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Exhibit 10.15
GAMMACAN INTERNATIONAL, INC.
INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT
INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT, dated as of _________, 2007 (“ Agreement ”), by and
between GAMMACAN INTERNATIONAL,
INC., a Delaware corporation (the
“ Company ”), and ________________ (“ Indemnitee ”).
WHEREAS , Indemnitee is
a director of the Company and performs valuable services in such
capacities for the Company;
WHEREAS , the Company
and Indemnitee recognize the substantial increase in corporate
litigation in general, subjecting directors, officers, employees,
agents and fiduciaries to expensive litigation risks at the same
time as the availability and coverage of liability insurance may be
limited;
WHEREAS , the Company
and Indemnitee further recognize the difficulty in obtaining
liability insurance for its directors, officers, employees, agents
and fiduciaries, the significant increases in the cost of such
insurance and the general reductions in the coverage of such
insurance;
WHEREAS , Indemnitee
does not regard the current protection available as adequate under
the present circumstances, and the Indemnitee and other directors,
officers, employees, agents and fiduciaries of the Company may not
be willing to continue to serve in such capacities without
additional protection; and
WHEREAS , the Company
desires to attract and retain the services of highly qualified
individuals, such as Indemnitee, to serve the Company and, in part,
in order to induce Indemnitee to continue to provide services to
the Company as a director, the Company wishes to provide for the
indemnification and advancing of expenses to Indemnitee to the
maximum extent permitted by law.
NOW, THEREFORE , the
Company and Indemnitee hereby agree as follows:
1.
Indemnification .
(a)
Indemnification of Expenses
. The Company shall indemnify Indemnitee to the
fullest extent permitted by law if Indemnitee was or is or becomes
a party to or witness or other participant in, or is threatened to
be made a party to or witness or other participant in, any
threatened, pending or completed action, suit, proceeding or
alternative dispute resolution mechanism, or any hearing, inquiry
or investigation that Indemnitee in good faith believes might lead
to the institution of any such action, suit, proceeding or
alternative dispute resolution mechanism, whether civil, criminal,
administrative, investigative or other (hereinafter a "Claim") by
reason of (or arising in part out of) any event or occurrence
related to the fact that Indemnitee is
or was a director, officer, employee, agent or
fiduciary of the Company, or any subsidiary of the Company, or is
or was serving at the request of the Company as a director,
officer, employee, agent or fiduciary of another corporation,
partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, or by reason
of any action or inaction on the part of Indemnitee while serving
in such capacity (hereinafter an “ Indemnifiable Event ”) against
any and all expenses (including attorneys’ fees and all other
costs, expenses and obligations incurred in connection with
investigating, defending, being a witness in or participating in
(including on appeal), or preparing to defend, be a witness in or
participate in, any such action, suit, proceeding, alternative
dispute resolution mechanism, hearing, inquiry or investigation),
judgments, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement (if such
settlement is approved in advance by the Company, which approval
shall not be unreasonably withheld) of such Claim and any federal,
state, local or foreign taxes imposed on the Indemnitee as a result
of the actual or deemed receipt of any payments under this
Agreement (collectively, hereinafter “ Expenses ”), including all
interest, assessments and other charges paid or payable in
connection with or in respect of such Expenses. Such payment of
Expenses shall be made by the Company as soon as practicable but in
any event no later than thirty (30) days after written demand by
Indemnitee therefor is presented to the Company.
(b)
Reviewing Party .
Notwithstanding the foregoing, (i) the obligations of the Company
under Section l(a) shall be subject to the condition that the
Reviewing Party (as described in Section 10(e) hereof) shall not
have determined (in a written opinion, in any case in which the
Independent Legal Counsel referred to in Section 1(c) hereof is
involved) that Indemnitee would not be permitted to be indemnified
under applicable law, and (ii) the obligation of the Company to
make an advance payment of Expenses to Indemnitee pursuant to
Section 2(a) (an “ Expense
Advance ”) shall be subject to the
condition that, if, when and to the extent that the Reviewing Party
determines that Indemnitee would not be permitted to be so
indemnified under applicable law, the Company shall be entitled to
be reimbursed by Indemnitee (who hereby agrees to reimburse the
Company) for all such amounts theretofore paid; provided, however,
that if Indemnitee has commenced or thereafter commences legal
proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction to secure a
determination that Indemnitee should be indemnified under
applicable law, any determination made by the Reviewing Party that
Indemnitee would not be permitted to be indemnified under
applicable law shall not be binding and Indemnitee shall not be
required to reimburse the Company for any Expense Advance until a
final judicial determination is made with respect thereto (as to
which all rights of appeal therefrom have been exhausted or
lapsed). Indemnitee’s obligation to reimburse the Company for
any Expense Advance shall be unsecured and no interest shall be
charged thereon. If there has not been a Change in Control (as
defined in Section 10(c) hereof), the Reviewing Party shall be
selected by the Board of Directors, and if there has been such a
Change in Control (other than a Change in Control which has been
approved by a majority of the Company’s Board of Directors
who were directors immediately prior to such Change in Control),
the Reviewing Party shall be the Independent Legal Counsel referred
to in Section l(c) hereof. If there has been no determination by
the Reviewing Party or if the Reviewing Party determines that
Indemnitee substantively would not be permitted to be indemnified
in whole or in part under applicable law, Indemnitee shall have the
right to commence litigation seeking an initial determination by
the court or challenging any such determination by the Reviewing
Party or
any aspect thereof, including the legal or factual
bases therefor, and the Company hereby consents to service of
process and to appear in any such proceeding. Any determination by
the Reviewing Party otherwise shall be conclusive and binding on
the Company and Indemnitee.
(c)
Change in Control . The
Company agrees that if there is a Change in Control of the Company
(other than a Change in Control which has been approved by a
majority of the Company’s Board of Directors who were
directors immediately prior to such Change in Control) then with
respect to all matters thereafter arising concerning the rights of
Indemnitee to payments of Expenses and Expense Advances under this
Agreement or any other agreement or under the Company’s
Certificate of Incorporation or By-laws as now or hereafter in
effect, the Company shall seek legal advice only from Independent
Legal Counsel (as defined in Section 10(d) hereof) selected by
Indemnitee and approved by the Company (which approval shall not be
unreasonably withheld). Such counsel, among other things, shall
render its written opinion to the Company and Indemnitee as to
whether and to what extent Indemnitee would be permitted to be
indemnified under applicable law. The Company agrees to pay the
reasonable fees of the Independent Legal Counsel referred to above
and to fully indemnify such counsel against any and all expenses
(including attorneys’ fees), claims, liabilities and damages
arising out of or relating to this Agreement or its engagement
pursuant hereto.
(d)
Mandatory Payment of Expenses
. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
Agreement, to the extent that Indemnitee has been successful on the
merits or otherwise, including, without limitation, the dismissal
of an action without prejudice, in defense of any action, suit,
proceeding, inquiry or investigation referred to in Section (1)(a)
hereof or in the defense of any claim, issue or matter therein,
Indemnitee shall be indemnified against all Expenses incurred by
Indemnitee in connection therewith.
(e)
Tax Gross Up . The
amount of any indemnity payable to the Indemnitee will be computed
in accordance with the following formula:
where:
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A =
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the amount of indemnity payable by the Company to
the Indemnitee pursuant to this Agreement
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B =
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the amount of indemnity that would otherwise be
payable by the Company to the Indemnitee pursuant to this Agreement
on the assumption that such amount is computed without reference to
any increased liability of the Indemnitee under applicable income,
payroll, value added or any other tax laws arising in consequence
of such payment,
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C =
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the aggregate of the highest effective rates of all
taxes (including all surtaxes) under such tax laws applicable to
the Indemnitee in respect of such payment, after giving effect to
any applicable bilateral tax convention or treaty, and
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2.
Expenses; Indemnification Procedure .
(a)
Advancement of Expenses . The Company shall advance all Expenses incurred by
Indemnitee. The advances to be made hereunder shall be paid by the
Company to Indemnitee as soon as practicable but in any event no
later than five (5) days after written demand by Indemnitee
therefor to the Company.
(b)
Notice/Cooperation by Indemnitee
. Indemnitee shall, as a condition precedent to
Indemnitee’s right to be indemnified under this Agreement,
give the Company notice in writing as soon as practicable of any
Claim made against Indemnitee for which indemnification will or
could be sought under this Agreement. Notice to the Company shall
be directed to the Chief Executive Officer of the Company at the
address shown on the signature page of this Agreement (or such
other address as the Company shall designate in writing to
Indemnitee). In addition, Indemnitee shall give the Company such
information and cooperation as it may reasonably require and as
shall be within Indemnitee’s power.
(c)
No Presumptions; Burden of Proof
. For purposes of this Agreement, the termination of
any claim, action, suit or proceeding, by judgment, order,
settlement (whether with or without court approval) or conviction,
or upon a plea of nolo
contendere , or its
equivalent, shall not create a presumption that Indemnitee did not
meet any particular standard of conduct or have any particular
belief or that a court has determined that indemnification is not
permitted by applicable law. In addition, neither the failure of
the Reviewing Party to have made a determination as to whether
Indemnitee has met any particular standard of conduct or had any
particular belief, nor an actual determination by the Reviewing
Party that Indemnitee has not met such standard of conduct or did
not have such belief, prior to the commencement of legal
proceedings by Indemnitee to secure a judicial determination that
Indemnitee should be indemnified under applicable law, shall be a
defense to Indemnitee’s claim or create a presumption that
Indemnitee has not met any particular standard of conduct or did
not have any particular belief. In connection with any
determination by the Reviewing Party or otherwise as to whether the
Indemnitee is entitled to be indemnified hereunder, the burden of
proof shall be on the Company to establish that Indemnitee is not
so entitled.
(d)
Notice to Insurers .
If, at the time of the receipt by the Company of a notice of a
Claim pursuant to Section 2(b) hereof, the Company has liability
insurance in effect which may cover such Claim, the Company shall
give prompt notice of the commencement of such Claim to the
insurers in accordance with the procedures set forth in the
respective policies. The Company shall thereafter take all
necessary or desirable action to cause such insurers to pay, on
behalf of the Indemnitee, all amounts payable as a result of such
action, suit, proceeding, inquiry or investigation in accordance
with the terms of such policies. Nothing in this Section 2(d)
shall
limit the Company’s obligations as otherwise
provided for herein, including the Company’s obligation to
pay Exp
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