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[AMENDED AND RESTATED] CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT

Change of Control Agreement

[AMENDED AND RESTATED] CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT | Document Parties: HAIN CELESTIAL GROUP INC You are currently viewing:
This Change of Control Agreement involves

HAIN CELESTIAL GROUP INC

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Title: [AMENDED AND RESTATED] CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT
Governing Law: New York     Date: 1/7/2009
Industry: Food Processing     Law Firm: DLA Piper     Sector: Consumer/Non-Cyclical

[AMENDED AND RESTATED] CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT, Parties: hain celestial group inc
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Exhibit 10.2

[AMENDED AND RESTATED]

CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT

THIS [AMENDED AND RESTATED] CHANGE IN CONTROL AGREEMENT dated as of [    ] (this “ Agreement ”), is made by and between The Hain Celestial Group, Inc., a Delaware corporation having its principal offices at 58 South Service Road, Melville, NY 11747 (the “ Company ”), and [    ] (the “ Executive ”).

WHEREAS, the Company considers it essential to the best interest of its shareholders to foster the continued employment of key executive management personnel; and

WHEREAS, the Board of Directors of the Company (the “ Board ”) recognizes that, as is the case with many publicly-held corporations, the possibility of a Change in Control (as defined below) of the Company exists from time to time and that such possibility, and the uncertainty, instability and questions which it may raise for and among key executive management personnel, may result in the premature departure or significant distraction of such management personnel to the material detriment of the Company and its stockholders; and

WHEREAS, the Board has determined that appropriate steps should be taken to reinforce, focus and encourage the continued attention and dedication of key members of the executive management of the Company and its subsidiaries, including (without limitation) the Executive, to their assigned duties without distraction in the face of potentially disturbing or unsettling circumstances arising from the possibility of a Change in Control of the Company[; and

WHEREAS, the Executive and the Company previously have entered into a Change in Control Agreement (the “ Prior Agreement ”); and

WHEREAS, the Executive and the Company desire to amend and restate in its entirety the Prior Agreement to comply with the final Treasury Regulations under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended].

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the mutual covenants herein contained, the Company and the Executive hereby agree as follows:

1. Definitions . For purposes of this Agreement, the following terms have the meanings set forth below:

1.1 “ Annual Base Salary ” shall mean the Executive’s rate of regular base annual compensation prior to any reduction under a salary reduction agreement pursuant to section 401(k) or section 125 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time (the “ Code ”), and shall not include (without limitation) cost of living allowances, fees, retainers, reimbursements, bonuses, incentive awards, prizes or similar payments.


1.2 “ Cause ” for termination by the Company or any subsidiary of the Executive’s employment, after any Change in Control, shall mean (i) the willful and continued failure by the Executive to substantially perform the Executive’s duties with the Company, or a subsidiary of the Company, as such duties may reasonably be defined from time to time by the Board (or a duly designated and authorized committee thereof), or to abide by the reasonable written policies of the Company or of the Executive’s primary employer (other than any such failure resulting from the Executive’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness or any such actual or anticipated failure after the issuance of a Notice of Termination by the Executive for Good Reason pursuant to Section 4.1) after a written demand for substantial performance is delivered to the Executive by the Board, which demand specifically identifies the manner in which the Board believes that the Executive has not substantially performed the Executive’s duties or has not abided by any reasonable written policies, or (ii) the continued and willful engaging by the Executive in conduct which is demonstrably and materially injurious to the Company or its subsidiaries, monetarily or otherwise. For purposes of clauses (i) and (ii) of this definition, no act, or failure to act, on the Executive’s part shall be deemed “willful” unless done, or omitted to be done, by the Executive in bad faith and without reasonable belief that the Executive’s act, or failure to act, was in the best interests of the Company or its subsidiaries.

1.3 “ Change in Control ” shall mean and be deemed to have occurred if:

(i) The acquisition by any Person of beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “ Exchange Act ”)) of 50% or more of the combined voting power of the then outstanding Voting Stock of the Company; provided, however, that for purposes of this Section 1.3(i), the following acquisitions shall not constitute a Change of Control: (A) any issuance of Voting Stock of the Company directly from the Company that is approved by the Incumbent Board (as defined below), (B) any acquisition by the Company of Voting Stock of the Company or (C) any acquisition of Voting Stock of the Company by any Person pursuant to a Business Combination (as defined below) that complies with clauses (A), (B) and (C) of Section 1.3(iii) below; or

(ii) individuals who, as of the date hereof, constitute the Board (the “ Incumbent Board ”) cease for any reason to constitute at least a majority of the Board; provided, however, that any individual becoming a member of the Board (a “ Director ”) subsequent to the date hereof whose election, or nomination for election by the Company’s stockholders, was approved by a vote of at least two-thirds of the Directors then comprising the Incumbent Board (either by a specific vote or by approval of the proxy statement of the Company in which such person is named as a nominee for director, without objection to such nomination) shall be deemed to have been a member of the Incumbent Board, but excluding, for this purpose, any such individual whose initial assumption of office occurs as a result of an actual or threatened election contest (within the meaning of Rule 14a-11 of the Exchange Act) with respect to the election or removal of Directors or other actual or threatened solicitation of proxies or consents by or on behalf of a Person other than the Board; or

(iii) consummation of a reorganization, merger or consolidation, a sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, or other transaction

 

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(each, a “ Business Combination ”), unless, in each case, immediately following such Business Combination, (A) all or substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners of Voting Stock of the Company immediately prior to such Business Combination beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the combined voting power of the then outstanding shares of Voting Stock of the entity resulting from such Business Combination (including, without limitation, an entity which as a result of such transaction owns the Company or all or substantially all of the Company’s assets either directly or through one or more subsidiaries) in substantially the same proportions relative to each other as their ownership, immediately prior to such Business Combination, (B) no Person (other than the Company or such entity resulting from such Business Combination beneficially owns, directly or indirectly, 50% or more of the combined voting power of the then outstanding shares of Voting Stock of the entity resulting from such Business Combination and (C) at least a majority of the members of the board of directors of the entity resulting from such Business Combination were members of the Incumbent Board at the time of the execution of the initial agreement or of the action of the Board providing for such Business Combination; or

(iv) the stockholders of the Company approve (a) the sale or disposition by the Company (other than to a subsidiary of the Company) of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, or (b) a complete liquidation or dissolution of the Company.

1.4 “ Company ” shall mean The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. and any successor to its business and/or assets which assumes (either expressly, by operation of law or otherwise) and/or agrees to perform this Agreement by operation of law or otherwise (except in determining, under Section 1.3 hereof, whether or not any Change in Control of the Company has occurred in connection with such succession).

1.5 “ Disability ” shall mean and be deemed the reason for the termination by the Executive of the Executive’s employment, if, as a result of the Executive’s incapacity due to physical or mental illness, the Executive shall have been absent from the full-time performance of the Executive’s duties for a period of three (3) consecutive months.

1.6 “ Good Reason ” for termination by the Executive of the Executive’s employment in connection with or as a result of any Change in Control shall mean the occurrence (without the Executive’s prior express written consent) of any one of the following acts, or failures to act, unless, in the case of any act or failure to act described in clauses (i), (iv), (v) or (vi) below, such act or failure to act is corrected by the Company or any subsidiary prior to the Date of Termination specified in the Notice of Termination given in respect thereof:

(i) the assignment to the Executive of any duties or responsibilities inconsistent with the Executive’s most significant position(s) (including without limitation status, offices, titles and reporting responsibilities/rights) as an executive officer of the Company and/or a subsidiary held during the one hundred eighty (180) day period immediately preceding any related Potential Change in Control, or a substantial adverse alteration of the Executive’s position or title(s) with the Company or any subsidiary or in the nature of such status, offices, titles and reporting responsibilities/rights;

 

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(ii) a reduction in the Executive’s Annual Base Salary as in effect on the date of this Agreement or as the same may be increased at any time thereafter and from time to time;

(iii) the relocation of the Company’s principal executive offices to a location more than thirty (30) miles from its location on the date of this Agreement (or, if different, more than thirty (30) miles from where such offices are located immediately prior to any Potential Change of Control) or the Company’s requiring the Executive to be based anywhere other than the location where the Executive is performing his duties immediately prior to any Potential Change in Control, except for required travel on the Company’s business to an extent substantially consistent with the Executive’s business travel obligations as of the date of the Potential Change in Control;

(iv) any failure by the Company to comply with any of the provisions of this Agreement, other than an isolated, insubstantial and inadvertent failure not occurring in bad faith and which is remedied by the Company promptly after receipt of notice thereof given by the Executive;

(v) the failure by the Company or a subsidiary to continue in effect any pension benefit or incentive or deferred compensation plan in which the Executive participates immediately prior to any Potential Change in Control which is material to the Executive’s total compensation, unless an equitable arrangement (embodied in an ongoing substitute or alternative plan or arrangement) has been made with respect to such plan, or the failure by the Company or a subsidiary to continue the Executive’s participation therein (or in such substitute or alternative plan or arrangement) on a basis not materially less favorable, both in terms of the amount of benefits provided and the level of the Executive’s participation relative to other participants, as existed at the time of the Potential Change in Control;

(vi) the failure by the Company or a subsidiary to continue to provide the Executive with health and welfare benefits substantially similar to those enjoyed by the Executive under any of the Company’s or a subsidiary’s retirement, life insurance, medical, health and accident, or disability or similar plans in which the Executive was participating at the time of any Potential Change in Control, the taking of any action by the Company or a subsidiary which would directly or indirectly materially reduce any of such benefits or deprive the Executive of any material fringe benefit enjoyed by the Executive at the time of the Potential Change in Control, or the failure by the Company or a subsidiary to provide the Executive with the number of paid vacation days to which the Executive is entitled in accordance with the Company or a subsidiary’s normal vacation policy in effect at the time of the Potential Change in Control;

(vii) any purported termination of the Executive’s employment which is not effected pursuant to a Notice of Termination satisfying the requirements of Section 4.1; and/or

(viii) a termination by the Executive of his employment for any reason during the Window Period.

 

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1.7 “ Person ” shall have the meaning ascribed thereto in Section 3(a)(9) of the Exchange Act, as modified, applied and used in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) thereof; provided, however, a Person shall not include (i) the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (ii) a trustee or other fiduciary holding securities under an employee benefit plan of the Company or any of its subsidiaries (in its capacity as such), (iii) an underwriter temporarily holding securities pursuant to an offering of such securities, or (iv) a corporation or other entity owned, directly or indirectly, by the stockholders of the Company in substantially the same character and proportions as their ownership of stock of the Company.

1.8 “ Potential Change in Control ” shall mean and be deemed to have occurred if:

(i) the Company enters into an agreement the consummation of which would result in the occurrence of a Change in Control;

(ii) the Board adopts a resolution to the effect that, for purposes of this Agreement, a Potential Change in Control has occurred; and/or

(iii) any Person becomes, after the date hereof, the Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of securities of the Company representing twenty five percent (25%) or more of the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities, or any Person increases such Person’s beneficial ownership of such securities by five (5) percentage points or more over the percentage so owned by such Person on the date hereof.

1.9 “ Voting Power ” means securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors.

1.10 “ Window Period ” shall mean the thirteen (13) month period following a Change in Control.

2. Term of this Agreement . This Agreement shall commence on the date hereof and shall continue in effect as long as the Executive is employed by the Company, provided, however, that if (i) a Change in Control shall have occurred during the Executive’s employment with the Company, this Agreement shall continue in effect until the termination of the applicable Window Period, or (ii) if a Potential Change in Control shall have occurred during the Executive’s employment with the Company, this Agreement shall continue in effect until one (1) year after the Executive’s termination of employment with the Company (the “ Term ”).

3. Severance Payments .

3.1 Severance . The Company shall pay the Executive the payments described in Section 3.1.1 and 3.1.2 (the “ Severance Payments ”) upon the termination of the Executive’s employment with the Company during the Window Period (including, but not limited to, the Executive’s termination of employment for Good Reason, death or Disability), unless such termination is (i) by the Company for Cause, or (ii) by the Executive without Good Reason. In addition, the Executive’s employment shall be deemed to have been terminated immediately following a Change in Control by the Company without Cause or by the Executive for Good Reason if (a) the Executive reasonably demonstrates that the Executive’s employment was

 

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terminated prior to a Change in Control without Cause (1) at the request of a Person who has entered into an agreement with the Company the consummation of which will constitute a Change in Control (or who has taken other steps reasonably calculated to effect a Change in Control) or (2) otherwise in connection with, as a result of or in anticipation of a Change in Control, (b) the Executive terminates his employment for Good Reason prior to a Change in Control and the Executive reasonably demonstrates that the circumstance(s) or event(s) which constitute such Good Reason occurred (1) at the request of such Person or (2) otherwise in connection with, as a result of or in anticipation of a Change in Control, or (c) the Executive dies or is terminated due to Disability, in each case, after the occurrence of a Potential Change in Control and related Change in Control actually occurs within one (1) year after the Date of Termination or th


 
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