Exhibit 10.5
INDEMNITY AGREEMENT
This
Indemnity Agreement
(this "Agreement") is made as of
March 6, 2006 by and between Financial Federal
Corporation, a
Nevada corporation
(the "Company"), and the undersigned officer
or director of the Company ("Indemnitee").
RECITALS
WHEREAS, highly competent persons have become more reluctant
to serve
corporations
as directors, officers or in other
capacities 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 Articles
of Incorporation
and
Bylaws of the Company require indemnification of the officers
and
directors of
the Company.
Indemnitee may also be
entitled to
indemnification pursuant to applicable provisions of the Nevada
Revised Statutes (the
"NRS"). The Bylaws and
the NRS 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
Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws 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, Indemnitee does not regard the protection available
under the Company's Articles of
Incorporation and
Bylaws and
insurance as adequate in the present circumstances, and
may not
be willing
to serve or continue to serve as an officer or
director without
adequate protection,
and the Company
desires
Indemnitee to serve in
such capacity.
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.
NOW,
THEREFORE,
in consideration of
the premises and
the
covenants contained herein, the Company and Indemnitee do
hereby
covenant and agree as follows:
1. Services to the Company.
Indemnitee will serve
or continue
to serve as an
officer, director or key employee of the Company
for so long as
Indemnitee is duly elected or appointed or until
Indemnitee tenders his resignation or until Indemnitee's
services
to the Company are otherwise terminated.
2. Definitions. As used in this Agreement:
(a) References to
"agent" shall mean any person who is or was a
director, officer, or employee of the Company or a subsidiary
of
the Company or other
person authorized by the Company to act for
the Company, to include such person serving in such capacity as
a
director, officer,
employee, fiduciary
or other official of
another corporation,
partnership,
limited liability company,
joint venture, trust
or other enterprise at the request of, for
the convenience of, or
to represent the interests of the Company
or a subsidiary of the Company.
(b) The terms
"Beneficial Owner" and "Beneficial Ownership"
shall have the meanings set forth in Rule 13d-3 promulgated
under
the Exchange
Act (as defined below)
as in effect on
the date
hereof.
(c) 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, directly or
indirectly, of securities of the Company representing a
majority
of the combined voting power of the
Company's then
outstanding
securities entitled
to vote generally in the election of
directors, unless
(1) the change in the relative Beneficial
Ownership of
the Company's securities by
any Person results
solely from
a reduction in the
aggregate number of
outstanding
shares of securities
entitled to vote generally in the election
of directors or (2)
such acquisition was approved in advance by
the Continuing
Directors (as defined below) and such acquisition
would not constitute a Change in Control under part (iii) of
this
definition;
(ii) Change in Board of Directors. Individuals who, as of the
date hereof, constitute the Board, and any new director 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 were directors on the date
hereof or whose election for nomination for election was
previously so approved (collectively, the "Continuing
Directors"), cease for any reason to constitute at least a
majority of the members of the Board;
(iii) Corporate
Transactions. The
effective date of a
reorganization, merger or consolidation of the Company (a
"Business Combination"), in each case, unless, following such
Business Combination:
(1) all or substantially all of the
individuals and entities who were the Beneficial Owners of
securities entitled to vote generally in the election of
directors immediately prior to such Business Combination
beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than fifty-one
percent (51%) of the combined voting power of the then
outstanding securities of the Company entitled to vote
generally
in the election of directors resulting from such Business
Combination (including, without limitation, a corporation which
as a result of such 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 as their ownership, immediately prior to such
Business Combination, of the securities entitled to vote
generally in the election of directors; (2) no Person
(excluding
any corporation resulting from such Business Combination) is
the
Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of fifteen percent
(15%) or more of the combined voting power of the then
outstanding securities entitled to vote generally in the
election
of directors of such corporation except to the extent that such
ownership existed prior to the Business Combination and (3) at
least a majority of the Board of Directors of the corporation
resulting from such Business Combination were Continuing
Directors at the time of the execution of the initial
agreement,
or of the action of the Board of Directors, providing for such
Business Combination;
(iv) Liquidation. The
approval by the stockholders of the
Company of a complete liquidation of the Company or an
agreement
or series of agreements for the sale or disposition by the
Company of all or substantially all of the Company's assets,
other than factoring the Company's current receivables or
escrows
due (or, if such approval is not required, the decision by the
Board to proceed with such a liquidation, sale, or disposition
in
one transaction or a series of related transactions); or
(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.
(d) "Corporate Status"
describes the status of a person who is
or was a director, officer, trustee,
general partner, managing
member, fiduciary,
employee or agent of the Company or of any
other Enterprise (as
defined below) which such person is or was
serving at the request of the Company.
(e) "Disinterested
Director" shall mean a director of the
Company who is not and was not a party to the Proceeding (as
defined below) in respect of which indemnification is sought by
Indemnitee.
(f) "Enterprise" shall
mean the Company and any other
corporation, constituent corporation (including any
constituent
of a constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger to
which
the Company (or any of its wholly owned subsidiaries) is a
party,
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, trustee, general partner, managing member, fiduciary,
employee or agent.
(g) "Exchange Act"
shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended.
(h) "Expenses" shall
include attorneys' fees and costs,
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 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 (as defined below).
Expenses also shall include Expenses incurred in connection
with
any appeal resulting from any Proceeding (as defined below),
including without limitation the premium, security for, and
other
costs relating to any cost bond, supersedeas bond, or other
appeal bond or its equivalent. Expenses, however, shall not
include amounts paid in settlement by Indemnitee or the amount
of
judgments or fines against Indemnitee.
(i) References to
"fines" shall include any excise tax assessed
on Indemnitee
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, agent or
fiduciary of
the Company which
imposes duties on, or
involves
services by, such director, officer, employee, agent or
fiduciary
with respect
to an employee benefit plan, its
participants or
beneficiaries; and if
Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a
manner Indemnitee reasonably believed to be in the best
interests
of the participants and beneficiaries of an
employee benefit
plan, Indemnitee shall
be deemed to have acted in a manner "not
opposed to the best interests of the Company" as referred
to in
this Agreement.
(j) "Independent
Counsel" shall mean 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 (as defined below) 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.
(k) "New York Courts"
shall mean courts of the State of New
York, the courts of the United States for the Southern District
of New York and appellate courts from any thereof.
(l) The term "Person"
shall have the meaning as set forth in
Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act as in effect on
the
date hereof; provided, however, that "Person" shall exclude:
(i)
the Company; (ii) any Subsidiaries (as defined below) of the
Company; (iii) any employment benefit plan of the Company or of
a
Subsidiary (as defined below) of the Company or of 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 and (iv) any trustee or other
fiduciary holding securities under an employee benefit plan of
the Company or of a Subsidiary (as defined below) of the
Company
or of a corporation owned directly or indirectly by the
stockholders of the Company in substantially the same
proportions
as their ownership of stock of the Company.
(m) 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 (including intentional or unintentional tort
claims), criminal, administrative or investigative nature, in
which Indemnitee was, is or will be involved as a party or
otherwise by reason of the fact that Indemnitee is or was a
director or officer of the Company, by reason of any action (or
failure to act) taken by him or of any action (or failure to
act)
on his part while acting as a director or officer of the
Company,
or by reason of the fact that he is or was serving at the
request
of the Company as a director, officer, trustee, general
partner,
managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of any 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.
(n) The term
"Subsidiary," with respect to any Person, shall
mean any corporation or other entity of which a majority of the
voting power of the voting equity securities or equity interest
is owned, directly or indirectly, by that Person.
3. Indemnity in Third-Party
Proceedings. The
Company shall
indemnify and
hold harmless
Indemnitee in accordance with the
provisions of
this Section 3 if Indemnitee was, is, or is
threatened to be made, a party to or a participant (as a
witness
or otherwise) 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
against all
Expenses, judgments,
liabilities, fines,
penalties
and amounts
paid
in settlement (including all interest,
assessments and other charges paid or payable in connection
with
or in respect of such
Expenses, judgments, fines, penalties 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.
4. Indemnity in
Proceedings by or in the Right of the Company.
The Company shall indemnify and hold harmless Indemnitee in
accordance with the provisions of this Section 4 if Indemnitee
was, is, or is threatened to be made, a party to or a
participant
(as a witness or otherwise) 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 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
any court in which the Proceeding was brought or the New York
Courts 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.
5.
Indemnification for Expenses of a Party Who is Wholly or
Partly Successful. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this
Agreement, 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 and
hold harmless 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 and hold harmless 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 and hold harmless
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 5 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.
6.
Indemnification For Expenses of a Witness. Notwithstanding
any other provision of this Agreement, 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 and held harmless against all Expenses actually and
reasonably incurred by him or on his behalf in connection
therewith.
7. Additional
Indemnification.
(a) Notwithstanding
any limitation in Sections 3, 4 or 5, the
Company shall
indemnify
and hold harmless Indemnitee 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,
penalties and amounts paid in settlement
(including all
interest, assessments and other charges paid or
payable in
connection
with or in
respect of such Expenses,
judgments, fines,
penalties and amounts paid in settlement)
actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee in connection
with
the Proceeding.
No indemnity shall be
made under this
Section
7(a) on account of Indemnitee's conduct which
constitutes
a
breach of Indemnitee's duty of loyalty to
the Company
or its
stockholders or is an act or omission not in good faith or
which
involves intentional
misconduct or a knowing violation of the
law.
(b) Notwithstanding
any limitation in Sections 3, 4, 5 or 7(a),
the Company
shall indemnify and hold harmless Indemnitee 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,
penalties and amounts paid in settlement
(including all
interest, assessments and other charges paid or
payable in
connection
with or in
respect of such Expenses,
judgments, fines,
penalties and amounts paid in settlement)
actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee in connection
with
the Proceeding.
8. Contribution
in the Event of Joint Liability.
(a) To the fullest
extent permissible under applicable law, if
the indemnification and hold harmless rights provided for in
this
Agreement are unavailable to Indemnitee in whole or in part for
any reason whatsoever,
the Company, in lieu of indemnifying and
holding harmless
Indemnitee, shall pay, in the first instance,
the entire amount
incurred by Indemnitee, whether for judgments,
liabilities, fines,
penalties, amount