ITEM 15.
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INDEMNIFICATION OF OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
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Section 102 of the General Corporation
Law of the State of Delaware (the Delaware General Corporation Law) permits a corporation to eliminate the personal liability of directors of a corporation to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for a breach of
fiduciary duty as a director, except where the director breached his duty of loyalty, failed to act in good faith, engaged in intentional misconduct or knowingly violated a law, authorized the payment of a dividend or approved a stock repurchase in
violation of Delaware corporate law or obtained an improper personal benefit.
Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law
authorizes a court to award, or a corporations board of directors to grant, indemnity to directors and officers in terms sufficiently broad to permit such indemnification under certain circumstances for liabilities, including reimbursement for
expenses incurred, arising under the Securities Act.
Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law states:
(a) A corporation shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending
or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the corporation) by reason of the fact that the person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of
the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys fees),
judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not
opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe the persons conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment,
order, settlement, conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner which the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to
the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that the persons conduct was unlawful.
(b) A corporation shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened,
pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that the person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the
request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against expenses (including attorneys fees) actually and reasonably incurred by the person in
connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and except that no indemnification
shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery or the court in which such action or suit was brought
shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other
court shall deem proper.
(c) To the extent that a present or former director or officer of a corporation has been successful on the
merits or otherwise in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, such person shall be indemnified against expenses (including
attorneys fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection therewith.
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(d) Any indemnification under subsections (a) and (b) of this section (unless ordered
by a court) shall be made by the corporation only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the present or former director, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because the person has met
the applicable standard of conduct set forth in subsections (a) and (b) of this section. Such determination shall be made, with respect to a person who is a director or officer of the corporation at the time of such determination:
(1) By a majority vote of the directors who are not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, even though less than a quorum; or
(2) By a committee of such directors designated by majority vote of such directors, even though less than a quorum; or
(3) If there are no such directors, or if such directors so direct, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion; or
(4) By the stockholders.
(e)
Expenses (including attorneys fees) incurred by an officer or director of the corporation in defending any civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the corporation in advance of the final
disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of such director or officer to repay such amount if it shall ultimately be determined that such person is not entitled to be indemnified by the corporation
as authorized in this section. Such expenses (including attorneys fees) incurred by former directors and officers or other employees and agents of the corporation or by persons serving at the request of the corporation as directors, officers,
employees or agents of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise may be so paid upon such terms and conditions, if any, as the corporation deems appropriate.
(f) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, the other subsections of this section shall not be
deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise, both as to action in such persons
official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office. A right to indemnification or to advancement of expenses arising under a provision of the certificate of incorporation or a bylaw shall not be eliminated or impaired
by an amendment to the certificate of incorporation or the bylaws after the occurrence of the act or omission that is the subject of the civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding for which indemnification or
advancement of expenses is sought, unless the provision in effect at the time of such act or omission explicitly authorizes such elimination or impairment after such action or omission has occurred.
(g) A corporation shall have power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or
agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against any liability asserted against such
person and incurred by such person in any such capacity, or arising out of such persons status as such, whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify such person against such liability under this section.
(h) For purposes of this section, references to the corporation shall include, in addition to the resulting corporation, any
constituent corporation (including any constituent of a constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger which, if its separate existence had continued, would have had power and authority to indemnify its directors, officers, and employees or
agents, so that any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of such constituent corporation, or is or was serving at the request of such constituent corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation,
partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, shall stand in the same position under this section with respect to the resulting or surviving corporation as such person would have with respect to such constituent corporation if its separate
existence had continued.
(i) For purposes of this section, references to other enterprises shall include employee benefit
plans; references to fines shall include any excise taxes assessed on a person with respect to any employee benefit plan; and 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 interest 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 section.
(j) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, this section
shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.
(k) The Court of Chancery is hereby vested with exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine all actions for advancement of expenses or
indemnification brought under this section or under any bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors,
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or otherwise. The Court of Chancery may summarily determine a corporations obligation to advance expenses (including attorneys fees).
As permitted by Delaware law, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation limits or eliminates the personal liability of our
directors to the maximum extent permitted by Delaware law.
Our amended and restated bylaws provide for indemnification of our directors
and executive officers to the maximum extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law.
In addition, we have entered into
indemnification agreements with each of our current directors and we intend to enter into new indemnification agreements with certain of our executive officers. These agreements will require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent
permitted under Delaware law against liabilities that may arise by reason of their service to us and to advance expenses incurred as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified. We also intend to enter into
indemnification agreements with our future directors and executive officers.
We also maintain standard policies of insurance under which
coverage is provided to our directors and officers against losses arising from claims made by reason of breach of duty or other wrongful act, and to us with respect to payments which may be made by us to such directors and officers pursuant to the
above indemnification provisions or otherwise as a matter of law
The above discussion of our amended and restated certificate of
incorporation, our amended and restated bylaws, our indemnification agreements with our current directors and executive officers and Sections 102 and 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law is not intended to be exhaustive and is respectively
qualified in its entirety by such amended and restated certificate of incorporation, such amended and restated bylaws, such indemnification agreements and such statutes.
To the extent that our directors, officers and controlling persons are indemnified under the provisions contained in our amended and restated
certificate of incorporation, Delaware law or contractual arrangements against liabilities arising under the Securities Act, we have been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
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