Stockholder Proposals for the 2022 Annual Meeting
Stockholders who intend to present proposals at the 2022 annual meeting of stockholders (the “2022 Annual Meeting”), and who wish to have those proposals included in Uniti’s proxy statement for the 2022 Annual Meeting, must ensure that those proposals are received at Uniti’s principal executive offices located at 10802 Executive Center Drive, Benton Building, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72211, Attention: Daniel L. Heard, Executive Vice President — General Counsel and Secretary, no later than December 2, 2021. Such proposals must meet the requirements set forth in the rules and regulations of the SEC in order to be eligible for inclusion in the proxy statement for the 2022 Annual Meeting.
In addition, under Uniti’s bylaws, stockholders who intend to submit a proposal regarding a director nomination or other matter of business at the 2022 Annual Meeting, and who do not intend to have such proposal included in Uniti’s proxy statement for the 2022 Annual Meeting, must ensure that notice of any such proposal is received by Uniti’s Secretary, Daniel L. Heard, at the address set forth above no earlier than November 2, 2021 and not later than 5:00 p.m., Central time, on December 2, 2021. The stockholder notice must comply with the information requirements set forth in Uniti’s bylaws.
Stockholder Communications with the Board of Directors
Stockholders and other interested parties may contact the Board of Directors, a Board Committee, a particular group of directors (e.g., our independent directors), or individual members of the board, including our Chairman, by mail addressed to the named individual, the committee, the group or the Board as a whole c/o Daniel L. Heard, Executive Vice President — General Counsel and Secretary, at 10802 Executive Center Drive, Benton Building, Suite 300, Little Rock, Arkansas 72211. In general, any communication delivered to the Company for forwarding to the Board, a Board committee, a particular group of directors or specified Board members will be forwarded in accordance with the stockholder’s instruction, except that we reserve the right not to forward any abusive, threatening or otherwise inappropriate materials.
Relationships and Certain Related Transactions
Our Relationship with Windstream
On April 24, 2015, Uniti was separated and spun-off from Windstream and, in connection therewith, Windstream contributed certain telecommunications network assets, including certain of its fiber and copper networks, to Uniti. The current Chief Financial Officer of Windstream (Bob Gunderman) is the brother of our President and Chief Executive Officer (Kenneth Gunderman).
In connection with the spin-off and while we were still controlled by Windstream, Uniti entered into a long-term triple-net master lease with Windstream (the “Master Lease”) to lease back the telecommunications network assets now owned by Uniti.
On February 25, 2019, Windstream filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. On July 25, 2019, in connection with Windstream’s bankruptcy, Windstream Holdings and Windstream Services, LLC (“Windstream Services”) filed a complaint with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in an adversary proceeding against Uniti and certain of its affiliates, alleging, among other things, that the Master Lease should be recharacterized as a financing arrangement, that certain rent payments and tenant capital improvements made by Windstream under the Master Lease constitute constructive fraudulent transfers, that the Master Lease is a lease of personal property and that Uniti breached certain of its obligations under the Master Lease.
On September 21, 2020, Windstream emerged from bankruptcy. In connection with Windstream’s emergence from bankruptcy, Uniti entered into several agreements and consummated the transactions,