UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, DC 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):
March 15, 2017
VORNADO REALTY TRUST
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
Maryland |
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No. 001-11954 |
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No. 22-1657560 |
(State or Other |
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(Commission |
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(IRS Employer |
Jurisdiction of |
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File Number) |
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Identification No.) |
Incorporation) |
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VORNADO
REALTY L.P.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
Delaware |
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No. 001-34482 |
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No. 13-3925979 |
(State or Other |
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(Commission |
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(IRS Employer |
Jurisdiction of |
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File Number) |
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Identification No.) |
Incorporation) |
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888 Seventh Avenue
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10019 |
(Address of Principal Executive offices) |
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(Zip Code) |
Former name or former address, if changed since last report: N/A
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instructions A.2.):
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Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
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Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
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Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
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Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Item 5.03. Amendment to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws.
On March 15, 2017, the Board of Trustees (the “Board”) of Vornado Realty Trust (the “Trust”), acting through a committee, amended and restated in its entirety the Trust’s Amended and Restated Bylaws (the “Bylaws”) to implement proxy access.
Article II, Section 13 of the Bylaws has been added to permit a shareholder, or group of up to 20 shareholders, owning at least 3% of the Trust’s outstanding common shares, continuously for at least three years, to nominate and include in the Trust’s proxy statement for an annual meeting of shareholders, trustee nominees constituting up to the greater of two nominees or 20% of the Board, provided that the shareholder(s) and the trustee nominee(s) satisfy the requirements specified in the Bylaws.
The Bylaws were also amended to make minor conforming changes to the advance notice provisions in Article II, Section 12 of the Bylaws. The amendments to the Bylaws were effective immediately.
The above description of the amendments to the Bylaws is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Bylaws, a copy of which is included as Exhibit 3.1 hereto and incorporated herein by reference.
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
3.1 Amended and Restated Bylaws of Vornado Realty Trust, effective March 15, 2017.
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
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VORNADO REALTY TRUST |
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(Registrant) |
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By: |
/s/ Matthew Iocco |
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Name: |
Matthew Iocco |
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Title: |
Executive Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer |
Date: March 17, 2017
SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
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VORNADO REALTY L.P. |
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(Registrant) |
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By: |
VORNADO REALTY TRUST, |
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Sole General Partner |
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By: |
/s/ Matthew Iocco |
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Name: |
Matthew Iocco |
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Title: |
Executive Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer |
Date: March 17, 2017
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Exhibit Index
3.1 Amended and Restated Bylaws of Vornado Realty Trust, effective March 15, 2017.
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exhibit 3.1
VORNADO REALTY TRUST
AMENDED AND RESTATED BYLAWS
Shares of the Trust directly or indirectly owned by it shall not be voted at any meeting and shall not be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares entitled to be voted at any given time, unless they are held by it in a fiduciary capacity, in which case they may be voted and shall be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares at any given time. The Board of Trustees may adopt by resolution a procedure by which a shareholder may certify in writing to the Trust that any shares registered in the name of the shareholder are held for the account of a specified person other than the shareholder. The resolution shall set forth the class of shareholders who may make the certification, the purpose for which the certification may be made, the form of certification and the information to be
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contained in it; if the certification is with respect to a record date or closing of the share transfer books, the time after the record date or closing of the share transfer books within which the certification must be received by the Trust; and any other provisions with respect to the procedure which the Board of Trustees considers necessary or desirable. On receipt of such certification, the shareholder of record of the specified shares in place of the shareholder who makes the certification.
Each report of an inspector shall be in writing and signed by him or by a majority of them if there is more than one inspector acting at such meeting. If there is more than one inspector, the report of a majority shall be the report of the inspectors. The report of the inspector or inspectors on the number of shares represented at the meeting and the result of the voting shall be prima facie evidence thereof.
For any matter to be properly brought before any annual meeting of shareholders, the matter must be (i) specified in the notice of annual meeting given by or at the direction of the
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Board of Trustees, (ii) otherwise brought before the annual meeting by or at the direction of the Board of Trustees or (iii) brought before the annual meeting in the manner specified in this Section 12 or in Section 13 of this Article II, as applicable, by any shareholder of the Trust who was a shareholder of record at the time of giving the applicable Shareholder Notice referred to below or Nomination Notice referred to in Section 13, who is entitled to vote at the meeting and who complied with the notice procedures set forth in this Section 12 or Section 13 of this Article II, as applicable.
In addition to any other requirements under applicable law and the Declaration of Trust and Bylaws of the Trust, no nomination by any shareholder or shareholders of a person or persons for election as Trustees of the Trust pursuant to this Section 12, and no other proposal by any shareholder or shareholders pursuant to this Section 12, shall be considered properly brought before the meeting unless notice of any such nomination or proposal (the “Shareholder Notice”) shall be delivered to the Secretary of the Trust at the principal executive office of the Trust not less than 90 nor more than 120 days prior to the first anniversary of the preceding year’s annual meeting; provided, however, that if the date of the meeting is advanced or delayed by more than 30 days from such anniversary date, such Shareholder Notice pursuant to this Section 12 shall be delivered to the Secretary of the Trust at the principal executive office of the Trust not earlier than the 120th day prior to such annual meeting and not later than the close of business on the later of the 90th day prior to such annual meeting or the tenth day following the day on which the date of such meeting is first publicly announced or disclosed. To be timely for nominations made pursuant to Section 13 of this Article II, a Nomination Notice shall be delivered in accordance with the requirements of Section 13. Any shareholder desiring to nominate any person or persons (as the case may be) for election as a Trustee or Trustees of the Trust pursuant to this Section 12 shall deliver, as part of such Shareholder Notice, a statement in writing setting forth the name of the person or persons to be nominated, the number and class of all shares of each class of shares of beneficial interest of the Trust owned of record and beneficially by each such person, as reported to such shareholder by such nominee(s), the information regarding each such person required by paragraphs (a), (e) and (f) of Item 401 of Regulation S ‑ K adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission (or the corresponding provisions of any regulation subsequently adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission applicable to the Trust), each such person’s signed consent to serve as a Trustee of the Trust if elected, such shareholder’s name and address, the number and class of all shares of each class of shares of beneficial interest of the Trust owned of record and beneficially by such shareholder and whether any such person or such shareholder has received any financial assistance, funding or other consideration from any other person in respect of the nomination (and the details thereof).
Any shareholder who gives a Shareholder Notice of any matter (not involving nominees for Trustee) proposed to be brought before a meeting of shareholders shall deliver, as part of such Shareholder Notice, the text of the proposal to be presented and a brief written statement of the reasons why such shareholder favors the proposal and setting forth such shareholder’s name and address, the number and class of all shares of each class of shares of beneficial interest of the Trust owned of record and beneficially by such shareholder, any material interest of such shareholder in the matter proposed (other than as a shareholder generally) and whether such shareholder has received any financial assistance, funding or other consideration from any other person in respect of the proposal (and the details thereof). As used herein, shares “beneficially owned” shall mean all shares which such person, or any of such
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person’s affiliates and associates (as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”)), is deemed to beneficially own pursuant to Rules 13d-3 and 13d-5 under the Exchange Act, as well as all shares of which such person, or any of such person’s affiliates and associates, has the right to become the beneficial owner pursuant to any agreement or understanding, or upon the exercise of warrants, options or rights to convert or exchange (whether such rights are exercisable immediately or only after the passage of time or the occurrence of conditions).
Notwithstanding anything in this Section 12 to the contrary, in the event that the number of Trustees to be elected to the Board of Trustees of the Trust is increased and either all of the nominees for Trustee or the size of the increased Board of Trustees is not publicly announced or disclosed by the Trust not less than 100 days prior to the first anniversary of the preceding year’s annual meeting, a Shareholder Notice pursuant to this Section 12 shall also be considered timely hereunder, but only with respect to nominees for any new positions created by such increase, if it shall be delivered to the Secretary of the Trust at the principal executive office of the Trust not later than the close of business on the tenth day following the first date all of such nominees or the size of the increased Board of Trustees shall have been publicly announced or disclosed.
In the event the Trust calls a special meeting of shareholders for the purpose of electing one or more Trustees to the Board of Trustees, any shareholder may nominate a person or persons (as the case may be) pursuant to this Section 12, for election to such position(s) as specified in the Trust’s notice of meeting, if the Shareholder Notice required by this Section 12 shall be delivered to the Secretary of the Trust at the principal executive office of the Trust not later than the close of business on the tenth day following the day on which the date of the special meeting and of the nominees proposed by the Board of Trustees to be elected at such meeting is publicly announced or disclosed.
For purposes of this Section 12 and Section 13 of this Article II, a matter shall be deemed to have been “publicly announced or disclosed” if such matter is disclosed in a press release reported by the Dow Jones News Service, Associated Press or comparable national news service or in a document publicly filed by the Trust with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In no event shall the adjournment of an annual or special meeting, or any announcement thereof, commence a new period for the giving of notice as provided in this Section 12. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 12, a shareholder shall also comply with all applicable requirements of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations thereunder and of the laws of the State of Maryland with respect to the matters set forth in this Section 12. Nothing in this Section 12 shall be deemed to affect any rights (i) of shareholders to request inclusion of proposals in the Trust’s proxy statement pursuant to Rule 14a-8 under the Exchange Act or (ii) of the holders of any series of preferred shares of beneficial interest of the Trust, if any, to elect Trustees under specified circumstances.
Only such persons who are nominated in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section 12 or the procedures set forth in Section 13 of this Article II, as the case may be, shall be eligible to serve as Trustees and only such business shall be conducted at a meeting of
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shareholders as shall have been brought before the meeting in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section 12. The person presiding at any meeting of shareholders, in addition to making any other determinations that may be appropriate to the conduct of the meeting, shall have the power and duty to determine whether notice of nominees and other matters proposed to be considered and brought before a meeting has been duly given in the manner provided in this Section 12 and, if not so given, shall direct and declare at the meeting that such nominees and other matters shall not be considered.
For purposes of this Section 13, any determination to be made by the Board of Trustees may be made by the Board of Trustees, a committee of the Board of Trustees or any officer of the Trust designated by the Board of Trustees or a committee of the Board of Trustees, and any such determination shall be final and binding on the Trust, any Eligible Holder, any Nominating Shareholder, any Proxy Access Nominee and any other person so long as made in good faith (without any further requirements). The chairman of any annual meeting of shareholders, in addition to making any other determinations that may be appropriate to the conduct of the meeting, shall have the power and duty to determine whether a Proxy Access Nominee has been nominated in accordance with the requirements of this Section 13 and, if not so nominated, shall direct and declare at the meeting that such Proxy Access Nominee shall not be considered.
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(i) The Trust shall not be required to include in the proxy statement for an annual meeting of shareholders more Proxy Access Nominees than that number of Trustees constituting the greater of (i) two or (ii) 20% of the total number of Trustees of the Trust on the last day on which a Nomination Notice may be submitted pursuant to this Section 13 (rounded down to the nearest whole number) (the “Maximum Number”). The Maximum Number for a particular annual meeting shall be reduced by: (1) Proxy Access Nominees who the Board of Trustees itself decides to nominate for election at such annual meeting; (2) the number of individuals who will be included in the Trust’s proxy materials as nominees recommended by the Board of Trustees pursuant to an agreement, arrangement or other understanding with a shareholder or group of shareholders (other than any such agreement, arrangement or understanding entered into in connection with an acquisition of shares from the Trust by such shareholder or group of shareholders); (3) Proxy Access Nominees who cease to satisfy, or Proxy Access Nominees of Nominating Shareholders that cease to satisfy, the eligibility requirements in this Section 13, as determined by the Board of Trustees; (4) Proxy Access Nominees whose nomination is withdrawn by the Nominating Shareholder or who become unwilling to serve on the Board of Trustees; and (5) the number of incumbent Trustees who had been Proxy Access Nominees with respect to any of the preceding two annual meetings of shareholders and whose reelection at the upcoming annual meeting is being recommended by the Board of Trustees. In the event that one or more vacancies for any reason occurs on the Board of Trustees after the deadline for submitting a Nomination Notice as set forth in Section 13(d) below but before the date of the annual meeting, and the Board of Trustees resolves to reduce the size of the board in connection therewith, the Maximum Number shall be calculated based on the number of Trustees in office as so reduced.
(ii) If the number of Proxy Access Nominees pursuant to this Section 13 for any annual meeting of shareholders exceeds the Maximum Number then, promptly upon notice from the Trust, each Nominating Shareholder will select one Proxy Access Nominee for inclusion in the proxy statement until the Maximum Number is reached, going in order of the amount (largest to smallest) of the ownership position as disclosed in each Nominating Shareholder’s Nomination Notice, with the process repeated if the Maximum Number is not reached after each Nominating Shareholder has selected one Proxy Access Nominee. If, after the deadline for submitting a Nomination Notice as set forth in Section 13(d), a Nominating Shareholder or a Proxy Access Nominee ceases to satisfy the eligibility requirements in this Section 13, as determined by the Board of Trustees, a Nominating Shareholder withdraws its nomination or a Proxy Access Nominee becomes unwilling to serve on the Board of Trustees, whether before or after the mailing or other distribution of the definitive proxy statement, then the nomination shall be disregarded, and the Trust: (1) shall not be required to include in its proxy statement or on any ballot or form of proxy the disregarded Proxy Access Nominee or any successor or replacement nominee proposed by the Nominating Shareholder or by any other Nominating Shareholder and (2) may otherwise communicate to its shareholders, including without limitation by amending or supplementing its proxy statement or ballot or form of proxy, that a Proxy Access Nominee will not be included as a nominee in the proxy statement or on any ballot or form of proxy and will not be voted on at the annual meeting.
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(i) An “Eligible Holder” is a person who has either (1) been a record holder of the common shares used to satisfy the eligibility requirements in this Section 13(c) continuously for the three-year period specified in Subsection (ii) below or (2) provides to the Secretary of the Trust, within the time period referred to in Section 13(d), evidence of continuous ownership of such shares for such three-year period from one or more securities intermediaries in a form that the Board of Trustees determines would be deemed acceptable for purposes of a shareholder proposal under Rule 14a-8(b)(2) under the Exchange Act (or any successor rule).
(ii) An Eligible Holder or group of up to 20 Eligible Holders may submit a nomination in accordance with this Section 13 only if the person or group (in the aggregate) has continuously owned at least the Minimum Number (as defined below) of common shares of the Trust throughout the three-year period preceding and including the date of submission of the Nomination Notice, and continues to own at least the Minimum Number through the date of the annual meeting. Two or more funds that are (x) under common management and investment control, (y) under common management and funded primarily by a single employer or (z) a “group of investment companies,” as such term is defined in Section 12(d)(1)(G)(ii) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, shall be treated as one Eligible Holder if such Eligible Holder shall provide together with the Nomination Notice documentation reasonably satisfactory to the Trust that demonstrates that the funds meet the criteria set forth in (x), (y) or (z) hereof. For the avoidance of doubt, in the event of a nomination by a group of Eligible Holders, any and all requirements and obligations for an individual Eligible Holder that are set forth in this Section 13, including the minimum holding period, shall apply to each member of such group; provided, however, that the Minimum Number shall apply to the ownership of the group in the aggregate. Should any shareholder cease to satisfy the eligibility requirements in this Section 13, as determined by the Board of Trustees, or withdraw from a group of Eligible Holders at any time prior to the annual meeting of shareholders, the group of Eligible Holders shall only be deemed to own the shares held by the remaining members of the group.
(iii) The “Minimum Number” of the Trust’s common shares means 3% of the number of outstanding common shares as of the most recent date for which such amount is given in any filing by the Trust with the Securities and Exchange Commission prior to the submission of the Nomination Notice.
(iv) For purposes of this Section 13, an Eligible Holder “owns” only those outstanding shares of the Trust as to which the Eligible Holder possesses both: (A) the full voting and investment rights pertaining to the shares; and (B) the full economic interest in (including the opportunity for profit and risk of loss on) such shares; provided that the number of shares calculated in accordance with clauses (A) and (B) shall not include any shares: (1) purchased or sold by such Eligible Holder or any of its affiliates in any transaction that has not been settled or closed, (2) sold short by such Eligible Holder, (3) borrowed by such Eligible Holder or any of its affiliates for any purpose or purchased by such Eligible Holder or any of its affiliates pursuant to an agreement to resell or subject to any other obligation to resell to another person, or (4) subject to any option, warrant, forward contract, swap, contract of sale, other derivative or similar agreement entered into by such Eligible Holder or any of its affiliates, whether any such instrument or agreement is to be settled with shares or with cash based on the notional amount or
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value of outstanding shares of the Trust, in any such case which instrument or agreement has, or is intended to have, the purpose or effect of: (x) reducing in any manner, to any extent or at any time in the future, such Eligible Holder’s or any of its affiliates’ full right to vote or direct the voting of any such shares, and/or (y) hedging, offsetting, or altering to any degree, gain or loss arising from the full economic ownership of such shares by such Eligible Holder or any of its affiliates. An Eligible Holder “owns” shares held in the name of a nominee or other intermediary so long as the Eligible Holder retains the right to instruct how the shares are voted with respect to the election of Trustees and possesses the full economic interest in the shares. An Eligible Holder’s ownership of shares shall be deemed to continue during any period in which the Eligible Holder has delegated any voting power by means of a proxy, power of attorney, or other similar instrument or arrangement that is revocable at any time by the Eligible Holder. An Eligible Holder’s ownership of shares shall be deemed to continue during any period in which the Eligible Holder has loaned such shares provided that the Eligible Holder has the power to recall such loaned shares on five business days’ notice. The terms “owned,” “owning” and other variations of the word “own” shall have correlative meanings. Whether outstanding shares of the Trust are “owned” for these purposes shall be determined by the Board of Trustees.
(v) No Eligible Holder shall be permitted to be in more than one group constituting a Nominating Shareholder, and if any Eligible Holder appears as a member of more than one group, it shall be deemed to be a member of the group that has the largest ownership position as reflected in the Nomination Notice.
(vi) Any Eligible Holder (including each Eligible Holder whose stock ownership is counted for the purposes of qualifying as a group) whose Proxy Access Nominee withdraws, becomes ineligible or does not receive at least 10% of the votes cast for such Proxy Access Nominee at an annual meeting of shareholders will not be eligible to nominate or participate in the nomination of a Proxy Access Nominee pursuant to this Section 13 for the following two annual meetings of shareholders.
To nominate a Proxy Access Nominee, the Nominating Shareholder must, no earlier than 150 days and no later than 120 days before the anniversary of the date that the Trust mailed its proxy statement for the prior year’s annual meeting of shareholders, submit to the Secretary of the Trust at the principal executive office of the Trust all of the following information and documents (collectively, the “Nomination Notice”); provided, however, that if (and only if) the annual meeting is not scheduled to be held within a period that commences 30 days before such anniversary date and ends 30 days after such anniversary date (an annual meeting date outside such period being referred to herein as an “Other Meeting Date”), the Nomination Notice shall be given in the manner provided herein by the later of the close of business on the date that is 180 days prior to such Other Meeting Date or the tenth day following the date such Other Meeting Date is first publicly announced or disclosed: (i) a Schedule 14N (or any successor form) relating to each Proxy Access Nominee, completed and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by the Nominating Shareholder as applicable, in accordance with Securities and Exchange Commission rules; (ii) a written notice, in a form deemed satisfactory by the Board of Trustees, of the nomination of each Proxy Access Nominee that includes the following additional information, agreements, representations and warranties by
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the Nominating Shareholder (including each group member): (A) the information required with respect to the nomination of Trustees pursuant to Section 12 of this Article II; (B) the details of any relationship that existed within the past three years and that would have been described pursuant to Item 6(e) of Schedule 14N (or any successor item) if it existed on the date of submission of the Schedule 14N; (C) a representation and warranty that the Nominating Shareholder acquired the securities of the Trust in the ordinary course of business and did not acquire, and is not holding, securities of the Trust for the purpose or with the effect of influencing or changing control of the Trust; (D) a representation and warranty that each Proxy Access Nominee’s candidacy or, if elected, Board of Trustees membership would not violate applicable state or federal law or the rules of any stock exchange on which the Trust’s securities are traded; (E) a representation and warranty that each Proxy Access Nominee: (1) does not have any direct or indirect relationship with the Trust that would cause the Proxy Access Nominee to be considered not independent pursuant to the Trust’s Corporate Governance Guidelines as most recently published on its website and otherwise qualifies as independent under the rules of the primary stock exchange on which the common shares of beneficial interest of the Trust are traded; (2) meets the audit committee and compensation committee independence requirements under the rules of the primary stock exchange on which the common shares of beneficial interest of the Trust are traded; (3) is a “non-employee trustee” for the purposes of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act (or any successor rule); (4) is an “outside trustee” for the purposes of Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code (or any successor provision); (5) meets the Trustee qualifications set forth in Article III of these Bylaws; and (6) is not and has not been subject to any event specified in Rule 506(d)(1) of Regulation D (or any successor rule) under the Securities Act of 1933 or Item 401(f) of Regulation S-K (or any successor rule) under the Exchange Act, without reference to whether the event is material to an evaluation of the ability or integrity of such Proxy Access Nominee; (F) a representation and warranty that the Nominating Shareholder satisfies the eligibility requirements set forth in Section 13(c) and has provided evidence of ownership to the extent required by Section 13(c)(i); (G) a representation and warranty that the Nominating Shareholder intends to continue to satisfy the eligibility requirements described in Section 13(c) through the date of the annual meeting; (H) details of any position of a Proxy Access Nominee as an officer, director or trustee of any competitor (that is, any entity that provides services or engages in business activities that compete with or are alternatives to the services provided or business activities engaged in by the Trust or its affiliates) of the Trust, within the three years preceding the submission of the Nomination Notice; (I) a representation and warranty that the Nominating Shareholder will not engage in a “solicitation” within the meaning of Rule 14a-1(l) (without reference to the exception in Section 14a-1(l)(2)(iv)) (or any successor rules) with respect to the annual meeting, other than with respect to a Proxy Access Nominee or any nominee of the Board of Trustees; (J) a representation and warranty that the Nominating Shareholder will not use any proxy card other than the Trust’s proxy card in soliciting shareholders in connection with the election of a Proxy Access Nominee at the annual meeting; (K) if desired, a Supporting Statement; and (L) in the case of a nomination by a group, the designation by all group members of one group member that is authorized to act on behalf of all group members with respect to matters relating to the nomination, including withdrawal of the nomination; (iii) an executed agreement, in a form deemed satisfactory by the Board of Trustees, pursuant to which the Nominating Shareholder (including each group member) agrees: (A) to comply with all applicable laws, rules and regulations in connection with the nomination, solicitation and election; (B) to file any written solicitation or other
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communication with the Trust’s shareholders relating to one or more of the Trust’s Trustees or Trustee nominees or any Proxy Access Nominee with the Securities and Exchange Commission, to the extent that such filing would be required if such communication were made by or on behalf of the Trust; (C) to assume all liability stemming from an action, suit or proceeding concerning any actual or alleged legal or regulatory violation arising out of any communication by the Nominating Shareholder or any of its Proxy Access Nominees with the Trust, its shareholders or any other person in connection with the nomination or election of Trustees, including, without limitation, the Nomination Notice; (D) to indemnify and hold harmless (jointly with all other group members, in the case of a group member) the Trust and each of its Trustees, officers and employees individually against any liability, loss, damages, expenses or other costs (including attorneys’ fees) incurred in connection with any threatened or pending action, suit or proceeding, whether legal, administrative or investigative, against the Trust or any of its Trustees, officers or employees arising out of or relating to any nomination, solicitation or other activity by the Nominating Shareholder in connection with its efforts to elect its Proxy Access Nominees pursuant to this Section 13; (E) in the event that any information included in the Nomination Notice, or any other communication by the Nominating Shareholder (including with respect to any group member), with the Trust, its shareholders or any other person in connection with the nomination or election ceases to be true and accurate in all material respects (or omits a material fact necessary to make the statements made not misleading), or that the Nominating Shareholder (including any group member) has failed to continue to satisfy the eligibility requirements described in Section 13(c), to promptly (and in any event within 48 hours of discovering such misstatement, omission or failure) notify the Trust and any other recipient of such communication of (A) the misstatement or omission in such previously provided information and of the information that is required to correct the misstatement or omission or (B) such failure; and (iv) an executed agreement, in a form deemed satisfactory by the Board of Trustees, by each Proxy Access Nominee: (A) to provide to the Trust such other information and certifications, including completion of the Trust’s Trustee questionnaire, as it may reasonably request; (B) at the reasonable request of the Trust’s Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, to meet with the Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee to discuss matters relating to the nomination of such Proxy Access Nominee to the Board of Trustees, including the information provided by such Proxy Access Nominee to the Trust in connection with his or her nomination and such Proxy Access Nominee’s eligibility to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees; (C) that such Proxy Access Nominee has read and agrees, if elected, to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees, to adhere to the Trust’s Corporate Governance Guidelines, Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, and any other Trust policies and guidelines applicable to Trustees; and (D) that such Proxy Access Nominee is not and will not become a party to (i) any compensatory, payment or other financial agreement, arrangement or understanding with any person or entity in connection with his or her nomination, service or action as a Trustee of the Trust that has not been disclosed to the Trust, (ii) any agreement, arrangement or understanding with any person or entity as to how such Proxy Access Nominee would vote or act on any issue or question as a Trustee (a “Voting Commitment”) that has not been disclosed to the Trust or (iii) any Voting Commitment that could limit or interfere with such Proxy Access Nominee’s ability to comply, if elected as a Trustee of the Trust, with its fiduciary duties under applicable law.
The information and documents required by this Section 13(d) to be provided by the Nominating Shareholder shall be: (i) provided with respect to and executed by each group
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member, in the case of information applicable to group members; and (ii) provided with respect to the persons specified in Instruction 1 to Items 6(c) and (d) of Schedule 14N (or any successor item) in the case of a Nominating Shareholder or group member that is an entity. The Nomination Notice shall be deemed submitted on the date on which all the information and documents referred to in this Section 13(d) (other than such information and documents contemplated to be provided after the date the Nomination Notice is provided) have been delivered to or, if sent by mail, received by the Secretary of the Trust.
(i) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Section 13, the Trust may omit from its proxy statement any Proxy Access Nominee and any information concerning such Proxy Access Nominee (including a Nominating Shareholder’s Supporting Statement) and no vote on such Proxy Access Nominee will occur (notwithstanding that proxies in respect of such vote may have been received by the Trust), and the Nominating Shareholder may not, after the last day on which a Nomination Notice would be timely, cure in any way any defect preventing the nomination of such Proxy Access Nominee, if: (A) the Trust receives a notice pursuant to Section 12 of this Article II that a shareholder intends to nominate a candidate for Trustee at the annual meeting, whether or not such notice is subsequently withdrawn or made the subject of a settlement with the Trust; (B) the Nominating Shareholder or the designated lead group member, as applicable, or any qualified representative thereof, does not appear at the meeting of shareholders to present the nomination submitted pursuant to this Section 13, the Nominating Shareholder withdraws its nomination or the chairman of the annual meeting declares that such nomination was not made in accordance with the procedures prescribed by this Section 13 and shall therefore be disregarded; (C) the Board of Trustees determines that such Proxy Access Nominee’s nomination or election to the Board of Trustees would result in the Trust violating or failing to be in compliance with the Declaration of Trust, these Bylaws or any applicable law, rule or regulation to which the Trust is subject, including any rules or regulations of the primary stock exchange on which the common shares of beneficial interest of the Trust are traded; (D) such Proxy Access Nominee was nominated for election to the Board of Trustees pursuant to this Section 13 at one of the Trust’s two preceding annual meetings of shareholders and either withdrew or became ineligible or received a vote of less than 25% of the votes cast in favor of such Proxy Access Nominee; (E) such Proxy Access Nominee has been, within the past three years, an officer or director of a competitor, as defined for purposes of Section 8 of the Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914, as amended; (F) the Trust is notified, or the Board of Trustees determines, that the Nominating Shareholder or the Proxy Access Nominee has failed to continue to satisfy the eligibility requirements described in Section 13(c), any of the representations and warranties made in the Nomination Notice ceases to be true and accurate in all material respects (or omits a material fact necessary to make the statements made not misleading), such Proxy Access Nominee becomes unwilling or unable to serve on the Board of Trustees or any material violation or breach occurs of the obligations, agreements, representations or warranties of the Nominating Shareholder or such Proxy Access Nominee under this Section 13;
(ii) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Section 13, the Trust may omit from its proxy statement, or may supplement or correct, any information, including all or any portion of the Supporting Statement or any other statement in support of a Proxy Access Nominee included in the Nomination Notice, if the Board of Trustees determines
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that: (A) such information is not true in all material respects or omits a material statement necessary to make the statements made not misleading; (B) such information directly or indirectly impugns the character, integrity or personal reputation of, or directly or indirectly makes charges concerning improper, illegal or immoral conduct or associations, without factual foundation, with respect to, any person; or (C) the inclusion of such information in the proxy statement would otherwise violate the Securities and Exchange Commission proxy rules or any other applicable law, rule or regulation.
The Trust may solicit against, and include in the proxy statement its own statement relating to, any Proxy Access Nominee.
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The Trustees present at a meeting which has been duly called and convened may continue to transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal of enough Trustees to leave less than a quorum.
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The chief financial officer shall disburse the funds of the Trust as may be ordered by the Board of Trustees, taking proper vouchers for such disbursements, and shall render to the chief executive officer and the Board of Trustees, at the regular meetings of the Board of Trustees or whenever they may require it, an account of all his transactions as chief financial officer and of the financial condition of the Trust. If required by the Board of Trustees, he shall give the Trust a bond in such sum and with such surety or sureties as shall be satisfactory to the Board of Trustees for the faithful performance of the duties of his office and for the restoration to the Trust, in case of his death, resignation, retirement or removal from office, of all books, papers, vouchers, moneys and other property of whatever kind in his possession or under his control belonging to the Trust.
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The Trust shall be entitled to treat the holder of record of any share or shares as the holder in fact thereof and, accordingly, shall not be bound to recognize any equitable or other claim to or interest in such share on the part of any other person, whether or not it shall have express or other notice thereof, except as otherwise provided by the laws of the State of Maryland.
In lieu of fixing a record date, the Board of Trustees may provide that the share transfer books shall be closed for a stated period but not longer than 20 days. If the share transfer books are closed for the purpose of determining shareholders entitled to notice of or to vote at a meeting of shareholders, such books shall be closed for at least ten days before the date of such meeting. If no record date is fixed and the share transfer books are not closed for the determination of shareholders, (a) the record date for the determination of shareholders entitled to notice of or to vote at a meeting of shareholders shall be at the close of business on the day on which the notice of meeting is mailed or the 30th day before the meeting, whichever is the closer date to the meeting; and (b) the record date for the determination of shareholders entitled to receive payment of a dividend or an allotment of any other rights shall be the close of business on the day on which the resolution of the Board of Trustees, declaring the dividend or allotment of rights, is adopted.
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When a determination of shareholders entitled to vote at any meeting of shareholders has been made as provided in this section, such determination shall apply to any adjournment thereof, except where the determination has been made through the closing of the transfer books and the stated period of closing the expired.
The Board of Trustees shall have the power, from time to time, to fix the fiscal year of the Trust by a duly adopted resolution.
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Subject to the provisions of the Declaration of Trust, the Board of Trustees may from time to time adopt, amend, revise or terminate any policy or policies with respect to investments by the Trust as they shall deem appropriate in their sole discretion.
To the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law in effect from time to time, the Trust, without requiring a preliminary determination of the ultimate entitlement to indemnification, shall indemnify (a) any Trustee, officer or shareholder or any former Trustee, officer or shareholder (including among the foregoing, for all purposes of this Article XII and without limitation, any individual who, while a Trustee, officer or shareholder and at the request of the Trust, serves or has served as a director, officer, partner or trustee of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise) who has been successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of a proceeding to which he was made a party by reason of such status, against reasonable expenses incurred by him in connection with the proceeding, (b) any Trustee or officer or any former Trustee or officer against any claim or liability to which he may become subject by reason of such status unless it is established that (i) his act or omission was material to the cause of action giving rise to the proceeding and was committed in bad faith or was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty, (ii) he actually received an improper personal benefit in money, property or services or (iii) in the case of a criminal proceeding, he had reasonable cause to believe that his act or omission was unlawful and (c) each shareholder or former shareholder against any claim or liability to which he may become subject by reason of such status. In addition, the Trust shall pay or reimburse, in advance of final disposition of a proceeding, reasonable expenses incurred by a Trustee, officer or shareholder or former Trustee, officer or shareholder made a party to a proceeding by reason of such status provided that, in the case of a Trustee or officer, the Trust shall have received (i) a written affirmation by the Trustee or officer of his good faith belief that he has met the
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applicable standard of conduct necessary for indemnification by the Trust as authorized by these Bylaws and (ii) a written undertaking by him or on his behalf to repay the amount paid or reimbursed by the Trust if it shall ultimately be determined that the applicable standard of conduct was not met. The Trust may, with the approval of the Board of Trustees, provide such indemnification and payment or reimbursement of expenses to any Trustee, office or shareholder or any former Trustee, officer or shareholder who served a predecessor of the Trust in such capacity and to any employee or agent of the Trust or a predecessor of the Trust. Neither the amendment nor repeal of this Section, nor the adoption or amendment of any other provision of the Declaration of Trust or these Bylaws inconsistent with this Section, shall apply to or affect in any respect the applicability of this paragraph with respect to any act or failure to act which occurred prior to such amendment, repeal or adoption. Any indemnification or payment or reimbursement of the expenses permitted by these Bylaws shall be furnished in accordance with the procedures provided for indemnification or payment or reimbursement of expenses, as the case may be, under Section 2-418 of the Maryland General Corporation Law (the “MGCL”) for directors of Maryland corporations. The Trust may provide to Trustees, officers and shareholders such other and further indemnification or payment or reimbursement of expenses as may be permitted by the MGCL, as in effect from time to time, for directors of Maryland corporations.
Whenever any notice is required to be given pursuant to the Declaration of Trust or Bylaws or pursuant to applicable law, a waiver thereof in writing, signed by the person or persons entitled to such notice, whether before or after the time stated therein, shall be deemed equivalent to the giving of such notice. Neither the business to be transacted at nor the purpose of any meeting need be set forth in the waiver of notice, unless specifically required by statute. The attendance of any person at any meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where such person attends a meeting for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any business on the ground that the meeting is not lawfully called or convened.
The Board of Trustees shall have the exclusive power to adopt, alter or repeal any provision of these Bylaws and to make new Bylaws.
All references to the Declaration of Trust shall include all amendments and supplements thereto.
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