
(including withholding of Taxes pursuant to Sections 1441,
1442, 1445, 1446, and 3402 of the Code or similar provisions under
any foreign Legal Requirements) and have duly and timely withheld
and have paid over to the appropriate Taxing Authorities all
material amounts required to be so withheld and paid over on or
prior to the due date thereof under all applicable Legal
Requirements.
(h) No claim has been made in a
writing delivered to the Company or applicable Acquired Company by
a Taxing Authority in a jurisdiction where any of the Acquired
Companies does not file Tax Returns that any of the Acquired
Companies is or may be subject to taxation by that jurisdiction,
and to the knowledge of the Acquired Companies, no such claim is
threatened.
(i) Except as set forth in
Section 4.11(i) of the Disclosure Letter, none of the Acquired
Companies has requested any extension of time within which to file
any material Tax Return, which material Tax Return has not yet been
filed.
30
(j) None of the Acquired
Companies is a party to any Tax sharing or similar agreement or
arrangement pursuant to which it could have any obligations after
the Closing.
(k) None of the Acquired
Companies has requested a private letter ruling from the IRS or
comparable rulings from other taxing authorities.
(l) None of the Acquired
Companies (other than an Acquired Company that is a “taxable
REIT subsidiary” within the meaning of Section 856(l) of the
Code) (i) is or has ever been a member of an affiliated group
filing a consolidated federal income Tax Return or (ii) has
any liability for the Taxes of another Person under Treasury
Regulations Section 1.1502-6 (or any similar provision of
state, local or foreign Legal Requirement), as a transferee or
successor or by Contract or otherwise.
(m) Other than Permitted
Encumbrances, there are no Encumbrances for Taxes (other than Taxes
not yet due and payable for which adequate reserves have been made
in accordance with GAAP) upon any of the assets of any of the
Acquired Companies.
(n) There is no Tax Protection
Agreement currently in force and, as of the date of this Agreement,
no Person has raised in writing, or to the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, threatened to raise, a claim against any of the
Acquired Companies for any breach of any Tax Protection
Agreement.
(o) None of the Acquired
Companies is a party to any understanding or arrangement described
in Section 6662(d)(2)(C)(ii) of the Code or Treasury
Regulations Section 1.6011-4(b) or is a material advisor as
defined in Section 6111(b) of the Code.
(p) None of the Acquired
Companies has entered into any “closing agreement” as
described in Section 7121 of the Code (or any corresponding or
similar provision of state, local or foreign income Tax
law).
(q) Subject to the necessary
conditions set forth in Section 4.11(q) of the Disclosure
Letter, the Company has the right to make or to require, and, after
the Merger Effective Time will continue to have the right to make
or to require, each entity in which any Acquired Company owns an
equity interest in and that is subject to federal income tax as a
partnership to make an election under Section 754 of the Code
(and any corresponding elections under state or local tax law) to
adjust the basis of its property as provided in Sections 734(b) and
743(b) of the Code.
(r) Section 4.11(r) of the
Disclosure Letter sets forth each entity in which any of the
Acquired Companies owns an equity interest and states whether such
entity is classified as a partnership, disregarded entity, or a
corporation for federal income tax purposes. In the case of
an entity classified as a corporation for federal income tax
purposes, such schedule states whether an effective election has
been made to treat such entity as a “taxable REIT
subsidiary” under Section 856(l) of the Code.
(s) To the knowledge of the
Acquired Companies, as of the date hereof, the Company is a
“domestically controlled qualified investment entity”
within the meaning of Section 897(h)(4)(B)
31
of the Code.
(t) As used herein, “
Tax Protection Agreement ” means any written or oral
agreement to which any of the Acquired Companies is a party or
otherwise subject pursuant to which: (a) any liability to
holders of partnership interests in any Subsidiary of the Company
relating to Taxes may arise, whether or not as a result of the
consummation of any of the Merger Transactions; (b) in
connection with the deferral of income Taxes of a holder of
partnership interests of any Subsidiary of the Company, any of the
Acquired Companies has agreed to (i) maintain a minimum level
of debt or continue a particular debt or allocate a certain amount
of debt to a particular partner, (ii) retain or not dispose of
assets for a period of time that has not since expired,
(iii) make or refrain from making Tax elections and/or
(iv) only dispose of assets in a particular manner; and/or
(c) limited partners of the Operating Partnership
(i) have guaranteed Debt of the Operating Partnership or any
Subsidiary thereof or (ii) agreed to indemnify another Person
with respect to such Person’s liability for Debt of the
Operating Partnership or any Subsidiary thereof.
Section 4.12 Employee
Benefits .
(a) Section 4.12(a) of the
Disclosure Letter lists, and the Company has made available to
Parent prior to the