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ARTICLE III
Meetings of Stockholders
SECTION 3.01. Place of Meeting. – All meetings of the stockholders of the corporation shall be held at such place within or without the State of Delaware as shall be designated by the board of directors in the notice of such meeting.
SECTION 3.02. Annual Meeting. – The board of directors may fix and designate the date and time of the annual meeting of the stockholders. At said meeting the stockholders then entitled to vote shall elect directors and shall transact such other business as may properly be brought before the meeting.
SECTION 3.03. Special Meetings. – Special meetings of the stockholders of the corporation may be called at any time by the chairman of the board, a majority of the board of directors or the holders of a majority of the total number of shares of common stock of the corporation then-outstanding. At any time, upon the written request of any person or persons who have duly called a special meeting, which written request shall state the purpose or purposes of the meeting, it shall be the duty of the secretary to fix the date of the meeting which shall be held at such date and time as the secretary may fix, not less than ten nor more than 60 days after the receipt of the request, and to give due notice thereof. If the secretary shall neglect or refuse to fix the time and date of such meeting and give notice thereof, the person or persons calling the meeting may do so.
SECTION 3.04. Quorum, Manner of Acting and Adjournment.
(a) Quorum. – The holders of a majority of the shares entitled to vote, present in person or represented by proxy, shall constitute a quorum at all meetings of the stockholders except as otherwise provided by the GCL, by the certificate of incorporation or by these By-laws. If a quorum is not present or represented at any meeting of the stockholders, the stockholders entitled to vote thereat, present in person or represented by proxy, shall have power to adjourn the meeting from time to time, without notice other than announcement at the meeting, until a quorum is present or represented. At any such adjourned meeting at which a quorum is present or represented, the corporation may transact any business which might have been transacted at the original meeting. If the adjournment is for more than 30 days, or if after the adjournment a new record date is fixed for the adjourned meeting, a notice of the adjourned meeting shall be given to each stockholder of record entitled to vote at the meeting.
(b) Manner of Acting. – Directors shall be elected by a plurality of the votes of the shares present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote on the election of directors. In all matters other than the election of directors, the affirmative vote of the majority of shares present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote thereon shall be the act of the stockholders, unless the question is one upon which, by express provision of the applicable statute, the certificate of incorporation or these By-laws, a different vote is required in which case such express provision shall govern and control the decision of the question. The stockholders present in person or by proxy at a duly organized meeting can continue to do business until adjournment, notwithstanding withdrawal of enough stockholders to leave less than a quorum.
(c) Stockholder Proposals. – Nominations by stockholders of persons for election to the board of directors of the corporation may be made at an annual meeting in compliance with Section 4.13 hereof. The proposal of other business to be considered by the stockholders at an annual meeting of stockholders may be made (i) pursuant to the corporation’s notice of meeting, (ii) by or at the direction of the board of directors, or (iii) by any stockholder of the corporation pursuant to timely notice in writing to the secretary of the corporation. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice shall be delivered to or mailed to, and received by, the secretary at the principal executive offices of the corporation not less than 60 days prior to the meeting; provided, however, that in the event that less than 75 days’ notice or prior public disclosure of the date of the meeting is given or made to stockholders, notice by the stockholder to be timely must be so received not later than the close of business on the 15th day following the day on which such notice of the date of the meeting was mailed or such public disclosure was made. Such stockholder’s notice to the secretary shall set forth (a) as to the stockholder giving notice and the beneficial owner, if any on whose behalf the proposal is made, (i) their name and record address, and (ii) the class and number of shares of capital stock of the corporation which are beneficially owned by each of them, and (b) a brief description of the business desired to be brought before the meeting, the reasons for conducting such business at the meeting and any material interest in such business of such stockholder giving notice and the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the proposal is made. Only such business shall be conducted at a special meeting of stockholders as shall have been brought before the meeting pursuant to the corporation’s notice of meeting. Only such business shall be conducted at a meeting of stockholders as shall have been brought before the meeting in accordance with the procedures set forth in this section.
(d) The chairman of the meeting may, if the facts warrant, determine and declare to the meeting that any proposal made at the meeting was not made in accordance with the foregoing procedures and, in such event, the proposal shall be disregarded. Any decision by the chairman of the meeting shall be conclusive and binding upon all stockholders of the corporation for any purpose.
SECTION 3.05. Organization. – At every meeting of the stockholders, the chairman of the board, if there be one, or in the case of a vacancy in the office or absence of the chairman of the board, one of the following persons present in the order stated: the vice chairman, if one has been appointed, the chief executive officer, the president, the vice presidents in their order of rank or seniority, a chairman designated by the board of directors or a chairman chosen by the stockholders entitled to cast a majority of the votes which all stockholders present in person or by proxy are entitled to cast, shall act as chairman, and the secretary, or, in the absence of the secretary, an assistant secretary, or in the absence of the secretary and the assistant secretaries, a person appointed by the chairman, shall act as secretary.
SECTION 3.06. Voting.
(a) General Rule. – Unless otherwise provided in the certificate of incorporation, each stockholder shall be entitled to one vote, in person or by proxy, for each share of capital stock having voting power held by such stockholder.
(b) Voting and Other Action by Proxy.
(1) A stockholder may execute a writing authorizing another person or persons to act for the stockholder as proxy. Such execution may be accomplished by the stockholder or the authorized officer, director, employee or agent of the stockholder signing such writing or causing his or her signature to be affixed to such writing by any reasonable means including, but not limited to, by facsimile signature. A stockholder may authorize another person or persons to act for the stockholder as proxy by transmitting or authorizing the transmission of a telegram, cablegram, or other means of electronic transmission to the person who will be the holder of the proxy or to a proxy solicitation firm, proxy support service organization or like agent duly authorized by the person who will be the holder of the proxy to receive such transmission if such telegram, cablegram or other means of electronic transmission sets forth or is submitted with information from which it can be determined that the telegram, cablegram or other electronic transmission was authorized by the stockholder.
(2) No proxy shall be voted or acted upon after three years from its date, unless the proxy provides for a longer period.
(3) A duly executed proxy shall be irrevocable if it states that it is irrevocable and if, and only so long as, it is coupled with an interest sufficient in law to support an irrevocable power. A proxy may be made irrevocable regardless of whether the interest with which it is coupled is an interest in the stock itself or an interest in the corporation generally.
SECTION 3.07. Voting Lists. – The officer who has charge of the stock ledger of the corporation shall prepare and make, at least ten days before every meeting of stockholders, a complete list of the stockholders entitled to vote at the meeting. The list shall be arranged in alphabetical order, showing the address of each stockholder and the number of shares registered in the name of each stockholder. Such list shall be open to the examination of any stockholder, for any purpose germane to the meeting, during ordinary business hours, for a period of at least ten days prior to the meeting either at a place within the city where the meeting is to be held, which place shall be specified in the notice of the meeting, or, if not so specified, at the place where the meeting is to be held. The list shall also be produced and kept at the time and place of the meeting during the whole time thereof, and may be inspected by any stockholder who is present.
SECTION 3.08. Inspectors of Election.
(a) Appointment. – All elections of directors shall be by written ballot; the vote upon any other matter need not be by ballot. In advance of any meeting of stockholders the board of directors may appoint one or more inspectors, who need not be stockholders, to act at the meeting and to make a written report thereof. The board of directors may designate one or more persons as alternate inspectors to replace any inspector who fails to act. If no inspector or alternate is able to act at a meeting of stockholders, the person presiding at the meeting shall appoint one or more inspectors to act at the meeting. Each inspector, before entering upon the discharge of his or her duties, shall take and sign an oath faithfully to execute the duties of inspector with strict impartiality and according to the person’s best ability.
(b) Duties. – The inspectors shall ascertain the number of shares outstanding and the voting power of each, shall determine the shares represented at the meeting and the validity of proxies and ballots, shall count all votes and ballots, shall determine and retain for a reasonable period a record of the disposition of any challenges made to any determination by the inspectors, and shall certify their determination of the number of shares represented at the meeting and their count of all votes and ballots. The inspectors may appoint or retain other persons or entities to assist the inspectors in the performance of the duties of the inspectors.
(c) Polls. – The date and time of the opening and the closing of the polls for each matter upon which the stockholders will vote at a meeting shall be announced at the meeting. No ballot, proxies or votes, nor any revocations thereof or changes thereto, shall be accepted by the inspectors after the closing of the polls unless the Court of Chancery upon application by a stockholder shall determine otherwise.
(d) Reconciliation of Proxies and Ballots. – In determining the validity and counting of proxies and ballots, the inspectors shall be limited to an examination of the proxies, any envelopes submitted with those proxies, any information transmitted in accordance with section 3.06, ballots and the regular books and records of the corporation, except that the inspectors may consider other reliable information for the limited purpose of reconciling proxies and ballots submitted by or on behalf of banks, brokers, their nominees or similar persons which represent more votes than the holder of a proxy is authorized by the record owner to cast or more votes than the stockholder holds of record. If the inspectors consider other reliable information for the limited purpose permitted herein, the inspectors at the time they make their certification pursuant to subsection (b) shall specify the precise information considered by them including the person or persons from whom they obtained the information, when the information was obtained, the means by which the information was obtained and the basis for the inspectors’ belief that such information is accurate and reliable.
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