WRIGHT EXPRESS
CORPORATION
INDEMNIFICATION
AGREEMENT
This Agreement is
made by and between Wright Express Corporation, a Delaware
corporation (the “Corporation), and [ DIRECTOR’S
NAME ] (the “Indemnitee”), a director of the
Corporation.
WHEREAS, it is
essential to the Corporation to retain and attract as directors the
most capable persons available, and
WHEREAS, the
increase in corporate litigation subjects directors to expensive
litigation risks, and
WHEREAS, it is now
and has always been the policy of the Corporation to indemnify its
directors, and
WHEREAS, the
Corporation desires the Indemnitee to serve, or continue to serve,
as a director of the Corporation.
NOW THEREFORE, the
Corporation and the Indemnitee do hereby agree as
follows:
1.
Definitions . As used in this Agreement:
(a) The
term “Change in Control” shall mean the occurrence of
any one of the following:
(i) individuals
who, on the date of this Agreement, constitute the Board (the
“Incumbent Directors”) cease for any reason to
constitute at least a majority of the Board, provided that any
person becoming a director subsequent to the date of this Agreement
whose election or nomination for election was approved by a vote of
at least a majority of the Directors then on the Board (either by a
specific vote or by approval of the proxy statement of the
Corporation in which such person is named as a nominee for
director, without written objection to such nomination) shall be an
Incumbent Director; provided, however, that no individual initially
elected or nominated as a director of the Corporation as a result
of an actual or threatened election contest with respect to
directors or as a result of any other actual or threatened
solicitation of proxies by or on behalf of any person other than
the Board shall be deemed to be an Incumbent Director;
(ii) any
“person” (as such term is defined in the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)
and as used in Sections 13(d)(3) and 14(d)(2) of the Exchange
Act) is or becomes a “beneficial owner” (as defined in
Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of
securities of the Corporation representing 50% or more of the
combined voting power of the Corporation’s then outstanding
securities eligible to vote for the election of the Board (the
“Corporation Voting Securities”); provided, however,
that the event described in this paragraph (ii) shall not be
deemed to be a Change in Control by virtue of any of the following
acquisitions: (A) by the Corporation or any subsidiary,
(B) by any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored
or maintained by the Corporation or any
subsidiary,
(C) by any underwriter temporarily holding securities pursuant
to an offering of such securities, (D) pursuant to a
Non-Qualifying Transaction, as defined in paragraph (iii), or
(E) by any person of Voting Securities from the Corporation,
if a majority of the Incumbent Board approves in advance the
acquisition of beneficial ownership of 50% or more of Corporation
Voting Securities by such person;
(iii) the
consummation of a merger, consolidation, statutory share exchange,
reorganization or similar form of corporate transaction involving
the Corporation or any of its subsidiaries that requires the
approval of the Corporation’s stockholders, whether for such
transaction or the issuance of securities in the transaction (a
“Business Combination”), unless immediately following
such Business Combination: (A) more than 50% of the total
voting power of (x) the corporation resulting from such
Business Combination (the “Surviving Corporation”), or
(y) if applicable, the ultimate parent corporation that
directly or indirectly has beneficial ownership of 100% of the
voting securities eligible to elect directors of the Surviving
Corporation (the “Parent Corporation”), is represented
by Corporation Voting Securities that were outstanding immediately
prior to such Business Combination (or, if applicable, is
represented by shares into which such Corporation Voting Securities
were converted pursuant to such Business Combination), and such
voting power among the holders thereof is in substantially the same
proportion as the voting power of such Corporation Voting
Securities among the holders thereof immediately prior to the
Business Combination, (B) no person (other than any employee
benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by the
Surviving Corporation or the Parent Corporation), is or becomes the
beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of 35% or more of the
total voting power of the outstanding voting securities eligible to
elect directors of the Parent Corporation (or, if there is no
Parent Corporation, the Surviving Corporation) and (C) at
least half of the members of the board of directors of the Parent
Corporation (or, if there is no Parent Corporation, the Surviving
Corporation) following the consummation of the Business Combination
were Incumbent Directors at the time of the Board’s approval
of the execution of the initial agreement providing for such
Business Combination (any Business Combination which satisfies all
of the criteria specified in (A), (B) and (C) above shall
be deemed to be a “Non-Qualifying
Transaction”);
(iv) the
stockholders of the Corporation approve a plan of complete
liquidation or dissolution of the Corporation;
(v) the
consummation of a sale of all or substantially all of the
Corporation’s assets; or
(vi) the
occurrence of any other event that the Board determines by a duly
approved resolution constitutes a Change in Control.
(b) The
term “Corporate Status” shall mean the status of a
person who is or was, or has agreed to become, a director of the
Corporation, or is or was serving, or has agreed to serve, at the
request of the Corporation, as a director of, or in a similar
capacity with, another corporation, partnership, joint venture,
trust, limited liability company or other enterprise.
(c) The
term “Expenses” shall include, without limitation,
attorneys’ fees, retainers, court costs, transcript costs,
fees and expenses of experts, travel expenses,
duplicating
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costs, printing
and binding costs, telephone charges, postage, delivery service
fees and other disbursements or expenses of the types customarily
incurred in connection with investigations, judicial or
administrative proceedings or appeals, but shall not include the
amount of judgments, fines or penalties against Indemnitee or
amounts paid in settlement in connection with such
matters.
(d) The
term “Independent Counsel” shall mean a law firm, or a
member of a law firm, that is experienced in matters of corporation
law and neither currently is, nor in the past five years has been,
retained to represent: (i) the Corporation or the Indemnitee
in any matter material to either such party 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 Corporation or the Indemnitee in an action to determine
the Indemnitee’s rights under this Agreement. The Corporation
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.
(e) References
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 Corporation” shall
include any service as a director, officer, employee or agent of
the Corporation 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 such person
reasonably believed to be in the 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
Corporation” as referred to in this Agreement.
(f) The
term “Proceeding” shall include any threatened, pending
or completed action, suit, arbitration, alternative dispute
resolution proceeding, administrative hearing or other proceeding,
whether brought by or in the right of the Corporation or otherwise
and whether of a civil, criminal, administrative or investigative
nature, and any appeal therefrom.
2.
Indemnity of Indemnitee . The Corporation shall indemnify
the Indemnitee in connection with any Proceeding as to which the
Indemnitee is, was or is threatened to be made a party (or is
otherwise involved) by reason of the Indemnitee’s Corporate
Status, to the fullest extent permitted by law (as such may be
amended from time to time). In furtherance of the foregoing and
without limiting the generality thereof:
(a)
Indemnification in Third-Party Proceedings . The Corporation
shall indemnify the Indemnitee in accordance with the provisions of
this Section 2(a) if the Indemnitee was or is a party to or
threatened to be made a party to or otherwise involved in any
Proceeding (other than a Proceeding by or in the right of the
Corporation to procure a judgment in its favor or a Proceeding
referred to in Section 5 below) by reason of the
Indemnitee’s Corporate Status or by reason of any action
alleged to have been taken or omitted in connection therewith,
against all Expenses, judgments, fines, penalties and amounts paid
in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by or on behalf of
the Indemnitee in connection with such Proceeding, if the
Indemnitee
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acted in good
faith and in a manner which the Indemnitee reasonably believed to
be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the Corporation
and, with respect to any criminal Proceeding, had no reasonable
cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.
(b)
Indemnification in Proceedings by or in the Right of the
Corporation . The Corporation shall indemnify the Indemnitee in
accordance with the provisions of this Section 2(b) if the
Indemnitee was or is a party to or threatened to be made a party to
or otherwise involved in any Proceeding by or in the right of the
Corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the
Indemnitee’s Corporate Status or by reason of any action
alleged to have been taken or omitted in connection therewith,
against all Expenses and, to the extent permitted by law, amounts
paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by or on behalf
of the Indemnitee in connection with such Proceeding, if the
Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner which the Indemnitee
reasonably believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests
of the Corporation, except that, if applicable law so requires, no
indemnification shall be made under this Section 2(b) in respect of
any claim, issue or matter as to which the Indemnitee shall have
been adjudged to be liable to the Corporation, unless, and only to
the extent, that the Court of Chancery of Delaware or the court in
which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon
application that, despite the adjudication of such liability but in
view of all the circumstances of the case, the Indemnitee is fairly
and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such Expenses as the Court
of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper.
3.
Indemnification of Expenses of Successful Party .
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, to the
extent that the Indemnitee has been successful, on the merits or
otherwise, in defense of any Proceeding or in defense of any claim,
issue or matter therein (other than a Proceeding referred to in
Section 5), the Indemnitee shall be indemnified against all
Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by or on behalf of the
Indemnitee in connection therewith.
4.
Indemnification for Expenses of a Witness . To the extent
that the Indemnitee is, by reason of the Indemnitee’s
Corporate Status, a witness in any Proceeding to which the
Indemnitee is not a party, the Indemnitee shall be indemnified
against all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by or on
behalf of the Indemnitee in connection therewith.
5.
Exceptions to Right of Indemnification . Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary to this Agreement, except as set forth in
Section 9,
(a) the
Corporation shall not indemnify the Indemnitee under this Agreement
in connection with a Proceeding (or part thereof) initiated by the
Indemnitee unless (i) the initiation thereof was approved by
the Board of Directors of the Corporation or (ii) the
Proceeding was commenced following a Change in Control;
and
(b) the
Corporation shall not indemnify the Indemnitee to the extent the
Indemnitee is reimbursed from the proceeds of insurance, and in the
event the Corporation makes any indemnification payments to the
Indemnitee and the Indemnitee is subsequently reimbursed from the
proceeds of insurance, the Indemnitee shall promptly refund such
indemnification payments to the Corporation to the extent of such
insurance reimbursement.
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6.
Notification and Defense of Claim .
(a) The
Indemnitee shall notify the Corporation in writing as soon as
practicable of any Proceeding for which indemnity will or could be
sought and provide the Corporation with a copy of any summons,
citation, subpoena, complaint, indictment, information or other
document relating to such Proceeding with which Indemnitee is
served. The failure to so notify the Corporation will not relieve
the Corporation from any liability that it may have to Indemnitee
(i) except to the extent the failure adversely affects the
Corporation’s rights, legal position, ability to defend or
ability to obtain insurance coverage with respect to such
proceeding or (ii) otherwise than under the
Corporation’s Certificate of Incorporation. With respect to
any Proceeding of which the Corporation is so notified, the
Corporation will be entitled to participate therein at its own
expense and/or to assume the defense thereof at its own expense,
with legal counsel reasonably acceptable to the Indemnitee (which
may be regula
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