UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 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): August 9, 2005

 


 

LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)

 


 

Missouri   1-7845   44-0324630

(State or Other Jurisdiction

of Incorporation)

  (Commission File Number)  

(IRS Employer

Identification Number)

 

No. 1 Leggett Road

Carthage, Missouri 64836

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

 

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (417) 358-8131

 


 

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:

 

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act

 

¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act

 

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2b under the Exchange Act

 

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

 



Item 1.01 Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement.

 

On August 9, 2005, Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (the “Company”) entered into an Underwriting Agreement and a Pricing Agreement (collectively, the “Agreement”) with JP Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Securities, LLC, as joint book-running managers and representatives of the underwriters named therein. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Company agreed to sell $200 million aggregate principal amount of its 5.00% Notes due 2015 to the underwriters in a firm commitment underwriting. The notes will be issued under a senior indenture, dated May 6, 2005, between the Company and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as trustee. The notes will rank equally with all of the Company’s other unsecured and unsubordinated debt.

 

The notes will mature on August 15, 2015 unless earlier redeemed. They will be issued only in denominations of $1,000 and integral multiples of $1,000. The notes will bear interest at a rate of 5.00% per year, payable semiannually in arrears on February 15 and August 15 of each year, commencing on February 15, 2006. Interest will be computed on the basis of a 360-day year of 12 30-day months, and will begin accruing from August 12, 2005.

 

The Company may redeem the notes, in whole or in part, at its option at any time at a redemption price equal to the greater of (i) 100% of the principal amount of the notes to be redeemed, and (ii) as determined by the Company’s appointed quotation agent, the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest thereon (not including any portion of those payments of interest accrued as of the date of redemption) discounted to the date of redemption on a semiannual basis at the adjusted treasury rate plus 12.5 basis points plus, in each case, accrued interest thereon to the date of redemption.

 

The net proceeds of approximately $197 million (before deducting expenses of the offering) will be used for general corporate purposes, which may include the repayment or refinancing of existing indebtedness, stock repurchases and/or to fund possible future acquisitions. The transaction is scheduled to close on August 12, 2005.

 

From time to time the underwriters and their affiliates perform investment banking, commercial banking and other financial services for us and our affiliates. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., the trustee under the indenture for the notes, is an affiliate of JPMorgan Securities Inc.

 

The offering will only be made by means of a prospectus, which may be obtained from JP Morgan Securities Inc., 270 Park Avenue, New York, New York, 10017. This Current Report on Form 8-K shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to the registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state. This Current Report is also being filed for the purpose of filing exhibits to the Registration Statement relating to the offering, and Exhibits 1.1, 1.2, 4.1 and 5.1 are hereby incorporated in the Registration Statement by reference.


Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

 

(c) Exhibits.

 

1.1    Underwriting Agreement, dated August 9, 2005, among JP Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, as Representatives for the several Underwriters named therein, and Leggett & Platt, Incorporated.
1.2    Pricing Agreement, dated August 9, 2005, among JP Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, as Representatives for the several Underwriters named therein, and Leggett & Platt, Incorporated.
4.1    Form of 5.00% Notes due 2015
5.1    Opinion of Ernest C. Jett, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Company
23.1    Consent of Ernest C. Jett, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Company (included as part of Exhibit 5.1)


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.

 

Date: August 11, 2005   LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED
    By:  

/s/ Ernest C. Jett


       

Ernest C. Jett

Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary


EXHIBIT INDEX

 

1.1    Underwriting Agreement, dated August 9, 2005, among JP Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, as Representatives for the several Underwriters named therein, and Leggett & Platt, Incorporated.
1.2    Pricing Agreement, dated August 9, 2005, among JP Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, as Representatives for the several Underwriters named therein, and Leggett & Platt, Incorporated.
4.1    Form of 5.00% Notes due 2015
5.1    Opinion of Ernest C. Jett, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Company
23.1    Consent of Ernest C. Jett, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Company (included as part of Exhibit 5.1)

EXHIBIT 1.1

 

LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED

 

Debt Securities

 

Underwriting Agreement

 

August 9, 2005

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

Barclays Capital Inc.

Piper Jaffray & Co.

Wells Fargo Securities LLC

Banc of America Securities LLC

SunTrust Capital Markets, Inc.

ABN AMRO Incorporated

BNY Capital Markets, Inc.

TD Securities (USA) LLC

UMB Scout Brokerage Services Inc.

 

c/o J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

270 Park Avenue

New York, New York 10017

 

and

 

c/o Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

One Wachovia Center

301 South College Street

Charlotte, NC 28288-0602

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated, a Missouri corporation (the “ Company ”), proposes to enter into a Pricing Agreement (the “ Pricing Agreement ”) in the form of Annex I hereto, with such additions and deletions as the parties thereto may determine, and, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein and therein, to issue and sell to the firms named in Schedule I to the applicable Pricing Agreement (such firms constituting the “ Underwriters ” with respect to such Pricing Agreement and the securities specified therein) certain of its debt securities (the “ Securities ”) specified in Schedule II to such Pricing Agreement (with respect to such Pricing Agreement, the “ Designated Securities ”).


The terms and rights of any particular issuance of Designated Securities shall be as specified in the Pricing Agreement relating thereto and in or pursuant to the indenture (the “ Indenture ”) identified in such Pricing Agreement.

 

1. Particular sales of Designated Securities may be made to the Underwriters of such Securities, for whom the firms designated as representatives of the Underwriters of such Securities in the Pricing Agreement relating thereto will act as representatives (the “ Representatives ”). The term “Representatives” also refers to a single firm acting as sole representative of the Underwriters and to an Underwriter or Underwriters who act without any firm being designated as its or their representatives. This Underwriting Agreement shall not be construed as an obligation of the Company to sell any of the Securities or as an obligation of any of the Underwriters to purchase the Securities. The obligation of the Company to issue and sell any of the Securities and the obligation of any of the Underwriters to purchase any of the Securities shall be evidenced by the Pricing Agreement with respect to the Designated Securities specified therein. Each Pricing Agreement shall specify the aggregate principal amount of such Designated Securities, the initial public offering price of such Designated Securities, the purchase price to the Underwriters of such Designated Securities, the names of the Underwriters of such Designated Securities, the names of the Representatives of such Underwriters and the principal amount of such Designated Securities to be purchased by each Underwriter and shall set forth the date, time and manner of delivery of such Designated Securities and payment therefor. The Pricing Agreement shall also specify (to the extent not set forth in the Indenture and the registration statement and prospectus with respect thereto) the terms of such Designated Securities. A Pricing Agreement shall be in the form of an executed writing (which may be in counterparts), and may be evidenced by an exchange of telegraphic communications or any other rapid transmission device designed to produce a written record of communications transmitted. The obligations of the Underwriters under this Agreement and each Pricing Agreement shall be several and not joint.

 

2. The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each of the Underwriters that:

 

(a) (i) A registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-123213) (the “ Initial Registration Statement ) in respect of the Securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “ Commission ”); (ii) the Initial Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, each in the form heretofore delivered or to be delivered to the Representatives and, excluding exhibits to the Initial Registration Statement, but including all documents incorporated by reference in the prospectus contained therein, to the Representatives for each of the other Underwriters, have been declared effective by the Commission in such form; (iii) other than a registration statement filed on Form S-3, if any, increasing the size of the offering (a


Rule 462(b) Registration Statement ”), filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Act ”), which became effective upon filing, no other document with respect to the Initial Registration Statement or document incorporated by reference therein has heretofore been filed or transmitted for filing with the Commission (other than documents filed in connection with the offering and prospectuses filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the rules and regulations of the Commission under the Act, each in the form heretofore delivered to the Representatives); and (iv) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Initial Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment thereto or the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement has been issued and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or threatened by the Commission (any preliminary prospectus included in the Initial Registration Statement or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) under the Act, is hereinafter called a “ Preliminary Prospectus ”); (v) the various parts of the Initial Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment thereto and the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement including all exhibits thereto and the documents incorporated by reference in the prospectus contained in the Initial Registration Statement at the time such part of the Initial Registration Statement became effective but excluding Form T-1 Statement of Eligibility under the Trust Indenture Act of 1939 (the “ Form T-1 ”), each as amended at the time such part of the Initial Registration Statement became effective or such part of the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement became or hereafter becomes effective, are hereinafter collectively called the “ Registration Statement ”; (vi) the prospectus relating to the Designated Securities, in the form in which it has most recently been filed, or transmitted for filing, with the Commission on or prior to the date of this Agreement, being hereinafter called the “ Prospectus ”; (vii) any reference herein to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to the applicable form under the Act, as of the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or Prospectus, as the case may be; (viii) any reference to any amendment or supplement to any Preliminary Prospectus or the Prospectus shall be deemed to refer to and include any documents filed after the date of such Preliminary Prospectus or Prospectus, as the case may be, under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “ Exchange Act ”), and incorporated by reference in such Preliminary Prospectus or Prospectus, as the case may be; (ix) any reference to any amendment to the Initial Registration Statement shall be deemed to refer to and include any annual report of the Company filed pursuant to Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act after the effective date of the Initial Registration Statement that is incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement; and (x) any reference to the Prospectus as amended or supplemented shall be deemed to refer to the Prospectus as amended or supplemented in relation to the applicable Designated Securities in the form in which it is filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Act in accordance with Section 5(a) hereof, including any documents incorporated by reference therein as of the date of such filing);


(b) The documents incorporated by reference in the Prospectus, when they became effective or were filed with the Commission, as the case may be, conformed in all material respects to the requirements of the Act or the Exchange Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, and none of such documents contained an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; and any further documents so filed and incorporated by reference in the Prospectus or any further amendment or supplement thereto, when such documents become effective or are filed with the Commission, as the case may be, will conform in all material respects to the requirements of the Act or the Exchange Act, as applicable, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided , however , that this representation and warranty shall not apply to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter of Designated Securities through the Representatives expressly for use in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented relating to such Securities;

 

(c) The Registration Statement and the Prospectus conform, and any further amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus will conform, in all material respects to the requirements of the Act and the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “ Trust Indenture Act ”) and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder and do not and will not, as of the applicable effective date as to the Registration Statement and any amendment thereto and as of the applicable filing date as to the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided , however , that this representation and warranty shall not apply to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter of Designated Securities through the Representatives expressly for use in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented relating to such Securities or to that part of the Registration Statement that constitutes the Form T-1;

 

(d) The Company has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Missouri; and has the requisite corporate power and authority to execute and deliver the Designated Securities and this Agreement, to perform its obligations hereunder and thereunder, and to own its properties and conduct its business as described in the Prospectus;

 

(e) The issuance and sale of the Designated Securities in an aggregate principal amount which shall not exceed $200,000,000 have been duly authorized by the Company and, when Designated Securities have been duly executed by the Company and authenticated and delivered by the Trustee, and payment therefor has been received by or


on behalf of the Company, such Designated Securities will constitute legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except as such enforcement may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, moratorium, reorganization or other similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles;

 

(f) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes the legal, valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as such enforcement may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, moratorium, reorganization or other similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally and by general equitable principles and except that no representation or warranty is made with respect to the enforceability of Section 8 hereof;

 

(g) The Company and its subsidiaries have not sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, which is material to the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus; and, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, there has not been any material decrease in the capital stock of the Company or material increase in consolidated long-term debt (as such terms are defined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) of the Company and its subsidiaries or any material adverse change, or any development that the Company believes would be reasonably likely to result in a material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus;

 

(h) (i) The issue and sale of the Securities, the compliance by the Company with all of the provisions of the Securities, the Indenture, this Agreement and any Pricing Agreement, and the consummation of the transactions herein and therein contemplated will not (A) result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any material indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which the Company is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company is subject, or (B) result in any violation of (1) the provisions of the Articles of Incorporation, as amended, or By-laws of the Company or (2) any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its properties; and (ii) no consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any court or governmental agency or body is required on the part of the Company for the issue and sale of the Securities or the consummation by the


Company of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, any Pricing Agreement or the Indenture, except such as have been, or will have been prior to the Time of Delivery, obtained under the Act and the Trust Indenture Act and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under state securities or Blue Sky laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Securities by the Underwriters;

 

(i) Other than as set forth in the Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of its subsidiaries is a party or to which any property of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is subject, which would individually or in the aggregate reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the current or future consolidated financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole; and, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or threatened by others;

 

(j) Immediately after any sale of Designated Securities by the Company hereunder or under any Pricing Agreement, the aggregate amount of Designated Securities that will have been issued and sold by the Company hereunder or under any Pricing Agreement and of any debt securities of the Company (other than such Designated Securities) that will have been issued and sold pursuant to the Registration Statement will not exceed the amount of debt securities registered under the Registration Statement; and

 

(k) The Company is not an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “ Investment Company Act ”).

 

3. Upon the execution of the Pricing Agreement applicable to any Designated Securities and authorization by the Representatives of the release of such Designated Securities, the several Underwriters propose to offer such Designated Securities for sale upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented.

 

4. Designated Securities to be purchased by each Underwriter pursuant to the Pricing Agreement relating thereto, in the form specified in such Pricing Agreement, and in such authorized denominations and registered in such names as the Representatives may request upon at least forty-eight hours’ prior notice to the Company, shall be delivered by or on behalf of the Company to the Representatives for the account of such Underwriter, against payment by such Underwriter or on its behalf of the purchase price therefor by wire transfer of Federal (same-day) funds to the account specified by the Company to the Representatives at least forty-eight hours in advance or at such other place and time and date as the Representatives and the Company may agree upon in writing, such time and date of purchase and delivery being herein called the “Time of Delivery” for such Securities.


5. The Company agrees with each of the Underwriters of any Designated Securities:

 

(a) (i) To prepare the Prospectus as amended or supplemented in relation to the applicable Designated Securities in a form approved by the Representatives and to file such Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Act not later than the Commission’s close of business on the second business day following the execution and delivery of the Pricing Agreement relating to the applicable Designated Securities or, if applicable, such earlier time as may be required by Rule 424(b); (ii) to make no further amendment or any supplement to the Registration Statement or Prospectus as amended or supplemented after the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to such Designated Securities and prior to the Time of Delivery for such Securities that is disapproved by the Representatives for such Securities promptly after reasonable notice thereof; (iii) to advise the Representatives promptly of any such amendment or supplement after such Time of Delivery and furnish the Representatives with copies thereof; (iv) to file promptly all reports and any definitive proxy or information statements required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act for so long as the delivery of a prospectus is required in connection with the offering or sale of the Designated Securities, and during such same period to advise the Representatives, promptly after the Company receives notice thereof, of the time when any amendment to the Registration Statement has been filed or has become effective or any supplement to the Prospectus or any amended Prospectus has been filed with the Commission, of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order or of any order preventing or suspending the use of any prospectus relating to the Designated Securities, of the suspension of the qualification of the Designated Securities for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, of the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for any such purpose, or of any request by the Commission for the amendment or supplement of the Registration Statement or Prospectus or for additional information; and (v) in the event of the issuance of any such stop order or of any such order preventing or suspending the use of any prospectus relating to the Designated Securities or suspending any such qualification, to promptly use its reasonable best efforts to obtain the withdrawal of such order;

 

(b) Promptly from time to time to take such action as the Representatives may reasonably request to qualify the Designated Securities for offering and sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions in the United States as the Representatives may request (and in such foreign jurisdictions as the Company and the Representatives may agree) and to comply with such laws so as to permit the continuance of sales and dealings therein in such jurisdictions for as long as may be necessary to complete the distribution or sale of the Designated Securities, provided , however , that in connection therewith the Company shall not be required to qualify as a foreign corporation or as a dealer in securities or to file a general consent to service of process or subject itself to taxation in any jurisdiction;


(c) Prior to 10:00 a.m., New York City time, on the New York Business Day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and from time to time, to furnish the Underwriters with copies of the Prospectus in New York City as amended or supplemented in such quantities as the Representatives may reasonably request, and, if the delivery of a prospectus is required at any time in connection with the offering or sale of the Designated Securities and if at such time any event has occurred as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made when such Prospectus is delivered, not misleading, or, if for any other reason it is necessary during such same period to amend or supplement the Prospectus or to file under the Exchange Act any document incorporated by reference in the Prospectus in order to comply with the Act, the Exchange Act or the Trust Indenture Act, to notify the Representatives and upon their request to file such document and to prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter and to any dealer in securities as many copies as the Representatives may from time to time reasonably request of an amended Prospectus or a supplement to the Prospectus which will correct such statement or omission or effect such compliance;

 

(d) To make generally available to its security holders as soon as practicable, but in any event not later than eighteen months after the effective date of the Registration Statement (as defined in Rule 158(c) under the Act), an earnings statement of the Company and its subsidiaries (which need not be audited) complying with Section 11(a) of the Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (including, at the option of the Company, Rule 158);

 

(e) From the date of the Pricing Agreement for such Designated Securities and continuing to and including the termination of trading restrictions for such Designated Securities, as notified to the Company by the Representatives, not to offer, sell, contract to sell or otherwise dispose of any debt securities of the Company which mature more than one year after such Time of Delivery and which are substantially similar to such Designated Securities, without the prior written consent of the Representatives; provided, that in no event shall borrowings under the Company’s revolving credit agreements and lines of credit or issuances of commercial paper be deemed to be substantially similar to such Designated Securities; and

 

(f) If the Company elects to rely upon Rule 462(b), the Company shall file a Rule 462(b) Registration Statement with the Commission in compliance with Rule 462(b) by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement, and the Company shall at the time of filing either pay to the Commission the filing fee for the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement or give irrevocable instructions for the payment of such fee pursuant to Rule 111(b) under the Act.


6. The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters that the Company will pay or cause to be paid the following: (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel and accountants in connection with the registration of the Designated Securities under the Act and all other expenses in connection with the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus and any amendments and supplements thereto and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers; (ii) the cost of printing, producing or reproducing any Agreement among Underwriters, this Agreement, any Pricing Agreement, any Indenture, any Blue Sky and Legal Investment Memoranda, closing documents (including any compilations thereof) and any other documents in connection with the offering, purchase, sale and delivery of the Designated Securities; (iii) all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Designated Securities for offering and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 5(b) hereof, including the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky and Legal Investment Surveys; (iv) any fees charged by securities rating services for rating the Designated Securities; (v) any filing fees incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with, any required review by the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. of the terms of the sale of the Designated Securities; (vi) the cost of preparing the Designated Securities; (vii) the fees and expenses of any Trustee and any agent of any Trustee and transfer or paying agent of the Company and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for any Trustee or such agent in connection with any Indenture and the Designated Securities; and (viii) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder that are not otherwise specifically provided for in this Section. It is understood, however, that, except as provided in this Section, and Sections 8 and 11 hereof, the Underwriters will pay all of their own costs and expenses, including the fees of their counsel, transfer taxes on resale of any of the Designated Securities by them, and any advertising expenses connected with any offers they may make.

 

7. The obligations of the Underwriters of any Designated Securities under the Pricing Agreement relating to such Designated Securities shall be subject, in the discretion of the Representatives, to the condition that all representations and warranties and other statements of the Company in or incorporated by reference in the Pricing Agreement relating to such Designated Securities are, at and as of the Time of Delivery for such Designated Securities, true and correct, the condition that the Company shall have performed all of its obligations hereunder theretofore to be performed, and the following additional conditions:

 

(a) (i) The Prospectus as amended or supplemented in relation to the applicable Designated Securities shall have been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Act within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by the rules and regulations under the Act and in accordance with Section 5(a) hereof; (ii) the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement shall have become effective by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement; (iii) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof shall have been issued and


no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission; and (iv) all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission shall have been complied with to the Representatives’ reasonable satisfaction;

 

(b) Counsel for the Underwriters shall have furnished to the Representatives such written opinion or opinions, dated the Time of Delivery for such Designated Securities as the Representatives may reasonably request (including the penultimate paragraph of subsection (c) below), and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters;

 

(c) The Company’s General Counsel, or other counsel for the Company reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, shall have furnished to the Representatives their written opinions, dated the Time of Delivery for such Designated Securities, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, to the effect that:

 

(i) the Company is a corporation validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is chartered or organized with full corporate power and authority to own its properties and conduct its business in all material respects as described in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented;

 

(ii) each subsidiary constituting 10% or more of the consolidated total assets of the Company as of such date (each such subsidiary being hereinafter referred to as a “ Significant Subsidiary ”) is a corporation validly existing and in good standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of incorporation; and all of the issued shares of capital stock of each such subsidiary have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and (except as otherwise set forth in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented) are owned directly or indirectly by the Company, to such counsel’s knowledge free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, equities or claims (such counsel being entitled to rely in respect of the opinion in this clause upon opinions of local counsel and in respect of matters of fact upon certificates of officers of the Company or its subsidiaries, provided that such counsel shall state that they believe that you and they are justified in relying upon such opinions and certificates);

 

(iii) the Company’s authorized equity capitalization is as set forth in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented; the Designated Securities conform in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented;

 

(iv) the Indenture has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and has been duly qualified under the Trust Indenture Act and constitutes a valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency,


fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and similar laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles;

 

(v) the Designated Securities have been duly authorized and established in conformity with the Indenture, and when executed, authenticated and issued in accordance with the Indenture and delivered against payment therefor as contemplated by the Pricing Agreement, such Designated Securities will constitute legal, valid and binding obligations of the Company entitled to the benefits of the Indenture, and enforceable in accordance with their terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer, reorganization, moratorium and similar laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equity principles;

 

(vi) to the best knowledge of such counsel, there is no action, suit or proceeding pending or overtly threatened before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries, of a character required to be disclosed in the Registration Statement that is not adequately disclosed in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented, and there is no franchise, contract or other document of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or Prospectus as amended or supplemented, or to be filed as an exhibit, that is not described or filed as required; and the statements included or incorporated in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented describing any legal proceedings or material contracts or agreements relating to the Company fairly summarize such matters to the extent required by law;

 

(vii) such counsel has been advised by the Commission’s staff that the Registration Statement has become effective under the Act; any required filing of the Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) has been made in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b); to the best knowledge of such counsel, no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued, no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or threatened, and the Registration Statement and the Prospectus as amended or supplemented (other than the financial statements, related financial statement schedules and other financial and statistical information and written information relating to and furnished by the Agents contained therein or omitted therefrom, and except for the part of the Registration Statement that constitutes the Trustee’s Form T-1 Statement of Eligibility and Qualification under the Trust Indenture Act on Form T-1 (the “ Form T-1 ”), as to which such counsel need express no opinion) comply as to form in all material respects with the applicable requirements of the Act, the Exchange Act and the Trust Indenture Act and the respective rules thereunder;


(viii) this Agreement and the Pricing Agreement with respect to the Designated Securities have been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company;

 

(ix) no consent, approval, authorization or order of any federal or Missouri court or governmental agency or body is required to be obtained by the Company for the issue and sale of the Designated Securities or the consummation of the transactions contemplated herein or in the Pricing Agreement, except such as have been obtained under the Act and the Trust Indenture Act and such as may be required under the blue sky laws of any jurisdiction in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Designated Securities by the Underwriters and such other approvals (specified in such opinion) as have been obtained;

 

(x) neither the execution and delivery by the Company of the Indenture, the issue and sale of the Designated Securities, nor the consummation by the Company of any other of the transactions herein contemplated nor the fulfillment by the Company of the terms hereof or of the Pricing Agreement will result in a breach or violation of, or constitute a default under (A) the articles of incorporation or by-laws of the Company, (B) the terms of any material indenture or other material agreement or instrument known to such counsel and to which the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries is a party or bound, (C) any judgment, order or decree known to such counsel to be specifically applicable to the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries of any federal or Missouri court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body or arbitrator having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its Significant Subsidiaries or (D) any provision of federal or Missouri statute or governmental regulation applicable to the Company;

 

(xi) no holders of securities of the Company have rights to the registration of such securities under the Registration Statement; and

 

(xii) the Company is not an “investment company” or a company “controlled” by an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended;

 

Such opinion shall also state that, although such counsel does not assume responsibility for the accuracy, completeness or fairness of the statements contained in the Registration Statement or Prospectus, nothing has come to such counsel’s attention that causes such counsel to believe that, as of its effective date, the Registration Statement (other than the financial statements, related financial statement schedules and other financial and statistical information and written information relating to and furnished by the Agents contained therein or omitted therefrom, and except for the part of the Registration Statement that constitutes the Form T-1, as to which such counsel need express no opinion) contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the


statements therein not misleading or that the Prospectus as amended or supplemented (other than the financial statements, related schedules and other financial and statistical information and written information furnished by the Agents contained therein or omitted therefrom as to which such counsel need express no opinion) includes any untrue statement of a material fact or omits to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

 

In rendering such opinion, such counsel may rely (A) as to matters involving the application of laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of Missouri or the United States, to the extent deemed proper and specified in such opinion, upon the opinion of other counsel of good standing believed to be reliable and who are reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Representatives and (B) as to matters of fact, to the extent deemed proper, on certificates of responsible officers of the Company and public officials. References to the Prospectus in this paragraph (c) include any supplements thereto at the Closing Date.

 

(d) On the date of the Pricing Agreement for such Designated Securities at a time prior to the execution of the Pricing Agreement with respect to such Designated Securities and at the Time of Delivery for such Designated Securities, the independent accountants of the Company who have certified the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement shall have furnished to the Representatives a letter, dated such date of the Pricing Agreement, and a letter dated such Time of Delivery, respectively, and with respect to such letter dated such Time of Delivery, as to such other matters as the Representatives may reasonably request and in form and substance substantially satisfactory to the Representatives and the independent accountants of the Company;

 

(e) (i) The Company and its subsidiaries shall not have sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, which is material to the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities, and (ii) since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities there shall not have been any material decrease in the capital stock of the Company or material increase in consolidated long-term debt (as such terms are defined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) of the Company and its subsidiaries or any material adverse change, or any development that the Company believes would be reasonably likely to result in a material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the


Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities, the effect of which, in any such case described in Clause (i) or (ii), is in the judgment of the Representatives so material and adverse as to make it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Designated Securities on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus on the date hereof relating to the Designated Securities;

 

(f) On or after the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities (i) no downgrading shall have occurred in the rating accorded the Company’s debt securities by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization”, as that term is defined by the Commission for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Act, and (ii) no such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s debt securities;

 

(g) On or after the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities there shall not have occurred any of the following: (i) a suspension or material limitation in trading in securities generally on the New York Stock Exchange or the over-the-counter market; (ii) a suspension or material limitation in trading in the Company’s securities on the New York Stock Exchange; (iii) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities declared by either Federal or New York State authorities; (iv) a material disruption in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States; or (v) the outbreak or escalation of hostilities involving the United States or the declaration by the United States of a national emergency or war, or other crisis or calamity either within or outside the United States, if the effect on financial markets of any event specified in Clause (iv) or (v) in the judgment of the Representatives is material and adverse and makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Designated Securities on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus on the date hereof relating to the Designated Securities;

 

(h) The Company shall have complied with the provisions of Section 5(c) hereof with respect to the furnishing of prospectuses on the New York Business Day next succeeding the date of this Agreement; and

 

(i) The Company shall have furnished or caused to be furnished to the Representatives at the Time of Delivery for the Designated Securities a certificate of an officer of the Company in such form and executed by such officers of the Company as shall be reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, as to the accuracy of the representations and warranties of the Company herein at and as of such Time of Delivery, as to the performance by the Company of all of its obligations hereunder to be performed at or prior to such Time of Delivery, as to the following matters and as to such other matters as the Representatives may reasonably request:


(a) (i) The Prospectus as amended or supplemented in relation to the applicable Designated Securities has been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by the rules and regulations under the Act and in accordance with Section 5(a) hereof; (ii) the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement has become effective by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement; (iii) no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof has been issued and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or threatened by the Commission; and (iv) all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission have been complied with;

 

(b) (i) The Company and its subsidiaries have not sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included or incorporated by reference in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities any loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, which is material to the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities, and (ii) since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities there has not been any material decrease in the capital stock of the Company or material increase in consolidated long-term debt (as such terms are defined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles) of the Company and its subsidiaries or any material adverse change, or any development that the Company believes would be reasonably likely to result in a material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and its subsidiaries taken as a whole, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Prospectus as amended or supplemented prior to the date of the Pricing Agreement relating to the Designated Securities.

 

8. (a) The Company will indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities, joint or several, to which such Underwriter may become subject, under the Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Prospectus as amended or supplemented or any other prospectus relating to the Securities, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and will reimburse each Underwriter for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such Underwriter in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim as such expenses are incurred; provided , however , that the Company shall not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss,


claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Prospectus as amended or supplemented or any other prospectus relating to the Securities, or any amendment or supplement thereto, (i) in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by such Underwriter of Designated Securities through the Representatives expressly for use therein or (ii) that is corrected in any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, provided that the Company has performed each of its obligations pursuant to Section 5 hereof in respect of such amendment or supplement and, to the extent that a prospectus relating to the Securities was required to be delivered by such Underwriter under the Securities Act of 1933, if such Underwriter, having been furnished by or on behalf of the Company with copies of the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented, thereafter fails to deliver such amended or supplemented Prospectus prior to or concurrently with the delivery of confirmation of the sale of the Securities to the person asserting such loss, claim, damage or liability.

 

(b) Each Underwriter will indemnify and hold harmless the Company against any losses, claims, damages or liabilities to which the Company may become subject, under the Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon an untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Prospectus as amended or supplemented or any other prospectus relating to the Securities, or any amendment or supplement thereto, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission was made in any Preliminary Prospectus, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus, the Prospectus as amended or supplemented or any other prospectus relating to the Securities, or any amendment or supplement thereto, in reliance upon and in conformity with written information furnished to the Company by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein; and will reimburse the Company for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by the Company in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim as such expenses are incurred.

 

(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such subsection, notify the indemnifying party in writing of the commencement thereof; but the omission so to notify the indemnifying party (i) shall not relieve the indemnifying party from liability under subsection (a) or (b) above unless and to the extent it did not otherwise learn of such action and such failure results in the forfeiture by the indemnifying party of substantial rights and defenses and (ii) shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have to any indemnified party otherwise than under such subsection.


In case any such action is brought against any indemnified party and it notifies the indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent that it wishes, jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to assume the defense thereof, with counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party (who shall not, except with the consent of the indemnified party, be counsel to the indemnifying party), and, after notice from the indemnifying party to such indemnified party of its election so to assume the defense thereof, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to such indemnified party under such subsection for any legal expenses of other counsel or any other expenses, in each case subsequently incurred by such indemnified party, in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation. No indemnifying party shall, without the written consent of the indemnified party, effect the settlement or compromise of, or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened action or claim in respect of which indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified party is an actual or potential party to such action or claim) unless such settlement, compromise or judgment (i) includes an unconditional release of the indemnified party from all liability arising out of such action or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.

 

(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 8 is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under subsection (a) or (b) above in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters of the Designated Securities on the other from the offering of the Designated Securities to which such loss, claim, damage or liability (or action in respect thereof) relates. If, however, the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence is not permitted by applicable law, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to such amount paid or payable by such indemnified party in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters of the Designated Securities on the other in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof), as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and such Underwriters on the other shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from such offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriters (before deducting expenses). The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements


therein not misleading relates to information supplied by the Company on the one hand or such Underwriters on the other and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this subsection (d) were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this subsection (d). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) referred to above in this subsection (d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection (d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total public offering price at which the applicable Designated Securities underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The obligations of the Underwriters of Designated Securities in this subsection (d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations with respect to such Securities and not joint.

 

(e) The obligations of the Company under this Section 8 shall be in addition to any liability which the Company may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of the Act; and the obligations of the Underwriters under this Section 8 shall be in addition to any liability which the respective Underwriters may otherwise have and shall extend, upon the same terms and conditions, to each officer and director of the Company and to each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of the Act.

 

9. (a) If any Underwriter shall default in its obligation to purchase the Designated Securities which it has agreed to purchase under the Pricing Agreement relating to such Designated Securities, the Representatives may in their discretion arrange for themselves or another party or other parties to purchase such Designated Securities of such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters on the terms contained herein. If within thirty-six hours after such default by any Underwriter the Representatives do not arrange for the purchase of such Designated Securities of such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters, then the Company shall be entitled to a further period of thirty-six hours within which to procure another party or other parties satisfactory to the Representatives to purchase such Designated Securities on such terms. In the event that, within the respective prescribed period, the Representatives notify the Company that they have so arranged for the purchase of such Designated Securities, or the Company


notifies the Representatives that it has so arranged for the purchase of such Designated Securities, the Representatives or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Time of Delivery for such Designated Securities for a period of not more than seven days, in order to effect whatever changes may thereby be made necessary in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus as amended or supplemented, or in any other documents or arrangements, and the Company agrees to file promptly any amendments or supplements to the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which in the opinion of the Representatives may thereby be made necessary. The term “Underwriter” as used in this Agreement shall include any person substituted under this Section with like effect as if such person had originally been a party to the Pricing Agreement with respect to such Designated Securities.

 

(b) If, after giving effect to any arrangements for the purchase of the Designated Securities of a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters by the Representatives and the Company as provided in subsection (a) above, the aggregate principal amount of such Designated Securities which remains unpurchased does not exceed one-eleventh of the aggregate principal amount of the Designated Securities, then the Company shall have the right to require each non-defaulting Underwriter to purchase the principal amount of Designated Securities which such Underwriter agreed to purchase under the Pricing Agreement relating to such Designated Securities and, in addition, to require each non-defaulting Underwriter to purchase its pro rata share (based on the principal amount of Designated Securities which such Underwriter agreed to purchase under such Pricing Agreement) of the Designated Securities of such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters for which such arrangements have not been made; but nothing herein shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter from liability for its default.

 

(c) If, after giving effect to any arrangements for the purchase of the Designated Securities of a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters by the Representatives and the Company as provided in subsection (a) above, the aggregate principal amount of Designated Securities which remains unpurchased exceeds one-eleventh of the aggregate principal amount of the Designated Securities, as referred to in subsection (b) above, or if the Company shall not exercise the right described in subsection (b) above to require non-defaulting Underwriters to purchase Designated Securities of a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters, then the Pricing Agreement relating to all Designated Securities shall thereupon terminate, without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company, except for the expenses to be borne by the Company and the Underwriters as provided in Section 6 hereof and the indemnity and contribution agreements in Section 8 hereof; but nothing herein shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter from liability for its default.

 

10. The respective indemnities, agreements, representations, warranties and other statements of the Company and the several Underwriters, as set forth in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of them, respectively, pursuant to this Agreement, shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation (or any statement as to the results thereof) made by or on


behalf of any Underwriter or any controlling person of any Underwriter, or the Company, or any officer or director or any controlling person of the Company, and shall survive delivery of and payment for the Securities.

 

11. If any Pricing Agreement shall be terminated pursuant to Sections 7(f), 7(g) or 9 hereof, the Company shall not then be under any liability to any Underwriter with respect to the Designated Securities covered by such Pricing Agreement except as provided in Sections 6 and 8 hereof; but, if for any other reason Designated Securities are not delivered by or on behalf of the Company as provided herein, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters through the Representatives for all out-of-pocket expenses approved in writing by the Representatives, including fees and disbursements of counsel, reasonably incurred by the Underwriters in making preparations for the purchase, sale and delivery of such Designated Securities, but the Company shall then be under no further liability to any Underwriter with respect to such Designated Securities except as provided in Sections 6 and 8 hereof.

 

12. In all dealings hereunder, the Representatives of the Underwriters of Designated Securities shall act on behalf of each of such Underwriters, and the parties hereto shall be entitled to act and rely upon any statement, request, notice or agreement on behalf of any Underwriter made or given by such Representatives jointly or by such of the Representatives, if any, as may be designated for such purpose in the Pricing Agreement.

 

All statements, requests, notices and agreements hereunder shall be in writing, and if to the Underwriters shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to you as the representatives in care of J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., 270 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10017, Attention: Transaction Execution Group, 9th Floor; Fax: (212) 834-6702; and if to the Company shall be delivered or sent by mail to No. 1 Leggett Road, Carthage, Missouri 64836, Facsimile Transmission No. (417) 358-8027, Attention: Treasurer (with copies to the Company’s General Counsel, Facsimile Transmission No. (417) 358-8449); provided, however , that any notice to an Underwriter pursuant to Section 8(c) hereof shall be delivered or sent by mail, telex or facsimile transmission to such Underwriter at its address set forth in its Underwriters’ Questionnaire, or telex constituting such Questionnaire, which address will be supplied to the Company by you upon request. Any such statements, requests, notices or agreements shall take effect upon receipt thereof.

 

13. This Agreement and each Pricing Agreement shall be binding upon, and inure solely to the benefit of, the Underwriters, the Company and, to the extent provided in Sections 8 and 10 hereof, the officers and directors of the Company and each person who controls the Company or any Underwriter, and their respective heirs, executors, administrators, successors and assigns, and no other person shall acquire or have any right under or by virtue of this Agreement or any such Pricing Agreement. No purchaser of any of the Securities from any Underwriter shall be deemed a successor or assign by reason merely of such purchase.


14. Time shall be of the essence of each Pricing Agreement. As used herein, “ business day ” shall mean any day when the Commission’s office in Washington, D.C. is open for business. “ New York Business Day ” shall mean any day other than a Saturday or Sunday, or any other day on which banks in The City of New York, are generally required or authorized by law or executive order to close.

 

15. This Agreement and each Pricing Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York without regard to principles of conflicts of laws.

 

16. This Agreement and each Pricing Agreement may be executed by any one or more of the parties hereto and thereto in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but all such respective counterparts shall together constitute one and the same instrument.


If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding, please sign and return to us counterparts hereof.

 

Very truly yours,

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated

By

 

/s/ Felix E. Wright


Name:

 

Felix E. Wright

Title:

 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

 

By

 

/s/ Sheri L. Mossbeck


Name:

 

Sheri L. Mossbeck

Title:

 

Vice President and Treasurer

 

Accepted as of the date hereof:

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

By

 

/s/ Stephen L. Sheiner


Name:

 

Stephen L. Sheiner

Title:

 

Vice President

 

On behalf of each of the Underwriters


ANNEX I

 

Pricing Agreement

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

270 Park Avenue,

New York, New York 10017

 

and

 

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

One Wachovia Center

301 South College Street

Charlotte, NC 28288-0602

 

    As Representatives of the several

        Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto,

 

, 20..

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated, a Missouri corporation (the “ Company ”), proposes, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein and in the Underwriting Agreement, dated August 9, 2005 (the “ Underwriting Agreement ”), between the Company on the one hand and J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, on the other hand, to issue and sell to the Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “ Underwriters ”) the Securities specified in Schedule II hereto (the “ Designated Securities ”). Each of the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and shall be deemed to be a part of this Agreement to the same extent as if such provisions had been set forth in full herein; and each of the representations and warranties set forth therein shall be deemed to have been made at and as of the date of this Pricing Agreement, except that each representation and warranty which refers to the Prospectus in Section 2 of the Underwriting Agreement shall be deemed to be a representation or warranty as of the date of the Underwriting Agreement in relation to the Prospectus (as therein defined), and also a representation and warranty as of the date of this Pricing Agreement in relation to the Prospectus as amended or supplemented relating to the Designated Securities which are the subject of this Pricing Agreement. Each reference to the Representatives herein and in the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement so incorporated by reference shall be deemed to refer to you. Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Underwriting Agreement are used herein as therein defined. The Representatives designated to act on behalf of the Representatives and on behalf of each of the Underwriters of the Designated Securities pursuant to Section 12 of the Underwriting Agreement and the address of the Representatives referred to in such Section 12 are set forth at the end of Schedule II hereto.

 

An amendment to the Registration Statement, or a supplement to the Prospectus, as the case may be, relating to the Designated Securities, in the form heretofore delivered to you is now proposed to be filed with the Commission.


Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein and in the Underwriting Agreement incorporated herein by reference, the Company agrees to issue and sell to each of the Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at the time and place and at the purchase price to the Underwriters set forth in Schedule II hereto, the principal amount of Designated Securities set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto.

 

If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding, please sign and return to us counterparts hereof, and upon acceptance hereof by you, on behalf of each of the Underwriters, this letter and such acceptance hereof, including the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement incorporated herein by reference, shall constitute a binding agreement between each of the Underwriters and the Company. It is understood that your acceptance of this letter on behalf of each of the Underwriters is or will be pursuant to the authority set forth in a form of Agreement among Underwriters, the form of which shall be submitted to the Company for examination upon request, but without warranty on the part of the Representatives as to the authority of the signers thereof.

 

Very truly yours,

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated

By

 

 


Name:

   

Title:

   

 

Accepted as of the date hereof:

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

By

 

 


Name:

   

Title:

   

 

On behalf of each of the Underwriters

 

2


ANNEX I

 

SCHEDULE I

 

Underwriter


  

Principal

Amount of

Designated

Securities

to be

Purchased


J.P. Morgan Securities Inc

   $  

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

   $  
    

Total.

   $  
    


ANNEX I

 

SCHEDULE II

 

Title of Designated Securities:

 

Aggregate principal amount:

 

Price to Public:

 

    % of the principal amount of the Designated Securities, plus accrued interest, if any, from              to             

 

Purchase Price by Underwriters:

 

    % of the principal amount of the Designated Securities, plus accrued interest from              to             

 

Form of Designated Securities:

 

[Definitive form to be made available for checking and packaging at least twenty-four hours prior to the Time of Delivery at the office of [The Depository Trust Company or its designated custodian] [the Representatives]]

 

[Book-entry only form represented by one or more global securities deposited with The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) or its designated custodian, to be made available for checking by the Representatives at least twenty-four hours prior to the Time of Delivery at the office of DTC.]

 

Specified funds for payment of purchase price:

 

Time of Delivery:

 

Indenture:

 

Maturity:

 

Interest Rate:

 

Interest Payment Dates:

 

Redemption Provisions:


Sinking Fund Provisions:

 

Defeasance provisions:

 

Closing location for delivery of Designated Securities:

 

Additional Closing Conditions:

 

Names and addresses of Representatives:

 

Designated Representatives:

 

Address for Notices, etc.:

 

Other Terms:

 

2

EXHIBIT 1.2

 

Pricing Agreement

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.

270 Park Avenue

New York, New York 10017

 

and

 

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

One Wachovia Center

301 South College Street

Charlotte, NC 28288-0602

 

    As Representatives of the several

        Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto,

 

August 9, 2005

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated, a Missouri corporation (the “ Company ”), proposes, subject to the terms and conditions stated herein and in the Underwriting Agreement, dated August 9, 2005 (the “ Underwriting Agreement ”), between the Company on the one hand and J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC, on the other hand, to issue and sell to the Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “ Underwriters ”) the Securities specified in Schedule II hereto (the “ Designated Securities ”). Each of the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and shall be deemed to be a part of this Agreement to the same extent as if such provisions had been set forth in full herein; and each of the representations and warranties set forth therein shall be deemed to have been made at and as of the date of this Pricing Agreement, except that each representation and warranty which refers to the Prospectus in Section 2 of the Underwriting Agreement shall be deemed to be a representation or warranty as of the date of the Underwriting Agreement in relation to the Prospectus (as therein defined), and also a representation and warranty as of the date of this Pricing Agreement in relation to the Prospectus as amended or supplemented relating to the Designated Securities which are the subject of this Pricing Agreement. Each reference to the Representatives herein and in the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement so incorporated by reference shall be deemed to refer to you. Unless otherwise defined herein, terms defined in the Underwriting Agreement are used herein as therein defined. The Representatives designated to act on behalf of the Representatives and on behalf of each of the Underwriters of the Designated Securities pursuant to Section 12 of the Underwriting Agreement and the address of the Representatives referred to in such Section 12 are set forth at the end of Schedule II hereto.


An amendment to the Registration Statement, or a supplement to the Prospectus, as the case may be, relating to the Designated Securities, in the form heretofore delivered to you is now proposed to be filed with the Commission.

 

Subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein and in the Underwriting Agreement incorporated herein by reference, the Company agrees to issue and sell to each of the Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at the time and place and at the purchase price to the Underwriters set forth in Schedule II hereto, the principal amount of Designated Securities set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto.


If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding, please sign and return to us counterparts hereof, and upon acceptance hereof by you, on behalf of each of the Underwriters, this letter and such acceptance hereof, including the provisions of the Underwriting Agreement incorporated herein by reference, shall constitute a binding agreement between each of the Underwriters and the Company. It is understood that your acceptance of this letter on behalf of each of the Underwriters is or will be pursuant to the authority set forth in a form of Agreement among Underwriters, the form of which shall be submitted to the Company for examination upon request, but without warranty on the part of the Representatives as to the authority of the signers thereof.

 

Very truly yours,
Leggett & Platt, Incorporated
By:  

/s/ Felix E. Wright


Name:   Felix E. Wright
Title:   Chairman and
    Chief Executive Officer

 

By:  

/s/ Sheri L. Mossbeck


Name:   Sheri L. Mossbeck
Title:   Vice President and Treasurer

 

Accepted as of the date hereof:

 

J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.
By:  

/s/ Stephen L. Sheiner


Name:   Stephen L. Sheiner
Title:   Vice President

 

On behalf of each of the Underwriters


SCHEDULE I

 

Underwriter


  

Principal

Amount of

Designated

Securities

to be

Purchased


J.P. Morgan Securities Inc

   $ 66,000,000

Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

   $ 42,000,000

Barclays Capital Inc.

   $ 16,000,000

Piper Jaffray & Co

   $ 16,000,000

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC

   $ 16,000,000

Banc of America Securities LLC

   $ 10,000,000

SunTrust Capital Markets, Inc

   $ 10,000,000

ABN AMRO Incorporated

   $ 6,000,000

BNY Capital Markets, Inc.

   $ 6,000,000

TD Securities (USA) LLC

   $ 6,000,000

UMB Scout Brokerage Services Inc.

   $ 6,000,000
    

Total

   $ 200,000,000
    


SCHEDULE II

 

Title of Designated Securities:

 

5.00% Notes due 2015

 

Aggregate principal amount:

 

$200,000,000

 

Price to Public:

 

99.154% of the principal amount of the Designated Securities, plus accrued interest, if any, from August 12, 2005

 

Purchase Price by Underwriters:

 

98.504% of the principal amount of the Designated Securities

 

Form of Designated Securities:

 

Book-entry only form represented by one or more global securities

 

Specified funds for payment of purchase price:

 

Federal (same day) funds

 

Time of Delivery:

 

10:00 a.m. (New York City time), August 12, 2005

 

Indenture:

 

Indenture dated as of May 6, 2005, between the Company and JPMorgan Chase Bank, as Trustee

 

Maturity:

 

August 15, 2015

 

Interest Rate:

 

5.00%

 

Interest Payment Dates:

 

February 15 and August 15, commencing February 15, 2006

 

Covenant and Redemption Provisions:

 

As described in the Prospectus Supplement dated August 9, 2005 relating to the Designated Securities


Sinking Fund Provisions:

 

No sinking fund provisions

 

Defeasance provisions:

 

As described in Article IV and XV of the Indenture

 

Closing location for delivery of Designated Securities:

 

Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, Worldwide Plaza, 825 Eighth Avenue, New York, New York 10019

 

Additional Closing Conditions:

 

As described in the Underwriting Agreement

 

Names and addresses of Representatives:

 

Designated Representatives:

   J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.
     Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC

 

Address for Notices, etc.:

   J.P. Morgan Securities Inc.: 270 Park Avenue, New York, New York 10017, Attention: Transaction Execution Group; Fax (212) 834-6702
      

 

Other Terms:

 

The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriters are acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length contractual counterparty to the Company with respect to the offering of Designated Securities contemplated hereby (including in connection with determining the terms of the offering) and not as a financial advisor or a fiduciary to, or an agent of, the Company or any other person. Additionally, neither the Representatives nor any other Underwriter is advising the Company or any other person as to any legal, tax, investment, accounting or regulatory matters in any jurisdiction. The Company shall consult with its own advisors concerning such matters and shall be responsible for making their own independent investigation and appraisal of the transactions contemplated hereby, and the Underwriters shall have no responsibility or liability to the Company with respect thereto. Any review by the Underwriters of the Company, the transactions contemplated hereby or other matters relating to such transactions will be performed solely for the benefit of the Underwriters and shall not be on behalf of the Company.

EXHIBIT 4.1

 

Unless this certificate is presented by an authorized representative of The Depository Trust Company (55 Water Street, New York, New York) (the “U.S. Depositary”) to the Company or its agent for registration of transfer, exchange or payment, and any certificate issued is registered in the name of Cede & Co. or such other name as requested by an authorized representative of the Depositary and any payment is made payable to Cede & Co., ANY TRANSFER, PLEDGE OR OTHER USE HEREOF FOR VALUE OR OTHERWISE BY OR TO ANY PERSON IS WRONGFUL since the registered owner hereof, Cede & Co., has an interest herein.

 

This Security may not be transferred except as a whole by the U.S. Depositary to a nominee of the U.S. Depositary or by a nominee of the U.S. Depositary to the U.S. Depositary or another nominee of the U.S. Depositary or by the U.S. Depositary or any such nominee to a successor U.S. Depositary or a nominee of such successor U.S. Depositary, unless and until this Security is exchanged in whole or in part for Securities in definitive form.

 

 


LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED

5.00% Note due 2015

 

    CUSIP No. 524660 AV9
No. R-1   $200,000,000

 

LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED, a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of Missouri (herein called the “Company”, which term includes any successor Person under the Indenture hereinafter referred to), for value received, hereby promises to pay to CEDE & CO., or registered assigns, the principal sum of TWO HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS on August 15, 2015, and to pay interest thereon from August 12, 2005 or from the most recent Interest Payment Date to which interest has been paid or duly provided for, semiannually in arrears on February 15 and August 15 in each year, commencing February 15, 2006, and at Stated Maturity or redemption, if any, at the rate of 5.00% per annum until the principal hereof is paid or made available for payment. Interest so payable shall be computed on the basis of a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months. The interest so payable, and paid or duly provided for, on any Interest Payment Date will, as provided in such Indenture, be paid to the Person in whose name this Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on the Regular Record Date for such interest, which shall be the February 1 or August 1 (whether or not a Business Day), as the case may be, next preceding such Interest Payment Date. Notwithstanding the foregoing, interest payable at Maturity shall be paid to the Person to whom principal shall be paid. Except as otherwise provided in the Indenture, any such interest not punctually paid or duly provided for will forthwith cease to be payable to the Holder on such Regular Record Date and such Defaulted Interest may either be paid to the Person in whose name this Security (or one or more Predecessor Securities) is registered at the close of business on a Special Record Date for the payment of such Defaulted Interest to be fixed by the Trustee, notice whereof shall be given to Holders of Securities of this series not less than 10 days prior to such Special Record Date, or be paid at any time in any other lawful manner not inconsistent with the requirements of any securities exchange on which the Securities of this series may be listed, and upon such notice as may be required by such exchange, all as more fully provided in said Indenture.

 

Payment of the principal of and interest on this Security will be made at the offices of JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. in New York, New York or at such other office or agency as may be designated for such purpose by the Company from time to time and will be made in such coin or currency of the United States of America as at the time of payment is legal tender for the payment of public and private debts; provided, however, that at the option of the Company payment of interest may be made by check mailed to the address of the Person entitled thereto as such address shall appear in the Security Register, or in the case of Holders of $1,000,000 or more in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of this series shall be entitled to receive payment of interest by wire transfer to an account of the Person entitled thereto located in the United States, provided, that such Person shall have given to the Paying Agent satisfactory wire transfer instructions by the Regular Record Date preceding the applicable Interest Payment Date, with reference to the identifying information concerning such Holder to be found in the Security Register.

 

2


The Securities of this series are subject to redemption prior to Stated Maturity as described on the reverse hereof.

 

Reference is hereby made to the further provisions of this Security set forth on the reverse hereof, which further provisions shall for all purposes have the same effect as if set forth at this place.

 

Unless the certificate of authentication hereon has been executed by or on behalf of the Trustee referred to on the reverse hereof by manual signature, this Security shall not be entitled to any benefit under the Indenture or be valid or obligatory for any purpose.

 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this instrument to be duly executed.

 

Dated: August 12, 2005

 

LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED
By:  

 


Name:   Matthew C. Flanigan
Title:   Senior Vice President
    and Chief Financial Officer

 

TRUSTEE’S CERTIFICATE OF AUTHENTICATION

 

This is one of the Securities of the series designated therein referred to in the within-mentioned Indenture.

 

JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., as Trustee
By:  

 


    Authorized Officer

 

3


REVERSE SIDE OF NOTE

 

This Security is one of a duly authorized issue of securities of the Company (herein called the “Securities”), issued and to be issued in one or more series under a Senior Indenture, dated May 6, 2005 (herein called the “Indenture”), between the Company and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Trustee (herein called the “Trustee,” which term includes any successor trustee under the Indenture), to which Indenture and all indentures supplemental thereto reference is hereby made for a statement of the respective rights, limitations of rights, duties and immunities thereunder of the Company, the Trustee and the Holders of the Securities and of the terms upon which the Securities are, and are to be authenticated and delivered. The acceptance of this Security shall be deemed to constitute the consent and agreement by the Holders hereof to all of the terms and provisions of the Indenture. This Security is one of the series designated on the face hereof. By the terms of the Indenture, additional Securities of other separate series, which may vary as to date, amount, Stated Maturity, interest rate or method of calculating the interest rate and in other respects as therein provided, may be issued in an unlimited principal amount.

 

If any Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date or the Stated Maturity of this Security shall not be a Business Day at any Place of Payment, then (notwithstanding any other provision of the Indenture or this Security), payment of interest or principal due on this Security need not be made at such Place of Payment on such date, but may be made on the next succeeding Business Day at the Place of Payment, with the same force and effect as if made on the Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date or at Stated Maturity, provided that no interest shall accrue on such unpaid interest or principal for the period from and after such Interest Payment Date, Redemption Date or Stated Maturity, as the case may be, to such Business Day.

 

Except as set forth below, this Security is not redeemable prior to Stated Maturity and is not entitled to the benefit of a sinking fund or any analogous provision.

 

This Security is redeemable, in whole or in part, at the option of the Company, at any time at a Redemption Price equal to the greater of (i) 100% of its principal amount, or (ii) as determined by the Quotation Agent (as defined below), the sum of the present values of the remaining scheduled payments of principal and interest thereon (not including any portion of those payments of interest accrued as of the date of redemption) discounted to the Redemption Date on a semi-annual basis (assuming a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months) at the Adjusted Treasury Rate (as defined below) plus 12.5 basis points, plus, in each case, accrued interest thereon to the Redemption Date.

 

“Adjusted Treasury Rate” means, with respect to any Redemption Date, the rate per annum equal to the semi-annual equivalent yield to maturity of the Comparable Treasury Issue, assuming a price for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed as a percentage of its principal amount) equal to the Comparable Treasury Price for that Redemption Date.

 

“Comparable Treasury Issue” means the United States Treasury security selected by the Quotation Agent as having a maturity comparable to the remaining term of this Security that would be utilized, at the time of selection and in accordance with customary financial practice, in pricing new issues of corporate debt securities of comparable maturity to the remaining term of this Security.

 

4


“Comparable Treasury Price” means, with respect to any Redemption Date, (i) the average of the Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations for the Redemption Date, after excluding the highest and lowest Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, or (ii) if the Trustee obtains fewer than three Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations, the average of all such Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations.

 

“Quotation Agent” means one of the Reference Treasury Dealers appointed by the Company.

 

“Reference Treasury Dealer” means (i) J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and three additional primary U.S. Government securities dealers in New York City (each a “Primary Treasury Dealer”) selected by the Company and their successors; provided, however, that if any of them shall cease to be a Primary Treasury Dealer, the Company shall substitute another Primary Treasury Dealer; and (ii) any other Primary Treasury Dealers selected by the Company.

 

“Reference Treasury Dealer Quotations” means, with respect to each Reference Treasury Dealer and any Redemption Date, the average, as determined by the Trustee, after consultation with the Company, of the bid and asked prices for the Comparable Treasury Issue (expressed in each case as a percentage of its principal amount) quoted in writing to the Trustee by that Reference Treasury Dealer at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the third Business Day preceding that Redemption Date.

 

Notice of any redemption shall be given by first-class mail, postage pre-paid, mailed not less than 30 days but not more than 60 days before the Redemption Date to the Holders of the Securities of this series to be redeemed, at each Holder’s address appearing in the Security Register, but failure to give such notice in the manner herein provided to the Holder of any Securities of this series designated for redemption shall not affect the validity of the proceedings for the redemption of any other such Security or portion thereof. Any notice that is mailed to the Holders in the manner herein provided shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the Holder receives the notice. Notice of redemption having been given as aforesaid, the Securities of this series so to be redeemed shall, on the Redemption Date, become due and payable at the Redemption Price. Unless the Company defaults in payment of the Redemption Price, on and after the Redemption Date, interest will cease to accrue on the Securities of this series or portions thereof called for redemption. If less than all of the Securities of this series are to be redeemed, the Securities of this series to be redeemed shall be selected by the Trustee by such method as the Trustee shall deem fair and appropriate.

 

In the event of a redemption of this Security in part only, a new Security or Securities of this series, of like tenor of any authorized denomination for the unredeemed portion hereof will be issued in the name of the Holder of this Security upon cancellation hereof. Except as otherwise provided herein, Article XIII of the Indenture shall apply to this Security.

 

If an Event of Default with respect to the Securities of this series shall occur and be continuing, the principal of the Securities of this series may (subject to the conditions set forth in the Indenture) be declared due and payable in the manner and with the effect provided in the Indenture.

 

5


The Indenture contains provisions for defeasance at any time of the Company’s obligations in respect of (i) the entire indebtedness of this Security or (ii) certain restrictive covenants with respect to this Security, in each case upon compliance with certain conditions set forth therein.

 

The Indenture permits, with certain exceptions as therein provided, the Company to enter into a supplemental indenture with the Trustee to amend certain provisions thereof and modify the rights and obligations of the Company and the rights of the Holders of the Securities of each series to be affected under the Indenture at any time with the consent of the Holders of not less than a majority in aggregate principal amount of the Securities at the time Outstanding of each series to be affected and, for certain purposes, without the consent of the Holders of any Securities at the time Outstanding. The Indenture also contains provisions permitting the Holders of specified percentages in aggregate principal amount of the Securities of each series at the time Outstanding, on behalf of the Holders of all Securities of such series, to waive compliance by the Company with certain provisions of the Indenture and certain past defaults under the Indenture and their consequences. Any such consent or waiver by the Holder of this Security shall be conclusive and binding upon such Holder and upon all future Holders of this Security and of any Security issued upon the registration of transfer hereof or in exchange hereof or in lieu hereof, whether or not notation of such consent or waiver is made upon this Security.

 

No reference herein to the Indenture and no provision of this Security or of the Indenture shall alter or impair the obligation of the Company, which is absolute and unconditional, to pay the principal of and interest on this Security at the times, place and rate, and in the coin or currency, herein prescribed.

 

As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations therein set forth, the transfer of this Security is registrable in the Security Register, upon surrender of this Security for registration of transfer at the office or agency of the Company in any place where the principal of and interest on this Security are payable, duly endorsed by, or accompanied by a written instrument of transfer in form satisfactory to the Company and the Security Registrar duly executed by, the Holder hereof or such Holder’s attorney duly authorized in writing, and thereupon one or more new Securities of this series, of like tenor and of authorized denominations and for the same aggregate principal amount, will be issued to the designated transferee or transferees.

 

The Securities of this series are issuable only in registered form without coupons in denominations of $1,000 and any amount in excess thereof which is an integral multiple of $1,000. As provided in the Indenture and subject to certain limitations therein set forth, Securities of this series are exchangeable for a like aggregate principal amount of Securities of this series and of like tenor of a different authorized denomination, as requested by the Holder surrendering the same.

 

6


No service charge shall be made for any such registration of transfer or exchange, except as provided in the Indenture, but the Company may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge payable in connection therewith.

 

The Company, the Trustee and any agent of the Company or the Trustee may treat the Person in whose name this Security is registered in the Security Register as the owner hereof for all purposes, whether or not this Security be overdue, and neither the Company, the Trustee nor any such agent shall be affected by notice to the contrary.

 

This Security shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard for principles of conflicts of law.

 

All terms used in this Security which are defined in the Indenture shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Indenture.

 

As provided in the Indenture, no recourse shall be had for the payment of the principal of or interest on any Securities, or any part thereof, or for any claim based thereon or otherwise in respect thereof, or of the indebtedness represented thereby, or upon any obligation, covenant or agreement under this Security or the Indenture, against, and no personal liability whatsoever shall attach to, or be incurred by, any incorporator, stockholder, officer or director, as such, past, present or future of the Company or of any predecessor or successor corporation (either directly or through the Company or a predecessor or successor corporation), whether by virtue of any constitutional provision, statute or rule of law, or by the enforcement of any assessment or penalty or otherwise; it being expressly agreed and understood that the Indenture and all the Securities are solely corporate obligations and that any such personal liability is hereby expressly waived and released as a condition of, and as a part of the consideration for, the execution of the Indenture and the issuance of the Securities.

 

7


FOR VALUE RECEIVED the undersigned hereby sells, assigns and transfers unto

 


[Please insert social security or other identifying number of assignee]

 


[Please print or typewrite name and address of assignee]

 


 

the within Security of LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED and does hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint                      , Attorney, to transfer said Security on the books of the within-mentioned Company, with full power of substitution in the premises.

 

Dated:                         

   

 


Notice: The signature to this assignment
must correspond with the name as written
upon the face of the Security in every
particular without alteration or
enlargement or any change whatsoever.

 

8

EXHIBIT 5.1

 

[Letterhead of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated]

 

August 11, 2005

 

Leggett & Platt, Incorporated

No. 1 Leggett Road

Carthage, Missouri 64836

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

As Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated (the “Company”), I have acted on its behalf in connection with the registration of up to $200,000,000 aggregate principal amount at maturity of the Company’s 5.00% Notes due 2015 (the “Notes”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”). The Notes are Debt Securities being issued pursuant to a Senior Indenture (the “Indenture”) entered into between the Company and JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as trustee, on May 6, 2005. The Company proposes to offer and sell the Notes to the public in accordance with the terms and conditions of an Underwriting Agreement and a Pricing Agreement, each dated August 9, 2005, among the Company and J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and Wachovia Capital Markets, LLC (together, the “Agreements”), each of which is being filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission as an exhibit to the Current Report on Form 8-K together with this opinion letter.

 

In connection herewith, I have reviewed and am familiar with the Agreements, the Registration Statement on Form S-3 (No. 333-123213), filed March 9, 2005 with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as amended by Amendment No. 1 filed April 7, 2005 and Amendment No. 2 filed April 15, 2005, which became effective on April 19, 2005 (the “Registration Statement”), and the forms of prospectus supplement and prospectus included or incorporated by reference therein (collectively, the “Prospectus”), which Registration Statement and Prospectus relate to the offer and sale of the Notes. I have also examined such documents, including resolutions of the Board of Directors of the Company dated February 24, 2005, and have made such other investigations and reviewed such questions of law as I have considered necessary or appropriate for the purposes of the opinion set forth below. In my examination of the foregoing, I have assumed the authenticity of all documents submitted to me as originals, the genuineness of all signatures and the conformity to authentic originals of all documents submitted to me as copies. I have also assumed the legal capacity for all purposes relevant hereto of all natural persons and, with respect to all parties to agreements or instruments relevant hereto other than the Company, that such parties had the requisite power and authority (corporate or otherwise) to execute, deliver and perform such agreements or instruments, that such agreements or instruments have been duly authorized by all requisite action (corporate or otherwise), executed and delivered by such parties and that such agreements or instruments are the valid,


August 11, 2005

Page 2

 

binding and enforceable obligations of such parties. As to questions of fact material to my opinions, I have relied upon certificates or statements of officers and other representatives of the Company and of public officials and authorities. I have assumed without investigation that any certificates or statements on which I have relied that were given or dated earlier than the date of this opinion letter continued to remain accurate, insofar as relevant to such opinion, from such earlier date through and including the date of this letter.

 

Capitalized terms used and not defined herein shall have the meanings assigned to them in the Indenture.

 

Based on the foregoing, I am of the opinion that the Notes have been duly authorized by all requisite corporate action and, when executed and authenticated as specified in the Indenture and delivered against payment therefor in the manner deemed to be described in the Registration Statement, will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable in accordance with their terms.

 

The opinion set forth above is subject to the following qualifications and exceptions:

 

  (a) The opinion is subject to the effect of any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium or other similar laws now or hereafter in effect relating to creditors’ rights generally.

 

  (b) The opinion is subject to the effect of general principles of equity, including (without limitation) concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing and other similar doctrines affecting the enforceability of agreements generally (regardless of whether considered in a proceeding at law or in equity).

 

My opinions expressed above are limited to the laws of the States of Missouri and New York and the federal laws of the United States of America.

 

I hereby consent to the use of my name in the Registration Statement and in the related prospectus, and in any supplement to such prospectus, and to the use of this Opinion as Exhibit 5.1 to the Registration Statement.

 

Very truly yours,
LEGGETT & PLATT, INCORPORATED

/s/ Ernest C. Jett


Ernest C. Jett
Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary