EXHIBIT 10.14
EQUIFAX
2005 DIRECTOR DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN
(EFFECTIVE AS OF JANUARY 1, 2005,
EXCEPT WHERE OTHERWISE NOTED)
Effective as of January 1,
2003, Equifax Inc. (the “Company”) established the
Equifax Director Deferred Compensation Plan (“Prior
Plan”) for the purpose of attracting high quality outside
directors and promoting in its directors increased efficiency and
further interest in the successful operation and performance of the
Company.
Because the laws applicable to
nonqualified deferred compensation plans were significantly changed
effective January 1, 2005, the Company has decided to adopt a
new deferred compensation plan, the Equifax 2005 Director Deferred
Compensation Plan (the “Plan”) for deferrals by
eligible directors occurring on or after January 1,
2005. The vested amounts credited to participants as of
December 31, 2004 under the Prior Plan (and any earnings on
such amounts) will remain credited under the Prior Plan and subject
to the terms and conditions of the Prior Plan.
ARTICLE I.
Definitions
1.1
Account
shall mean the
records maintained by the Administrator to determine the
Participant’s deferrals under this Plan. Such Account
may be reflected as an entry in the Company’s records, or as
a separate account under a trust, or as a combination of
both. The Administrator may establish such subaccounts as it
deems necessary for the proper administration of the
Plan.
1.2
Administrator
shall mean the
person or persons appointed by the Board of Directors of the
Company (or its designee) to administer the Plan pursuant to
Article 10 of the Plan.
1.3
Beneficiary
shall mean the
person(s) or entity designated as such in accordance with
Article 9 of the Plan.
1.4
Change in
Control shall mean any of the
following events:
a.
Voting Stock
Accumulations . The accumulation by
any Person of Beneficial Ownership of twenty percent (20%) or more
of the combined voting power of the Company’s Voting Stock;
provided that for purposes of this subparagraph (a), a Change in
Control will not be deemed to have occurred if the accumulation of
twenty percent (20%) or more of the voting power of the
Company’s Voting Stock results from any acquisition of Voting
Stock (i) directly from the Company that is approved by the
Incumbent Board, (ii) by the Company, (iii) by any
employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by
the Company or any Subsidiary, or (iv) by any Person pursuant
to a Business Combination that complies with all of the provisions
of clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (b);
or
b.
Business
Combinations. Consummation of a
Business Combination, unless, immediately following that Business
Combination, (i) all or substantially all of the Persons who
were the beneficial owners of Voting Stock of the Company
immediately prior to that Business Combination beneficially own,
directly or indirectly, more than sixty-six and two-thirds percent
(66-2/3%) of the then outstanding shares of common stock and the
combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities
entitled to vote generally in the election of Directors of the
entity resulting from that Business Combination (including, without
limitation, an entity that as a result of that 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 that Business Combination, of the
Voting Stock of the Company, (ii) no Person (other than the
Company, that entity resulting from that Business Combination, or
any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or
maintained by the Company, any Eighty Percent (80%) Subsidiary or
that entity resulting from that Business Combination) beneficially
owns, directly or indirectly, twenty percent (20%) or more of the
then outstanding shares of common stock of the entity resulting
from that Business Combination or the combined voting power of the
then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally in
the election of directors of that entity, and (iii) at least a
majority of the members of the Board of Directors of the entity
resulting from that 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 that Business
Combination; or
c.
Sale of
Assets . Consummation of a
sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets
of the Company; or
d.
Liquidations
or Dissolutions . Approval by the
shareholders of the Company of a complete liquidation or
dissolution of the Company, except pursuant to a Business
Combination that complies with all of the provisions of clauses
(i), (ii) and (iii) of subparagraph (b).
e.
Definitions
. For
purposes of this paragraph defining Change in Control, the
following definitions shall apply:
i.
Beneficial
Ownership shall mean beneficial
ownership as that term is used in Rule 13d-3 promulgated under
the Exchange Act.
ii.
Business
Combination shall mean a reorganization,
merger or consolidation of the Company.
iii.
Eighty Percent
(80%) Subsidiary shall mean an entity in which
the Company directly or indirectly beneficially owns eighty percent
(80%) or more of the outstanding Voting Stock.
iv.
Exchange
Act shall mean the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, including amendments, or successor statutes
of similar intent.
v.
Incumbent
Board shall mean a Board of
Directors at least a majority of whom consist of individuals who
either are (a) members of the Company’s Board
of
2
Directors as of
December 1, 2007 or (b) members who become members of the
Company’s Board of Directors subsequent to December 1,
2007 whose election, or nomination for election by the
Company’s shareholders, was approved by a vote of at least
two-thirds (2/3) 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 that person is named as a nominee
for director, without objection to that nomination), but excluding,
for that purpose, any 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 of Directors.
vi.
Person
shall mean any
individual, entity or group (within the meaning of
Section 13(d)(3) or 14 (d) (2) of the Exchange
Act).
vii.
Voting
Stock shall mean the then outstanding securities of an
entity entitled to vote generally in the election of members of
that entity’s Board of Directors.
1.5
Code shall mean the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.
1.6
Compensation
shall mean the
retainer and meeting fees payable to the Participant by the Company
for the Plan Year before reductions for contributions to or
deferrals under any deferred compensation or benefit plans
sponsored by the Company.
1.7
Company
shall mean
Equifax Inc., a Georgia corporation, or its successor.
1.8
Crediting
Rate shall mean the notional gains
and losses credited on the Participant’s Account balance
pursuant to Article 3 of the Plan.
1.9
Eligible
Director shall mean a member of the
Board of Directors of the Company who is not an employee of the
Company or such other independent contractor as may be designated
by the Administrator to be eligible to participate in the
Plan.
1.10
Financial
Hardship shall mean an unexpected
need for cash arising from illness, casualty loss, sudden financial
reversal, or other such unforeseeable occurrence which is not
covered by insurance and which is determined to qualify as a
Financial Hardship by the Administrator. Cash needs arising from
foreseeable events such as the purchase of a residence or education
expenses for children shall not, alone, be considered a Financial
Hardship. The Administrator shall make its determination of
Financial Hardship in a manner consistent with the requirements of
Section 409A.
1.11
Participant
shall mean an
Eligible Director who has elected to participate and has completed
a Participant Election Form pursuant to Article 2 of the
Plan.
1.12
Participant
Election Form shall mean the written
agreement to make a deferral submitted by the Participant to the
Administrator on a timely basis pursuant to Article 2 of the
Plan. The Participant Election Form may take the form of an
electronic communication followed by appropriate written
confirmation according to specifications established by the
Administrator.
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1.13
Plan
Year shall mean the calendar
year.
1.14
Prior
Plan shall mean the Equifax
Director Deferred Compensation Plan, effective as of
January 1, 2003 and as it may be amended.
1.15
Retirement
shall mean a
Participant’s Termination of Service.
1.16
Scheduled
Withdrawal shall mean the distribution
elected by the Participant pursuant to Article 7 of the
Plan.
1.17
Section 409A
shall mean
Section 409A of the Code, as it may be amended from time to
time, and the regulations and rulings thereunder.
1.18
Settlement
Date shall mean the date by which
a lump sum payment shall be made or the date by which installment
payments shall commence. Unless otherwise specified, the Settlement
Date shall be the last day of January of the Plan Year
following the year in which the event triggering the payout occurs.
In the case of death, the event triggering payout shall be deemed
to occur upon the date the Administrator is provided with the
documentation reasonably necessary to establish the fact of the
Participant’s death.
1.19
Termination
of Service shall mean the date of the
cessation of the Participant’s service as a member of the
Board of Directors of the Company for any reason whatsoever,
whether voluntary or involuntary, including as a result of the
Participant’s death or disability.
1.20
Valuation
Date shall mean the date through
which earnings are credited and shall be the last day of the month
preceding the month in which the payout or other event triggering
the Valuation occurs.
ARTICLE 2
Participation
2.1
Elective
Deferral . For each Plan Year a
Participant may elect to defer any whole percentage between five
percent (5%) and one hundred percent (100%) of Compensation earned
by the Participant during the Plan Year. The foregoing limits shall
be interpreted and applied by the Administrator and the
Administrator may prior to the commencement of the Plan Year
provide for a different method for the determination of allowable
deferrals for the Plan Year, further limit the minimum or maximum
amount deferred by any Participant or group of Participants, or
waive the foregoing limits for any Participant or group of
Participants, for any reason.
2.2
Participant
Election Form . In order to make a
deferral, an Eligible Director must submit a Participant Election
Form to the Administrator during the enrollment period
established by the Administrator prior to the beginning of the Plan
Year during which the Compensation is earned. The Administrator may
establish a special enrollment period for Eligible Directors hired
during a Plan Year to allow deferrals of Compensation earned during
the balance of such Plan Year after such enrollment period. The
Participant shall be required to submit a new Participant Election
Form on a timely basis in order to change the
Participant’s deferral election for a subsequent
Plan
4
Year. If no Participant
Election Form is filed during the prescribed enrollment
period, the Participant’s election for the prior Plan Year
shall continue in force for the next Plan Year.
2.3
Election
Irrevocable . The election to defer
Compensation shall be irrevocable except as provided in
Article 6 in the event of disability or Section 4.4 in
the case of a Financial Hardship. If the Participant’s
deferrals are discontinued under the Plan, the Participant shall
forfeit the right to make deferrals for the balance of the Plan
Year in which such election occurs and for the entire next
following Plan Year.
ARTICLE
III
Accounts
3.1
Participant
Accounts. Solely for recordkeeping
purposes, up to three (3) Accounts (a Retirement Account and
two Scheduled Withdrawal Accounts) shall be maintained for each
Participant and shall be credited with the Participant’s
deferrals directed by the Participant to each Account at the time
such amounts would otherwise have been paid to the
Participant. The Participant will designate for each Plan
Year which portion of the Participant’s deferrals for such
Plan Year shall be credited to the Participant’s Retirement
Account and any Scheduled Withdrawal Account the Participant has
elected to establish. Accounts shall be deemed to be credited
with notional gains or losses as provided in Section 3.2 from
the date the deferral is credited to the Account through the
Valuation Date. Amounts credited to a Participant’s Account
shall be fully vested at all times.
With respect to Eligible Directors
who participated in the Prior Plan prior to January 1, 2005,
and who have made deferral elections under the Prior Plan for 2005,
2006, and 2007 with respect to compensation which was earned and
became payable on or after January 1, 2005, the Company hereby
transfers all rights with respect to such deferral elections to the
Plan and the Plan hereby assumes all obligations with respect to
such deferral elections. Such deferral elections shall be
maintained and administered in accordance with the Plan, including
the payment rules of the Plan. The Administrator may
permit changes to such deferral elections and payment elections in
accordance with Section 409A.
3.2
Crediting
Rate .
The Crediting Rate on amounts in a Participant’s Account
shall be based on the hypothetical investment of such amounts in
the Equifax Common Stock Fund. If the Equifax Common Stock Fund
reflects a gain, the Participant’s Account shall be increased
to reflect such gain. If the Equifax Common Stock Fund sustains a
loss, the Participant’s Account shall be reduced to reflect
such loss. The Company shall have no obligation to set aside or
invest funds in the Equifax Common Stock Fund on behalf of the
Participant and, if the Company elects to invest funds in such
manner, the Participant shall have no more right to such
investments than any other unsecured general creditor. During
payout, the Participant’s Account shall continue to be
credited at the Crediting Rate through the Valuation Date.
Installment payments shall be recalculated annually by dividing the
account balance by the number of payments remaining without regard
to anticipated earnings or in any other reasonable manner as may be
determined from time to time by the Administrator.
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3.3
Statement of
Accounts . The Administrator shall
provide each Participant with a statement at least quarterly
setting forth the Participant’s Account balance as of the end
of each quarter.
ARTICLE
4
Retirement
Benefits
4.1
Retirement
Benefits . In the event of the
Participant’s Retirement, the Participant shall be entitled
to receive an amount equal to the total balance of the
Participant’s Account credited with notional earnings as
provided in Article 3 through the Valuation Date. The benefits
shall be paid in a single lump sum unless the Participant has
elected at the time of deferral (or in accordance with the
transition rules of Section 409A) to have the benefit
paid in substantially level annual installments over a specified
period of not more than fifteen (15) years. Payment
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