Exhibit 10.12
[EXECUTION COPY]
INVESTOR RIGHTS AGREEMENT
by and among
TRIBUNE COMPANY,
EGI-TRB, L.L.C.
and
GREATBANC TRUST COMPANY,
solely as trustee of the
TRIBUNE EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP
TRUST
which forms a part of the
TRIBUNE EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP
PLAN
Dated as of April 1,
2007
INVESTOR RIGHTS AGREEMENT
This INVESTOR RIGHTS AGREEMENT (this
“ Agreement ”) is entered this 1st day of April,
2007, by and among Tribune Company, a Delaware corporation (the
“ Company ”), EGI-TRB, L.L.C., a Delaware
limited liability company (“ EGI-TRB ”), and
GreatBanc Trust Company, not in its individual or corporate
capacity, but solely as trustee (the “ ESOP Fiduciary
”) of the Tribune Employee Stock Ownership Trust, which forms
a part of the Tribune Employee Stock Ownership Plan (the “
ESOP ” and together with EGI-TRB, the “
Initial Shareholders ”).
W I T N E S
S E T H :
WHEREAS, concurrently herewith,
EGI-TRB, the ESOP, Tesop Corporation, a Delaware corporation
(“ Merger Sub ”), and the Company have entered
into that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of
April 1, 2007 (the “ Merger Agreement ”),
pursuant to which Merger Sub, a wholly owned subsidiary of the
ESOP, will be merged with and into the Company, with the Company
surviving the Merger (the “ Merger ”), on the
terms and subject to the conditions set forth therein.
WHEREAS, concurrently herewith, the
Company and EGI-TRB have entered into a Securities Purchase
Agreement (the “ EGI Purchase Agreement ”)
pursuant to which EGI-TRB has, on the terms and subject to the
conditions set forth in the EGI Purchase Agreement, agreed to
purchase (i) (a) 1,470,588 shares of Common Stock prior to
consummation of the Merger and (b) a $200 million unsecured
subordinated exchangeable promissory note in the form attached as
an exhibit thereto, and (ii) (y) a $225 million unsecured
subordinated promissory note in the form attached as an exhibit
thereto and (z) a warrant to purchase 43,478,261 shares of Common
Stock of the Company immediately following consummation of the
Merger (the “ Warrant ”) pursuant to a warrant
agreement in the form attached as an exhibit thereto (the “
Warrant Agreement ”).
WHEREAS, concurrently herewith, the
ESOP Fiduciary, on behalf of the ESOP, and the Company have entered
into an Equity Purchase Agreement (the “ ESOP Purchase
Agreement ”) pursuant to which the ESOP has, on the terms
and subject to the conditions set forth in the ESOP Purchase
Agreement, agreed to purchase 8,928,571 shares of Common Stock
prior to consummation of the Merger (the “ ESOP
Purchase ”).
WHEREAS, the Company and each of the
Initial Shareholders have entered into this Agreement for purposes,
among others, of (a) establishing the composition of the
Company’s board of directors (the “ Board
”), (b) granting to the Shareholders (as defined herein)
certain rights in connection with the sale or transfer of Shares
(as defined herein) and (c) granting to the Shareholders
certain other rights, including information rights, with respect to
the Company, in each case, upon consummation of the
Merger.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of
the mutual covenants contained herein and other good and valuable
consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby
acknowledged, the Parties (as defined herein) hereby agree as
follows:
ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS
Section
1.1
Definitions . When used in this Agreement, the
following terms shall have the meanings set forth
below:
(a)
“ Additional Financing ” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 4.4 .
(b)
“ Affiliate ” shall mean, with respect to a
Person, another Person who, directly or indirectly, controls, is
controlled by or is under common control with such Person,
including, without limitation, any general partner, officer,
director, or manager of such Person; provided, however, that no
Person for whom the ESOP Fiduciary serves as trustee shall be
deemed to be an Affiliate of the ESOP Fiduciary.
(c)
“ Agreement ” shall have the meaning set forth
in the Preamble.
(d)
“ Annual Budget ” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 7.1 .
(e)
“ Board ” shall have the meaning set forth in
the Recitals.
(f)
“ Code ” shall mean the Internal Revenue Code of
1986, as amended, and the regulations promulgated
thereunder.
(g)
“ Common Stock ” shall mean the common stock,
par value $.01 per share, of the Company.
(h)
“ Company ” shall have the meaning set forth in
Preamble.
(i)
“ Convertible Securities ” shall mean any
evidences of indebtedness, shares or other securities directly or
indirectly convertible into or exchangeable for Common Stock, but
excluding Options.
(j)
“ Effective Date ” shall mean the date of
consummation of the Merger.
(k)
“ EGI Purchase Agreement ” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals.
(l)
“ EGI Transferee ” shall mean any direct or
indirect Affiliate of EGI-TRB, Equity Group Investments, L.L.C. or
Samuel Zell, and any senior employee of Equity Group
Investments, L.L.C. and any direct or indirect Affiliate
thereof.
(m)
“ EGI-TRB ” shall have the meaning set forth in
the Preamble.
(n)
“ EGI-TRB Director ” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 2.1 .
(o)
“ ESOP ” shall have the meaning set forth in the
Preamble.
(p)
“ ESOP Fiduciary ” shall have the meaning set
forth in the Preamble.
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(q)
“ ESOP Loan Agreement ” shall mean the Loan
Agreement, dated as of the date of the ESOP Purchase, by and
between the Company and the ESOP Fiduciary.
(r)
“ ESOP Pledge Agreement ” shall mean the Stock
Pledge Agreement, dated as of the date of the ESOP Purchase, by and
between the Company and the ESOP Fiduciary.
(s)
“ ESOP Purchase ” shall have the meaning set
forth in the Recitals.
(t)
“ ESOP Purchase Agreement ” shall have the
meaning set forth in the Recitals.
(u)
“ Excluded Transactions ” shall mean (a) the
issuance of shares of Common Stock, Options or Convertible
Securities as a dividend or distribution on Shares, (b) the
issuance of shares of Common Stock, Options or Convertible
Securities by reason of a stock split, split-up or other
distribution on shares of Common Stock, (c) the issuance of shares
of Common Stock or Options to employees or directors of, or
consultants or advisors to, the Company or any of its subsidiaries
pursuant to a compensatory plan, agreement or arrangement approved
by the Board or (d) the issuance of shares of Common Stock or
Convertible Securities upon the exercise of Options or upon the
conversion or exchange of Convertible Securities, in each case,
provided such issuance is pursuant to the terms of such Option or
Convertible Security.
(v)
“ Fully-Exercising Shareholder ” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 4.2 .
(w)
“ General Notice ” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 4.2 .
(x)
“ Independent Director ” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Company’s By-laws in effect from time to
time.
(y)
“ Initial Directors ” shall mean the persons
initially designated as directors on the Effective Date, including
the directors designated in accordance with the provisions of
Section 2.1 hereof.
(z)
“ Initial Shareholders ” shall have the meaning
set forth in the Preamble.
(aa)
“ Joinder ” shall have the meaning set forth in
Section 3.6 .
(bb)
“ Merger ” shall have the meaning set forth in
the Recitals.
(cc)
“ Merger Agreement ” shall have the meaning set
forth in the Recitals.
(dd)
“ Merger Sub ” shall have the meaning set forth
in the Recitals.
(ee)
“ Option ” shall mean any right, option or
warrant to subscribe for, purchase or otherwise acquire Common
Stock or Convertible Securities.
(ff)
“ Other Shareholder ” shall have the meaning set
forth in Section 3.2 .
(gg)
“ Parties ” shall mean the parties to this
Agreement.
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(hh)
“ Permitted Transferees ” shall have the meaning
set forth in Section 3.3 .
(ii)
“ Person ” shall mean an individual,
corporation, partnership, limited liability company, association,
trust, unincorporated organization, entity or group.
(jj)
“ Qualified Public Offering ” shall mean a firm
commitment underwritten public offering of the Common Stock to the
public with gross proceeds to the Company of not less than $250
million, pursuant to an effective registration statement filed
under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
(kk)
“ Sale of the Company ” shall mean either (a) a
merger or consolidation in which (i) the Company is a constituent
party or (ii) a subsidiary of the Company is a constituent party
and the Company issues shares of its capital stock pursuant to such
merger or consolidation, except any such merger or consolidation
involving the Company or a subsidiary pursuant to which the shares
of capital stock of the Company outstanding immediately prior to
such merger or consolidation continue to represent, or are
converted into or exchanged for shares of capital stock that
represent, immediately following such merger or consolidation, at
least a majority, by voting power, of the capital stock of (A) the
surviving or resulting corporation or (B) if the surviving or
resulting corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of another
corporation immediately following such merger or consolidation, the
parent corporation of such surviving or resulting corporation
(provided that, for purposes of this definition, all Shares
issuable upon exercise of rights, options or warrants to subscribe
for, purchase or otherwise acquire Shares or securities convertible
into Shares, which are outstanding immediately prior to such merger
or consolidation or upon conversion of convertible securities
outstanding immediately prior to such merger or consolidation shall
be deemed to be outstanding immediately prior to such merger or
consolidation and, if applicable, converted or exchanged in such
merger or consolidation on the same terms as the actual outstanding
Shares are converted or exchanged), (b) the sale, lease, transfer,
exclusive license or other disposition, in a single transaction or
series of related transactions, by the Company or any subsidiary of
the Company of all or substantially all the assets of the Company
and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, or the sale or disposition
(whether by merger or otherwise) of one or more subsidiaries of the
Company if substantially all of the assets of the Company and its
subsidiaries taken as a whole are held by such subsidiary or
subsidiaries, except where such sale, lease, transfer, exclusive
license or other disposition is to a wholly owned subsidiary of the
Company or (c) a Stock Sale. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, a “ Sale of the Company ” shall not
include the Merger or any other transaction contemplated by the
Merger Agreement.
(ll)
“ Sale Notice ” shall have the meaning set forth
in Section 3.2 .
(mm)
“ Shareholder ” or “ Shareholders
” shall mean (and this Agreement shall bind and create rights
in) the Initial Shareholders and any other transferee to which (a)
any Shares are permitted by this Agreement to be issued or
Transferred or (b) any Warrants are assigned, in each case, in
accordance with the terms of this Agreement. Each of the
foregoing Persons shall remain a Shareholder as long as he, she or
it continues to own Shares or Warrants in the Company.
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(nn)
“ Shares ” shall mean (a) the shares of Common
Stock acquired by the Initial Shareholders as a result of the
Merger and the ESOP Purchase or otherwise, (b) the shares of Common
Stock issued upon conversion of the Warrant and (c) any Common
Stock issued with respect to the securities referred to in clauses
(a) and (b) by way of stock dividend or stock split or in
connection with a combination of shares, recapitalization, merger,
consolidation or other reorganization. “ Shares
” shall also include shares or other interests in any
successor to the Company, whether by merger, consolidation or
otherwise.
(oo)
“ Stock Sale ” shall mean a transaction or
series of related transactions in which a Person, or a group of
related Persons, acquires from Shareholders of the Company capital
stock and other voting securities representing more than fifty
percent (50%) of the outstanding voting power of the
Company.
(pp)
“ Transfer ” or “ Transferred
” shall mean to directly or indirectly sell, assign, give,
mortgage, pledge, hypothecate, issue, bequeath or in any manner
encumber or dispose of, or permit to be sold, assigned, encumbered,
attached or otherwise disposed of in any manner, whether
voluntarily, involuntarily or by operation of law, with or without
consideration other than as part of a distribution of Shares by the
ESOP to a participant of the ESOP as may be required by the terms
thereof.
(qq)
“ Transferring Shareholder ” shall have the
meaning set forth in Section 3.2 .
(rr)
“ Warrant ” shall have the meaning set forth in
the Recitals.
(ss)
“ Warrant Agreement ” shall have the meaning set
forth in the Recitals.
(tt)
“ Zell Family Group ” shall mean Samuel Zell and
his spouse, lineal ancestors and descendants (whether natural or
adopted), and any trust or retirement account primarily for the
benefit of Samuel Zell and/or his spouse, lineal ancestors and
descendants.
ARTICLE II
CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Section
2.1
Size and Composition of the Board . Upon and
following the Effective Date, each Shareholder agrees that in any
election of directors of the Company, such Shareholder shall vote,
or cause to be voted, all shares of Common Stock and any other
voting securities of the Company owned by such Shareholder, or over
which such Shareholder has voting control, and shall take all other
necessary or desirable actions within such Shareholder’s
control (whether in the capacity of a Shareholder, director, member
of a Board committee or officer of the Company or otherwise, and
including, without limitation, attendance at meetings in person or
by proxy for purposes of obtaining a quorum and execution of
written consents in lieu of meetings), and the Company shall take
all necessary or desirable actions within its control (including,
without limitation, calling special Board and shareholder
meetings), so that:
(a)
the Initial Directors shall serve as directors until the third
(3rd) annual election following consummation of the
Merger;
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(b)
there shall be two (2) directors designated by EGI-TRB (each an
“ EGI-TRB Director ”);
(c)
there shall be one (1) director who shall be the Company’s
chief executive officer; provided that if for any reason the chief
executive officer of the Company shall cease to serve in such
capacity, each Shareholder shall take all other necessary or
desirable actions within such Shareholder’s control (whether
in the capacity of a Shareholder, director, member of a Board
committee or officer of the Company or otherwise, and including,
without limitation, attendance at meetings in person or by proxy
for purposes of obtaining a quorum and execution of written
consents in lieu of meetings), and the Company shall take all
necessary or desirable actions within its control, to (i) remove
the former chief executive officer of the Company from the Board if
such person has not resigned as a member of the Board and (ii)
elect or appoint such person’s replacement as chief executive
officer of the Company as a director;
Section
2.2
Removal of EGI-TRB Directors . Subject to any
limitation in the Company’s By-laws, each Shareholder agrees
that it shall take all other necessary or desirable actions within
such Shareholder’s control (whether in the capacity of a
Shareholder, director, member of a Board committee or officer of
the Company or otherwise), and the Company shall take all necessary
or desirable actions within its control, to ensure that no EGI-TRB
Director elected or appointed as a member of the Board pursuant to
Section 2.1 may be removed from office unless such removal
is directed or approved by EGI-TRB (in its sole and absolute
discretion).
Section
2.3
Written Consent . All Shareholders agree to execute
any written consents required to perform the obligations under
Sections 2.1 and 2.2 of this Agreement, and the
Company agrees at the request of any Party entitled to designate
directors to call a special meeting of shareholders for the purpose
of electing directors.
Section
2.4
No Liability for Election or Appointment of Recommended
Directors . No Party, nor any Affiliate of any such
Party, shall have any liability as a result of designating a person
for election or appointment as a Board member or committee member
for any act or omission by such designated person in his or her
capacity as a Board member or committee member, as applicable, nor
shall any Party have any liability as a result of voting for any
such designee in accordance with the provisions of this
Agreement.
Section
2.5
Compensation of Board . Upon and following the
Effective Date, the Company agrees to reimburse all members of the
Board for their actual and reasonable out-of-pocket expenses
incurred in attending meetings of the Board and all committees
thereof, and otherwise incurred in fulfilling their duties as Board
members or committee members, as applicable, and pay such
reasonable compensation to members of the Board as the Board shall
from time to time determine.
Section
2.6
No Other ESOP Obligations . For the avoidance of
doubt, nothing in this Article II shall require the ESOP or
its participants to vote in any manner on matters other than the
election of directors.
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Section
2.7
Termination . Subject to Article IX , the
rights of EGI-TRB under Sections 2.1 and 2.2
shall continue for so long as EGI-TRB and its Permitted Transferees
hold in the aggregate at least ten percent (10%) of the outstanding
Shares (including for purposes of this Section 2.7 , Shares
subject to the Warrant) on a fully diluted basis.
ARTICLE III
TRANSFERS
Section
3.1
Transfer of Shares . Subject to Article VI ,
upon and following the Effective Date, no Shareholder shall
Transfer its Shares, except (a) pursuant to the provisions of
Section 3.2 , (b) pursuant to a Transfer of not more than
two percent (2%) of the outstanding Common Stock (on a fully
diluted basis) to any transferee or (c) to a Permitted
Transferee; provided that in no event shall any Transfer of Shares
pursuant to Section 3.2 be made for any consideration other
than cash payable upon consummation of such Transfer or in
installments over time and no Shares may be pledged (except for a
pledge of Shares by a transferee to secure indebtedness to the
transferor thereof hereunder). In connection with any
transfer pursuant to Section 3.2 , no Shareholder shall
consummate any Transfer until thirty (30) calendar days after
delivery to the Company and the other Shareholders of such
Shareholder’s Sale Notice, unless the parties to the Transfer
have been finally determined pursuant to this Article III
prior to the expiration of such thirty (30) calendar day
period.
Section
3.2
Co-Sale Rights . Subject to Section 3.1 , upon
and following the Effective Date, at least thirty (30) calendar
days prior to any Transfer of Shares, the transferring Shareholder
(the “ Transferring Shareholder ”) shall deliver
a written notice (the “ Sale Notice ”) to the
Company and the other Shareholders (the “ Other
Shareholders ”) specifying in reasonable detail the
identity of the prospective transferee(s), the number of Shares to
be Transferred and the terms and conditions of the Transfer.
The Other Shareholders may elect to participate in such Transfer as
sellers at the same price per share and on the same terms by
delivering written notice to the Transferring Shareholder within
thirty (30) calendar days after delivery
of the Sale Notice. If any Other Shareholders have elected to
participate in such Transfer, the Transferring Shareholder and such
Other Shareholders shall be entitled to sell in the contemplated
Transfer, at the same price and on the same terms, a number of
Shares equal to the result of (a) an amount equal to (i) the
percentage of Shares owned by such Person (including for these
purposes, in the case of the holder of the Warrant, the Shares
underlying the Warrant) divided by (ii) the aggregate
percentage of Shares owned by the Transferring Shareholder and the
Other Shareholders participating in such sale (including for these
purposes, in the case of the holder of the Warrant, the Shares
underlying the Warrant) multiplied by (b) the number of
Shares to be sold in the contemplated Transfer.
Each Transferring Shareholder shall
use reasonable best efforts to obtain the agreement of the
prospective transferee(s) to the participation of the Other
Shareholders in any contemplated Transfer, and no Transferring
Shareholder shall Transfer any of its Shares to any prospective
transferee if such prospective transferee(s) declines to allow the
participation of the Other Shareholders. Each Shareholder
transferring Shares pursuant to this Section 3.2 shall pay
its pro rata share (based on the number of Shares to be
Transferred) of the expenses incurred by the Company and the
Transferring Shareholder in connection with such Transfer and shall
be obligated to join on a pro rata basis (based on the number of
Shares to be Transferred) in any
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indemnification or other obligations
that the Transferring Shareholder agrees to provide in connection
with such transfer (other than any such obligations that relate
specifically to a particular Shareholder, such as indemnification
with respect to representations and warranties given by a
Shareholder regarding such Shareholder’s title to and
ownership of Shares; provided that no holder shall be obligated in
connection with such Transfer to agree to indemnify or hold
harmless the prospective transferee(s) with respect to an amount in
excess of the net cash proceeds paid to such holder in connection
with such Transfer).
Section
3.3
Permitted Transfers . Subject to Article VI ,
the restrictions set forth in this Article III shall not
apply with respect to any Transfer of Shares (a) by any
Shareholder to or among its Affiliates, (b) by EGI-TRB to or
among any EGI Transferee or (c) by EGI-TRB to or among any
member of the Zell Family Group (collectively referred to herein as
“ Permitted Transferees ”); provided that the
restrictions contained in this Article III and
Article VI shall continue to be applicable to such
Shares after any such Transfer. Notwithstanding the
foregoing, no Party hereto shall avoid the provisions
of