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AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT

Termination Agreement

AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT | Document Parties: HESS CORP | Hess Corporation You are currently viewing:
This Termination Agreement involves

HESS CORP | Hess Corporation

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Title: AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT
Governing Law: New York     Date: 8/7/2009
Industry: Oil and Gas - Integrated     Sector: Energy

AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT, Parties: hess corp , hess corporation
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Exhibit 10(2)

AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL
TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT

     THIS AMENDED AND RESTATED CHANGE IN CONTROL TERMINATION BENEFITS AGREEMENT (the “Agreement”), dated as of the 29th day of May, 2009, is between Hess Corporation , a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and Brian J. Bohling (the “Executive”).

WITNESSETH:

      WHEREAS , the Company and the Executive are parties to that certain Change in Control Termination Benefits Agreement, dated as of January 20, 2005 (the “Prior Agreement”);

      WHEREAS , the Company considers it essential to the best interests of the Company and its stockholders that its management be encouraged to remain with the Company and to continue to devote full attention to the Company’s business in the event of a transaction or series of transactions that could result in a change in control of the Company through a tender offer or otherwise;

      WHEREAS , the Company recognizes that the possibility of a change in control and the uncertainty which it may raise among management may result in the departure or distraction of management personnel to the detriment of the Company and its stockholders;

      WHEREAS , the Executive is a key executive of the Company;

      WHEREAS , the Company believes the Executive has made valuable contributions to the productivity and profitability of the Company;

      WHEREAS , should the Company receive a proposal for, or otherwise consider any such transaction, in addition to the Executive’s regular duties, the Executive may be called upon to assist in the assessment of such proposals, advise management and the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) as to whether a proposed transaction would be in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders, and to take such other actions as the Board might determine to be appropriate;

      WHEREAS , the Board has determined that it is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders to assure that the Company will have the continued services of the Executive, notwithstanding the possibility, threat or occurrence of a change in control of the Company and believes that it is imperative to diminish the potential distraction of the Executive by virtue of the personal uncertainties and risks created by a pending or threatened change in control, to assure the Executive’s full

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attention and dedication to the Company in the event of any threatened or pending change in control, and to provide the Executive with appropriate severance arrangements following a change in control;

      WHEREAS , the Company intends that the Agreement comply with, or not be subject to, section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and guidance and regulations issued thereunder, so that, notwithstanding any other provision of the Agreement, the Agreement shall be interpreted, operated and administered in a manner consistent with this intention; and

      WHEREAS , the Company and the Executive mutually desire to make certain revisions to the Prior Agreement consistent with such intention.

      NOW, THEREFORE, (a) to assure the Company that it will have the continued undivided attention and services of the Executive and the availability of the Executive’s advice and counsel notwithstanding the possibility, threat or occurrence of a change in control of the Company, and to induce the Executive to remain in the employ of the Company and (b) in order that the Agreement comply with, or not be subject to, Section 409A of the Code, and for other good and valuable consideration, the Prior Agreement is hereby amended and restated as of the date first above set forth as follows:

     1.  Change in Control.

     For purposes of the Agreement, a Change in Control shall be deemed to have taken place if any of the following shall occur:

     (a) The acquisition by any individual, entity or group (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”)), of beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act) of 20% or more of either the then (i) outstanding shares of Common Stock of the Company (the “Outstanding Company Common Stock”) or (ii) combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors (the “Outstanding Voting Securities”) provided , however , that the following acquisitions shall not constitute a Change in Control: (i) any acquisition by the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (ii) any acquisition by an employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by the Company or any of its subsidiaries, (iii) any acquisition by any company with respect to which, following such acquisition, more than 60% of, respectively, the then outstanding shares of common stock of such company and the combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities of such company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors is then beneficially owned, directly or indirectly, by all or substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners, respectively, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting Securities immediately prior to such acquisition in substantially the same proportions as their ownership, immediately prior to such acquisition, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting

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Securities, as the case may be, or (iv) any acquisition by one or more Hess Entity (for this purpose a “Hess Entity” means (A) Mr. John Hess or any of his children, parents or siblings, (B) any spouse of any person described in Section (A) above, (C) any trust with respect to which any of the persons described in (A) has substantial voting authority (D) any affiliate (as such term is defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act) of any person described in (A) above, (E) the Hess Foundation Inc., or (F) any persons comprising a group controlled (as such term is defined in such Rule 12b-2) by one or more of the foregoing persons or entities described in this Section 1(a)(iv)); or

     (b) Within any 24 month period, individuals who, immediately prior to the beginning of such period, constitute the Board (the “Incumbent Board”) cease for any reason to constitute at least a majority of the Board; provided, however, that any individual becoming a director during such period whose election, or nomination for election by the Company’s stockholders, was approved by a vote of at least a majority of the directors then comprising the Incumbent Board shall be considered as though such individual were a member of the Incumbent Board, but excluding, for this purpose, any such individual whose initial assumption of office occurs as a result of either an actual or threatened solicitation to which Rule 14a-ll of Regulation 14A promulgated under the Exchange Act applies or other actual or threatened solicitation of proxies or consents; or

     (c) Consummation of a reorganization, merger or consolidation, in each case, with respect to which all or substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners, respectively, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting Securities immediately prior to such reorganization, merger or consolidation do not, following such reorganization, merger or consolidation, beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than 60% of, respectively, the then outstanding shares of common stock and the combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, as the case may be, of the company resulting from such reorganization, merger or consolidation in substantially the same proportions as their ownership, immediately prior to such reorganization, merger or consolidation, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting Securities, as the case may be; or

     (d) Consummation of (i) a complete liquidation or dissolution of the Company or (ii) the sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company, other than to a company, with respect to which following such sale or other disposition, more than 60% of, respectively, the then outstanding shares of common stock of such company and the combined voting power of the then outstanding voting securities of such company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors is then beneficially owned, directly or indirectly, by all or substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the beneficial owners, respectively, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting Securities immediately prior to such sale or other disposition in substantially the same proportion as their ownership, immediately prior to such sale or other disposition, of the Outstanding Company Common Stock and Outstanding Voting Securities, as the case may be. The term “the sale or other disposition of all or

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substantially all of the assets of the Company” shall mean a sale or other disposition in a transaction or series of related transactions involving assets of the Company or of any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company (including the stock of any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company) in which the value of the assets or stock being sold or otherwise disposed of (as measured by the purchase price being paid therefor or by such other method as the Board determines is appropriate in a case where there is no readily ascertainable purchase price) constitutes more than two-thirds of the fair market value of the Company (as hereinafter defined). The “fair market value of the Company” shall be the aggregate market value of the then Outstanding Company Common Stock (on a fully diluted basis) plus the aggregate market value of the Company’s other outstanding equity securities. The aggregate market value of the shares of Outstanding Company Common Stock shall be determined by multiplying the number of shares of such Common Stock (on a fully diluted basis) outstanding on the date of the execution and delivery of a definitive agreement with respect to the transaction or series of related transactions (the “Transaction Date”) by the average closing price of the shares of Outstanding Company Common Stock for the ten trading days immediately preceding the Transaction Date. The aggregate market value of any other equity securities of the Company shall be determined in a manner similar to that prescribed in the immediately preceding sentence for determining the aggregate market value of the shares of Outstanding Company Common Stock or by such other method as the Board shall determine is appropriate.

     2.  Circumstances Triggering Receipt of Termination Benefits.

     (a) Subject to Section 2(c), the Company will provide the Executive with the benefits set forth in Section 4 upon the Executive’s Separation from Service that is initiated:

     (i) by the Company at any time within the first 24 months after a Change in Control;

     (ii) by the Executive for “Good Reason” (as defined in Section 2(b) below) at any time within the first 24 months after a Change in Control; or

     (iii) by the Company or the Executive pursuant to Section 2(d).

     For purposes of this Agreement, the term “Separation from Service” or “Separate(s/d) from Service” means a “separation from service” within the meaning of Code section 409A and Treasury Regulations thereunder.

     (b) In the event of a Change in Control, the Executive may Separate from Service for “Good Reason” and receive the payments and benefits set forth in Section 4 upon the occurrence of one or more of the following events (regardless of whether any other reason, other than Cause as provided below, for such Separation from Service exists or has occurred):

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     (i) Failure to elect or reelect or otherwise to maintain the Executive in the office or the position, or at least a substantially equivalent office or position, of or with the Company (or any successor thereto), which the Executive held immediately prior to a Change in Control, or the removal of the Executive as a director of the Company (or any successor thereto), if the Executive shall have been a director of the Company immediately prior to the Change in Control;

     (ii) (A) Any material adverse change in the nature or scope of the Executive’s authorities, powers, functions, responsibilities or duties from those in effect immediately prior to the Change in Control, (B) a reduction in the Executive’s annual base salary rate, (C) a reduction in the Executive’s annual incentive compensation target or any material reduction in the Executive’s other bonus opportunities, or (D) the termination or denial of the Executive’s ability to participate in Employee Benefits (as defined in Section 4(b)) or retirement benefits (as described in Section 4(c)) or a material reduction in the scope or value thereof, any of which is not remedied by the Company within 10 days after receipt by the Company of written notice from the Executive of such change, reduction or termination, as the case may be;

     (iii) The liquidation, dissolution, merger, consolidation or reorganization of the Company or transfer of all or substantially all of its businesses and/or assets, unless the successor or successors (by liquidation, merger, consolidation, reorganization, transfer or otherwise) to which all or substantially all of its businesses and/or assets have been transferred (directly or by operation of law) assumed all duties and obligations of the Company under this Agreement pursuant to Section 9(a);

     (iv) The Company requires the Executive to change the Executive’s principal location of work to a location that is in excess of 30 miles from the location thereof immediately prior to the Change in Control, or requires the Executive to travel in the course of discharging the Executive’s responsibilities or duties at least 20% more (in terms of aggregate days in any calendar year or in any calendar quarter when annualized for purposes of comparison to any prior year) than was required of the Executive in any of the three full years immediately prior to the Change in Control without, in either case, the Executive’s prior written consent;

     (v) Without limiting the generality or effect of the foregoing, any material breach of this Agreement by the Company or any successor thereto, which breach is not remedied within 10 days after written notice to the Company from the Executive describing the nature of such breach.

     (c) Notwithstanding Sections 2(a) and (b) above, no benefits shall be payable by reason of this Agreement in the event of:

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     (i) The Executive’s Separation from Service by reason of the Executive’s death or Disability, unless the Executive has previously given a valid “Notice of Termination” pursuant to Section 3. For purposes hereof, “Disability” shall be defined as the inability of the Executive due to illness, accident or other physical or mental disability to perform the Executive’s duties for any period of six consecutive months or for any period of eight months out of any 12-month period, as determined by an independent physician selected by the Executive (or the Executive’s legal representative) and reasonably acceptable to the Company, provided that the Executive does not return to work on substantially a full-time basis within 30 days after written notice from the Company, pursuant to Section 3, of the intent to terminate the Executive’s employment due to Disability;

     (ii) The Executive’s retirement on or after Normal Retirement Date pursuant to the Company’s Employees’ Pension Plan; provided, however, that if the Executive Separates from Service for Good Reason at such time of retirement, the Executive’s retirement shall be treated hereunder as a Separation from Service for Good Reason and the Executive shall be entitled to the benefits provided in Section 4 hereof;

     (iii) The Executive’s Separation from Service for Cause. For the purposes hereof, “Cause” shall be defined as (A) a felony conviction of the Executive or the failure of the Executive to contest prosecution for a felony, (B) the Executive’s gross and willful misconduct in connection with the performance of the Executive’s duties with the Company and/or its subsidiaries or (C) the willful and continued failure of the Executive to substantially perform the Executive’s duties with the Company (or any successor thereto) after a written demand from the Company’s internal Executive Committee, any successor or similar internal management committee or, absent any such committee, its Chief Executive Officer (such committee, or the Chief Executive Officer, being the “Notifying Party”) for substantial performance which specifically identifies the manner in which the Notifying Party believes that the Executive has not performed the Executive’s duties with the Company, any of which is directly and materially harmful to the business or reputation of the Company or any subsidiary or affiliate. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Executive shall not be deemed to have Separated from Service for “Cause” hereunder unless and until the Executive shall have been afforded, after reasonable notice, an opportunity to appear, together with counsel (if the Executive chooses to have counsel present), before the Notifying Party, if the Notifying Party is a committee, or in the event that the Notifying Party is the Chief Executive Officer, the three most highly compensated senior executive officers of the Company, not including the Chief Executive Officer (such Notifying Party or the three senior executive officers, as the case may be, being the “Hearing Party”), and after such hearing there shall have been delivered to the Executive a written determination by the Hearing Party that, in the good faith opinion of the Hearing Party the Executive shall have been Separated from Service for “Cause” as herein defined and specifying the

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particulars thereof in detail. Nothing herein will limit the right of the Executive or the Executive’s beneficiaries to contest the validity or propriety of any such determination. This Section 2(c) shall not preclude the payment of any amounts otherwise payable to the Executive under any of the Company’s employee benefit plans, pension plans, stock plans, programs and arrangements.

     (d) A Separation from Service initiated by the Company without Cause or by the Executive for an event that would constitute Good Reason following a Change in Control that occurs, in either event, prior to a Change in Control, but occurs (i) not more than 180 days prior to the date on which a Change in Control occurs and (ii) (x) at the request of a third party who has indicated an intention or taken steps reasonably calculated to effect a Change in Control or (y) otherwise arose in connection with, or in anticipation of, a Change in Control, shall be deemed to be a Separation from Service without Cause within the first 24 months after a Change in Control for purposes of this Agreement and the date of such Change in Control shall be deemed to be the date immediately preceding the date the Executive’s Separation from Service.

     3.  Notice of Termination.

     Any Separation from Service as contemplated by Section 2 shall be communicated by written “Notice of Separation” to the other party hereto. Any “Notice of Separation” shall (i) indicate the effective date of the Separation from Service, which shall not be less than 30 days or more than 60 days after the date the Notice of Separation is delivered (the “Separation Date”), (ii) cite the specific provision in this Agreement relied upon, and (iii) except for a Separation from Service pursuant to Section 2(d), shall set forth in reasonable detail the facts and circumstances claimed to provide a basis for such Separation from Service including, if applicable, the failure by the Company, after provision of written notice by the Executive, to effect a remedy pursuant to the final clause of Section 2(b)(ii) or 2(b)(v).

     4.  Benefits upon Separation from Service.

Subject to the conditions set forth in Section 2, the following benefits shall be paid or provided to the Executive:

     (a)  Compensation.

     The Company shall pay to the Executive two times the sum of (i) “Base Pay”, which shall be an amount equal to the greater of (A) the Executive’s rate of annual base salary (prior to any deferrals) on the date of the Executive’s Separation from Service, or (B) the Executive’s rate of annual base salary (prior to any deferrals) immediately prior to the Change in Control, plus (ii) “Incentive Pay”, which shall be an amount equal to the greater of (X) the target annual bonus payable to the Executive under the Company’s incentive compensation plan or any other annual bonus plan for the fiscal year of the Company in which the Change in Control occurred or (Y) the highest annual bonus

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earned by the Executive under the Company’s incentive compensation plan or any other annual bonus plan (whether paid currently or on a deferred basis) during the three fiscal years of the Company immediately preceding the fiscal year of the Company in which the Change in Control occurred. In addition, the Executive shall receive a pro rata portion of the target bonus for the fiscal year in which the Executive’s termination of employment occurs.

     The amount payable under Section 4(a) shall be paid to the Executive in a lump sum payment by the 60 th day following the date of the Executive’s Separation from Service. Notwithstanding the foregoing, payment of such amounts may not be made to a Key Employee (as defined in Section 4(g)) upon a Separation from Service before the date which is six months after the date of the Key Employee’s Separation from Service (or, if earlier, the date of death of the Key Employee). Any payments that would otherwise be made during this period of delay shall be accumulated and paid on the first day of the seventh month following the date of the Executive’s Separation from Service (or, if earlier, the first day of the month after the Participant’s death).

     In the event payment of the amount payable under Section 4(a) is delayed for six months pursuant to the immediately preceding paragraph, the Company shall as soon as administratively practicable following the date of the Executive’s Separation from Service (i) establish an irrevocable grantor trust of which the Company is the grantor, and a bank or trust company reasonably acceptable to the Executive is the trustee (the “Grantor Trust”), and (ii) contribute to the Grantor Tr


 
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