UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

 

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FORM 8-K

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CURRENT REPORT

 

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

 

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): December 30, 2016

 

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ZAIS GROUP HOLDINGS, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware 001-35848 46-1314400
(State or other jurisdiction
of incorporation)
(Commission File Number) (IRS Employer
Identification No.)

  

Two Bridge Avenue, Suite 322

Red Bank, NJ

07701-1106
(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

 

Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (732) 978-7518

 

N/A
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

 

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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 Instruction A.2. below):

 

  ¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

  ¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

  ¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

  ¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

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Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

 

On December 30, 2016, Michael Szymanski, the Chief Executive Officer and President of ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”), Nisha Motani, the Acting Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of the Company, and Howard Steinberg, the General Counsel of the Company, agreed with ZAIS Group Parent, LLC (“Parent”), the majority owned subsidiary of the Company, to cancel 163,265, 32,653 and 65,306 unvested Class B-0 Units in Parent, respectively, that they held.

 

In consideration for the cancellation of their unvested Class B-0 Units, the Company granted Mr. Szymanski, Ms. Motani and Mr. Steinberg an equivalent number of restricted stock units (“RSUs”) (163,265, 32,653 and 65,306, respectively) under the Company’s 2015 Stock Incentive Plan. All of the RSUs are scheduled to vest on March 17, 2017, provided that the executive remains continuously employed by ZAIS Group, LLC or its subsidiaries through such vesting date. Each of Mr. Szymanski, Ms. Motani and Mr. Steinberg also entered into a new restrictive covenant agreement that contains the same restrictive covenants that they were subject to under the Parent Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Operating Agreement, as amended, before they agreed to cancel their unvested Class B-0 Units.

 

In addition to the above executives, other employees of ZAIS Group, LLC holding unvested Class B-0 Units similarly agreed to cancel their Class B-0 Units, electing to receive either cash (upon satisfaction of vesting requirements) or RSUs in substitution therefor. Parent will pay an aggregate of $256,433 to employees who elected to receive cash on or around March 17, 2017, provided the employee remains continuously employed by ZAIS Group, LLC or its subsidiaries through such date. The Company issued an aggregate of 622,123 RSUs to those employees who elected to receive RSUs and such RSUs are scheduled to vest on March 17, 2017, provided the employee remains continuously employed by ZAIS Group, LLC or its subsidiaries through such date.

 

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(d)        Exhibits

 

Exhibit No.   Description
     
10.1   Form of Employee Restricted Stock Units Agreement, dated December 30, 2016.
10.2   Form of Employee Restrictive Covenants Agreement, dated December 30, 2016.
     
     
     

 

 

 

SIGNATURES

 

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.

 

  ZAIS GROUP HOLDINGS, INC.  
       
  By: /s/ Michael Szymanski  
    Michael Szymanski  
    Chief Executive Officer  

 

Date: January 5, 2017

 

 

 

 

EXHIBIT INDEX 

 

Exhibit No.   Description

 

10.1

 

 

Form of Employee Restricted Stock Units Agreement, dated December 30, 2016.

10.2   Form of Employee Restrictive Covenants Agreement, dated December 30, 2016.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.1

 

ZAIS GROUP HOLDINGS, INC.
EMPLOYEE

RESTRICTED STOCK UNITS AGREEMENT

 

Name of Participant:  

     
No. of RSUs:  
     
Grant Date: December 30, 2016  
     
Vesting Date: March 17, 2017  

 

This Employee Restricted Stock Units Agreement (this “ Agreement ”), dated as of the Grant Date first stated above, is delivered by ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), to the Participant named above (the “ Participant ”), who is an employee of ZAIS Group, LLC or a subsidiary of ZAIS Group, LLC (ZAIS Group, LLC and its subsidiaries are collectively referred to as “ZAIS Group”).

 

Recitals

 

A.       The Company has agreed to grant to the Participant, under the ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc. 2015 Stock Incentive Plan (the “ Plan ”), Restricted Stock Units (as defined under the Plan) (hereafter “ RSUs ”) as indicated above (the “ Award ”), subject to the terms and conditions hereof and the Plan.

 

B.       This Award has been approved under the terms of the Plan. A copy of the Plan can be reviewed at https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1562214/000114420415002477/v398719_defm14a.htm#t73PRO.

 

Agreement

 

NOW, THEREFORE, the parties hereby agree as follows:

 

1.       Definitions. Except as expressly indicated herein, defined terms used in this Agreement have the meanings set forth in the Plan.

 

2.       Grant of RSUs. Subject to the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth and the terms and conditions of the Plan, the Company, as authorized by the Committee, hereby grants to the Participant the number of RSUs indicated above.

 

3.       Vesting and Forfeiture of RSUs.

 

(a)        Vesting of RSUs . The RSUs subject to this Award shall be subject to the restrictions contained in this Agreement and subject to forfeiture to the Company unless and until the RSUs have vested in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the RSUs will vest in full on the Vesting Date indicated above or upon the Accelerated Vesting Date (as defined herein) provided the Participant remains in continuous service as an employee of ZAIS Group from the Grant Date until the respective Vesting Date or Accelerated Vesting Date (as defined in Section 3(b) below). Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the RSUs will vest in full on the Vesting Date provided the Participant remains in continuous service as an employee of ZAIS Group from the Grant Date until the Vesting Date.

 

(b)        Acceleration of Vesting . Notwithstanding the foregoing subparagraph (a), in the event that prior to the Vesting Date a Participant’s employment is terminated due to death (or in other circumstances determined by the Committee in its sole discretion), then all of the unvested RSUs will vest immediately upon the date such termination occurs, if any. The vesting date described in this Section 3(b) shall be referred to herein as the “Accelerated Vesting Date.”

 

 

 

 

(c)        Forfeiture . In the event, in any case prior to the Vesting Date, of (1) a termination of Participant’s employment other than under circumstances that would result in the Accelerated Vesting Date, (2) Participant attempting to sell, assign, transfer or otherwise dispose of, or mortgage, pledge or otherwise encumber any unvested RSUs or (3) any unvested RSUs becoming subject to attachment or any similar involuntary process, then such Participant’s unvested RSUs shall be forfeited by the Participant to the Company, and the Participant shall thereafter have no right, title or interest whatever in such RSUs.

 

(d)        Effect of Vesting; Issuance of Unrestricted Stock . The vested RSUs will be settled on the Vesting Date subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, The Company upon settlement will issue to the Participant a certificate or electronically transfer by book-entry the number of shares of Common Stock of the Company equal to the number of vested RSUs which are to be settled, which shares of Common Stock shall be free of any transfer or other restrictions arising under this Agreement.

 

(e)        No Deferral Elections . A Participant may not elect to defer the issuance of shares later than March 17, 2017.

 

4.       Adjustment of RSUs. The number of RSUs subject to this Award will automatically adjust to prevent accretion, or to protect against dilution, in the event of a change to the Company’s Common Stock resulting from a recapitalization, stock split, consolidation, spin-off, reorganization, or liquidation or other similar transactions and any transaction in which shares of Common Stock are changed into or exchanged for a different number or kind of shares of stock or other securities of the Company or another corporation as provided under Section 13 of the Plan.

 

5.       No Rights as a Stockholder. As of the Grant Date, the Participant shall have no rights as a stockholder of the Company with respect to the RSUs (including voting rights and the right to receive dividends and other distributions).

 

6.       Non-Transferability of Award. The RSUs shall not be assignable or transferable by the Participant. In addition, RSUs shall not be subject to attachment, execution or other similar process prior to vesting.

 

7.       No Right to Continued Employment. The granting of the Award shall not be construed as granting to the Participant any right to continued employment. The Participant acknowledges that his employment is “at will”, which affords the Participant and any member of the ZAIS Group the right to terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason or no reason not otherwise prohibited by applicable law.

 

8.       Amendment of RSUs Award. The provisions of this Agreement may be amended, modified or waived only with the prior written consent of the Company and the Participant, and no course of conduct or failure or delay in enforcing the provisions of this Agreement shall be construed as a waiver of such provisions or affect the validity, binding effect or enforceability of this Agreement or any provision hereof.

 

9.       Notice. Any notice to the Company provided for in this Agreement shall be addressed to the Company in care of its Secretary at its executive offices and any notice to the Participant shall be addressed to the Participant at the current address shown on the payroll records of ZAIS Group. Any notice shall be deemed to be duly given if and when properly addressed and posted by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid.

 

10.       Beneficiary . The Participant may file with the Committee a written designation of a beneficiary on such form as may be prescribed by the Committee and may, from time to time, amend or revoke such designation. If no designated beneficiary survives the Participant, the executor or administrator of the Participant’s estate shall be deemed to be the Participant’s beneficiary.

 

11.       Tax Consequences and Withholding. As of the Grant Date, or at any time thereafter as requested by the Company, the Participant hereby authorizes minimum required withholding from payroll and any other amounts payable to the Participant, and otherwise agrees to make adequate provision for, the minimum sums required to be withheld to satisfy the federal, state, local and foreign tax withholding obligations, if any, of the Company ZAIS Group Parent, LLC (“ZGP”) or ZAIS Group, LLC, as applicable, which arise in connection with the Award. Unless the tax withholding obligations of the Company, ZGP or ZAIS Group, LLC, if any, are satisfied, the Company shall have no obligation to issue a certificate or book-entry transfer for such shares. The Participant acknowledges that he is solely responsible for paying all taxes attributable to this Award.

 

 

 

 

12.       Representations and Warranties of the Participant and the Company.

 

(a)       The Participant represents and warrants to the Company and ZAIS Group as follows:

 

(i)       This Agreement and the Plan constitute legal, valid and binding obligations of the Participant, enforceable against the Participant with their respective terms, and that the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Participant do not and will not conflict with, violate or cause a breach of any agreement, contract or instrument to which the Participant is a party or by which the Participant is bound or any judgment, order or decree to which the Participant is subject.

 

(ii)       The Participant has received all the information the Participant considers necessary in connection with the Participant’s execution of this Agreement, the Participant has had an adequate opportunity to ask questions and receive answers from the Company and the Participant’s independent counsel regarding the terms, conditions and limitations set forth in this Agreement and the business, properties, prospects and financial condition of the Company and its subsidiaries and to obtain additional information (to the extent the Company possesses such information or could acquire it without unreasonable effort or expense) necessary to verify the accuracy of any information furnished to the Participant or to which the Participant had access.

 

(iii)       Neither the Company nor any of its Affiliates nor any of their respective managers, directors, officers, employees or authorized representatives (including attorneys, accountants, consultants, bankers, lenders, prospective lenders or financial representatives) has provided any tax or legal advice to the Participant regarding this Agreement and the Participant has had an opportunity to receive sufficient tax and legal advice from advisors of the Participant’s own choosing such that the Participant is entering into this Agreement with full understanding of the tax and legal implications thereof.

 

(iv)       The delivery of the RSUs to me is in substitution of certain Class B-0 Units of ZGP that I elected to cancel.

 

(v)       The representations and warranties of the Participant set forth in this Agreement are true and correct.

 

(b)       The Company represents and warrants to the Participant that this Agreement constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, and that the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by the Company does not and will not conflict with, violate or cause a breach of any agreement, contract or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which the Company is bound or any judgment, order or decree to which the Company is subject.

 

13.       Governing Plan Document. The Award is subject to all the provisions of the Plan, the provisions of which are hereby made a part of this Agreement, and is further subject to all interpretations, amendments, rules and regulations which may from time to time be promulgated and adopted pursuant to the Plan. In the event of any conflict between the provisions of the Award or this Agreement and those of the Plan, the provisions of the Plan shall control. Capitalized terms used herein without definition shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Plan.

 

14.       Applicable Law. The parties hereto hereby agree that all questions concerning the construction, validity and interpretation of this Agreement and the performance of the obligations imposed by this Agreement shall be governed by the internal laws of the State of Delaware without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law provision or rule, notwithstanding that public policy in Delaware or any other forum jurisdiction might indicate that the Laws of that or any other jurisdiction should otherwise apply based on contacts with such state or otherwise. Each of the parties hereto submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware in any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement and agrees that all claims in respect of the action or proceeding may be heard and determined in any such court. Each party hereto also agrees not to bring any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement in any other court. Each of the parties hereto waives any defense of inconvenient forum to the maintenance of any action or proceeding so brought and waives any bond, surety or other security that might be required of any other party hereto with respect thereto. The parties hereto each agree that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought to trial in such a court shall be conclusive and binding on it and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which it is subject by a suit upon such judgment.

 

 

 

 

15.       Integrated Agreement. This Agreement and the Plan constitute the entire understanding and agreement between the Company and the Participant with respect to the subject matter contained herein and supersedes any prior agreements, understandings, restrictions, representations, or warranties between the Company and the Participant with respect to such subject matter other than those as set forth or provided for herein.

 

16.       Securities Matters. The Company shall not be required to deliver any shares of Common Stock, or any certificates therefore or book-entry transfer notation thereof, until the requirements of any federal or state securities or other laws, rules or regulations (including the rules of any securities exchange) as may be determined by the Company to be applicable are satisfied.

 

17.       Clawback Provisions. This Award (including any proceeds, gains or other economic benefit actually or constructively received by the Participant upon the receipt or resale of any shares of Common Stock underlying the Award) shall be subject to the provisions of any claw-back policy implemented by the Company, including, without limitation, any claw-back policy adopted to comply with the requirements of applicable law, including without limitation the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder, to the extent set forth in such claw-back policy.

 

18.       Successors and Permitted Assigns . This Agreement shall bind and inure to the benefit of and be enforceable by and against the Participant and the Company and their successors, permitted assigns and representatives and in the case of the Participant, his or her estate, legal representatives and guardian. The rights and obligations of the Participant under this Agreement shall not be assignable.

 

19.       Rights of Third Parties . Nothing expressed or implied in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to confer upon or give any Person, other than the parties hereto and the estate, legal representative or guardian of any individual party hereto, any rights or remedies under or by reason of this Agreement.

 

20.       Headings; References; Interpretation . All Section headings in this Agreement are for convenience only and shall not be deemed to control or affect the meaning or construction of any of the provisions hereof. The words “hereof,” “herein” and “hereunder” and words of similar import, when used in this Agreement, shall refer to this Agreement as a whole, including all Exhibits attached hereto, and not to any particular provision of this Agreement. All references herein to Sections shall be deemed to be references to the Sections of this Agreement. The use herein of the word “including” following any general statement, term or matter shall not be construed to limit such statement, term or matter to the specific items or matters set forth immediately following such word or to similar items or matters, whether or not non-limiting language (such as “without limitation”, “but not limited to”, or words of similar import) is used with reference thereto, but rather shall be deemed to refer to all other items or matters that could reasonably fall within the broadest possible scope of such general statement, term or matter. The word “or” as used herein is not exclusive and shall be deemed to have the meaning “and/or”. Unless the context requires otherwise, all references herein to an agreement, instrument or other document shall be deemed to refer to such agreement, instrument or other document as amended, supplemented, modified and restated from time to time to the extent permitted by the provisions thereof. Neither this Agreement nor any uncertainty or ambiguity herein shall be construed or resolved against any party hereto, whether under any rule of construction or otherwise. On the contrary, this Agreement has been reviewed by each of the parties hereto and shall be construed and interpreted according to the ordinary meaning of the words used so as to fairly accomplish the purposes and intentions of the parties hereto.

 

21.       Survival of Representations, Warranties and Agreements . All representations, warranties and agreements contained herein shall survive the consummation of the transactions contemplated hereby and the termination of this Agreement.

 

 

 

 

 

22.       Specific Performance . The Participant and the Company acknowledge and agree that a breach of this Agreement by the Participant would cause irreparable harm to the Company and its subsidiaries, and that the damages relating to any such breach may be difficult to calculate. As such, the Company shall be entitled to pursue specific performance and other equitable relief, including an injunction to prevent a breach of this Agreement. The remedies described in this paragraph shall not be deemed to be the exclusive remedies available to the Company for a breach by the Participant of this Agreement, but shall be in addition to all other remedies available at law or equity.

 

23.       Gender and Plurals . Whenever the context may require, any pronouns used herein shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine or neuter forms, and the singular form of nouns and pronouns shall include the plural and vice versa.

 

24.       Counterparts . This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts (including portable document format (.pdf) and facsimile counterparts), each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all of which together shall constitute one and the same agreement.

 

25.       Saving Clause. If any provision(s) of this Agreement shall be determined to be illegal or unenforceable, such determination shall in no manner affect the legality or enforceability of any other provision hereof.

 

Signature Page to Follow

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have executed this Agreement as of the Grant Date specified above.

 

ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc. ,

 

 

By: ________________________________

 

 

The undersigned accepts the right to receive the RSUs or other securities covered hereby, subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan and the terms and conditions herein above set forth.

 

 

ACCEPTED AND AGREED TO:

 

 

 

______________________________________

Participant

 

 

 

 

 

Exhibit 10.2

 

ZAIS GROUP, LLC
EMPLOYEE

RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS AGREEMENT

 

This Restrictive Covenants Agreement (“Agreement”) is entered into effective this ______ day of December, 2016 (the “Effective Date”), by and between ZAIS Group, LLC (“ZAIS”), on behalf of itself and its Affiliates and its and their respective successors and assignees (collectively referred to herein as “ZAIS Group”), and _______________(the “Employee”).  ZAIS and the Employee are collectively referred to herein as the “Parties.” Terms not otherwise defined herein are defined in Appendix A.

 

In consideration of receiving a grant of Restricted Stock Units under the ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc. 2015 Stock Incentive Plan in December 2016 (the “Plan”), which the Employee acknowledges to be good and valuable consideration for the Employee's obligations hereunder, the Parties hereby agree as follows:

 

1.         Confidential Information of ZAIS Group . The Employee agrees, at all times, including after employment termination, to: (i) hold in the strictest confidence, and shall neither use in any manner detrimental to any member of ZAIS Group nor disclose, publish, divulge or make accessible, directly or indirectly, to any Person, any Confidential Information of ZAIS Group, without the prior written consent of ZAIS Group Holdings, Inc. ( ZGH ); (ii) exercise all reasonable efforts to prevent third parties from gaining access to such Confidential Information of ZAIS Group; (iii) inform all other employees and agents to whom the Employee discloses Confidential Information, of the proprietary interest and nature of such Confidential Information and of the recipient s obligations under ZAIS Group's policies to keep such information confidential; and (iv) take such other protective measures as may be or become reasonably necessary to preserve the confidentiality of such Confidential Information.

 

Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, the Employee may divulge or communicate Confidential Information: (i) to officers, directors, partners, members and employees and members of ZAIS Group, and to auditors, counsel and other professional advisors to such Persons and ZAIS Group; provided , however , that such Persons have a need to know and have been informed of the confidential nature of the information, and, in any event, the Person disclosing such information shall be liable for any failure by such Persons to abide by the provisions of this Section 1; (ii) to the extent the disclosure of Confidential Information is required to be disclosed by order of a court of competent jurisdiction, administrative agency or governmental body, or by any law, or by subpoena, summons or any other administrative or legal process, or by applicable regulatory standards, in which case the disclosing Party will (except as prohibited by law) provide ZAIS Group or the Person whose Confidential Information is required to be disclosed, as applicable, with prompt, prior written notice of such compelled disclosure and the opportunity to prevent or limit such disclosure; provided , however , that such Person either (x) agrees to keep such Confidential Information confidential in accordance with this Section 1 and the Employee shall be liable for such Person s compliance with the provisions of this Section 1, or (y) signs a confidentiality agreement with ZGH with respect to any such Confidential Information.

 

 

 

 

The Employee agrees that the performance records and financial results of ZAIS Group are the exclusive property of ZAIS Group, and the Employee shall have no ownership, attribution or other rights with respect thereto. The Employee hereby assigns to ZAIS Group the performance and financial results generated in connection with the Employee's employment by ZAIS Group.

 

The Employee understands that nothing contained in this Agreement limits the Employee's ability to file a charge or complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Labor Relations Board, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Securities and Exchange Commission or any other federal, state or local governmental agency or commission ( Government Agencies ). The Employee further understands that this Agreement does not limit the Employee's ability to communicate with any Government Agencies or otherwise participate in any investigation or proceeding that may be conducted by any Government Agency, including providing documents or other information, without notice to any member of ZAIS Group. This Agreement does not limit the Employee's right to receive an award for information provided to any Government Agencies.

 

2.        Restrictive Covenants .

 

(a)       During the Non-Compete Restricted Period, the Employee shall not, directly or indirectly, without in each instance the prior written consent of ZGH, invest in, own, manage, operate, finance, control, be employed by, or participate in the ownership, management, operations, financing or control of, lend its name or a similar name to, lend its credit to, render services or advice to, or otherwise assist, any Person (other than a member of ZAIS Group) that engages in, owns, invests in, operates, manages or controls, any venture, business, or enterprise engaged in providing Competitive Investment Services in North America, Europe or Asia; provided , however , that the Employee may (i) own no more than 3% of any class of securities of any Person traded on any national securities exchange and no more than 5% of any class of securities of any Person whose securities are not traded on any national securities exchange (so long as such securities do not constitute more than 5% of the overall equity or voting power of such Person) and (ii) provide investment advice for managing the assets of himself or members of his Immediate Family; provided , further , that in the event the Employee's employment is terminated by ZAIS Group other than because of a termination For Cause (as such term is defined in the Amended and Restated Operating Agreement of ZAIS, as such is in effect from time to time), the provisions of this Section 2(a) shall automatically terminate with respect to, and no longer be applicable to, the Employee.

 

(b) During the Restricted Period, the Employee shall not, directly or indirectly, without in each instance the prior written consent of ZGH:

 

(i)       solicit, hire or employ, or otherwise engage (or assist any other Person in soliciting, hiring, employing or otherwise engaging) as an employee, independent contractor or otherwise, any employee of a member of ZAIS Group who was employed or engaged by ZAIS Group, or in any way interferes with any such person s contractual arrangements or relationship with any members of ZAIS Group;

 

(ii)       solicit (or assist any other Person in soliciting) the business of any current, former or prospective Client of a member of ZAIS Group (excluding any Person that has not been a Client or prospective Client of a member ZAIS Group within one year prior to such solicitation); provided , however , that the Employee shall not be deemed to be in violation of this Section 2(b)(ii) solely by virtue of the Employee's employment by or association with a Person that the Employee does not control (even if such Person solicits any such current former, or prospective Client of ZAIS Group), so long as the Employee is not engaged in, does not participate in or encourage and is not directly or indirectly in any way responsible for such solicitation or persuasion efforts;

 

2  

 

 

(iii)       otherwise induce or attempt to induce (or assist any other Person in inducing) any current, former or prospective Client to cease doing business with any member of ZAIS Group, or in any way interfere with the relationship between any current, former or prospective Client and ZAIS Group; or

 

(iv)       issue, disseminate or otherwise make public any written or oral statements likely to disparage or harm the business or reputation of any member of ZAIS Group or the reputation of any executive or employee of a member of ZAIS Group.

 

3.        Severability of Covenants . If any of the covenants set forth in this Agreement is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be unreasonable, unenforceable, arbitrary or against public policy, such covenants will be interpreted or deemed to be reformed to provide for the maximum activity, duration, geographical area or other limitations permitted by applicable law. The covenants set forth in this Agreement and each provision hereof are severable and distinct covenants and provisions. The invalidity or unenforceability of any such covenant or provision as written shall not invalidate or render unenforceable the remaining covenants or provisions hereof, and any such invalidity or unenforceability in any jurisdiction shall not invalidate or render unenforceable such covenant or provision in any other.

 

4.        Remedies . The Employee acknowledges that in the event of a breach of this Agreement by the Employee, money damages would be inadequate and ZAIS Group would have no adequate remedy at law. Accordingly, the Employee agrees that each member of ZAIS Group shall have the right, in addition to any other rights and remedies existing in its favor with respect to any such breach, to enforce their rights and such Employee's obligations under this Agreement not only by a claim for damages but also by an action or actions for specific performance, injunction or other equitable relief, without posting any bond or security. Without limiting the foregoing, in the case of a breach or threatened breach of this Agreement, in addition to a claim for damages, ZAIS Group shall have the right to obtain injunctive or other equitable relief to restrain any breach or threatened breach, or otherwise to enforce specifically the provisions, of this Agreement. If the Employee breaches the provisions of this Agreement, in addition to any rights ZAIS Group may have at law and in equity, ZAIS Group may redeem all shares obtained upon settlement of the Restricted Stock Unit for $.01 per share.

 

5.        Survival . The covenants set forth in this Agreement shall survive the termination of the Employee's employment. The provisions of this Agreement shall be subject to, and not in any way affect the enforceability of, any separate agreement entered into by any officer or employee of ZAIS Group restricting or prohibiting certain business activities of such Person.

 

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6.        Applicable Law; Venue; Waiver of Jury Trial.

 

(a)       The Parties hereto hereby agree that all questions concerning the construction, validity and interpretation of this Agreement and the performance of the obligations imposed by this Agreement shall be governed by the internal laws of the State of Delaware without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law provision or rule, notwithstanding that public policy in Delaware or any other forum jurisdiction might indicate that the laws of that or any other jurisdiction should otherwise apply based on contacts with such state or otherwise.

 

(b)       Each of the Parties hereto submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware in any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement and agrees that all claims in respect of the action or proceeding may be heard and determined in any such court. Each Party hereto also agrees not to bring any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement in any other court. Each of the Parties hereto waives any defense of inconvenient forum to the maintenance of any action or proceeding so brought and waives any bond, surety, or other security that might be required of any other Party hereto with respect thereto. The Parties hereto each agree that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such a court shall be conclusive and binding on it and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which it is subject by a suit upon such judgment.

 

(c)        EACH PARTY HERETO ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT ANY CONTROVERSY WHICH MAY ARISE UNDER THIS AGREEMENT IS LIKELY TO INVOLVE COMPLICATED AND DIFFICULT ISSUES, AND THEREFORE EACH SUCH PARTY HEREBY IRREVOCABLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY WAIVES ANY RIGHT SUCH PARTY MAY HAVE TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN RESPECT OF ANY LITIGATION DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT, OR THE BREACH, TERMINATION OR VALIDITY OF THIS AGREEMENT, OR THE TRANSACTIONS CONTEMPLATED BY THIS AGREEMENT. EACH PARTY HERETO CERTIFIES AND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT (i)   NO REPRESENTATIVE, AGENT OR ATTORNEY OF ANY OTHER PARTY HAS REPRESENTED, EXPRESSLY OR OTHERWISE, THAT SUCH OTHER PARTY WOULD NOT, IN THE EVENT OF LITIGATION, SEEK TO ENFORCE THE FOREGOING WAIVER, (ii)   EACH SUCH PARTY UNDERSTANDS AND HAS CONSIDERED THE IMPLICATIONS OF THIS WAIVER, (iii)   EACH SUCH PARTY MAKES THIS WAIVER VOLUNTARILY, AND (iv)   EACH SUCH PARTY HAS BEEN INDUCED TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT BY, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE MUTUAL WAIVERS AND CERTIFICATIONS IN THIS SECTION   6(c) .

 

7.        Acknowledgements . As consideration for the grant of Restricted Stock Units under the Plan , the Employee acknowledges that: (1) he has knowledge of confidential information, proprietary information and trade secrets relating to members of ZAIS Group, the Business and the Clients; (2) the products and services comprising the Business are, or may be, marketed throughout the United States and internationally; (3) the Business competes with other businesses that are or could be located in any part of the United States or internationally; (4) ZAIS Group has required the covenants set forth in this Agreement as a condition to the grant of Restricted Stock Units; (5) the covenants set forth in Section 2 are reasonable and necessary to protect and preserve the Business and to protect the goodwill of ZAIS Group; and (6) ZAIS Group will be irreparably harmed and damaged if the covenants in Section 1 and/or Section 2 are breached.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have executed this Agreement as of the date first set forth above.

 

ZAIS Group, LLC

 

 

By: ________________________________

 

 

ACCEPTED AND AGREED TO:

 

 

 

______________________________________

Employee

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APPENDIX A

 

DEFINITIONS

 

Affiliate ” means with respect to any Person, any other Person that directly or indirectly, through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with, such Person or, with respect to any Person that is an individual, such Person’s Family Member. For purposes of this definition, “ control ,” when used with respect to any Person, means the possession, directly or indirectly, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of such Person, whether through the ownership of equity interests, by contract or otherwise; and the terms “ controlling ” and “ controlled ” have correlative meanings to the foregoing. For purposes of the definition of “control,” a general partner, managing member or trustee of a Person shall always be considered to control such Person.

 

Business ” means the business of providing Investment Services.

 

Clients ” means Persons to whom ZAIS Group provides Investment Services, including any institutional clients (including insurance companies, pension funds and endowments, but expressly excluding any collateralized loan obligation transaction purchasers), on a managed account basis or otherwise, hedge funds, fund of funds, and other pooled investment vehicles, real estate investment trusts or business development companies.

 

Competitive Investment Services ” means Investment Services with respect to mortgage, government, corporate or other credit products, including residential whole loans, residential mortgage-based securities, asset-based securities, commercial real estate, commercial whole loans, commercial mortgage-based securities, investment grade government or corporate credit, high yield government or corporate credit or structured government or corporate credit vehicles or with respect to other products that compete with the Business in the United States, Asia or Europe.

 

Confidential Information ” means any confidential, non-public or proprietary information (whether transmitted orally or in writing or stored electronically) relating to the business or the affairs of any member of ZAIS Group or its or their respective clients, officers, directors, members or Principals of members and identified (orally or in writing), or otherwise known by (or should reasonably be known by) the recipient, as being confidential. The following information (which list is not intended to be exhaustive) shall be considered “Confidential Information” without the need for identification as such: the information provided to the Employee pursuant any review of the books and records, budget, financial reports, tax records of any member of ZAIS Group or any other information provided to the Employee pursuant to Article XI of the Parent Operating Agreement, future transactions (regardless of whether such transactions are consummated), customer lists, employee lists, salary and other compensation or benefits of employees, financial data, financial or strategic plans, forecasts, records and other business information, plans, reports or data, client lists, information encompassed in drawings, designs, plans, proposals, reports, research, marketing and sales plans, costs, quotations, specification sheets, recording media, information which relates, directly or indirectly, to the computer systems and computer technology, including source codes, object codes, reports, flow charts, screens, algorithms, use manuals, installation or operation manuals, computer software, spreadsheets, data computations, formulas, techniques, databases, and any other form or compilation of computer-related information and other confidential, non-public or proprietary information relating to the business or the affairs of the Employee, each member of ZAIS Group or its or their respective clients, directors, officers, members or Principals of members. Confidential Information shall not, however, include any information that: (i) is or becomes generally available to the public other than as a result of a disclosure by any member or officer in breach of this Agreement; (ii) was or becomes available on a non-confidential basis from a source other than ZAIS Group, or any officer or director of a member of ZAIS Group; provided that such source is not bound by a confidentiality agreement with or other contractual, legal or fiduciary obligation of confidentiality to ZAIS Group or any other Person with respect to such information; (iii) is or was developed by the receiving Person independently of, or was known by the receiving Person prior to, any disclosure of such information made by the disclosing Person, other than disclosures by any member or any Affiliate of a member in connection with his employment by or provision of services to ZAIS Group; (iv) to the extent it is required to be disclosed by order of a court of competent jurisdiction, administrative agency or governmental body, or by any law, or by subpoena, summons or any other administrative or legal process, or by applicable regulatory standards, after notice of such requirement has been given to ZAIS Group or the disclosing Person (except as prohibited by law) and ZAIS Group or the disclosing Person has had a reasonable opportunity to oppose such disclosure; or (v) is disclosed with the written consent of the Person to which such Confidential Information relates or, with respect to any Confidential Information concerning ZAIS Group, ZGH.

 

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Fund ” means any investment company, mutual fund, business development company, partnership, fund, closed-end fund, unit investment trust, offshore fund, common or collective fund or collective trust, special purpose vehicle, hedge fund or other pooled investment vehicle, including any pooled investment vehicle that invests in real estate or interests in real estate, whether or not registered, or, as applicable, whether or not its shares are registered, under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended or the Securities Act (or similar provisions of applicable Law of any jurisdiction other than the United States).

 

Immediate Family ” means, with respect to any individual Person, (a) such Person’s spouse, parent, grandparent, children, grandchildren and siblings (in each case, whether by

marriage or adoption), (b) such Person’s former spouses and current spouses of the individuals described in clause (a), and (c) estates, trusts, partnerships and other entities of which a material portion of the interest are held directly or indirectly by any of the foregoing individuals described in clause (a) or (b).

 

Investment Services ” means any investment advisory or subadvisory services, including (a) the management of an investment account or Fund (or portions thereof or a group of investment accounts or Funds); (b) the giving of advice with respect to the investment or reinvestment of assets or funds (or any group of assets or funds); (c) otherwise acting as an “investment adviser” within the meaning of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended; (d) rendering investment advice for a fee or other compensation, directly or indirectly, within the meaning of Section 3(21)(A)(ii) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (or any successor law), or Section 4975 of the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or any corresponding provision of any succeeding law; or (e) acting as a trustee, general partner, manager, or managing member of any Person that is an Affiliate of the provider of the services described in items (a) through (d), including any institutional clients (including insurance companies, pension funds and endowments), on a managed account basis or otherwise, hedge funds, fund of funds, and other pooled investment vehicles, real estate investment trust or business development company.

 

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Non-Compete Restricted Period ” means, with respect to the Employee, the period starting from the Effective Date of this Agreement and ending on the following date:

 

(i) if the Employee held 150,000 or fewer invested Class B-0 Units (as defined in the Parent Operating Agreement) on December 1, 2016, the three-month anniversary of the date his employment with ZAIS Group is terminated for any reason;

 

(ii) if the Employee held more than 150,000 and less than or equal to 300,000 invested Class B-0 Units on December 1, 2016, the six-month anniversary of the date his employment with ZAIS Group is terminated for any reason; and

 

(iii) if the Employee held more than 300,000 invested Class B-0 Units on December 1, 2016, the one-year anniversary of the date his employment with ZAIS Group is terminated for any reason.

 

"Parent Operating Agreement" means the Second Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Agreement of ZAIS Group Parent, LLC, dated as of March 17, 2015, as amended on March 20, 2015 and as further amended on July 21, 2015.

 

“Person” means and includes any individual, bank, savings association, corporation, partnership (limited, general, exempted or otherwise), limited liability company, limited company, company, exempted company, société anonyme, unit trust, joint-stock company, trust or unincorporated organization.

 

“Principal” means, with respect to a specified Person that is not an entity whose securities are publicly traded, any manager, officer, partner or trustee of such Person or any other Person that owns directly more than twenty percent (20%) of the equity of such specified Person. (including warrants and options then-exercisable for equity).

 

“Restricted Period” means the period starting from Effective Date of this Agreement and ending one year after such the Employee's employment with ZAIS Group is terminated for any reason.

 

 

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