EXHIBIT 10.1
EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT (the
“Agreement”), dated as of April 4, 2006, is by and
between CastlePoint Holdings, Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company (the
“Company”), and Michael H. Lee (the
“Executive”).
WITNESSETH THAT
WHEREAS, the Company is a newly
formed Bermuda exempted company that proposes to make a private
placement of the Company’s securities with net proceeds to
the Company of at least $100 million (the “Offering”);
and
WHEREAS, Executive presently serves
as the Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tower
Group, Inc. (“Tower”) and will continue to provide
such services to Tower while employed by the Company;
and
WHEREAS, the Executive and the
Company wish to enter into a written agreement setting forth the
terms and conditions of the Executive’s employment with the
Company following completion of the Offering; and
WHEREAS, this Agreement is the
entire agreement between the parties concerning the subject matter
hereof and supersedes all prior agreements concerning the same
subject.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of
the premises and the mutual covenants contained herein, the Company
and the Executive hereby agree as follows:
1.
Term .
(a)
Term of Employment
.
(i)
The Company shall employ the
Executive, and the Executive shall serve the Company, on the terms
and subject to the conditions set forth in this Agreement,
commencing on the date of the closing of the Offering (the
“Effective Date”) and, unless sooner terminated
pursuant to section 4, continuing until July 31, 2009 or
such later date as provided in subsection 1(a)(ii) below
(the “Term of Employment”).
(ii)
The Term of Employment shall be
extended automatically for one additional year on the last day
before the fifth anniversary of the Effective Date and for one
additional year on each anniversary thereafter unless and until
either party gives written notice to the other not to extend this
Agreement at least one year before such extension would be
effectuated.
(b)
Term of the Agreement
. This Agreement shall become
effective on the Effective Date and shall continue in effect
throughout the Term of Employment; provided, however, the
restrictive covenants contained in section 10 of this
Agreement and, as applicable, the Company’s and the
Executive’s obligations under the other provisions of this
Agreement
shall survive the Term of Employment and shall
continue in effect through the periods provided therein and/or
until the Company’s and/or the Executive’s obligations,
as applicable, thereunder are satisfied.
2.
Position and Duties
.
(a)
Positions, Duties, and
Responsibilities . The
Executive shall serve as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of
the Company (the “Board”) and the President and Chief
Executive Officer of the Company. As Chief Executive Officer of the
Company, the Executive shall have such duties and responsibilities
as are customarily assigned to such positions, and such other
duties and responsibilities not inconsistent therewith as
may from time to time be assigned to him by the Board. Unless
otherwise determined by the Board, in his capacity as Chief
Executive Officer, the Executive shall report solely to the Board.
The Executive agrees to serve without additional compensation in
such capacities (including, without limitation, as an employee or
director) with Company affiliates (other than Tower and its
affiliates) as the Board or a committee of the Board may in
its discretion prescribe. Upon termination of the Executive’s
employment with the Company, the Executive’s position as
Chairman of the Board and any employment, board membership or other
service relationship with any Company affiliate shall automatically
terminate unless otherwise determined by the parties
hereto.
(b)
Time and Attention
. Excluding any periods of vacation
and sick leave to which the Executive is entitled, the Executive
shall devote a substantial portion of his attention and time during
normal working hours to the business and affairs of the Company and
its affiliates. The Company agrees and acknowledges that Executive
shall continue to serve Tower as its Chairman, President and Chief
Executive Officer and to devote a substantial portion of his
attention and time during normal working hours to the business and
affairs of Tower and its affiliates. It shall not be considered a
violation of the foregoing, however, for the Executive to
(i) serve on corporate, industry, educational, religious,
civic, or charitable boards or committees or (ii) make and
attend to passive personal investments in such form as will
not require any material time or attention to the operations
thereof during normal working time and will not violate the
provisions of section 10 hereof, so long as such activities in
clauses (i) and (ii) do not materially interfere with the
performance of the Executive’s responsibilities as an
employee of the Company in accordance with this Agreement or
violate section 10 of this Agreement.
3.
Compensation
. Except as otherwise expressly set
forth below, the Executive’s compensation shall be determined
by, and in the sole discretion of, the Compensation Committee of
the Board (the “Committee”).
(a)
Annual Base Salary
. Subject to adjustment pursuant to
this subsection 3(a), the Executive shall receive an annual
base salary of $244,688 during the Term of Employment (the annual
base salary in effect from time to time, “Annual Base
Salary”). The Annual Base Salary shall be payable in
accordance with the Company’s regular payroll practices for
its senior officers, as in effect from time to time. The Annual
Base Salary shall be reviewed from time to time, but not less
frequently than annually, and, in the discretion of the Committee
may be adjusted but not decreased below the amount set forth
in the first sentence of this subsection 3(a). To the extent
Annual Base Salary is adjusted, then such adjusted salary shall be
the Executive’s Annual Base Salary for all purposes of this
Agreement.
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(b)
Annual Bonus
. The Executive shall have an
opportunity to receive annual bonuses during the Term of Employment
(the “Annual Bonus”), subject to such terms and
conditions as the Committee shall prescribe. The Executive’s
target Annual Bonus opportunity shall be $244,688, it being
understood that the actual Annual Bonus received by the Executive
will depend on the level of attainment of performance and other
factors used by the Committee to determine Annual Bonus amounts and
that there is no guarantee that an Annual Bonus will be earned. The
Executive’s target Annual Bonus opportunity shall be reviewed
from time to time, but not less frequently than annually, and, in
the discretion of the Committee, may be adjusted but not
decreased below the amount set forth in the second sentence of this
subsection 3(b).
(c)
Employee Benefits; Fringe
Benefits . In addition to
the foregoing, during the Term of Employment,
(i)
As soon as reasonably practicable,
but effective on the Effective Date, the Committee shall grant to
the Executive an option to acquire 840,000 of the Company’s
common shares at an exercise price per share equal to the offering
price per share of the Company’s common shares in the
Offering. The other terms of the stock option shall be as set forth
in the Company’s 2006 Long-Term Equity Compensation Plan and
the option award agreement entered into thereunder. The stock
option award provided for in this subsection (i) is made
as an inducement essential to the Executive’s entering into
this Agreement.
(ii)
to the extent not duplicative of the
specific benefits provided herein, subject to the following
sentence, the Executive shall be eligible to participate in all
incentive compensation, retirement, supplemental retirement, and
deferred compensation plans, policies and arrangements that are
provided generally to other senior officers of the
Company.
(iii)
the Executive and, as applicable,
the Executive’s covered dependents shall be eligible to
participate in all of the Company’s health and welfare
benefit plans (within the meaning of Section 3(1) of the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as
amended);
(iv)
the Executive shall be entitled to
receive fringe benefits provided for senior officers of the
Company, and shall be entitled to avail himself of paid holidays,
as determined from time to time by the Company; and
(v)
the Executive may also
participate in certain executive benefit plans, which
may include a paid country club membership in Bermuda up to
$10,000 annually and a monthly car allowance of up to
$1,000.
(d)
Vacation . The Executive shall be entitled to not less
than 6 weeks of paid vacation per calendar year during the Term of
Employment. Executive agrees to make himself available during such
periods of vacation to the extent needed by the Company. Vacation
days not used within the year shall be carried forward to
subsequent years, as determined by the Company and subject to such
conditions or restrictions as the Company
may prescribe.
(e)
Expenses . The Executive shall be reimbursed by the
Company for reasonable business expenses actually incurred in
rendering to the Company the services provided for hereunder during
the Term of Employment, payable in accordance with
customary
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Company practice, after the Executive presents
written expense statements or such other supporting information as
the Company may require of its senior officers for
reimbursement of such expenses. If the Executive relocates to
Bermuda, the Company will provide to the Executive benefits,
including housing customarily provided to similarly situated senior
executives residing in Bermuda, and travel to and from Bermuda for
Executive’s immediate family pursuant to Company policies as
in effect from time to time.
4.
Termination of
Employment .
(a)
Termination of Employment and
Term of Employment . The
Company or the Executive may terminate the Executive’s
employment at any time and for any reason in accordance with
subsection 4(b) below. The Term of Employment shall be
deemed to have ended on the last day of the Executive’s
employment. The Term of Employment shall terminate upon the
Executive’s death.
(b)
Notice of Termination
. Any purported termination of the
Executive’s employment (other than by reason of death) shall
be communicated by written Notice of Termination from one party
hereto to the other party hereto in accordance with the notice
provisions contained in subsection 15(b) below. For
purposes of this Agreement, a “Notice of Termination”
shall mean a notice that indicates the Date of Termination and,
with respect to a termination due to Disability, Cause or Good
Reason, sets forth in reasonable detail the facts and circumstances
that are alleged to provide a basis for such termination. A Notice
of Termination from the Company shall specify whether the
termination is with or without Cause or due to the
Executive’s Disability. A Notice of Termination from the
Executive shall specify whether the termination is with or without
Good Reason and, if the termination is without Good Reason, whether
the termination is due to his Disability or retirement. For
avoidance of doubt, the Executive shall not be deemed to have
retired for purposes of this Agreement if his employment is
terminated by the Company (whether or not such termination is with
or without Cause or due to the Executive’s Disability), by
the Executive with Good Reason, due to a Disability or due to the
Executive’s death.
(c)
Date of Termination
. For purposes of this Agreement,
“Date of Termination” shall mean the date specified in
the Notice of Termination (but in no event shall such date be
earlier than the 30th day following the date the Notice of
Termination is given, unless expressly agreed to by the parties
hereto) or the date of the Executive’s death.
(d)
No Waiver . The failure to set forth any fact or
circumstance in a Notice of Termination, which fact or circumstance
was not known to the party giving the Notice of Termination when
the notice was given, shall not constitute a waiver of the right to
assert such fact or circumstance in an attempt to enforce any right
under or provision of this Agreement.
(e)
Cause . For purposes of this Agreement, the term
“Cause” means: (i) the Executive’s gross
negligence or gross misconduct or (ii) the Executive’s
having been convicted of, or entered a plea of nolo contendere to,
a crime involving moral turpitude or a felony. No act or failure to
act directly related to Company action or inaction that constitutes
Good Reason shall constitute Cause under this Agreement if the
Executive has provided a Notice of Termination based on such Good
Reason event prior to the Company’s giving of the Notice of
Termination
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for Cause. The Executive’s termination for
Cause shall be effective when and if a resolution is duly adopted
by an affirmative vote of the entire Board (less the Executive),
stating that, in the good faith opinion of the Board, the Executive
is guilty of the conduct described in the Notice of Termination,
and such conduct constitutes Cause under this Agreement; provided,
however, that the Executive shall have been given the opportunity
(i) to cure any act or omission that constitutes Cause if
capable of cure and (ii), together with counsel, during the 30-day
period following the receipt by the Executive of the Notice of
Termination and prior to the adoption of the Board’s
resolution, to be heard by the Board.
(f)
Disability
. For purposes of this Agreement,
the Executive shall be deemed to have a Disability if the Executive
is entitled to long-term disability benefits under the
Company’s long-term disability plan or policy, as the case
may be, as in effect on the Date of Termination.
(g)
Good Reason
. For purposes of this Agreement,
the term “Good Reason” means the occurrence (without
the Executive’s express written consent) of any of the
following acts or failures to act by the Company:
(i)
the assignment to the Executive of
duties materially inconsistent with the Executive’s position
of Chief Executive Officer or a substantial diminution in the
Executive’s authority and duties, except as provided
herein;
(ii)
any reduction in the
Executive’s Annual Base Salary or target Annual Bonus
opportunity, except as provided herein;
(iii)
requiring the Executive to be based
more than 50 miles away from Bermuda or New York City, New
York;
(iv)
the material breach by the Company
of any of its other obligations under this Agreement; or
(v)
the failure of the Company to obtain
the assumption of this Agreement as contemplated in
subsection 13(b) hereof.
The Executive’s continued
employment shall not constitute consent to, or a waiver of rights
with respect to, any act or failure to act constituting Good Reason
hereunder; provided, however, that no such event described above
shall constitute Good Reason unless the Executive has given a
Notice of Termination to the Company specifying the condition or
event relied upon for such termination within 90 days from the
Executive’s actual knowledge of the occurrence of such event
and, if capable of cure, the Company has failed to cure the
condition or event constituting Good Reason within the 30 day
period following receipt of the Executive’s Notice of
Termination.
5.
Obligations of the Company upon
Termination .
(a)
Termination by the Company for
other than Cause or by the Executive for Good Reason.
If the Executive’s employment
is terminated by the Company for any reason other than Cause or
Disability or by the Executive for Good Reason:
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(i)
The Company shall pay to the
Executive, within thirty business days of the Date of Termination,
any earned but unpaid Annual Base Salary;
(ii)
The Company shall pay to the
Executive, within thirty business days of the Date of Termination,
a prorated Annual Bonus based on (A) the target Annual Bonus
opportunity in the year in which the Date of Termination occurs or
the prior year if no target Annual Bonus opportunity has yet been
determined (disregarding any reduction in target Annual Bonus
opportunity that was the basis for a termination by the Executive
for Good Reason) and (B) the fraction of the year the
Executive was employed.
(iii)
The Company shall pay to the
Executive, within thirty business days of the Date of Termination,
a lump-sum payment equal to the sum of 300% of (x) the
Executive’s Annual Base Salary in effect immediately prior to
the Date of Termination (disregarding any reduction in Annual Base
Salary that was the basis for a termination by the Executive for
Good Reason), and (y) the average of the Annual Bonuses paid to the
Executive within the three years preceding his termination of
employment or, if none, the most recent target Annual Bonus
opportunity for Executive;
(iv)
For a three (3) year period
after the Date of Termination, the Company will arrange to provide
the Executive (and any covered dependents), without cost to the
Executive, with life, accident and health insurance benefits
substantially similar to those the Executive and any covered
dependents were receiving immediately prior to the Notice of
Termination, except for any such benefits that were waived by the
Executive in writing. If the Company arranges to provide the
Executive and covered dependents with life, accident and health
insurance benefits, those benefits will be reduced to the extent
comparable benefits are actually received by, or made available to,
the Executive by a subsequent employer or Tower without cost during
the three (3) year period following the Executive’s Date
of Termination. The Executive must report to the Company any such
benefits that he actually receives or are made available. In lieu
of the benefits described in this subsection 5(a)(iv), the
Company, in its sole discretion, may elect to pay to the
Executive a lump sum cash payment equal to the tot