STOCK PURCHASE AGREEMENT
BY AND BETWEEN
NATIONAL BANK OF COMMERCE,
A NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
AND
WARREN E. PAYNE
EFFECTIVE AS OF
OCTOBER 1, 2004
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STOCK PURCHASE AGREEMENT
This
STOCK PURCHASE AGREEMENT, dated effective as of the 1st day of
October, 2004 (the "AGREEMENT"), is made
and entered into by and between WARREN
E. PAYNE, a resident of Tennessee, or his
assigns ("BUYER"), and NATIONAL BANK
OF COMMERCE, a national banking association ("SELLER").
WHEREAS,
Buyer desires to
purchase from Seller, and Seller desires to sell
to Buyer, all of the issued and outstanding
shares of capital stock of Kenesaw
Leasing, Inc., a Tennessee Corporation ("KLI") and all of the issued and
outstanding shares of capital stock of J&S Leasing, Inc., a Tennessee
corporation ("JSL"; KLI and JSL are
sometimes collectively referred to herein as
the "COMPANIES" and each is sometimes referred to as a
"COMPANY"), upon the
terms and conditions set forth herein.
NOW,
THEREFORE,
in consideration of
the foregoing premises and the mutual
covenants, agreements, representations and
warranties set forth herein, and for
other good and valuable consideration,
the receipt and sufficiency of which are
hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto hereby agree as follows:
ARTICLE I
PURCHASE AND SALE
SECTION
1.01 PURCHASE
AND SALE. Upon and subject to the terms and
conditions of this Agreement, at the
Closing, Seller shall sell, convey, assign,
transfer and deliver to Buyer, and Buyer
shall purchase, acquire and accept from
Seller, all of the issued and outstanding capital stock of KLI (the "KLI
SHARES") and all of the issued and outstanding
capital stock of JSL (the "JSL
SHARES"), free and clear of all liens and encumbrances.
SECTION
1.02 CERTIFICATES FOR
THE SHARES. On the
Closing Date, Seller
shall deliver to Purchaser a certificate or
certificates which represent the KLI
Shares and a certificate or certificates which represent the JSL Shares
(collectively the "CERTIFICATES"), properly
issued, executed and countersigned,
as appropriate.
ARTICLE
II
PURCHASE PRICE
SECTION
2.01 PURCHASE
PRICE. The total purchase price for the KLI
shares and the JSL shares (the "PURCHASE PRICE") shall be
thirteen million
dollars ($13,000,000). The Purchase Price is allocated as follows: (a) the
purchase price for the KLI Shares is seven million
two hundred fifty thousand
dollars ($7,250,000); and (b) the purchase price for the JSL Shares
is five
million seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($5,750,000).
ARTICLE III
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF SELLER
Seller
represents, warrants,
covenants and agrees to and with Buyer, as of
the date hereof, as follows. For purposes of this Agreement, whenever a
statement herein is qualified by the
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phrase "TO SELLER'S KNOWLEDGE" or "TO THE
KNOWLEDGE OF SELLER" it is intended to
mean that the President and Chief
Executive Officer of Seller, William B. Reed,
Jr., does not have current, actual knowledge of the inaccuracy of such
statement, without having undertaken any detailed
independent investigation to
determine the accuracy thereof.
SECTION 3.01
ORGANIZATION. Each of the Companies is a
corporation duly
organized, validly existing under the laws of Tennessee and
has all requisite
power and authority to own, lease and
operate its properties and to carry on its
business as are now being conducted. Each of the Companies has
delivered to
Buyer accurate and complete copies of its Charter and
Bylaws, as currently in
effect, and has made available to Buyer all of its minute books and
stock
records.
SECTION
3.02 SUBSIDIARIES.
Each of the Companies does not own or
control, directly or indirectly, any of the outstanding
equity securities, or
have any other ownership interests in, any corporation, partnership,
association, subsidiary or other entity.
SECTION
3.03
CAPITALIZATION.
(a) The authorized
capital stock of KLI consists of 1,000 shares of KLI
common stock, of which 100 shares are issued and
outstanding. No such
shares
are held in treasury. All of the outstanding shares of KLI
common stock are
owned legally, of record and beneficially
by Seller, free and clear of any lien,
claim, encumbrance or charge whatsoever. All issued and outstanding shares
of
KLI common stock are validly issued, fully paid, nonassessable and free
of
preemptive rights. There is not any outstanding or authorized
subscription,
option, warrant, call, right, commitment or any other
agreement of any nature
whatsoever obligating KLI to issue, transfer,
sell, purchase, redeem or acquire
any shares of capital stock or other
securities of KLI or any other securities
or contracts convertible into or evidencing the right to subscribe for or
otherwise acquire any shares of capital stock or other securities of KLI.
(b) The authorized
capital stock of JSL consists of 2,000 shares of JSL
common stock, of which 100 shares are issued and
outstanding. No such
shares
are held in treasury. All of the outstanding shares of JSL
common stock are
owned legally, of record and beneficially
by Seller, free and clear of any lien,
claim, encumbrance or charge whatsoever. All issued and outstanding shares
of
JSL common stock are validly issued, fully paid, nonassessable and free
of
preemptive rights. There is not any outstanding or authorized
subscription,
option, warrant, call, right, commitment or any other
agreement of any nature
whatsoever obligating JSL to issue, transfer,
sell, purchase, redeem or acquire
any shares of capital stock or other
securities of JSL or any other securities
or contracts convertible into or evidencing the right to subscribe for or
otherwise acquire any shares of capital stock or other securities of JSL.
SECTION
3.04 AUTHORITY.
Seller has full
corporate power and authority
to execute and deliver this Agreement and to consummate the transactions
contemplated hereby. The execution and delivery of this Agreement and the
consummation of the transactions contemplated
hereby have been duly and validly
authorized by the Board of Directors of Seller, and no other corporate
proceedings on the part of Seller, KLI or JSL are
necessary to authorize this
Agreement or to consummate the transactions
so contemplated. This
Agreement has
been duly and validly executed and delivered
by Seller and constitutes a valid
and binding agreement of Seller, enforceable
against Seller in accordance with
its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy,
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insolvency and other similar laws affecting the enforceability
of creditors'
rights generally, general equitable principles and
the discretion of courts in
granting equitable remedies.
SECTION 3.05
CONSENTS AND APPROVALS; NO VIOLATION. No filing with, and
no permit, authorization, consent or approval
of, any public body or authority
is necessary for the consummation of the transactions contemplated by
this
Agreement by Seller. No consent or approval of or notice
to any person other
than a government entity, public body or
authority is required to be obtained or
given by Seller in connection with the
execution and delivery of this Agreement
or the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby. Neither the
execution and delivery of this Agreement, nor the consummation of the
transactions contemplated hereby, nor compliance by Seller with any of the
provisions hereof will (i) conflict with or result in any breach of any
provision of the Articles of Incorporation, Bylaws or similar governing
instruments of Seller, or (ii) violate any order, writ,
injunction, judgment,
decree, law, statute, rule or regulation applicable to Seller.
SECTION
3.06 FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS
BOOKS AND RECORDS. Seller has
previously furnished to Buyer the balance
sheets of each of the Companies as of
December 31, 2002 and 2003, and the related statements of income,
retained
earnings and cash flows for each of the twelve (12)
month periods then ended,
and related statements of income, retained earnings and cash flows for
the
periods then ended, together with the notes
thereto (such financial statements
having been prepared under the direction
of Warren E. Payne and Johnny F. Grubb
are hereafter collectively referred to as the
"FINANCIAL STATEMENTS"). Seller
has also provided to Buyer true and correct
copies of the interim balance sheets
of each of the Companies as of August 31, 2004, and related
statements of
income, retained earnings and cash flows for the period then
ended, together
with the notes thereto (such financial
statements having been prepared under the
direction of Warren E. Payne and Johnny F.
Grubb are hereinafter referred to as
the "INTERIM FINANCIAL STATEMENTS"). A copy of the August 31, 2004 balance
sheet is attached hereto as Exhibit 3.06.
Since August 31, 2004,
Seller has not
------------
made, or caused to be made, any changes,
adjustments or charges to the Interim
Financial Statements, or any draws against the Companies' line of
credit or
charges or debits to the Companies'
accounts, other than in the ordinary course
of business and consistent with Seller's past practice with respect to
the
Companies. To Seller's knowledge, the Interim Financial Statements
are true,
complete and correct, and the balance sheet (including the related notes)
included in the Interim Financial Statements fairly presents the financial
position of each of the Companies as of August
31, 2004, and the other related
statements (including the related notes) included in the Interim Financial
Statements fairly present the results of
operations and the changes in financial
position of each of the Companies as of such date,
in each case in accordance
with reasonably prudent business practices, consistently applied.
SECTION
3.07 UNDISCLOSED
LIABILITIES.
To the knowledge of
Seller, as
of August 31, 2004, each of the Companies had no indebtedness
or liability
(whether accrued, absolute, asserted, unasserted,
contingent or otherwise, and
whether due or to become due) which is not shown on or reserved
for in the
Financial Statements or the notes thereto and is required to be so
shown or
reserved for therein in accordance with
reasonably prudent business practices,
consistently applied. Since August 31, 2004, to the knowledge of Seller
the
Companies have not incurred any indebtedness or liability (whether
accrued,
absolute, asserted, unasserted, contingent or
otherwise, and whether due or to
become due), other than liabilities or
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indebtedness incurred in the ordinary course of business
consistent with past
practice, and no such liability or
indebtedness incurred in the ordinary course
of business consistent with past practice has had or could reasonably be
expected to have a material adverse effect on the business, operations,
financial or other condition or prospects of
each of the Companies, or has had
or could reasonably be expected to have a material
adverse effect on Seller's
ability to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby.
SECTION
3.08 EMPLOYEE
BENEFIT PLANS.
(a) For purposes of this Section 3.08, the term
"BENEFIT PLAN" means
------------
any plan, program, arrangement, practice or
contract that provides benefits or
compensation to or on behalf of employees or
former employees of either of the
Companies or of any "ERISA AFFILIATE" (as
hereinafter defined), whether formal
or informal, whether or not written, including, but not limited to, the
following types of Benefit Plans:
(i)
any
bonus, incentive compensation, stock option, deferred
compensation,
commission,
severance,
golden parachute or
other executive
compensation
plan, rabbi trust, program, contract, arrangement or practice;
(ii)
any "employee benefit plan" (as defined in Section 3(3)
of
the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended ("ERISA")),
including
any multi-employer
plan (as defined in Section 3(37) and Section
4001(a)(3)
of ERISA), defined benefit pension plan,
profit sharing plan,
money
purchase pension plan, savings or thrift plan, stock bonus
plan,
employee
stock ownership plan, or any plan, fund,
program, arrangement or
practice
providing for medical (including post-retirement medical),
hospitalization,
accident, sickness, disability, or life insurance
benefits;
and
(iii) any stock
purchase, vacation, scholarship, day care, prepaid
legal
services, severance pay or other fringe benefit plan, program,
arrangement,
contract or practice.
(b) For purposes of
this Section 3.08, the term "ERISA AFFILIATE" means
------------
each trade or business (whether or not incorporated)
that, together with the
Companies, is treated as a single employer under
Section 414(b), (c), (m), (o)
or (t) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "CODE").
(c) Except
as set forth on Exhibit 3.08 hereto,
each of the Companies
------------
does not maintain, has not at any time during Seller's ownership of the
Companies established or maintained, is not obligated,
and has not at any time
during Seller's ownership of the Companies been obligated, to
maintain or to
make contributions to or under or otherwise participate
in, any Benefit Plan.
(d) Neither of the
Companies nor any ERISA Affiliate thereof maintains,
or has at any time during Seller's ownership of
the Companies established or
maintained, or is obligated, or has at any time
been obligated, to maintain or
to make contributions to or under, or have
at any time during Seller's ownership
of the Companies incurred any material withdrawal liability under, any
multi-employer plan (as defined in Section 3(37) and Section 4001(a)(3)
of
ERISA)
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or any plan which is subject to the provisions
of Title IV of ERISA.
Each of
the Companies does not maintain, has not at any
time during Seller's ownership
of the Companies established or maintained,
is not obligated, and has not at any
time during Seller's ownership of the
Companies been obligated, to maintain or
to make contributions to or under any organization described in Sections
501(c)(9) or 501(c)(20) of the Code.
(e) Each
Benefit Plan maintained by either of the Companies or
any
ERISA Affiliate thereof, and each
Benefit Plan maintained by an ERISA Affiliate
of either of the Companies (i) which is
subject to Title IV of ERISA or (ii) the
deductibility of the expenses under which is subject to
Section 162(k) of the
Code, has at all times been maintained, by its
terms and in its operation, in
accordance with all applicable laws and all contributions to or under
each
Benefit Plan, including all matching
contributions required under each Benefit
Plan, and all expenses for each such Benefit Plan, due as
of the date hereof
have been paid in full and are fully
deductible for income tax purposes for the
taxable year for which such contributions
were made or such expenses were paid;
all reporting, disclosure, notice and nondiscrimination and other
applicable
requirements under ERISA and the Code have
been properly and timely satisfied in
full; and there are no issues
outstanding or audits scheduled with the Internal
Revenue Service ("IRS") or the Department of Labor with
respect to a Benefit
Plan.
(f) No "reportable event," non-exempt "prohibited transaction,"
"accumulated funding deficiency," or breach of fiduciary duty has occurred
within the most recent five (5) plan years with respect
to any Benefit Plan.
(g) Each
Benefit Plan that is intended to meet the
requirements of a
"qualified plan" under Code Section 401(a)
has received a determination from the
Internal Revenue Service that such Benefit
Plan is so qualified, and nothing has
occurred since the date of such determination that
could adversely affect the
qualified status of any such Benefit Plan. All such Benefit Plans have
been
timely amended in accordance with any
applicable legislation, including the tax
legislation known as "GUST" and "EGTRRA".
(h) No action, suit, proceeding, hearing or
investigation, including
with respect to the administration or investment
of the assets of any Benefit
Plan (other than routine claims for
benefits), is pending or threatened, nor is
Seller aware of any basis for any such action, suit,
proceeding, hearing or
investigation.
(i) All monies withheld from employees' paychecks
with respect to any
Benefit Plan have been transferred to the Benefit Plan in
a timely manner as
required by applicable law.
(j) No payment required to be made to any employee associated
with
either of the Companies as a result of the transactions
contemplated hereby
under any contract or otherwise will, if
made, constitute an "excess parachute
payment" within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code.
(k) Seller
and any ERISA Affiliate thereof have complied with the
continuation coverage requirements of Section 1001 of
the Consolidated Omnibus
Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, as amended, and ERISA
Sections 601 through
608.
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(l) (i) Each of the
Companies will not be subject to any liability, tax
or penalty whatsoever to any person
whomsoever with respect to any Benefit Plan
maintained by Seller, either of the Companies, or any
ERISA Affiliate thereof
for any period before the Closing; (ii) the
termination of or withdrawal from
any Benefit Plan will not subject
either of the Companies to any liability, tax
or penalty whatsoever; and (iii) the consummation of the transactions
contemplated by this Agreement will not create, accelerate or increase
any
obligations under any Benefit Plan,
including any obligation to make any payment
which would not be deductible under Section 280G of the Code.
SECTION 3.09
LABOR RELATIONS. To
the knowledge of Seller, there are no
unlawful employment practice discrimination charges involving either of the
Companies pending before the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission ("EEOC"),
any EEOC recognized state "referral agency" or any
other governmental agency.
To the knowledge of Seller, there are no unfair labor practice charges
or
complaints against either of the Companies pending before the
National Labor
Relations Board ("NLRB").
SECTION
3.10 LEGAL
MATTERS. Except as set forth on Exhibit 3.10
hereto, to the knowledge of Seller, no investigation or review by any
governmental entity with respect to either of the Companies is pending or
threatened, nor has any governmental entity
indicated to either of the Companies
or Seller an intention to conduct any such
investigation or review, including
any investigation or review as to environmental
matters. To the
knowledge of
Seller, there is no action, suit or
proceeding pending or threatened against or
affecting either of the Companies before any court
or arbitral tribunal at law
or in equity, or before any federal, state, municipal or
other governmental
department, commission, board, bureau, agency or instrumentality.
SECTION
3.11 TAXES.
Each of the Companies
has duly filed all federal,
state and local tax returns required to be
filed by it and has duly paid or made
adequate provision for the payment of all taxes which are due
and payable in
respect of all periods covered by such returns or
pursuant to any assessment
with respect to taxes in such jurisdictions,
whether or not in connection with
such returns. The liability for taxes reflected in the balance
sheet of the
Interim Financial Statements (excluding any reserve for deferred taxes or
portion thereof which is attributable to differences between the timing
of
income or deductions for tax and financial accounting
purposes) is sufficient
for the payment of all unpaid taxes,
whether or not disputed, that are accrued
or applicable for the period ended August 31, 2004, and for all years
and
periods ended prior thereto. All deficiencies asserted as a result of any
examinations by the IRS or any other taxing authority have
been paid, fully
settled or adequately provided for in the
balance sheet of the Interim Financial
Statements. There are no pending claims asserted for taxes of
either of the
Companies or outstanding agreements or
waivers extending the statutory period of
limitation applicable to any tax return of either of the Companies for
any
period. Each of the Companies has made all estimated
income tax deposits and
all other required tax payments or deposits and has complied for all
prior
periods in all material respects with the tax withholding
provisions of all
applicable federal, state, local and other laws.
Seller has made
available to
Buyer true, complete and correct copies of its federal and state
income tax
returns for the last three (3) taxable years and such other tax returns
requested by Buyer.
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SECTION
3.12 REAL
PROPERTY LEASES.
Seller
has provided to Buyer true, correct and complete copies of
all
leases pursuant to which each of the Companies leases real property
at its
Landmark office location. To Seller's knowledge: all such leases are
valid,
binding and enforceable in accordance with
their terms and are in full force and
effect; there are no existing defaults with respect thereto by any party
thereto; and no event has occurred which
(whether with or without notice, lapse
of time or the happening or occurrence of any
other event) would constitute a
default thereunder by either of the Companies or by any other
party thereto.
Seller has the full right to sublease the
space(s) described in Section 5.06 and
------------
has obtained the consent of the Lessor(s) to such subleases and
options to
sublease, if required under the underlying Leases.
SECTION
3.13 INSURANCE.
Each of the Companies
has been and is insured
by financially sound and reputable insurers with
respect to its properties and
the conduct of its business in such amounts and against such risks as
are
reasonable in relation to its business, and will maintain such
insurance in
force until the Closing Date.
SECTION
3.14 COMPLIANCE WITH
LAWS. To Seller's
knowledge, each of the
Companies has all material authorizations,
approvals, licenses and orders of and
from all governmental and regulatory offices and bodies
necessary to carry on
its business as it is currently being
conducted, to own or hold under lease the
properties and assets it owns or holds under lease and to
perform all of its
obligations under the agreements to which
it is a party. To
Seller's knowledge,
each of the Companies has been and is in
compliance with all applicable laws,
regulations and administrative orders of any
country, state or municipality or
of any subdivision of any thereof to which its
business and its employment of
labor or its use or occupancy of properties
or any part thereof are subject, the
failure to obtain or the violation of which
could have a material adverse effect
upon the assets, liabilities, results of operations
or financial condition of
each of the Companies.
SECTION
3.15 ENVIRONMENTAL
MATTERS.
To Seller's knowledge:
(a) Each
of the Companies has not received any
notification, whether
direct or indirect, pursuant to any Environmental Laws
that any real property
owned, leased or controlled by it is or may be related to or
subject to any
investigation or evaluation by any public body or
authority or other person as
to whether (i) any Remedial Action
(as hereinafter defined) is or may be needed
to respond to Contamination (as hereinafter
defined); or (ii) any lien should be
levied on any such real property, or any proceeding
commenced, related to or
arising from Contamination.
(b) Each of the
Companies is not subject to any outstanding order from,
or contract with, any public body or authority or other person regarding
Contamination, nor has it received any
notice, claim, demand or inquiry from any
adjacent property owner or occupant with respect to Contamination.
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(c) There
are no actions, suits, claims, liens, penalties, fines,
investigations or proceedings under Environmental
Laws with respect to any real
property leased or controlled by either of the Companies, or
obligations to
remediate conditions under any Environmental Laws.
For purposes of this Agreement, the terms
set forth below shall have the
following meanings:
(i)
"CONTAMINATION" means
the Release or threatened Release of
Hazardous
Substances on, in, about or under any real property owned,
leased
or controlled by either of the
Companies, or any adjacent land as a result
of a Release of Hazardous Substances on any such real property
owned,
leased
or controlled by either of the Companies, but
not including those
Releases
which occur after the Closing.
(ii)
"ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS"
means federal, state or local laws,
rules and
regulations, as well as orders, decrees, judgments or
injunctions
issued,
promulgated, approved or entered thereunder, relating to
pollution,
protection
of the environment or public health and
safety, including the
Release
or threatened Release
of Hazardous Substances into the environment
or otherwise relating to the presence, manufacture, processing,
distribution,
use, generation, treatment, storage,
disposal, transport or
handling
of Hazardous Substances.
(iii) "HAZARDOUS
SUBSTANCES"
shall have the meaning
set forth in
42 U.S.C. Sec. 9601(14) and petroleum or
petroleum products and asbestos.
(iv)
"RELEASE" means
any release, spill, emission, leaking,
pumping,
injection,
deposit, disposal, discharge, dispersal,
leaching or
migration
into the indoor or outdoor environment or into or out
of any
property,
including the movement
of Hazardous Substances through or in the
air,
soil, surface water, ground water or property.
(v)
"REMEDIAL ACTION"
means all actions reasonably necessary,
whether
voluntary or
involuntary, to (A) clean up, remove, treat or in any
other way adjust
Hazardous Substances in the indoor or outdoor environment;
(B) prevent the
Release or further movement of Hazardous Substances so that
they
do not migrate or endanger or threaten to
endanger public health or
welfare
or the indoor or outdoor environment; or (C) perform
remedial
studies,
investigations,
restoration
and post-remedial studies,
investigations
and monitoring on, in, about or under any real
property
owned,
leased or controlled by either of the Companies.
SECTION
3.16 BROKERS
AND FINDERS. Neither Seller nor any of its
officers, directors or employees, has
employed any broker or finder or incurred
any liability for any financial advisory fees,
brokerage fees, commissions or
finder's fees, and no broker or finder has acted directly or
indirectly for
Seller in connection with this Agreement or
any of the transactions contemplated
hereby.
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ARTICLE IV
REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF BUYER
Buyer
represents, warrants,
covenants and agrees to and with Seller, as of
the date hereof, as follows:
SECTION
4.01 AUTHORITY.
Buyer is an adult resident of the State of
Tennessee. Buyer has full power and authority to execute and deliver this
Agreement and to consummate the transactions contemplated hereby. This
Agreement has been duly and validly executed and delivered by Buyer and
constitutes a valid and binding agreement
of Buyer, enforceable against Buyer in
accordance with its terms, subject to applicable bankruptcy,
insolvency and
other similar laws affecting the
enforceability of creditors' rights generally,
general equitable principles and the
discretion of courts in granting equitable
remedies.
SECTION 4.02
CONSENTS AND APPROVALS; NO VIOLATION. No filing with, and
no permit, authorization, consent or
approval of, any public body or authority,
is necessary for the consummation by Buyer of
the transactions contemplated by
this Agreement. No consent or approval of or
notice to any person other than a
government entity, public body or authority
is required to be obtained or given
by Buyer in connection with the
execution and delivery of this Agreement or the
consummation of the transactions contemplated
hereby. Neither the execution and
delivery of this Agreement nor the
consummation of the transactions contemplated
hereby nor compliance by Buyer with any of the provisions hereof will
(i)
result in a violation or breach of, or (with
or without due notice or lapse of
time or both) constitute a default, give rise to any right of
termination,
cancellation or acceleration or result in
the loss of a material benefit, under,
any of the terms, conditions or provisions
of any material note, bond, mortgage,
indenture, or instrument or any material
license, agreement or other obligation
to which Buyer is a party or by which
it or any of its properties or assets may
be bound or (ii) violate any order, writ,
injunction, judgment, decree, law,
statute, rule or regulation applicable to Buyer or any of its properties
or
assets.
SECTION 4.03
BROKERS AND FINDERS.
Buyer has not employed any broker or
finder or incurred any liability for any financial advisory fees,
brokerage
fees, commissions, or finder's fees, and
no broker or finder has acted directly
or indirectly for Buyer, in connection with this Agreement or any of the
transactions contemplated hereby.
ARTICLE V
CERTAIN COVENANTS AND AGREEMENTS
SECTION
5.01 CONDUCT OF
BUSINESS BY KLI AND JSL. From the date hereof
to the Closing, Seller, and Warren E. Payne
to the extent applicable, will cause
each of the Companies, except as required in
connection with the transactions
contemplated by this Agreement or as consented to in writing by Buyer,
to:
(a) Carry on its
businesses in the ordinary course in substantially the
same manner as heretofore conducted and not
engage in any new line of business
or enter into any agreement,
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transaction or activity or make any commitment except those in the
ordinary
course of business and not otherwise prohibited under this Section 5.01;
------------
(b) Neither
change nor amend its Charter or Bylaws;
(c) Not issue, sell
or grant options, warrants or rights to purchase or
subscribe to, or enter into any arrangement or contract with
respect to the
issuance or sale of any of its capital stock or rights or obligations
convertible into or exchangeable for any shares of its capital
stock and not
alter its capital structure;
(d) Not declare, pay or set aside for payment any dividend
or other
distribution in respect of its capital
stock or other equity securities, and not
redeem, purchase or otherwise acquire any shares of its capital
stock or any
options, warrants or other rights to purchase or
subscribe for the foregoing;
(e) Not acquire or enter into an agreement to acquire, by
merger,
consolidation or purchase of stock or assets, any business or entity;
(f) Preserve
intact its corporate existence, goodwill and business
organization, and use its reasonable best efforts to keep its officers
and
employees available to Buyer and preserve its relationships with
customers,
suppliers and others having business relations with it;
(g) Not (i) create, incur or assume any long-term debt (including
obligations in respect of capital leases which individually involve
annual
payments in excess of $5,000) or, except in the ordinary course
of business
under existing lines of credit, create,
incur or assume any short-term debt for
borrowed money, (ii) assume, guarantee, endorse or
otherwise become liable or
responsible (whether directly, contingently
or otherwise) for the obligations of
any other person, (iii) make any loans or advances to any
other person, (iv)
make any capital contributions to, or investments
in, any person, or (v) make
any capital expenditure involving in
excess of $1,500 in the case of any single
expenditure or $5,000 in the case of all capital expenditures;
(h) Not enter into, modify or extend in any manner the terms
of any
employment, severance or similar agreements with officers and directors
nor
grant any increase in the compensation of officers,
directors or employees,
whether now or hereafter payable, including any
such increase pursuant to any
option, bonus, stock purchase, pension,
profit-sharing, deferred compensation,
retirement or other plan, arrangement, contract or commitment;
(i) Perform
in all material respects all of its
obligations under all
material contracts (except those being contested in good
faith) and not enter
into, assume or amend any contract or
commitment other than contracts to provide
services entered into in the ordinary course of business;
(j) Maintain
in full force and
effect and in the same amounts policies
of insurance comparable in amount and scope of
coverage to that now maintained
by it;
(k) Continue
to collect its
accounts receivable in the ordinary course
of business and consistent with past practices; and
11
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(l) Prepare and file
all federal, state and local tax returns and other
tax reports, filings and amendments thereto required to be filed by
it, and
allow Buyer, at its request, to review all such
returns, reports, filings and
amendments prior to the filing thereof, which review
shall not interfere with
the timely filing of such returns.
In connection with the continued operation of
the business of each of the
Companies between the date of this Agreement and the Closing, each of the
Companies shall confer in good faith on a
regular and frequent basis with one or
more representatives of Buyer designated in writing to report operational
matters of materiality and the general status of ongoing
operations. Seller
acknowledges that Buyer does not and will
not waive any rights it may have under
this Agreement as a result of such consultations.
SECTION
5.02 INSPECTION
AND ACCESS TO INFORMATION.
(a) Between
the date of this Agreement and the Closing,
Seller will
cause each of the Companies to provide Buyer and
its accountants, counsel and
other authorized representatives full access,
during reasonable business hours
and under reasonable circumstances, to
any and all of its premises, properties,
contracts, commitments, books, records and other information (including
tax
returns filed and those in preparation),
and will cause its officers to furnish
to Buyer and its authorized representatives
any and all financial, technical and
operating data and other information pertaining to the business of the
companies, as Buyer shall from time to time reasonably request.
(b) All non-public information obtained by Buyer or any of its
representatives pursuant to this Agreement or in connection with
the matters
contemplated hereby concerning the business,
operations or affairs of the other
will be kept confidential and will not be used
for any purpose other than the
consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby, or be
disclosed to any
other person or entity, except for such disclosure to its
employees, agents,
representatives, lenders and investment partners who have a need to know
the
same and who have been advised of the
confidential nature of such information
and who agree to abide by the terms hereof
and except for such disclosure as may
be required by applicable law, court order or
governmental agency request. In
the event this Agreement is terminated in accordance with its terms, any
non-public information furnished by any party
to any other party hereto will be
promptly returned.
SECTION
5.03 NO SOLICITATION, ACQUISITION PROPOSALS. From the date
hereof until the Closing or until this
Agreement is terminated or abandoned as
provided in Article VIII,