Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.
The officers and trustees of the Company are and will be indemnified under Maryland and Delaware law, the declaration of trust and bylaws of the Company and the partnership agreement of the Operating Partnership against certain liabilities. The declaration of trust of the Company requires it to indemnify its trustees and officers to the fullest extent permitted from time to time under Maryland law. In addition, the Company has also entered into a separate indemnification agreement with each of its trustees and executive officers.
The declaration of trust of the Company authorizes it, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law, to obligate itself to indemnify and to pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding to (a) any present or former trustee or officer or (b) any individual who, while a trustee of the Company and at the request of the Company, serves or has served as a director, officer, partner, trustee, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or any other enterprise from and against any claim or liability to which such person may become subject or which such person may incur by reason of his or her status as a present or former trustee or officer of the Company. The bylaws of the Company obligate it, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law, to indemnify and to pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding to (a) any present or former trustee or officer who is made party to the proceeding by reason of his service in that capacity or (b) any individual who, while a trustee or officer of the Company and at the request of the Company, serves or has served another real estate investment trust, corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or any other enterprise as a trustee, director, officer or partner of such real estate investment trust, corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise and who is made a party to the proceeding by reason of his service in that capacity, against any claim or liability to which he may become subject by reason of such status.
The declaration of trust and bylaws also permit the Company to indemnify and advance expenses to any person who served as a predecessor of the Company in any of the capacities described above and to any employee or agent of the Company or a predecessor of the Company. The bylaws require the Company to indemnify a trustee or officer who has been successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any proceeding to which he is made a party by reason of his service in that capacity.
Maryland law permits a Maryland real estate investment trust to indemnify and advance expenses to its trustees, officers, employees and agents to the same extent as permitted by Maryland law for directors and officers of Maryland corporations. Maryland law permits a corporation to indemnify its present and former directors and officers, among others, against judgments, penalties, fines, settlements and reasonable expenses actually incurred by them in connection with any proceeding to which they may be made a party by reason of their service in those or other capacities unless it is established that (a) the act or omission of the director or officer was material to the matter giving rise to the proceeding and (i) was committed in bad faith or (ii) was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty, (b) the director or officer actually received an improper personal benefit in money, property or services or (c) in the case of any criminal proceeding, the director or officer had reasonable cause to believe that the act or omission was unlawful. However, under Maryland law, a Maryland corporation may not indemnify for an adverse judgment in a suit by or in the right of the corporation. In accordance with Maryland law, the bylaws of the Company require it, as a condition to advance expenses, to obtain (a) a written affirmation by the director or officer of his good faith belief that he has met the standard of conduct necessary for indemnification by the Company as authorized by the bylaws and (b) a written statement by or on his behalf to repay the amount paid or reimbursed by the Company if it shall ultimately be determined that the standard of conduct was not met.
The Company has entered into a separate indemnification agreement with each of its trustees and executive officers. The indemnification agreements require, among other things, that the Company indemnify its trustees and executive officers to the fullest extent permitted by law and advance to its trustees and executive
officers all related expenses, subject to reimbursement if it is subsequently determined that indemnification is not permitted.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to its trustees or executive officers pursuant to the foregoing provisions, the Company has been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.
Not applicable.
Item 8. Exhibits.
See Exhibit Index, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Item 9. Undertakings.
(a) The undersigned Company hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:
(i) To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933;
(ii) To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in the volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high and of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and
(iii) To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change in such information in the registration statement;
provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(l)(i) and (a)(l)(ii) above do not apply if the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission by the Company pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement.
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial
bona fide
offering thereof.
(3) To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.
(b) The undersigned issuer hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the Company’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial
bona fide
offering thereof.
(c) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Company pursuant to Item 6 of this Part II, or otherwise, the Company has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Company of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Company in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Company will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act of 1933 and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.