Exhibit 10.1
SOCKET MOBILE,
INC.
[FORM OF] INDEMNIFICATION AGREEMENT
This Indemnification Agreement (" Agreement ") is made as
of [ date ] by and between Socket Mobile, Inc., a Delaware
corporation (the " Company "), and [ name of
indemnitee ] (" Indemnitee "). The Indemnification
Agreement replaces Indemnification Agreements previously in
effect.
WHEREAS, Indemnitee's service to the Company substantially
benefits the Company;
WHEREAS, competent and experienced individuals are reluctant to
serve as directors or officers of corporations or in certain other
capacities unless they are provided with adequate protection
through insurance or indemnification against the risks of claims
and actions against them arising out of such service;
WHEREAS, Indemnitee does not regard the protection currently
provided by applicable law, the Company's governing documents and
any insurance as adequate under the present circumstances, and
Indemnitee may not be willing to continue to serve in such
capacities without additional protection;
WHEREAS, in order to induce Indemnitee to continue to provide
services to the Company, it is reasonable, prudent and necessary
for the Company to contractually obligate itself to indemnify, and
to advance expenses on behalf of, Indemnitee as permitted by
applicable law; and
WHEREAS, this Agreement is a supplement to and in furtherance of
the indemnification provided in the Company's certificate of
incorporation and bylaws, and any resolutions adopted pursuant
thereto, and this Agreement shall not be deemed a substitute
therefor, nor shall this Agreement be deemed to limit, diminish or
abrogate any rights of Indemnitee thereunder.
NOW THEREFORE, the Company and Indemnitee do hereby agree as
follows:
1. Definitions .
(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 Composition . 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 Company's board of directors, and any new directors
(other than a director designated by a person who has entered into
an agreement with the Company to effect a transaction described in
Sections 1(a)(i), 1(a)(iii) or 1(a)(iv)) whose election by the
board of directors 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 at least a majority of the members of the Company's
board of directors;
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(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 50% 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 . 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 in response to any similar item on any similar
schedule or form) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended, whether or not the Company is then subject to
such reporting requirement.
(vi)
Definitions with Respect to this Section 1(a) . For purposes
of this Section 1(a), the following terms shall have the following
meanings:
(1)
" Person " shall have the meaning as set forth in Sections
13(d) and 14(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended;
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.
(2)
" Beneficial Owner " shall have the meaning given to such
term in Rule 13d-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended; provided, however, that " Beneficial Owner " shall
exclude any Person otherwise becoming a Beneficial Owner by reason
of (i) the stockholders of the Company approving a merger of the
Company with another entity or (ii) the Company's board of
directors approving a sale of securities by the Company to such
Person.
(b) " Corporate
Status " describes the status of a person who is or was a
director, trustee, general partner, managing member, officer,
employee, agent or fiduciary of the Company or any other
Enterprise.
(c) " DGCL "
means the General Corporation Law of the State of
Delaware.
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(d) " 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.
(e) "
Enterprise " shall mean the Company and any other
corporation, partnership, limited liability company, 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, trustee, general partner, managing member, officer,
employee, agent or fiduciary.
(f) " Expenses
" shall include all reasonable attorneys' fees, retainers, court
costs, transcript costs, fees and costs 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 their equivalent, and (ii)
for purposes of Section 12(c), Expenses incurred by Indemnitee in
connection with the interpretation, enforcement or defense of
Indemnitee's rights under this Agreement or under any directors'
and officers' liability insurance policies maintained by the
Company. Expenses, however, shall not include amounts paid in
settlement by Indemnitee or the amount of judgments or fines
against Indemnitee.
(g) " Independent
Counsel " means a law firm, or a partner or 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
Indemnitee under this Agreement, or matters concerning 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.
(h) "
Proceeding " means any threatened, pending or completed
action, suit, arbitration, mediation, alternate dispute resolution
mechanism, investigation, inquiry, administrative hearing or other
proceeding, whether brought in the right of the Company or
otherwise and whether of a civil, criminal, administrative or
investigative nature, including any appeal therefrom and including
without limitation any such proceeding pending as of the date of
this Agreement, in which Indemnitee was, is or will be involved as
a party, potential party, non-party witness or otherwise by reason
of (i) the fact that Indemnitee is or was a director or officer of
the Company, (ii) any action taken by Indemnitee or any action or
inaction on Indemnitee's part while acting as a director or officer
of the Company, or (iii) the fact that he or she is or was serving
at the request of the Company as a director, trustee, general
partner, managing member, officer, employee, agent or fiduciary of
the Company or 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 or advancement of expenses can
be provided under this Agreement.
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(i) Reference to "
other enterprises " shall include employee benefit plans;
references to " fines " shall include any excise taxes
assessed on a person 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 or she 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 a manner " not opposed to the best interests of the
Company " as referred to in this Agreement.
2. Indemnity in Third-Party Proceedings . The Company
shall indemnify Indemnitee in accordance with the provisions of
this Section 2 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 2, 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
or her behalf in connection with such Proceeding or any claim,
issue or matter therein, if Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a
manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the
best interests of the Company and, with respect to any criminal
action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe that his
or her conduct was unlawful.
3. Indemnity in Proceedings by or in the Right of the
Company . 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 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 actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee
or on Indemnitee's behalf in connection with such Proceeding or any
claim, issue or matter therein, if Indemnitee acted in good faith
and in a manner he or she 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 3 in respect of any
claim, issue or matter as to which Indemnitee shall have been
adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction 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 for
such expenses as the Delaware Court of Chancery or such other court
shall deem proper.
4. Indemnification for Expenses of a Party Who is Wholly or
Partly Successful . To the extent that Indemnitee is a party to
or a participant in and is successful (on the merits or otherwise)
in defense of any Proceeding or any claim, issue or matter therein,
the Company shall indemnify Indemnitee against all Expenses
actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee or on Indemnitee's
behalf in connection therewith. To the extent permitted by
applicable law, if Indemnitee is not wholly successful in such
Proceeding but is successful, on the merits or otherwise, in
defense of 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 Indemnitee or on
Indemnitee's behalf in connection with (a) each successfully
resolved claim, issue or matter and (b) any claim, issue or matter
related to any such successfully resolved claim, issue or matter.
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.
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5. Indemnification for Expenses of a Witness .
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, to the
extent that Indemnitee is, by reason of his or her Corporate
Status, a witness in any Proceeding to which Indemnitee is not a
party, Indemnitee shall be indemnified to the fullest extent
permitted by applicable law against all Expenses actually and
reasonably incurred by Indemnitee or on Indemnitee's behalf in
connection therewith.
6. Additional Indemnification .
(a) Notwithstanding
any limitation in Sections 2, 3 or 4, the Company shall indemnify
Indemnitee to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law if
Indemnitee is a party to or is threatened to be made a party to any
Proceeding (including, if permissible, 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 or on his or her
behalf in connection with the Proceeding.
(b) For purposes of
Section 6(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.
7. Exclusions. Notwithstanding any provision in this Agreement,
the Company shall not be obligated under this Agreement to make any
indemnity in connection with any Proceeding (or any part of any
Proceeding):
(a) for which payment
has actually been made to or on behalf of Indemnitee under any
statute, insurance policy or other indemnity provision, except with
respect to any excess beyond the amount paid under any statute,
insurance policy or other indemnity provision;
(b) for an accounting
or disgorgement of profits made from the purchase and sale (or sale
and purchase) by Indemnitee of securities of the Company pursuant
to Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, or similar provisions of federal, state or local statutory
law or common law, if Indemnitee is held liable therefor (including
pursuant to any settlement arrangements);
(c) for any
reimbursement of the Company by Indemnitee of any bonus or other
incentive-based or equity-based compensation or of any profits
realized by Indemnitee from the sale of securities of the Company,
as required in each case under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended (including any such reimbursements that arise from an
accounting restatement of the Company pursuant to Section 304 of
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the " Sarbanes-Oxley Act "),
or 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), if Indemnitee is held liable therefor
(including pursuant to any settlement arrangements);
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(d) initiated by
Indemnitee, including any Proceeding (or any part of any
Proceeding) initiated by Indemnitee against the Company or its
directors, officers, employees, agents or other indemnitees, unless
(i) the Company's board of directors authorized the Proceeding (or
the relevant part of the Proceeding) prior to its initiation, (ii)
the Company provides the indemnification, in its sole discretion,
pursuant to the powers vested in the Company under applicable law,
(iii) otherwise authorized in Section 12(c) or (iv) otherwise
required by applicable law; or
(e) if prohibited by
applicable law.
8. Advancement of Expenses . The Company shall advance,
to the extent not prohibited by law, the Expenses incurred by
Indemnitee in connection with any Proceeding, and such advancement
shall be made as soon as reasonably practicable, but in any event
no later than thirty (30) days, after the receipt by the Company of
a written statement or statements requesting such advances from
time to time (which shall include invoices received by Indemnitee
in connection with such Expenses but, in the case of invoices in
connection with legal services, any references to legal work
performed or to expenditure made that would cause Indemnitee to
waive any privilege accorded by applicable law shall not be
included with the invoice). Advances shall be unsecured and
interest free and made without regard to Indemnitee's ability to
repay such advances. Indemnitee hereby undertakes to repay any
advance to the extent that it is ultimately determined that
Indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified by the Company, which
undertaking shall itself be sufficient without the need for further
evaluation of any credit aspects of the undertaking or with respect
to such advancement. This Section 8 shall not apply to any claim
made by Indemnitee for which indemnity is excluded pursuant to this
Agreement.
9. Procedure for Notification and Defense of Claim .
(a) Indemnitee shall
notify the Company in writing of any matter with respect to which
Indemnitee intends to seek indemnification or advancement of
Expenses as soon as reasonably practicable following the receipt by
Indemnitee of written notice thereof. The written notification to
the Company shall include a description of the nature of the
Proceeding and the facts underlying the Proceeding. The failure by
Indemnitee to notify the Company hereunder will not relieve the
Company from any liability which it may have to Indemnitee
hereunder or otherwise than under this Agreement, and any delay in
so notifying the Company shall not constitute a waiver by
Indemnitee of any rights under this Agreement, except to the extent
that such failure or delay materially prejudices the Company.
(b) If, at the time of
the receipt of a notice of a Proceeding pursuant to the terms
hereof, the Company has director and officer liability insurance in
effect, the Company shall give prompt not