IRC Section 409A This Agreement is intended to comply with Section 409A (as defined in Section 23 of this Agreement) and any ambiguous provisions will be construed in a manner that is compliant with the application of Section 409A. If (a) the Indemnitee is a “specified employee” (as such term is defined by the Company in accordance with Section 409A) and (b) any payment payable upon “separation from service” (as such term is defined by the Company in accordance with Section 409A) under this Agreement is subject to Section 409A and is required to be delayed under Section 409A because the Indemnitee is a specified employee, that payment shall be payable on the earlier of (i) the first business day that is six months after the Indemnitee’s “separation from service”; (ii) the date of the Indemnitee’s death; or (iii) the date that otherwise complies with the requirements of Section 409A. This Section 25 shall be applied by accumulating all payments that otherwise would have been paid within six months of the Indemnitee’s separation from service and paying such accumulated amounts on the earliest business day which complies with the requirements of Section 409A. For purposes of Section 409A, each payment or amount due under this Agreement shall be considered a separate payment, and the Indemnitee’s entitlement to a series of payments under this Agreement is to be treated as an entitlement to a series of separate payments.
Timing of Payments and Section 409A (a) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement, if at the time the Executive’s employment terminates, the Executive is a “specified employee,” as defined below, any and all amounts payable under this Agreement on account of such separation from service that would (but for this provision) be payable within six (6) months following the date of termination, shall instead be paid on the next business day following the expiration of such six (6)-month period or, if earlier, upon the Executive’s death; except (A) to the extent of amounts that do not constitute a deferral of compensation within the meaning of Treasury regulation Section 1.409A-1(b) (including without limitation by reason of the safe harbor set forth in Section 1.409A-1(b)(9)(iii), as determined by the Companies in their reasonable good faith discretion); (B) benefits which qualify as excepted welfare benefits pursuant to Treasury regulation Section 1.409A-1(a)(5); or (C) other amounts or benefits that are not subject to the requirements of Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Section 409A”).
(b) For purposes of this Agreement, all references to “termination of employment” and correlative phrases shall be construed to require a “separation from service” (as defined in Section 1.409A-1(h) of the Treasury regulations after giving effect to the presumptions contained therein), and the term “specified employee” means an individual determined by the Companies to be a specified employee under Treasury regulation Section 1.409A-1(i).
(c) Each payment made under this Agreement shall be treated as a separate payment and the right to a series of installment payments under this Agreement is to be treated as a right to a series of separate payments.
(d) In no event shall the Company, Parent or any of their Affiliates have any liability relating to the failure or alleged failure of any payment or benefit under this Agreement to comply with, or be exempt from, the requirements of Section 409A.
Application of Section 409A of the Code (a) This Agreement shall be interpreted to avoid any penalty sanctions under section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended and the regulations promulgated thereunder (the “Code”). If any payment or benefit cannot be provided or made at the time specified herein without incurring sanctions under section 409A of the Code, then such benefit or payment shall be provided in full (to extent not paid in part at earlier date) at the earliest time thereafter when such sanctions shall not be imposed. For purposes of section 409A of the Code, all payments to be made upon a termination of employment under this Agreement may only be made upon the Executive’s “separation from service” (within the meaning of such term under section 409A of the Code), each payment made under this Agreement shall be treated as a separate payment, and the right to a series of installment payments under this Agreement shall be treated as a right to a series of separate payments. In no event shall the Executive, directly or indirectly, designate the fiscal year of payment, except as permitted under section 409A of the Code. Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary, with respect to amounts under this Agreement are nonqualified deferred compensation subject to Section 409A, in no event shall the timing of the Executive’s execution of the Release, directly or indirectly, result in the Executive designating the calendar year of payment, and if a payment that is subject to execution of the Release could be made in more than one taxable year, payment shall be made in the later taxable year.
(b) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, if, at the time of the Executive’s termination of employment with the Company, the Company has securities which are publicly traded on an established securities market and the Executive is a “specified employee” (as such term is defined in section 409A of the Code) and it is necessary to postpone the commencement of any payments or benefits otherwise payable under this Agreement as a result of such termination of employment to prevent any accelerated or additional tax under section 409A of the Code, then the Company shall postpone the commencement of the payment of any such payments or benefits hereunder (without any reduction in such payments or benefits ultimately paid or provided to the Executive) that are not otherwise paid first within the ‘short-term deferral exception’ under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(b)(4), and then under the ‘separation pay exception’ under Treas. Reg. §1.409A-1(b)(9)(iii), until the first payroll date that occurs after the date that is 6 months following the Executive’s “separation of service” (as such term is defined under code section 409A of the Code) with the Company. If any payments are postponed due to such requirements, such postponed amounts shall be paid in a lump sum to the Executive on the first payroll date that occurs after the date that is 6 months following Executive’s separation of service with the Company. If the Executive dies during the postponement period prior to the payment of postponed amount, the amounts withheld on account of section 409A of the Code shall be paid to the personal representative of the Executive’s estate within 60 days after the date of the Executive’s death.
(c) All reimbursements and in-kind benefits provided under this Agreement shall be made or provided in accordance with the requirements of section 409A of the Code, including, where applicable, the requirement that (i) any reimbursement shall be for expenses incurred during the Executive’s lifetime (or during a shorter period of time specified in this Agreement), (ii) the amount of expenses eligible for reimbursement, or in kind benefits provided, during a calendar year may not affect the expenses eligible for reimbursement, or in kind benefits to be provided, in any other calendar year, (iii) the reimbursement of an eligible expense shall be made on or before the last day of the calendar year following the year in which the expense is incurred and (iv) the right to reimbursement or in kind benefits is not subject to liquidation or exchange for another benefit.
Section 280G Notwithstanding anything in this Award Agreement to the contrary and regardless of whether this Award Agreement has otherwise expired or terminated, unless otherwise provided in your Employment Agreement, in the event that any payments, distributions, benefits or entitlements of any type payable to you (“CIC Benefits”) (i) constitute “parachute payments” within the meaning of Section 280G of the Code, and (ii) but for this paragraph would be subject to the excise tax imposed by Section 4999 of the Code (the “Excise Tax”), then your CIC Benefits shall be reduced to such lesser amount (the “Reduced Amount”) that would result in no portion of such benefits being subject to the Excise Tax; provided that such amounts shall not be so reduced if the Company determines, based on the advice of Golden Parachute Tax Solutions LLC, or such other nationally recognized certified public accounting firm as may be designated by the Company (the “Accounting Firm”), that without such reduction you would be entitled to receive and retain, on a net after tax basis (including, without limitation, any excise taxes payable under Section 4999 of the Code), an amount that is greater than the amount, on a net after tax basis, that you would be entitled to retain upon receipt of the Reduced Amount. Unless the Company and you otherwise agree in writing, any determination required under this Section 17 shall be made in writing in good faith by the Accounting Firm. In the event of a reduction of benefits hereunder, benefits shall be reduced by first reducing or eliminating the portion of the CIC Benefits that are payable under this Award Agreement and then by reducing or eliminating the portion of the CIC Benefits that are payable in cash and then by reducing or eliminating the non-cash portion of the CIC Benefits, in each case, in reverse order beginning with payments or benefits which are to be paid the furthest in the future. For purposes of making the calculations required by this Section 17, the Accounting Firm may make reasonable assumptions and approximations concerning applicable taxes and may rely on reasonable, good faith interpretations concerning the application of the Code, and other applicable legal authority. The Company and you shall furnish to the Accounting Firm such information and documents as the Accounting Firm may reasonably require in order to make a determination under this Section 17, and the Company shall bear the cost of all fees the Accounting Firm charges in connection with any calculations contemplated by this Section 17. In connection with making determinations under this Section 17, the Accounting Firm shall take into account the value of any reasonable compensation for services to be rendered by you before or after the Change of Control, including any non-competition provisions that may apply to you and the Company shall cooperate in the valuation of any such services, including any non-competition provisions.
Application of Section 409A Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, the following provisions apply to the extent severance benefits provided herein are subject to Section 409A of the Code and the regulations and other guidance thereunder and any state law of similar effect (collectively “Section 409A”). Severance benefits shall not commence until Executive has a “separation from service” for purposes of Section 409A. If Executive is a “specified employee” within the meaning of 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Code, any installment payments of Disability Base Salary Payments pursuant to Section 6.3(b) or Cash Compensation Amounts pursuant to Section 6.5(b) or 6.6(b) that are triggered by a separation from service shall be accelerated to the minimum extent necessary so that (a) the lesser of (y) the total cash severance payment amount, or (z) six (6) months of such installment payments are paid no later than March 15 of the calendar year following such termination, and (b) all amounts paid pursuant to the foregoing clause (a) will constitute separate payments for purposes of Section 1.409A-2(b)(2) of the Treasury Regulations and thus will be payable pursuant to the “short-term deferral” rule set forth in Section 1.409A-1(b)(4) of the Treasury Regulations. It is intended that if Executive is a “specified employee” within the meaning of Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Code at the time of such separation from service the foregoing provision shall result in compliance with the requirements of Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Code because payments to Executive will either be payable pursuant to the “short-term deferral” rule set forth in Section 1.409A-1(b)(4) of the Treasury Regulations or will not be paid until at least 6 months after separation from service. The severance benefits are intended to qualify for an exemption from application of Section 409A or comply with its requirements to the extent necessary to avoid adverse personal tax consequences under Section 409A, and any ambiguities herein shall be interpreted accordingly.