EXHIBIT 10.1
FORM
OF INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT
INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT
This Indemnification Agreement ("Agreement")
is made as of ________ __, 2005, by and between XTO Energy Inc., a
Delaware corporation (the "Company"), and ______________
("Indemnitee").
WHEREAS, because of
the increased exposure to litigation subjecting directors and
officers to expensive litigation risks, talented and experienced
persons are increasingly reluctant to serve or continue to serve as
directors and officers of publicly-held corporations unless they
are provided with adequate protection through insurance or adequate
indemnification against inordinate risks of claims and actions
against them arising out of their service to and activities on
behalf of the corporation;
WHEREAS, the Board of
Directors of the Company (the "Board") has determined that, in
order to attract and retain qualified individuals, the Company will
attempt to maintain on an ongoing basis, at its sole expense,
liability insurance to protect persons serving the Company and its
subsidiaries from certain liabilities. Although the furnishing of
such insurance has been a customary and widespread practice among
United States-based corporations and other business enterprises,
the Company believes that, given current market conditions and
trends, such insurance may be available to it in the future only at
higher premiums and with more exclusions. At the same time,
directors, officers, and other persons in service to corporations
or business enterprises are being increasingly subjected to
expensive and time-consuming litigation relating to, among other
things, matters that traditionally would have been brought only
against the Company or business enterprise itself. The By-laws of
the Company require indemnification of the officers and directors
of the Company. Indemnitee may also be entitled to indemnification
pursuant to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware
("DGCL"). The By-laws and the DGCL expressly provide that the
indemnification provisions set forth therein are not exclusive, and
thereby contemplate that contracts may be entered into between the
Company and members of the board of directors, officers and other
persons with respect to indemnification;
WHEREAS, the
uncertainties relating to such insurance and to indemnification
have increased the difficulty of attracting and retaining such
persons;
WHEREAS, the Board
has determined that the increased difficulty in attracting and
retaining such persons is detrimental to the best interests of the
Company's stockholders and that the Company should act to assure
such persons that there will be increased certainty of such
protection in the future;
WHEREAS, it
is reasonable, prudent and necessary for the Company contractually
to obligate itself to indemnify, and to advance expenses on behalf
of, such persons to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law
so that they will serve or continue to serve the Company free from
undue concern that they will not be so indemnified;
WHEREAS, this
Agreement is a supplement to and in furtherance of the By-laws of
the Company and any resolutions adopted pursuant thereto, and shall
not be deemed a substitute therefor, nor to diminish or abrogate
any rights of Indemnitee thereunder;
WHEREAS, the Company
desires Indemnitee to serve in his capacity as an officer or
director, and Indemnitee is willing to serve, continue to serve and
to take on additional service for or on behalf of the Company on
the condition that he be so indemnified; and
NOW, THEREFORE, in
consideration of the premises and the covenants contained herein,
the Company and Indemnitee do hereby covenant and agree as
follows:
Section 1. Services to the Company.
Indemnitee agrees to serve as a [director] [officer] of the
Company. Indemnitee may at any time and for any reason resign from
such position (subject to any other contractual obligation or any
obli-gation imposed by operation of law), in which event the
Company shall have no obliga-tion under this Agreement to continue
Indemnitee in such position. This Agreement shall not be deemed an
employment contract between the Company (or any of its subsidiaries
or any Enterprise) and Indemnitee. Indemnitee specifically
acknowledges that Indemnitee's employment with the Company (or any
of its subsidiaries or any Enterprise), if any, is at will, and the
Indemnitee may be discharged at any time for any reason, with or
without cause, except as may be otherwise provided in any written
employment contract between Indemnitee and the Company (or any of
its subsidiaries or any Enterprise), other applicable formal
severance policies duly adopted by the Board, or, with respect to
service as a director or officer of the Company, by the Company's
Certificate of Incorporation, the Company's By-laws, and the
General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware. The foregoing
notwithstanding, this Agreement shall continue in force after
Indemnitee has ceased to serve as an [officer] [director] of the
Company.
Section 2. Definitions. As used in this
Agreement:
(a) A "Change in
Control" shall be deemed to occur upon the earliest to occur after
the date of this Agreement of any of the following events:
i. Acquisition
of Stock by Third Party. Any Person (as defined below) is or
becomes the Beneficial Owner (as defined below), directly or
indirectly, of securities of the Company representing fifteen
percent (15%) or more of the combined voting power of the Company's
then outstanding securities;
ii. Change in
Board of Directors. During any period of two (2) consecutive years
(not including any period prior to the execution of this
Agreement), individuals who at the beginning of such period
constitute the Board, and any new director (other than a director
designated by a person who has entered into an agreement with the
Company to effect a transaction described in Sections 2(a)(i),
2(a)(iii) or 2(a)(iv)) whose election by the Board or nomination
for election by the Company's stockholders was approved by a vote
of at least two-thirds of the directors then still in office who
either were directors at the beginning of the period or whose
election or nomination for election was previously so approved,
cease for any reason to constitute a least a majority of the
members of the Board;
iii. Corporate
Transactions. The effective date of a merger or consolidation of
the Company with any other entity, other than a merger or
consolidation which would result in the voting securities of the
Company outstanding immediately prior to such merger or
consolidation continuing to represent (either by remaining
outstanding or by being converted into voting securities of the
surviving entity) more than 51% of the combined voting power of the
voting securities of the surviving entity outstanding immediately
after such merger or consolidation and with the power to elect at
least a majority of the board of directors or other governing body
of such surviving entity;
iv. Liquidation.
The approval by the stockholders of the Company of a complete
liquidation of the Company or an agreement for the sale or
disposition by the Company of all or substantially all of the
Company's assets; and
v. Other Events.
There occurs any other event of a nature that would be required to
be reported in response to Item 6(e) of Schedule 14A of Regulation
14A (or a response to any similar item on any similar schedule or
form) promulgated under the Exchange Act (as defined below),
whether or not the Company is then subject to such reporting
requirement.
For purposes of this Section 2(a), the
following terms shall have the following meanings:
(A) "Exchange
Act" shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended.
(B) "Person"
shall have the meaning as set forth in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of
the Exchange Act; provided, however, that Person shall exclude (i)
the Company, (ii) any trustee or other fiduciary holding securities
under an employee benefit plan of the Company, and (iii) any
corporation owned, directly or indirectly, by the stockholders of
the Company in substantially the same proportions as their
ownership of stock of the Company.
(C) "Beneficial
Owner" shall have the meaning given to such term in Rule 13d-3
under the Exchange Act; provided, however, that Beneficial Owner
shall exclude any Person otherwise becoming a Beneficial Owner by
reason of the stockholders of the Company approving a merger of the
Company with another entity.
(b) "Corporate
Status" describes the status of a person who is or was a director,
officer, employee or agent of the Company or of any other
corporation, limited liability company, partnership or joint
venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise which
such person is or was serving at the request of the Company.
(c) "Disinterested Director" means a director of the Company
who is not and was not a party to the Proceeding in respect of
which indemnification is sought by Indemnitee.
(d) "Enterprise"
shall mean the Company and any other corporation, limited liability
company, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan
or other enterprise of which Indemnitee is or was serving at the
request of the Company as a director, officer, employee, agent or
fiduciary.
(e) "Expenses"
shall include all reasonable attorneys' fees, retainers, court
costs, transcript costs, fees of experts, witness fees, travel
expenses, duplicating costs, printing and binding costs, telephone
charges, postage, delivery service fees, and all other
disbursements or expenses of the types customarily incurred in
connection with prosecuting, defending, preparing to prosecute or
defend, investigating, being or preparing to be a witness in, or
otherwise participating in, a Proceeding. Expenses also shall
include (i) Expenses incurred in connection with any appeal
resulting from any Proceeding, including without limitation the
premium, security for, and other costs relating to any cost bond,
supersedeas bond, or other appeal bond or its equivalent, and (ii)
for purposes of Section 13(d) only, Expenses incurred by Indemnitee
in connection with the interpretation, enforcement or defense of
Indemnitee's rights under this Agreement, by litigation or
otherwise. Expenses, however, shall not include amounts paid in
settlement by Indemnitee or the amount of judgments or fines
against Indemnitee.
(f) "Independent
Counsel" means a law firm, or a member of a law firm, that is
experienced in matters of corporation law and neither presently is,
nor in the past five years has been, retained to represent: (i) the
Company or Indemnitee in any matter material to either such party
(other than with respect to matters concerning the Indemnitee under
this Agreement, or of other indemnitees under similar
indemnification agreements), or (ii) any other party to the
Proceeding giving rise to a claim for indemnification hereunder.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term "Independent Counsel" shall
not include any person who, under the applicable standards of
professional conduct then prevailing, would have a conflict of
interest in representing either the Company or Indemnitee in an
action to determine Indemnitee's rights under this Agreement. The
Company agrees to pay the reasonable fees and expenses of the
Independent Counsel
referred to above and to fully indemnify such
counsel against any and all Expenses, claims, liabilities and
damages arising out of or relating to this Agreement or its
engagement pursuant hereto.
(g) The
term "Proceeding" shall include any threatened, pending or
completed action, suit, arbitration, alternate dispute resolution
mechanism, investigation, inquiry, administrative hearing or any
other actual, threatened or completed proceeding, whether brought
in the right of the Company or otherwise and whether of a civil,
criminal, administrative, legislative or investigative nature,
including any appeal therefrom, in which Indemnitee was, is or will
be involved as a party, potential party, non-party witness or
otherwise by reason that Indemnitee is or was a director or officer
of the Company, by reason of any action taken by him or of any
action on his part while acting as director or officer of the
Company, or by reason that he is or was serving at the request of
the Company as a director, officer, employee or agent of another
corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture,
trust or other enterprise, in each case whether or not serving in
such capacity at the time any liability or expense is incurred for
which indemnification, reimbursement, or advancement of expenses
can be provided under this Agreement; except one initiated by a
Indemnitee to enforce his rights under this Agreement.
(h) Reference to
"other enterprise" shall include employee benefit plans; references
to "fines" shall include any excise tax assessed with respect to
any employee benefit plan; references to "serving at the request of
the Company" shall include any service as a director, officer,
employee or agent of the Company which imposes duties on, or
involves services by, such director, officer, employee or agent
with respect to an employee benefit plan, its participants or
beneficiaries; and a person who acted in good faith and in a manner
he reasonably believed to be in the best interests of the
participants and beneficiaries of an employee benefit plan shall be
deemed to have acted in manner "not opposed to the best interests
of the Company" as referred to in this Agreement.
Section 3.
Indemnity in Third-Party Proceedings. The Company shall
indemnify Indemnitee in accordance with the provisions of this
Section 3 if Indemnitee is, or is threatened to be made, a party to
or a participant in any Proceeding, other than a Proceeding by or
in the right of the Company to procure a judgment in its favor.
Pursuant to this Section 3, Indemnitee shall be indemnified to the
fullest extent permitted by applicable law against all Expenses,
judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and
reasonably incurred by Indemnitee or on his behalf in connection
with such Proceeding or any claim, issue or matter therein, if
Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably
believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the
Company and, in the case of a criminal proceeding had no reasonable
cause to believe that his conduct was unlawful.
Section 4.
Indemnity in Proceedings by or in the Right of the Company.
The Company shall indemnify Indemnitee in accordance with the
provisions of this Section 4 if Indemnitee is, or is threatened to
be made, a party to or a participant in any Proceeding by or in the
right of the
Company to procure a judgment in its favor.
Pursuant to this Section 4, Indemnitee shall be indemnified to the
fullest extent permitted by applicable law against all Expenses
actually and reasonably incurred by him or on his behalf in
connection with such Proceeding or any claim, issue or matter
therein, if Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner he
reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests
of the Company. No indemnification for Expenses shall be made under
this Section 4 in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which
Indemnitee shall have been finally adjudged by a court to be liable
to the Company, unless and only to the extent that the Delaware
Court of Chancery or any court in which the Proceeding was brought
shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of
liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case,
Indemnitee is fairly and reasonably entitled to
indemnification.
Section 5.
Indemnification for Expenses of a Party Who is Wholly or Partly
Successful. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this
Agreement, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law and to
the extent that Indemnitee is a party to (or a participant in) and
is successful, on the merits or otherwise, in any Proceeding or in
defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, in whole or in part,
the Company shall indemnify Indemnitee against all Expenses
actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection therewith. If
Indemnitee is not wholly successful in such Proceeding but is
successful, on the merits or otherwise, as to one or more but less
than all claims, issues or matters in such Proceeding, the Company
shall indemnify Indemnitee against all Expenses actually and
reasonably incurred by him or on his behalf in connection with each
successfully resolved claim, issue or matter. If the Indemnitee is
not wholly successful in such Proceeding, the Company also shall
indemnify Indemnitee against all Expenses reasonably incurred in
connection with a claim, issue or matter related to any claim,
issue, or matter on which the Indemnitee was successful. For
purposes of this Section and without limitation, the termination of
any claim, issue or matter in such a Proceeding by dismissal, with
or without prejudice, shall be deemed to be a successful result as
to such claim, issue or matter.
Section 6.
Indemnification For Expenses of a Witness. Notwithstanding
any other provision of this Agreement, to the fullest extent
permitted by applicable law and to the extent that Indemnitee is,
by reason of his Corporate Status, a witness in any Proceeding to
which Indemnitee is not a party, he shall be indemnified against
all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by him or on his
behalf in connection therewith.
Section 7.
Additional Indemnification.
(a) Notwithstanding any limitation in Sections 3, 4, or 5, the
Company shall indemnify Indemnitee to the fullest extent permitted
by applicable law if Indemnitee is a party to or threatened to be
made a party to any Proceeding (including a Proceeding by or in the
right of the Company to procure a judgment in its favor) against
all Expenses, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement
actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee in connection with
the Proceeding.
(b) For purposes
of Section 7(a), the meaning of the phrase "to the fullest extent
permitted by applicable law" shall include, but not be limited
to:
i. to the
fullest extent permitted by the provision of the DGCL that
authorizes or contemplates additional indemnification by agreement,
or the corresponding provision of any amendment to or replacement
of the DGCL, and
ii. to the
fullest extent authorized or permitted by any amendments to or
replacements of the DGCL adopted after the date of this Agreement
that increase the extent to which a corporation may indemnify its
officers and directors.
Section 8.
Exclusions. Notwithstanding any provision in this Agreement,
the Company shall not be obligated under this Agreement to make any
indemnity in connection with any claim made against Indemnitee:
(a) for which
payment has actually been made to or on behalf of Indemnitee under
any insurance policy or other indemnity provision, except with
respect to any excess beyond the amount paid under any insurance
policy or other indemnity provision; or
(b) for (i) an
accounting of profits made from the purchase and sale (or sale and
purchase) by Indemnitee of securities of the Company within the
meaning of Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act (as defined in Section
2(a) hereof) or similar provisions of state statutory law or common
law, (ii) any reimbursement of the Company by the Indemnitee of any
bonuses or other incentive-based or equity-based compensation, and
the reimbursement of the Company of profits realized from the sale
of securities of the Company by Indemnitee, to the extent that such
reimbursements directly arise from an accounting restatement of the
Company pursuant to Section 304 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
(the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”), or (iii) the payment to the
Company of profits arising from the purchase and sale by Indemnitee
of securities in violation of Section 306 of the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act; or
(c) except as
provided in Section 13(d) of this Agreement, in connection with any
Proceeding (or any part of any Proceeding) initiated by Indemnitee,
including any Proceeding (or any part of any Proceeding) initiated
by Indemnitee against the Company or its directors, officers,
employees or other indemnitees, unless (i) the Board of Directors
of the Company authorized the Proceeding (or any part of any
Proceeding) prior to its initiation or (ii) the Company provides
the indemnification, in its sole discretion, pursuant to the powers
vested in the Company under applicable law; or
(d) for any acts
or omissions or transactions, if and to the extent that it shall be
determined by a final judgment or other final adjudication, not
subject to further appeal or review, that a director or officer may
not be relieved of liability arising from any such acts or
omissions or transactions under the DGCL or applicable securities
laws; or
(e) for Expenses
in connection with pr
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