CONFIDENTIAL/SUBJECT TO CONFIDENTIALITY
AGREEMENT
STOCK PURCHASE AGREEMENT
BETWEEN
BROWN-FORMAN CORPORATION
SELLER
AND
DEPARTMENT 56, INC.
BUYER
DATED AS OF JULY 21, 2005
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ARTICLE 1 CERTAIN
DEFINITIONS....................................1
1.1
Defined
Terms..........................................1
1.2
General Rules of
Construction and Interpretation......10
ARTICLE 2 PURCHASE AND SALE OF
STOCK............................11
2.1
Sale..................................................11
2.2
Purchase Price;
Initial Payment.......................11
2.3
Closing Working
Capital Statement.....................12
2.4
Settlement............................................13
2.5
Expenses..............................................13
ARTICLE 3
CLOSING...............................................13
3.1
Time and
Place........................................13
3.2
Simultaneous
Actions..................................13
3.3
Deliveries by
Seller..................................13
3.4
Deliveries by
Buyer...................................14
ARTICLE 4 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES
REGARDING SELLER.......14
4.1
Organization..........................................14
4.2
Power.................................................15
4.3
Authorization.........................................15
4.4
Noncontravention......................................15
4.5
Consents..............................................15
4.6
Stock
Ownership.......................................15
4.7
Litigation............................................15
4.8
Brokers...............................................16
ARTICLE 5 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES
REGARDING COMPANY......16
5.1
Organization..........................................16
5.2
Capitalization........................................16
5.3
Company
Subsidiaries..................................17
5.4
Noncontravention......................................17
5.5
Consents..............................................17
5.6
Financial
Statements..................................17
5.7
Absence of Undisclosed
Liabilities....................18
5.8
Absence of
Changes....................................18
5.9
Real
Property.........................................18
5.10
Company Contracts.....................................19
5.11
Litigation............................................20
5.12
Compliance............................................20
5.13
Environmental.........................................21
5.14
Employment Matters....................................21
5.15
Employee Benefit Plans................................22
5.16
Intercompany Transactions.............................24
5.17
Intellectual Property.................................24
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5.18
Ownership of Necessary Assets and Rights..............25
5.19 Tax
Matters...........................................25
5.20
Products..............................................26
5.21 No
Other Representations or Warranties................26
ARTICLE 6 REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF
BUYER...............27
6.1
Organization..........................................27
6.2
Power.................................................27
6.3
Authorization.........................................27
6.4
Noncontravention......................................27
6.5
Consents..............................................27
6.6
Investment
Intent.....................................28
6.7
Litigation............................................28
6.8
Brokers...............................................28
6.9
Financial
Capability..................................28
6.10
Environmental Audits..................................28
6.11
Non-Reliance..........................................29
ARTICLE 7 COVENANTS OF THE PARTIES UNTIL
CLOSING................29
7.1
Conduct of Business
Pending Closing...................29
7.2
Negative
Covenants....................................29
7.3
Access................................................31
7.4
Consents..............................................31
7.5
HSR
Act...............................................32
7.6
Public
Statements.....................................32
7.7
Satisfaction of
Company Debt..........................32
7.8
Satisfaction of
Conditions............................33
7.9
No
Sale...............................................33
7.10 No
Negotiations.......................................33
ARTICLE 8 CONDITIONS TO OBLIGATION OF
BUYER.....................34
8.1
Representations and
Warranties........................34
8.2
Performance of
Agreements.............................34
8.3
Approvals.............................................34
8.4
Legal
Matters.........................................35
8.5
Material Adverse
Effect...............................35
8.6
Financing.............................................35
ARTICLE 9 CONDITIONS TO OBLIGATION OF
SELLER....................35
9.1
Representations and
Warranties........................35
9.2
Performance of
Agreements.............................35
9.3
Approvals.............................................35
9.4
Legal
Matters.........................................35
9.5
Release of
Guarantees.................................36
ARTICLE 10
TERMINATION...........................................36
10.1
Termination...........................................36
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10.2
Effect of Termination.................................36
ARTICLE 11 POST-CLOSING COVENANTS; TAX
MATTERS...................37
11.1
Access to Records.....................................37
11.2
Further Assurances....................................37
11.3 Tax
Matters...........................................37
11.4
Environmental Obligations.............................43
11.5 Cash
Sweep............................................44
11.6
Confidentiality.......................................44
11.7
Noncompete; Nonsolicit................................46
11.8
Litigation Support....................................48
11.9
Insurance.............................................48
ARTICLE 12 EMPLOYEE MATTERS
COVENANTS............................48
12.1
General...............................................48
12.2
Welfare Plans.........................................49
12.3
Severance Benefit.....................................51
12.4
Omnibus Compensation Plans............................51
ARTICLE 13
INDEMNIFICATION.......................................51
13.1
Survival..............................................51
13.2
Indemnification.......................................52
13.3 Third
Party Claims....................................55
13.4
Remedies Exclusive....................................56
13.5
Recoveries............................................56
13.6
Characterization......................................57
ARTICLE 14
MISCELLANEOUS.........................................57
14.1
Expenses..............................................57
14.2
Binding Effect........................................57
14.3
Entire Agreement; Amendments..........................57
14.4
Notices...............................................57
14.5
Counterparts..........................................58
14.6
Governing Law.........................................59
14.7
Jurisdiction..........................................59
14.8
Waivers...............................................59
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STOCK PURCHASE AGREEMENT
This STOCK
PURCHASE AGREEMENT
(this "AGREEMENT") is entered into as of
July 21, 2005 by and between Brown-Forman Corporation, a Delaware corporation
("SELLER"); and Department 56, Inc., a
Delaware corporation ("BUYER").
WHEREAS,
Seller owns all of the
issued and outstanding
capital stock of
Lenox, Incorporated, a New Jersey corporation
("COMPANY"), which
Buyer desires
to purchase;
WHEREAS,
Company and Company
Subsidiaries
are engaged
primarily in the
business of designing, marketing and manufacturing dinnerware and silver
flatware, collectibles and other tabletop
and giftware products (the "BUSINESS,"
but excluding the UK Subsidiary and its
business); and
WHEREAS,
this Agreement
sets forth the terms
and conditions
upon which
Seller will sell to Buyer, and Buyer will acquire from Seller, all of the
outstanding shares of capital stock of
Company (the "SHARE PURCHASE");
NOW,
THEREFORE,
in consideration of the mutual agreements contained
herein, the parties agree as follows:
ARTICLE 1
CERTAIN DEFINITIONS
1.1 DEFINED
TERMS. As used in this
Agreement,
the following
terms shall
have the respective meanings set forth
below:
"338(H)(10) ELECTIONS" is defined in Section 11.3.
"ADJUSTMENT AMOUNT" is defined in Section 2.2.
"AFFILIATE" means, with respect to any Person, each Person that controls,
is controlled by or is under common control
with such Person. For the purpose of
this definition, "control" of a Person shall mean
the possession,
directly or
indirectly, of the power to direct or cause
the direction of its
management or
policies, whether through the ownership of voting
securities,
by contract or
otherwise.
"AGREEMENT" is defined in the preamble.
"ARBITRATOR" is defined in Section 2.3.
"BALANCE
SHEET" and "BALANCE SHEET DATE" are defined in Section 5.6.
"BASE
CONSIDERATION" is defined in Section 2.2.
"BASKET"
is defined in Section 13.2.
"BUSINESS"
is defined in the preamble.
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"BUSINESS
DAY" means any day that is not a Saturday, a Sunday or other
day
on which banks in Louisville, Kentucky are authorized or obligated by Law to
close.
"BUYER" is
defined in the preamble.
"BUYER
DAMAGES" is defined in Section 13.2.
"BUYER
MATERIAL ADVERSE EFFECT" means any change, effect, event or
occurrence that is materially adverse to
the business, results
of operations or
financial condition of Buyer and Buyer's
subsidiaries, viewed
as a whole, or on
Buyer's ability to consummate the
transactions
contemplated
hereby; provided
however, that none of the following (nor
the effects thereof)
shall be deemed,
individually or in the aggregate, to
constitute, and none
of the following (nor
the effects thereof) shall be taken into
account in determining
whether there
has been or will be, a Buyer Material
Adverse Effect:
(a) this Agreement,
the transactions
contemplated by this Agreement
or the announcement thereof;
(b) changes or conditions affecting the United States economy or
financial markets or foreign economies or financial markets;
(c) changes in or
developments in any industry in which Buyer or any
Buyer subsidiary
operates
or changes in customer demand,
including
seasonal changes
(provided
that Buyer is not
disproportionately
affected thereby
as compared to its peer
companies); or
(d)
changes or
conditions
resulting from political or regulatory
conditions, acts of war, terrorism, escalation of hostilities
or
earthquakes or other natural occurrences.
"BUYER
PARTIES" means,
collectively, Buyer
and its officers,
directors,
employees, subsidiaries, Affiliates (including Company and
Company Subsidiaries
from and after the Closing) and their respective successors and permitted
assigns.
"BUYER TAX
INDEMNITEE" is defined in Section 11.3.
"BUYER'S
ACCOUNTANTS" is defined in Section 2.3.
"BUYER'S
NOTICE" is defined in Section 2.3.
"CAP
AMOUNT" is defined in Section 13.2.
"CAUSE"
means (a) conviction of the applicable employee for committing a
felony under federal law or the law of the
state in which such action occurred,
(b) dishonesty or gross negligence in the course of
fulfilling the
applicable
employee's employment duties, or (c) willful
and deliberate failure on the part
of the applicable employee to perform his or her employment duties in any
material respect.
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"CLAIM" is
defined in Section 13.3.
"CLOSING"
means the closing of the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement as described in Article 3.
"CLOSING
DATE" means the date on which the Closing actually occurs.
"CLOSING
WORKING CAPITAL STATEMENT" is defined in Section 2.3.
"COBRA
COVERAGE" means the continuation coverage requirements under
Section 4980B of the Code and Part 6 of
Title I of ERISA.
"CODE"
means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
"COMMITMENT LETTER" is defined in Section 6.9.
"COMPANY"
is defined in the preamble.
"COMPANY
CONTRACTS"
means the Contracts
set forth on Section 5.10 of the
Disclosure Schedule (and additional
Contracts entered into after the date hereof
which would be required to be identified in Section 5.10 of the Disclosure
Schedule if they were in effect on the date
hereof).
"COMPANY
MATERIAL ADVERSE EFFECT" means any change, effect, event or
occurrence that is materially adverse to
the business, results
of operations or
financial condition of Company and Company Subsidiaries, viewed as a whole;
provided however, that none of the following (nor
the effects thereof) shall be
deemed, individually or in the aggregate, to constitute, and none of the
following (nor the effects thereof) shall be taken into
account in determining
whether there has been or will be, a
Company Material Adverse Effect:
(a) this Agreement,
the transactions
contemplated by this Agreement
or the announcement
thereof, including
disclosure of the
fact
that Buyer is the prospective buyer of Company;
(b) Buyer's
announcement
or other disclosure of its plans or
intentions with respect to the conduct of the Business;
(c) changes,
conditions,
events, effects or occurrences
affecting
the United
States economy or financial markets or foreign
economies or financial markets;
(d) changes,
conditions,
events, effects or occurrences in or
developments in any
industry in which Company or any Company
Subsidiary operates
or changes in customer
demand, including
seasonal changes
(provided
that
the Business is not
disproportionately
affected thereby
as compared to its peer
companies);
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(e) changes,
conditions,
events, effects or occurrences
resulting
from political or regulatory conditions, acts of war,
terrorism,
escalation of
hostilities
or earthquakes or other natural
occurrences;
(f) changes,
conditions,
events, effects or occurrences to the
extent predominantly
arising from any
action taken by Buyer or
any of its Affiliates;
(g) any change,
condition,
occurrence,
effect or event
resulting
from Buyer's
refusal to consent to Company or a Company
Subsidiary taking any
action otherwise
prohibited
by Section
7.2; or
(h) any change in Laws
or GAAP accounting rules.
"COMPANY
PLAN" is defined in Section 5.15.
"COMPANY
SUBSIDIARY"
means each entity listed on Section 5.3 of the
Disclosure Schedule, provided, however, that such term does not
include the UK
Subsidiary.
"CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION" is defined in Section 11.6.
"CONFIDENTIALITY
AGREEMENT" means the
letter agreement dated as of March
2, 2005, entered into between Seller and
Buyer.
"CONTRACT"
means any written contract, lease, undertaking, agreement or
other arrangement to or under which Company
or any Company Subsidiary is legally
bound, including any and all amendments and
modifications thereto.
"DISCLOSURE SCHEDULE" is defined at the beginning of Article 4.
"EMPLOYEE
BENEFICIARIES" is defined in Section 12.1.
"ENCUMBRANCE" means
any mortgage, pledge, claim, security interest,
encumbrance, lien, assessment, conditional sale or other title retention
agreement, whether consensual, statutory or
otherwise.
"ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIM"
means any Proceeding seeking Environmental Damages
or an order, injunction or similar relief against Company or any Company
Subsidiary by any Person, arising out of,
based on, or resulting from any actual
or threatened (a) release or disposal,
or the presence in the
environment,
of
any Hazardous Substances by Company or any
Company Subsidiary at
any location,
(b) circumstances forming the basis of any
violation, or alleged
violation, of
any Environmental Laws by Company or any Company
Subsidiary or (c)
exposure to
any Hazardous Substances caused by Company
or any Company Subsidiary.
"ENVIRONMENTAL
DAMAGES" means
any and all liabilities, costs and
expenditures (including any fees and expenses
of attorneys and of environmental
consultants or engineers, and any fees,
fines, penalties or charges imposed by a
Governmental Body) incurred in
connection
4
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with (i) any violation or alleged
violation of
Environmental Laws, or
(ii) the
defense, Remediation or other required response to any Release of
Hazardous
Materials.
"ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS" means all applicable Laws as in effect as of
the date
hereof (a) related to Releases or threatened Releases of any Hazardous
Substances in soil, surface water, groundwater or air, (b) governing
the use,
treatment, storage, disposal, transport, or
handling of Hazardous Substances, or
(c) related to the protection of the environment, human health or natural
resources. Such Environmental Laws include the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and
Liability Act, the Toxic Substances
Control Act, the Clean
Water Act, the Clean
Air Act, the Safe Drinking Water Act, the Emergency Planning and Community
Right-to-Know Act, and their respective
state and local counterparts.
"ENVIRONMENTAL
SITES" means
such Properties of Company or Company
Subsidiaries and other locations as are set forth at Section 5.13 of the
Disclosure Schedule.
"ERISA"
means the Employee
Retirement
Income Security Act of 1974, as
amended.
"ERISA
AFFILIATE" means,
with respect to any
entity, trade or
business,
any other entity, trade or business that is, or was at the
relevant time, 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
or included the first entity, trade or
business, or that is, or was at the relevant time, a member of the same
"controlled group" as the first entity,
trade or business
pursuant to
Section
4001(a)(14) of ERISA.
"FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS" is defined in Section 5.6.
"FORM
8023" is defined in Section 11.3.
"FORM
8883" is defined in Section 11.3.
"GAAP"
means, as of any date, generally accepted accounting principles in
the United States as in effect on such
date.
"GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORIZATIONS" is defined in Section 5.12.
"GOVERNMENTAL BODY"
means any United States or foreign, national,
multinational, federal, state, provincial or
local governmental,
regulatory or
administrative authority, agency or commission or any court
or self-regulatory
organization, tribunal or judicial or arbitral
body and any
instrumentality of
any of the foregoing.
"HAZARDOUS
SUBSTANCE" means all
hazardous or toxic substances, wastes or
materials, any pollutants or contaminants (including all oil and petroleum
of
any kind and in any form, asbestos and raw materials
which include hazardous
constituents), or any other similar substances,
or materials which are included
under or regulated by any applicable
Environmental Law.
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"HSR ACT"
means the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of
1976,
as amended.
"INCOME
TAXES" means U.S.
federal, state or local net income or
capital
gain Taxes, together with any interest or penalties imposed with respect
thereto.
"INDEMNIFIED PARTY" is defined in Section 13.3.
"INDEMNIFYING PARTY" is defined in Section 13.3.
"INITIAL
PAYMENT" is defined in Section 2.2.
"INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY" means
all of the
following owned or used by
Company or any Company Subsidiary in the
operation of their business:
(a) United
States and foreign trademarks, service marks and
trademark and service mark registrations and applications,
trade
names, logos, trade dress and slogans, and all goodwill related
to the foregoing;
(b) patent
applications,
patents,
inventions,
improvements,
know-how,
formula
methodology,
research and
development,
business methods,
processes,
technology
and software in any
jurisdiction,
including re-issues,
continuations,
divisions,
continuations-in-part, renewals or extensions;
(c) trade secrets;
(d) copyrights in
writings, designs,
software, mask works
or other
works, applications or registrations in any jurisdiction for
the
foregoing, other
original works of authorship and all moral
rights related thereto; and
(e) Internet web
sites, web pages, domain names and applications and
registrations
pertaining thereto
(excluding
any third-party
websites linked to or from the websites of Company).
"KNOWLEDGE
OF SELLER" means such facts and other information that, as of
the date of this Agreement, are known to any of the
individuals
set forth in
Section 1.1A of the Disclosure Schedule after review of this Agreement,
including the Disclosure Schedule.
"LAW"
means any law,
statute, ordinance,
regulation,
judgment, order,
award or other decision or requirement of
any Governmental Body.
"LEASED
PROPERTIES"
means any real
property that is leased by Company or
any Company Subsidiary.
"LIST"
means the United States Environmental Protection Agency's National
Priorities List of Hazardous Waste Sites or any other list,
official record or
determination made by any Governmental
Entity schedule log,
inventory or record
maintained by any Governmental Entity identifying any sites at which
there has
been a Release of Hazardous Materials.
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"LOSSES"
is defined in Section 13.2.
"MULTIEMPLOYER PLAN"
means any "multiemployer plan" within the meaning of
Section 4001(a)(3) of ERISA.
"MULTIPLE
EMPLOYER PLAN" means
any Plan that has two or more contributing
sponsors at least two of whom are not under
common control,
within the meaning
of Section 4063 of ERISA.
"OTHER
ANTITRUST REGULATIONS" is defined in Section 7.4.
"OTHER
PARTY" is defined in Section 11.7.
"OTHER
TAXES" means any Taxes other than Income Taxes.
"OWNED
PROPERTIES" means any
real property that is owned in fee simple by
Company or any Company Subsidiary.
"PERMITS"
is defined in Section 5.13.
"PERMITTED
ENCUMBRANCES" means
(a) Encumbrances for
Taxes (and assessments
and other
governmental
charges or
levies) not yet due and payable or due but not
delinquent or being
contested in good faith by appropriate
proceedings;
(b) mechanics',
builders', workmen's,
repairmen's,
warehousemen's,
landlord's, carriers'
or other like Encumbrances (including
Encumbrances created
by operation of law) with respect to which
Company or any Company
Subsidiary is not in
default in payment
or which are being contested by Company or a Company Subsidiary
in good faith;
(c) Encumbrances
in respect of easements, permits, licenses,
right-of-way,
restrictive
covenants or
encroachments
or
irregularities in, and other similar exceptions to title;
(d) zoning,
entitlement,
building,
planning,
land
use and
environmental restrictions or regulations and other Laws;
(e) Encumbrances
with respect to debt
or other liabilities that are
reflected on the Balance Sheet;
(f) such other imperfections in title, easements, charges,
restrictions and
Encumbrances which do
not materially
detract
from, materially
diminish the value of or materially interfere
with the present use of the affected property; and
(g) Encumbrances
consented to by Buyer.
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"PERSON"
means an individual, a partnership (general or limited), a
corporation, a limited liability company,
an association, a joint stock company,
Governmental Body, a business or other trust, a joint venture, any other
business entity or an unincorporated
organization.
"PLAN" is
defined in Section 5.15.
"PROCEEDING" means any suit, proceeding, action, arbitration, complaint,
decree or lawsuit before or involving any
third party or Governmental Body.
"PROPERTIES" means
the Leased Properties and the Owned Properties,
collectively.
"PROPOSED
ADJUSTMENT" is defined in Section 2.3.
"PURCHASE
PRICE" is defined in Section 2.2.
"QUALIFIED
PLAN" is defined in Section 5.15.
"QUALIFYING
TERMINATION" shall
mean a termination of the employment of a
Company employee
(a) if terminated by Buyer or its Affiliates, other than a
termination for Cause; or,
(b) if terminated by
the Company employee
following a reduction
in
base salary
or a required relocation that would move such
Company
employee's principal place of employment by more than 50
miles.
"RELEASE"
means the spilling, leaking, disposing, discharging, emitting,
depositing, ejecting, leaching, escaping or any other release, whether
intentional or unintentional, of any
Hazardous Material.
"REMEDIATION" means
any investigative, response, removal, remedial,
treatment, cleanup, disposal, monitoring and other corrective actions with
respect to environmental matters, including the Release of any Hazardous
Material.
"REPORTS"
is defined in Section 5.13.
"SELLER"
is defined in the preamble.
"SELLER
DAMAGES" is defined in Section 13.2.
"SELLER
GROUP" means Seller and any subsidiary of Seller, other than
Company or any Company Subsidiary.
"SELLER
PARTIES" means,
collectively, Seller,
its Affiliates (including,
prior to Closing, Company and the Company Subsidiaries), their respective
officers, directors and employees, and
their respective successors and permitted
assigns.
"SELLER
RESTRICTED BUSINESS" is defined in Section 11.7.
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"SELLER
TAX INDEMNITEE" is defined in Section 11.3.
"SELLER'S
ACCOUNTANTS" is defined in Section 2.3(b).
"SHARE
PURCHASE" is defined in the preamble.
"SHARES"
is defined in Section 2.1.
"SUBSIDIARY" means,
with respect to any Person, any other Person of which
such Person (either alone or through or together
with any other
subsidiary)
owns, directly or indirectly, a majority of
the outstanding equity securities or
securities or interests carrying a majority of the voting
power in the election
of the board of directors or other
governing body of such Person.
"SURVIVAL
DATE" is defined in Section 13.1.
"SURVIVING
ENTITY" is defined in Section 11.7.
"TAX" OR
"TAXES" means
(a) all taxes,
levies or other
assessments
of any kind or
nature,
including U.S.,
state,
local
and foreign income taxes,
withholding taxes,
branch profit taxes,
gross receipts
taxes,
franchise taxes,
transfer taxes, sales and use taxes, business
and occupation taxes, license taxes, property taxes, VAT,
custom
duties or imposts,
stamp taxes, excise
taxes, payroll
taxes,
employment taxes,
estimated taxes,
severance taxes,
occupancy
taxes, intangible taxes and capital taxes;
(b) any interest or penalties, additions to tax or additional
amounts imposed in
connection
with any item
described in the
foregoing clause
(a) or the failure to comply with any
requirement imposed with respect to any Tax Return; and
(c) any obligation
with respect to Taxes
described in the foregoing
clause (a) or (b)
payable by reason of being a successor or
indemnitor or by
reason of contract, assumption, transferee
liability, operation of Law, Treasury Regulation ss.1.1502-6
(or
any predecessor or successor thereof or any analogous or
similar
provision under Law) or otherwise.
"TAX
AFFILIATES" is defined in Section 5.19.
"TAX
BENEFIT" means the Tax effect of any item of loss,
deduction or
credit or any other item which decreases Taxes paid or payable or
increases tax
basis, including any interest with
respect thereto or
interest that would have
been payable but for such item, net of any
tax detriment associated therewith.
"TAX
ITEM" means any item of income, gain, loss, deduction, credit,
recapture of credit or any other item which
increases or decreases Taxes paid or
payable, including an adjustment under
Section 481 of the Code resulting from a
change in accounting method.
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"TAX
PROCEEDING"
means any Tax audit,
contest, litigation, defense or
other proceeding with or against any Taxing
Authority.
"TAX
RETURN" OR "RETURN" means any return, report, declaration,
statement,
extension, form or other documents or
information filed with or submitted to, or
required to be filed with or submitted to,
any Governmental
Body in connection
with the determination, assessment,
collection or payment of any Tax.
"TAXING
AUTHORITY" means any Governmental Body exercising any authority
to
impose, regulate, or administer the
imposition of Taxes.
"THRESHOLD
AMOUNT" is defined in Section 13.2.
"TRANSITION SERVICES AGREEMENT" means the agreement referred to in
Section
3.3(c).
"TREASURY
REGULATION" means the regulations promulgated under the Code by
the United States Department of
Treasury.
"UK
SUBSIDIARY" means Brooks & Bentley Limited, an English private
company
limited by shares.
"WELFARE
BENEFITS" shall mean
the types of benefits
described in Section
3(1) of ERISA (whether or not covered by
ERISA).
"WELFARE
PLAN" shall mean any
employee welfare benefit plan within the
meaning of Section 3(1) of ERISA.
"WITHDRAWAL LIABILITY" means liability to a Multiemployer Plan as a
result
of a complete or partial withdrawal from
such Multiemployer Plan, as those terms
are defined in Part I of Subtitle E of
Title IV of ERISA.
1.2 GENERAL
RULES OF CONSTRUCTION AND INTERPRETATION.
(a) The words "hereof," "herein," and "hereunder" and words of
similar
import, when used in this Agreement, shall refer to this Agreement as a
whole
and not to any particular provision of this
Agreement.
(b) Terms defined in the singular shall have a comparable meaning
when
used in the plural, and vice versa.
(c) Any reference to a
particular
gender shall be deemed
to include
all other genders unless the context
otherwise requires.
(d) Headings contained
in this Agreement are
for reference
purposes
only and shall not affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this
Agreement.
(e) Unless an express reference is made to a different document, all
references to a Section or Article will be
understood to refer to the indicated
Section or Article of this
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Agreement, and all references to a Schedule or Exhibit will be
understood to
refer to the indicated Schedule or Exhibit
to this Agreement.
(f) Whenever the word "include," "includes" or "including" is used
in
this Agreement, it shall be deemed to be followed by the words "without
limitation."
(g) In the event of an alleged ambiguity or a question of intent or
interpretation, this Agreement shall be construed as if drafted
jointly by the
parties and no presumption or burden of proof shall arise favoring or
disfavoring any party by virtue of the
authorship
of any provisions of this
Agreement.
(h) The word "will"
shall be construed
to have the same
meaning and
effect as the word "shall."
(i) The Disclosure
Schedule, and all other Schedules and Exhibits
attached hereto or referred to herein are
hereby incorporated in and made a part
of this Agreement as if set forth in full
herein. Any
capitalized terms used in
the Disclosure Schedule or any other Schedule or
any Exhibit but not otherwise
defined therein shall have the meaning
defined in this Agreement.
ARTICLE 2
PURCHASE AND SALE OF STOCK
2.1 SALE.
Upon the terms and
subject to the conditions of this Agreement,
on the Closing Date, Seller shall sell,
assign, transfer and deliver to Buyer,
and Buyer shall purchase and accept from Seller, all of the issued and
outstanding capital stock of Company,
consisting of 1000 shares of Common Stock,
par value $1 per share (the "SHARES"), free
and clear of all Encumbrances.
2.2 PURCHASE PRICE; INITIAL
PAYMENT.
(a) The purchase price (the "PURCHASE PRICE") to be paid by Buyer to
Seller for the Shares shall be One Hundred Ninety Million Dollars
($190,000,000.00) (the "BASE
CONSIDERATION") plus the Adjustment Amount.
(b) The "ADJUSTMENT
AMOUNT" (which may be a positive or negative
number) will be equal to the working capital of Company and the Company
Subsidiaries as determined from the Closing
Working Capital
Statement prepared
in accordance with Section 2.3, minus Ninety Six
Million Nine Hundred
Thousand
Dollars ($96,900,000.00).
(c)
At Closing, Buyer will
deliver to Seller, as
an initial payment
(the "INITIAL PAYMENT") of the Purchase
Price, an amount equal
to (i) Seller's
estimate of the Adjustment Amount, estimated on the basis of the interim
unaudited balance sheet of Company and
Company Subsidiaries as at the end of the
most recently ended month for which such balance
sheet is available at Closing,
estimated as though the end of such month
were the Closing Date,
plus (ii) the
Base Consideration.
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2.3 CLOSING
WORKING CAPITAL STATEMENT.
(a) As promptly as
practicable following
the Closing, but not
later
than 60 days thereafter, Seller shall
(1) prepare and
deliver to Buyer a statement of the consolidated
current assets and
current liabilities
of Company and the
Company Subsidiaries as of the close of business on the last
business day
immediately
preceding
the Closing Date,
including a
calculation
of the Adjustment Amount (the
"CLOSING WORKING
CAPITAL STATEMENT"), which shall be
prepared in accordance
with SCHEDULE 2.3
attached hereto;
and
(2) deliver to Buyer a
report of
PricewaterhouseCoopers
LLP or
another nationally-recognized independent public accounting
firm selected by
Seller ("SELLER'S
ACCOUNTANTS")
stating
that the Closing Working Capital Statement has been prepared
in accordance with SCHEDULE 2.3.
(b) Buyer may cause another independent public accounting firm
selected by Buyer ("BUYER'S ACCOUNTANTS"), to conduct a review of the
Closing
Working Capital Statement. Representatives of Buyer and Buyer's Accountants
shall have reasonable access to all journal entries and other records used
by
Seller in its preparation of the Closing
Working Capital
Statement.
Within 45
days after Buyer's receipt of the Closing
Working Capital
Statement and
report
of Seller's Accountants, Buyer shall deliver written notice (the "BUYER'S
NOTICE") to Seller either (i) stating that Buyer accepts the Closing Working
Capital Statement or (ii) describing in
reasonable detail,
including the nature
and amount thereof, each adjustment (a "PROPOSED ADJUSTMENT") that Buyer
proposes be made to the Closing Working
Capital Statement;
PROVIDED, HOWEVER,
that Buyer's Notice of any Proposed
Adjustment
shall not be effective
unless
accompanied by a special report of Buyer's
Accountants
stating that each
such
Proposed Adjustment is required to be made in order for the
Closing Working
Capital Statement to have been prepared in accordance with SCHEDULE 2.3.
Furthermore, the Closing Working Capital
Statement shall not be
subject to any
adjustment unless the aggregate amount of all such adjustments as finally
determined exceeds $300,000; PROVIDED, that, if such adjustments exceed
$300,000, then the final amount of such
adjustments (and not
merely the excess
over $300,000) shall be included in the
Closing Working
Capital Statement and
the final determination of the Adjustment Amount. If Seller has not received
Buyer's Notice within such 45-day period,
Buyer shall be deemed to have accepted
the amount of the working capital and the
calculation of the
Adjustment Amount
set forth in the Closing Working Capital
Statement.
(c) If Buyer's Notice contains any Proposed Adjustment, then Buyer
and
Seller shall negotiate in good faith to resolve
such Proposed
Adjustment
in
accordance with this Agreement, PROVIDED that if the parties have
not resolved
all Proposed Adjustments within 30 days following
Seller's receipt of
Buyer's
Notice, then Buyer and Seller shall engage
Ernst & Young LLP (provided it is not
serving as Buyer's Accountants) or another mutually acceptable firm of
independent public accountants of nationally recognized reputation (the
"ARBITRATOR"). The Arbitrator shall act as
an arbitrator to determine only those
Proposed Adjustments still in
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<PAGE>
dispute and the resulting computation of the Adjustment Amount, which
determination shall be made in accordance with the terms of this Agreement,
rendered within 60 days of the Arbitrator's
engagement,
and shall be final
and
binding on all parties.
2.4 SETTLEMENT.
Within five business days following the final determination
of the Adjustment Amount in accordance with Section 2.3 above, whether by
agreement or deemed agreement of the
parties or by the Arbitrator:
(a) if the Purchase
Price is more than the
Initial Payment, Buyer
shall deliver to Seller immediately available funds in an amount equal to
the
difference between the Purchase Price and the
Initial Payment plus
interest on
such amount at the rate of 4.5% per
annum from the
Closing Date to, but not
including, the date of payment; or
(b) if the Initial
Payment is more than the Purchase Price, Seller
shall deliver to Buyer immediately available funds in an amount equal to
the
difference between the Initial Payment and the Purchase Price
plus interest on
such amount at the rate of 4.5% per
annum from the
Closing Date to, but not
including, the date of payment.
2.5 EXPENSES.
All expenses relating
to the work to be performed by Buyer's
Accountants as contemplated by Section 2.3
shall be borne by Buyer, all expenses
relating to the work to be performed by
Seller's Accountants
as contemplated by
Section 2.3 shall be borne by Seller,
and all expenses
relating to the work, if
any, to be performed by the Arbitrator in
accordance with Section 2.3 to resolve
disputes shall be borne equally by Buyer
and Seller.
ARTICLE 3
CLOSING
3.1 TIME AND
PLACE. The Closing
shall take place at the offices of Seller,
Louisville, Kentucky at 10:00 a.m.,
Louisville,
Kentucky time, on the second
business day after the date on which all of
the conditions to the Closing (other
than those that by their terms are to be satisfied at Closing) set forth in
Article 8 and Article 9 have been satisfied
or waived, or on such other date and
at such other time and place as Seller and
Buyer may mutually agree.
3.2 SIMULTANEOUS
ACTIONS. All
proceedings to be taken and all documents to
be executed and delivered by the parties at the
Closing shall be deemed to have
been taken and executed simultaneously and no proceedings
shall be deemed taken
nor any documents executed or delivered
until all have been taken, executed and
delivered.
3.3 DELIVERIES BY SELLER. On or before the Closing Date, Seller will
deliver to Buyer the following:
(a) a certificate,
dated the Closing Date, executed by Seller,
certifying that the conditions to Buyer's
obligation to
consummate the Closing
under Sections 8.1 and 8.2 have been
satisfied;
(b) the original
certificate(s)
evidencing the Shares accompanied by
duly executed stock transfer power(s) and any other
documents necessary to
transfer to Buyer good title to the
Shares;
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<PAGE>
(c) the Transition
Services Agreement, duly executed by Seller and
Company, in the form of EXHIBIT 3.3(C);
(d) an assignment
to Buyer of Seller's rights with respect to
confidentiality agreements signed by other
prospective purchasers of Company;
(e) a certificate of good standing for Company and a certified copy
of
the Certificate of Incorporation of Company issued by
the Secretary of State of
New Jersey, as of a recent date; and
(f) resignations of
all members of the board of directors of Company,
to the extent received by Seller at or
prior to Closing.
3.4 DELIVERIES
BY BUYER. On or before the Closing Date, Buyer will deliver
to Seller the following:
(a) a certificate, dated the Closing Date, executed by Buyer,
certifying that the conditions to Seller's
obligation to
consummate the Closing
under Sections 9.1 and 9.2 have been
satisfied;
(b) the Initial
Payment, by wire
transfer of
immediately
available
funds in United States currency to an
account or accounts
designated in writing
by Seller; and
(c) the Transition Services Agreement, duly executed by Buyer, in the
form of EXHIBIT 3.3(C).
ARTICLE 4
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES REGARDING SELLER
Simultaneously with
the execution of this Agreement by Seller, Seller is
delivering to Buyer a disclosure schedule (the "DISCLOSURE SCHEDULE") with
numbered sections corresponding to sections in this Agreement. Any matter
disclosed in any section of the Disclosure
Schedule shall be deemed disclosed in
all other sections of the Disclosure
Schedule to the extent that such disclosure
is reasonably apparent to be applicable to
such other sections,
notwithstanding
the reference to a particular section or subsection. The inclusion of any
information in the Disclosure Schedule shall not be deemed an
admission or
acknowledgement that such information is required to be set forth
therein or
that such information is material or that
such information
constitutes or would
reasonably be expected to constitute a
Company Material Adverse Effect.
EXCEPT AS
SET FORTH IN THE
DISCLOSURE SCHEDULE,
SELLER REPRESENTS AND
WARRANTS TO BUYER AS FOLLOWS:
4.1
ORGANIZATION. Seller
is a corporation duly organized, validly existing
and in good standing under the laws of the
State of Delaware.
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<PAGE>
4.2 POWER.
Seller has all
requisite corporate
power and authority to
own
the Shares and to enter into this Agreement, to perform its obligations
hereunder, and to consummate the sale of the Shares and other transactions
contemplated by this Agreement.
4.3 AUTHORIZATION. The execution, delivery and performance of this
Agreement by Seller and the consummation of
the transactions contemplated hereby
by Seller have been duly and validly authorized by all necessary corporate
action on the part of Seller. This Agreement has been duly and
validly executed
and delivered by Seller, and is a valid and binding obligation of Seller,
enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy,
insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and
similar laws of general applicability
relating to or affecting creditors' rights
and to general principles of equity.
4.4 NONCONTRAVENTION. Neither the execution,
delivery and
performance of
this Agreement by Seller, nor the consummation by Seller of the transactions
contemplated hereby nor compliance by Seller
with any of the provisions hereof
will:
(a) conflict
with or result in a breach of any provision of the
Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws of
Seller;
(b) cause a default,
or result in a
material breach or
give rise to
any right of termination, cancellation, or acceleration under any material
agreement or other material obligation to which Seller is a
party, except for
such matters as would not reasonably be
expected to result in a material adverse
effect upon the ability of Seller to perform its obligations under this
Agreement;
(c) assuming
compliance with the
HSR Act, violate any
Law, order of
any Governmental Body or Governmental
Authorization applicable to Seller, except
as would not reasonably be expected to
result in a material
adverse effect upon
the ability of Seller to perform its
obligations under this Agreement; or
(d) result in the creation of any Encumbrance upon the Shares held by
Seller.
4.5 CONSENTS. No
consent or approval by, or notification of or filing with,
any Governmental Body is required to be
obtained or made by Seller in connection
with the execution, delivery and
performance by Seller of this Agreement, or the
consummation by Seller of the transactions contemplated hereby, except for
compliance with the HSR Act and except for any such consent, approval,
notification or filing the failure of which to obtain or make would not
reasonably be expected to result in a material
adverse effect upon Seller's
ability to perform its obligations under
this Agreement.
4.6 STOCK OWNERSHIP. Seller has, and agrees to transfer to Buyer at
Closing, good and valid title to the
Shares, free and clear of all Encumbrances,
options, restrictions on transfer or rights of refusal.
No Person owns or
has
any beneficial interest in any of the Shares except Seller. Seller has not
transferred or assigned, or entered into any agreement to transfer or
assign,
any of the Shares or any of the voting
rights or dividend rights pertaining
thereto.
4.7 LITIGATION.
No Proceeding has, as
of the date of this Agreement, been
commenced or, to the Knowledge of Seller, threatened against Seller that
challenges the validity
15
<PAGE>
of this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby or that would
reasonably be expected to have the effect
of preventing,
materially
delaying,
materially impairing or making illegal the
transactions contemplated, or have a
material adverse effect on Seller's
ability to perform its
obligations
under
this Agreement.
4.8 BROKERS.
Neither Seller nor
Company has employed any broker, finder or
investment banker in connection with the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement which would be entitled to a fee
or commission in connection with such
transactions, except for any broker,
finder or investment
banker whose fees or
commissions shall be the sole
responsibility of Seller.
ARTICLE 5
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES REGARDING COMPANY
EXCEPT AS
SET FORTH IN THE
DISCLOSURE SCHEDULE,
SELLER REPRESENTS AND
WARRANTS TO BUYER AS FOLLOWS:
5.1
ORGANIZATION. Company is a corporation duly organized, validly
existing
and in good standing under the laws of the State of New Jersey and has all
requisite corporate power and authority to own, lease
and operate its material
properties and to carry on its business as
now being conducted.
Company is duly
qualified and in good standing to do business in every
jurisdiction
in which
such qualification is necessary because of the nature of the
property owned,
leased or operated by it or the nature of
the business conducted
by it, except
where the failure to be so qualified or be
in good standing would
not result in
a Company Material Adverse Effect.
5.2
CAPITALIZATION. The entire authorized capital stock of Company
consists
of 2000 shares of Common Stock, par value $1 per share, and 1000 shares of
Preferred Stock, par value $5 per share. There are currently issued and
outstanding only the Shares, which are all duly authorized, validly issued,
fully paid and nonassessable. There is
no:
(a) outstanding
security convertible into or exchangeable for capital
stock of Company;
(b) option, warrant, put, call or other right to purchase or
subscribe
to capital stock of Company;
(c) stock restriction agreement, or contract, commitment or agreement
of any kind relating to the issuance or
disposition of Company
capital stock or
the issuance or disposition of any security
convertible into or exchangeable for
Company capital stock; or
(d) registration
rights agreement, voting trust, proxy or other
agreement or restriction on transfer with
respect to the Shares.
The Shares are all duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and
non-assessable, and in certificated form,
and have been offered, sold and issued
by Company in compliance with all applicable securities and corporate Laws,
agreements or contracts applicable to Company and Company's Certificate of
Incorporation and Bylaws, and in compliance
with any preemptive
rights, rights
of first refusal or other rights.
The consummation of the Share Purchase will
16
<PAGE>
convey to Buyer good and valid title to the
Shares, of record and
beneficially,
free and clear of all Encumbrances, except
for those created by Buyer or arising
out of ownership of the Shares by
Buyer.
5.3 COMPANY
SUBSIDIARIES.
All entities of which
Company owns, directly or
indirectly, any capital stock, together with
the jurisdiction of incorporation,
are set forth at Section 5.3 of the
Disclosure Schedule.
Such entities are duly
organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of their
respective jurisdictions of organization,
have all requisite corporate power and
authority to own, lease and operate their
respective material
properties and to
carry on their respective businesses as now being conducted, and are duly
qualified and in good standing to do business in every
jurisdiction
in which
such qualification is necessary because of the nature of the
property owned,
leased or operated by such entities or the nature of the
business conducted
by
such entities, except where the failure to be so qualified or be in good
standing would not result in a Company
Material Adverse Effect. Company owns all
of the issued and outstanding capital stock of each such entity
free and clear
of all Encumbrances, options, restrictions on transfer and rights of
refusal
other than Permitted Encumbrances.
5.4 NONCONTRAVENTION. Neither the execution,
delivery and
performance of
this Agreement by Seller, nor the consummation by Seller of the transactions
contemplated hereby nor compliance by Seller or Company with any of the
provisions hereof will:
(a) conflict
with or result in a breach of any provision of the
Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws of
Company or any Company Subsidiary;
(b) except as would not reasonably be expected to result
in a Company
Material Adverse Effect, cause a default, or result in a
breach or give rise to
any right of termination, cancellation, or acceleration under any Company
Contract or other material obligation to
which Company or any Company Subsidiary
is a party, or by which Company or any Company Subsidiary or any of their
respective material properties or assets is
or may be bound or benefited; or
(c) except as would not reasonably be expected to result
in a Company
Material Adverse Effect and except for
compliance with the HSR Act, violate any
Law applicable to Company or any Company
Subsidiary.
5.5 CONSENTS. Except for compliance with the HSR Act or as
would not
reasonably be expected to result in a Company
Material Adverse Effect, no
consent or approval by, or notification of
or filing with, any Governmental Body
is required to be obtained or made by Company or any
Company Subsidiary in
connection with the execution, delivery and performance by Seller of this
Agreement, or the consummation of the
transactions contemplated hereby.
5.6 FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS.
(a) Seller has
delivered to Buyer
true and complete copies of the
audited consolidated balance sheets of Company and
Company Subsidiaries
as of
April 30, 2005 (the "BALANCE SHEET DATE",
with the consolidated balance sheet as
of such date being referred to as the
"BALANCE SHEET"), and April 30, 2004, with
the Company's investment in the UK Subsidiary
17
<PAGE>
accounted for under the equity method, and
the related statements of operations,
stockholder's equity and cash flow for the fiscal years then ended
(collectively, the "FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS").
(b) The Financial Statements
(1) have been prepared
based on the books and records of Company
and Company Subsidiaries;
(2) have been prepared
in accordance with
GAAP (in effect as of
the respective dates thereof), consistently applied, in all
material respects,
except that the UK
Subsidiary has
been
accounted for under the equity method, and except that the
stock option expense for the Company employees participating
in the Brown-Forman
Corporation Omnibus
Compensation Plan
for the periods
ended April 30, 2005 and 2004, and the
associated disclosures
required by
Statement of
Financial
Accounting Standard
Number 123, Accounting
for Stock-Based
Compensation, as
amended, have been omitted from the
Financial Statements; and
(3) present
fairly in all material respects the financial
position of
Company and Company Subsidiaries on a
consolidated basis as
of the respective
dates thereof and
the results of operations, changes in stockholder's
equity
and cash flows for the periods covered thereby.
5.7 ABSENCE OF UNDISCLOSED LIABILITIES. There are no liabilities or
obligations of Company or any Company
Subsidiary
(whether accrued, absolute,
contingent, unliquidated or otherwise),
in each case to the
extent required by
GAAP to be disclosed or reserved against in
the Financial Statements, other than
those that (a) are accrued, reflected, disclosed or reserved against in the
Financial Statements, (b) have arisen in the ordinary
course of business since
the Balance Sheet Date, (c) were incurred pursuant to the transactions
contemplated by this Agreement, (d) were
discharged or paid in full prior to the
date hereof in the ordinary course of business, or (e) would not reasonably be
expected to result in a Company Material
Adverse Effect.
5.8 ABSENCE OF
CHANGES. Since the
Balance Sheet Date,
Company's business
has operated in all material respects in
the ordinary course and consistent with
past practice, and there has not been any
Company Material Adverse Effect.
5.9 REAL
PROPERTY.
(a) Section
5.9 of the
Disclosure
Schedule sets forth a true and
complete list of the addresses of all Properties (identifying those that are
Owned Properties and those that are Leased
Properties) that are
owned, used by
or occupied by and, in each case,
material to the
operations of Company and the
Company Subsidiaries, taken as a whole.
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(b) Company
has valid title in fee simple to all of the Owned
Properties and valid leasehold interests in
all Leased Properties,
in each case
free and clear of any Encumbrance, except
for Permitted Encumbrances.
(c) Neither
Seller nor
Company has received written notice with
respect to any Owned Property or to any Leased
Property in either
case that is
material to the operation of Company and the Company
Subsidiaries
taken as a
whole:
(1) that any
building or structure thereon, any equipment
therein or the operation or maintenance thereof violates
any Law in any material respect (including applicable
zoning ordinances);
(2) that any
building or other improvement owned by Company
encroaches upon
property of others or encroaches over
applicable setback lines in a way that would be material to
the operation of such building or improvement; or
(3) that any
condemnation proceeding is pending or threatened.
(d) Except as would not reasonably be expected to result
in a Company
Material Adverse Effect:
(1) neither
Company nor any
Company Subsidiary
is in default
under any lease for any Leased Property and there are no
events which
with the passage of time or the giving of
notice or both would
constitute a default
by Company or a
Company Subsidiary under any such lease; and
(2) there
are no outstanding written notices of breach or
default given to
Company or a Company
Subsidiary
by any
party to any such lease that remains uncured.
5.10 COMPANY
CONTRACTS. Section
5.10 of the Disclosure Schedule sets forth
a true and complete list of the following Contracts to which Company or a
Company Subsidiary is a party:
(a) material
distributor,
dealer,
advertising,
agency,
sales
representative or similar material
Contracts relating to the marketing or
sale
of Company's products (excluding customer purchase orders accepted in the
ordinary course of business);
(b) Contracts in amounts in excess of $500,000 for the future
purchase
or lease by Company or a Company
Subsidiary of
material, supplies,
equipment,
services or finished products purchased for
resale;
(c) Contracts having a term exceeding one year or involving amounts
in
excess of $500,000 for the future sale of products by Company or a Company
Subsidiary;
(d) collective bargaining agreements with any labor union;
19
<PAGE>
(e) Contracts for the employment of any officer, director or
employee,
or any other material Contracts with or
commitments to any officer, director or
employee;
(f) Material joint venture, partnership, design or license
agreements;
(g) indenture,
mortgage,
promissory
note,
loan
agreement,
reimbursement agreement, guaranty, or other Contract or commitment for the
borrowing of money, for a line of credit or letter of
credit, or for a
leasing
transaction of a type required to be capitalized in accordance with FASB
Statement of Financial Accounting Standards
No. 13;
(h) agreement
for the sale of assets of Company and Company
Subsidiaries, which assets have a book value of $500,000 or more in the
aggregate, other than sales of inventory in
the ordinary course of business;
(i) all product licensing Contracts in which Company has guaranteed
an
annual obligation of $500,000 or more;
and
(j) all Contracts or commitments for capital expenditures with
respect
to which the remaining unpaid balance
exceeds $500,000.
Neither Company nor any Company Subsidiary (i) is in breach or default
with
respect to any material term of any Company Contract and, to the Knowledge of
Seller, no other party to any Company Contract is in breach or default
with
respect to any material term of any Company
Contract, or (ii) has received any
written notice since January 1, 2005 of any breach or
default with respect to
any Company Contract which remains
uncured.
5.11 LITIGATION.
Section 5.11 of the Disclosure Schedule sets forth a list,
as of the date of this Agreement, of all: (a) Proceedings pending or, to the
Knowledge of Seller, threatened against Company or a
Company Subsidiary,
which
(i) if resolved unfavorably to Company or
any Company Subsidiary, is reasonably
likely to result in payments by Company or Company Subsidiary in excess of
$500,000, (ii) would materially adversely affect the ability of Seller or
Company to consummate the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, (iii)
would materially adversely affect the ability of
Buyer to operate the Business
following the Closing in substantially the same manner as operated by
Company
prior to the Closing, or (iv) involve or relate to any trade practices of
Company, including any pricing, promotion, rebate, discount, commission,
allocation, merchandising practice or territorial restriction; and (b)
judgments, decrees, injunctions or orders of any Governmental Body having a
material continuing effect against Company
or a Company Subsidiary.
5.12
COMPLIANCE.
(a) Company and each Company Subsidiary is in compliance with, and
has
not received any written notice of any
violation of,
applicable Laws (including
the U. S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and applicable
import and export Laws),
except, in each case, for such non-compliance or violations as
would not result
in a Company Material Adverse Effect.
(b) Except as would not result in a Company Material Adverse Effect,
(i) Company and the Company Subsidiaries have all governmental licenses and
permits necessary in
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the conduct of their business as currently conducted ("GOVERNMENTAL
AUTHORIZATIONS"), which Governmental Authorizations are in full force and
effect, and (ii) no violations
are outstanding or uncured with
respect to any
such Governmental Authorizations and, as of the date hereof, no
Proceeding is
pending or, to the Knowledge of Seller,
threatened to revoke any of them.
5.13
ENVIRONMENTAL.
(a) Notwithstanding
the generality of any
other representations
and
warranties in this Agreement, this Section 5.13 shall be deemed
to contain the
only representations and warranties in this Agreement or arising out of
the
transactions contemplated by this Agreement
with respect to Environmental Laws,
Hazardous Substances, Environmental Claims, the
environment or workplace health
and safety. Section 5.13(a) of the Disclosure
Schedule lists each Environmental
Site with respect to which Company has
incurred costs to investigate, remediate
or settle Environmental Claims that are, to Seller's Knowledge, not fully
resolved or has received notification of
potential
Environmental Claims against
Company or any Company Subsidiary.
(b) Seller
has provided Buyer true and complete copies of the
environmental reports listed in Section 5.13(b) of the Disclosure Schedule
(which, together with the environmental
audits obtained by Buyer as referred to
in Section 6.10, are collectively referred to as the "REPORTS"). To the
Knowledge of Seller and except as set forth
in the Reports,
since May 1, 2003
there has been no storage, disposition, generation, treatment, Release or
discharge of any Hazardous Substance by Company or any
Company Subsidiary,
in
any manner or at a level that is in
violation of applicable Environmental Laws
in any material respect, on, in, under,
about or from the Properties or the land
and buildings on and in which
Company or the Company
Subsidiaries
previously
conducted their operations.
(c) To the Knowledge of Seller and except as set forth in the
Reports,
Company and each Company Subsidiary is in compliance in all material
respects
with all Environmental Laws and since May 1, 2003 has not received written
notice of any unresolved potential liability with respect to any
Environmental
Law that would be material to the conduct
of Company's business.
(d) Except
as set forth in the Reports or Section 5.11 of the
Disclosure Schedule, there is no material
Environmental Claim pending or, to the
Knowledge of Seller, threatened against Company or any Company
Subsidiary or
otherwise relating to any of the Properties.
Section 5.13(d) of the
Disclosure
Schedule sets forth insurance settlement and PRP agreements related to
Environmental Sites to which Company or a
Company Subsidiary is a party.
(e) Each of Company and the Company Subsidiaries have obtained all
permits, licenses and approvals
("PERMITS") relating
to the Environmental Laws
necessary for its operation, except as
would not have a Company Material Adverse
Effect.
5.14 EMPLOYMENT
MATTERS.
(a) To the Knowledge of Seller, Company and the Company
Subsidiaries
are in material compliance with all
applicable Laws respecting labor, employment
and employment
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practices, terms and conditions of employment
and wages and hours.
There is no
material labor strike or work stoppage
pending or, to the
Knowledge of Seller,
threatened involving Company or any Company
Subsidiary.
There is no
material
unfair labor practice complaint against Company or any Company Subsidiary
pending before the National Labor Relations
Board or other Governmental Body. To
the Knowledge of Seller, there are no union
organizational
activities currently
underway with respect to non-union employees of Company or any Company
Subsidiary.
(b) As of the date of this Agreement, there are no pending or, to
the
Knowledge of Seller, threatened material
investigations,
audits, complaints or
Proceedings against Company by or before any
Governmental Body,
respecting or
involving any applicant for employment,
any employee or any
former employee, or
any class of the foregoing, including:
(1) the Equal
Employment
Opportunity
Commission
or any other
corresponding state or local agency relating to any claim or
charge concerning discrimination,
(2) the United States Department of Labor or any other
corresponding state or local agency relating to any claim or
charge concerning hours or wages,
(3) the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration or any
other corresponding
state or local agency
relating to any
claim or charge concerning the safety and health of
employees or former employees,
(4) the Office of Federal Contract Compliance or any
corresponding state agency, and
(5) the U. S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services, a bureau of
the Department of Homeland Security, with respect to matters
involving employees
of Company who hold a
temporary work
authorization,
including H-1B,
F-1 or J-1
visas or work
authorizations.
(c) Company is not
obligated as of the date of this Agreement to pay
any amounts pursuant to the requirements of
the Worker Adjustment and Retraining
Notification Act of 1988.
5.15 EMPLOYEE
BENEFIT PLANS.
(a) Section 5.15(a) of
the Disclosure
Schedule lists each material
plan, agreement, arrangement or policy providing for compensation, bonuses,
profit-sharing, stock option or other stock related rights or other forms of
incentive or deferred compensation,
vacation benefits,
insurance (including any
self-insured arrangements), health or medical benefits, employee assistance
program, disability or sick leave benefits,
workers' compensation,
supplemental
unemployment benefits, change in control benefits, severance benefits and
post-employment or retirement benefits
(including compensation, pension, health,
medical or life
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insurance benefits), or other employee benefits, in each case, which is
maintained, administered, sponsored or contributed to by Company or any
Affiliate of Company for the benefit of any current or former employee
(excluding, as to employees of Company who
also are or were employed by Seller,
those benefits attributable solely to their employment with
Seller) of Company
or any Company Subsidiary or which is between
Company or any of its
Affiliates
and any such individual (each, individually, a "PLAN" and collectively, the
"PLANS"). The Disclosure Schedule
specifically denotes each Plan that is either
sponsored by Company or a Company
Subsidiary
or to which
Company or a
Company
Subsidiary is party (each, a "COMPANY
PLAN").
(b) With respect to each Company Plan, Seller has made available to
Buyer: (i) a true, correct and complete
copy of such Company Plan; (ii) the most
recent Annual Report (Form 5500 Series) and
accompanying
schedules,
if any;
(iii) the most recent annual financial report, if any; (iv) the most recent
actuarial report, if any; and (v) the most
recent determination
letter from the
Internal Revenue Service, if any. Seller has also made
available to Buyer the
current summary plan description and any
material modifications thereto for each
Plan in respect of which there exists a
summary plan description.
(c) Section 5.15(c) of the Disclosure Schedule identifies each
Company
Plan that is intended to be a "qualified plan" within the meaning of Section
401(a) of the Code ("QUALIFIED PLAN"). The
Internal Revenue Service has issued a
favorable determination letter with respect to each Qualified Plan and the
related trust that has not been revoked,
and, to the
Knowledge of Seller,
no
events have occurred that would adversely affect the qualified status of any
Qualified Plan or the related trust.
(d) Company
or a Company
Subsidiary
has in all
material respects
timely made or accrued all contributions
required with respect
to any Qualified
Plan subject to Title IV of ERISA. No "accumulated funding deficiency"
(determined under the rules set forth in
Section 412 of the Code and related
Code sections and regulations), whether or not waived,
exists with respect
to
any Qualified Plan subject to Title IV of
ERISA. There have not, within the past
five years, been any "reportable
events" (within the
meaning of Section 4043 of
ERISA) with respect to any Qualified Plan
subject to Title IV of ERISA.
(e) Neither any Plan nor any other employee benefit plan maintained
by
an ERISA Affiliate of Company is a
Multiemployer
Plan or a Multiple
Employer
Plan. None of Company, any Company Subsidiary or any of their
respective ERISA
Affiliates has (i) at any time during the
last six years, contributed to or been
obligated to contribute to any
Multiemployer Plan or
Multiple Employer Plan, or
(ii) incurred any Withdrawal Liability that
has not been satisfied in full.
(f) The Plans are in material compliance both in form and operation
with ERISA, the Code and other applicable Laws, and have been administered in
all material respects in accordance with
their terms.
(g) Consummation of
the transactions
contemplated by this
Agreement
will not be a factor causing payments to be
made by Company or any Tax Affiliate
that are not deductible (in whole or in
part) as a result of the application of
Section 280G of the Code.
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5.16
INTERCOMPANY
TRANSACTIONS.
Section 5.16 of the
Disclosure
Schedule
sets forth a list of all material
Contracts between Seller or its
subsidiaries
(other than Company and Company
Subsidiaries), on the one hand, and Company or a
Company Subsidiary, on the other hand, and other
material arrangements
whereby
Seller or its subsidiaries (other than
Company and Company Subsidiaries) provide
goods or services to, or obtain goods or services from, Company or Company
Subsidiaries. All such arrangements will
cease as of the Closing Date other than
(a) those provided for in Contracts
specifically
noted at Section 5.16
of the
Disclosure Schedule as continuing in effect
after Closing, which
will continue
in effect in accordance with their
respective terms, and
(b) as provided in the
Transition Services Agreement.
5.17
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.
(a) Company or the
Company Subsidiaries own all right, title and
interest in and to, or have valid
licenses to use,
all Intellectual Property
that is material to the current operations of Company and the Company
Subsidiaries taken as a whole, free and clear of all Encumbrances other than
Permitted Encumbrances.
(b) Section 5.17(b) of
the Disclosure
Schedule sets forth a true and
complete list of all material patents,
patents pending,
trademark/service
mark
applications and registrations,
copyright applications and registrations,
and
domain name registrations that are owned by
Company or any Company Subsidiary.
(c) To the Knowledge of Seller:
(1) there is no
material infringement, misappropriation or other
misuse being made by
any third person of
any Intellectual
Property material
to the business of Company and Company
Subsidiaries as a whole;
(2) no claim is
pending or
threatened
to the effect
that the
operations of Company
or Company
Subsidiaries infringe
or
conflict with the
asserted rights of others in respect of
any Intellectual
Property material to the business of
Company and Company Subsidiaries as a whole; and
(3) no claim is
pending or
threatened
to the effect
that any
Intellectual Property
material to the
business of
Company
and Company
Subsidiaries
as a whole is invalid or
unenforceable.
(d) Section 5.17(d) of the Disclosure Schedule sets forth the
licenses
pursuant to which Company or any Company
Subsidiary
grants to any other
Person
(other than Company or any Company
Subsidiary)
the right to use
Intellectual
Property owned by Company or any Company
Subsidiary material to
the business of
Company and Company Subsidiaries as a whole, and the
licenses pursuant to which
any other Person grants to Company or any Company
Subsidiary
the right to use
Intellectual Property material to the business of Company and Company
Subsidiaries as a whole owned by any other
Person (other than
licenses to use
off-the-shelf software). To the Knowledge
of Seller:
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(1) neither
Company nor any
Company Subsidiary
is in material
breach or default with respect to any of such licenses;
(2) no other party
thereto is in material breach or default with
respect to any o