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 15, 2007

Smart Online, Inc.
__________________________________________
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

     
Delaware 001-32634 95-4439334
_____________________
(State or other jurisdiction
_____________
(Commission
______________
(I.R.S. Employer
of incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)
      
2530 Meridian Parkway, 2nd Floor, Durham, North Carolina   27713
_________________________________
(Address of principal executive offices)
  ___________
(Zip Code)
     
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:   919-765-5000

Not Applicable
______________________________________________
Former name or former address, if changed since last report

 

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 (17 CFR 230.425)
[  ]  Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
[  ]  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
[  ]  Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))


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

Appointment of Joseph Francis Trepanier III as Chief Operating Officer

Effective August 15, 2007, Smart Online, Inc. (the "Company") entered into an employment agreement with Joseph Francis Trepanier III (the "Trepanier Agreement") pursuant to which Mr. Trepanier will serve as the Company’s Chief Operating Officer.

Mr. Trepanier, who is 38 years of age, joined the Company after serving as Chief Operations and Financial Officer of DataFlux Corporation, a SAS company, from 2004 to 2007. At DataFlux, Mr. Trepanier oversaw all financial and accounting management and strategic business and sales operations. From 2002 to 2004, Mr. Trepanier served as the Director of Worldwide Finance & Operations for Aspen Technology, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Mr. Trepanier is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in North Carolina and Massachusetts.

The term of the Trepanier Agreement commences on August 15, 2007 and may be terminated as provided in the Trepanier Agreement. Under the terms of the Agreement, Mr. Trepanier will (i) receive an initial annual base salary of $163,000, subject to annual increases as may be approved by the Company’s Board of Directors or any committee thereof and (ii) be eligible to participate in all applicable incentive, savings, and retirement plans, practices, policies, and programs of the Company for which senior management employees are eligible generally. Mr. Trepanier will also receive an award of 25,000 shares of restricted stock in the Company pursuant to the Company’s 2004 Equity Compensation Plan, which will vest in 8 equal quarterly installments. In connection with the grant of the restricted stock, Mr. Trepanier executed a Restricted Stock Agreement in the form attached hereto as Exhibit 10.1, which is incorporated herein by reference.

If Mr. Trepanier’s employment is terminated (i) by the Company for Cause (as defined below), (ii) by Mr. Trepanier other than for Good Reason (as defined below), (iii) by death, (iv) by disability, or (v) following a Change in Control (as defined below), the Company shall only be obligated to pay Mr. Trepanier his annual base salary then in effect through the date of termination and shall have no further obligations under the Trepanier Agreement.

If the Company terminates Mr. Trepanier’s employment without Cause (as defined below) or if Mr. Trepanier terminates his employment for Good Reason (as defined below), Mr. Trepanier will be entitled to receive his base salary then in effect and benefits for sixty days following termination.

For purposes of the Trepanier Agreement, "Cause" is defined to mean unacceptable conduct by Mr. Trepanier, including but not limited to any:

• participation in a fraud or act of dishonesty against the Company;
• chemical dependence which affects his performance;
• breach of his fiduciary duties to the Company
• willful failure to perform his duties;
• breach of the Company’s policies or any material provision of the Trepanier Agreement;
• misconduct resulting in loss to the Company or damage to the reputation of the Company; or
• conduct which, in the determination of the Company’s Board of Directors, demonstrates unfitness to serve.

For purposes of the Trepanier Agreement, "Good Reason" is defined to mean:

• any demotion or diminution in Mr. Trepanier’s position, title, reporting position, or duties;
• relocation of Mr. Trepanier’s office to a location more than thirty miles outside of Research Triangle Park, North Carolina; or
• any material, continuing breach of the Trepanier Agreement by the Company.

For purposes of the Trepanier Agreement, a "Change of Control" will generally be deemed to have occurred if:

• the direct or indirect beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Section 13(d) of the Securities Exchange Act and Regulation 13D thereunder) of 50% or more of the Company’s common stock is acquired or becomes held by any person or group of persons (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) of the Act), but excluding the Company and any employee benefit plan sponsored or maintained by the Company; or
• assets or earning power constituting more than 50% of the assets or earning power of the Company and its subsidiaries (taken as a whole) is sold, mortgaged, leased, or otherwise transferred, in one or more transactions not in the ordinary course of the Company’s business, to any such person or group of persons.

Provided, however, that a Change in Control shall not be deemed to have occurred upon an investment by one or more venture capital funds, Small Business Investment Companies (as defined in the Small Business Investment Act), or similar financial investors.

The Trepanier Agreement contains other terms and provisions that are customary for employment agreements of this nature, including covenants not to (i) compete with or solicit employees or customers of the Company for two years after the termination of Mr. Trepanier’s employment or (ii) disclose confidential information of the Company.

Amendment of Employment Agreement with Thomas P. Furr

Effective August 15, 2007, the Company and Thomas P. Furr executed an amendment (the "Amendment") to the employment agreement, dated April 1, 2004, by and between the Company and Mr. Furr (the "Furr Agreement"). Pursuant to the Amendment, Mr. Furr’s position with the Company was changed from Chief Operating Officer to Chief Strategy Officer. No other provisions of the Furr Agreement were amended.





Item 9.01 Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits

Exhibit 10.1:

Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement (for employees) under Smart Online, Inc.’s 2004 Equity Compensation Plan






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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.

         
    Smart Online, Inc.
          
August 21, 2007   By:   /s/ Michael Nouri
       
        Name: Michael Nouri
        Title: Chief Executive Officer


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Exhibit Index


     
Exhibit No.   Description

 
10.1
  Exhibit 10.1: Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement (for employees) under Smart Online, Inc.’s 2004 Equity Compensation Plan

RESTRICTED STOCK AGREEMENT

THIS RESTRICTED STOCK AGREEMENT, made and entered into as of the       day of       , 2007, by and between Smart Online, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company), and       (the “Employee”).

WHEREAS, in consideration of the services of the Employee, the Company is desirous of giving the Employee shares of common stock of the Company under the Company’s 2004 Equity Compensation Plan (the “Plan”) (all capitalized terms not otherwise defined herein shall have the meaning set forth in the Plan), subject to the restrictions set forth below.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the foregoing, of the mutual promises set forth below and of other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

1.  Restricted Stock Award . The Company shall issue       (       ) shares of the common stock of the Company (the “Securities”) to the Employee, as part of the Employee’s compensation. The Securities are subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 4 below.

2. Employee Representations . The Employee hereby acknowledges and represents the following:

(a)  Compensation. The Employee acknowledges that the Securities is part of his or her compensation from the Company.

(b)  Investment . The Employee will treat the Securities as if acquired for investment for the Employee’s own account and not with a view to, or for resale in connection with, any distribution thereof, and Employee has no present intention of selling or distributing the Securities. The Employee does not have any contract, undertaking, agreement or arrangement with any person to sell, transfer or grant participation to such person or to any third person with respect to any of the Securities other than as set forth in this Agreement. The Employee understands that the Securities to be issued to the Employee have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”) by reason of a specific exemption from the registration provisions of the Act which depends upon, among other things, the bona fide nature of the investment intent as expressed herein.

(c)  Taxes . The Employee has not relied upon the Company with respect to any tax consequences related to the acquisition or disposition of the Securities. The Employee acknowledges that the Employee may incur a substantial tax liability. The Employee assumes full responsibility for all such consequences and the filing of all tax returns and elections the Employee may be required or find desirable to file in connection therewith. In the event any valuation of the Securities purchased pursuant to its exercise must be made under federal or state tax laws and such valuation affects any return or election of the Company, the Employee agrees that the Company may determine such value and that the Employee will observe any determination so made by the Company in all returns and elections filed by the Employee. In the event the Company is required by applicable law to collect any withholding, payroll or similar taxes by reason of the grant of the Securities, the Employee agrees that the Company may withhold such taxes from any monetary amounts otherwise payable by the Company to the Employee and that, if such amounts are insufficient to cover the taxes required to be collected by the Company, the Employee will pay to the Company such additional amounts as are required.

(d)  No Registration Obligation . The Company will be under no obligation to register the Securities or to comply with any exemption available for sale of the Securities by the Employee without registration, and the Company is under no obligation to act in any manner so as to make Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933 available with respect to any sale of the Securities by the Employee.

(e)  Underwriter Restrictions . In the event any underwriter of securities of the Company requests the Employee to sign any agreement restricting resale of the Securities in connection with any public offering by the Company, the Employee agrees to sign such agreement, provided the officers of the Company have signed an agreement no less restrictive. The Company may instruct its transfer agent not to transfer the Securities if requested by an underwriter as described above.

(f)  Compliance with Securities Laws . The Employee hereby agrees to comply with any plan, policy or other document of the Company approved by the Board of Directors of the Company to ensure compliance with securities laws, rules and regulations both prior to the Termination of Service of the Employee and for one (1) year thereafter. The Company may impose stop transfer restrictions with respect to the Securities to enforce this provision.

(g)  Legends . Each certificate representing Securities shall also bear any legend required by any applicable state securities law or by any other agreement to which the holder thereof is a party or by which the holder thereof is bound, including the provisions of any existing “lock-up” or similar agreements between the Employee and the Company, and including the following legend as required in Section 4, below:

THE SHARES REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE MAY BE TRANSFERRED ASSIGNED, CONVEYED OR PLEDGED ONLY UPON COMPLIANCE WITH THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF A RESTRICTED STOCK AGREEMENT, AS THE SAME MAY BE AMENDED OR REPLACED FROM TIME TO TIME, A COPY OF WHICH IS ON FILE WITH, AND AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION AT THE OFFICES OF THE SECRETARY OF THE CORPORATION.

3.  Condition to Issuance . The representations, warranties, understandings, acknowledgments and agreements in this Agreement are true and accurate as of the date hereof, shall be true and accurate as of the date of the issuance of the Securities by the Company and shall survive thereafter.

4.  Restrictions . The Securities described above shall be subject to the following restrictions:

(a)  Restriction Period; Lapse of Restriction . For a period of       following the date of this Agreement, the Employee agrees not to transfer, assign or sell the Securities, without the express written consent of the Company, which may be granted or withheld in the sole discretion of the Company. This restriction shall expire and cease to be of any effect with respect to the number of shares equal to       of the Securities in       following the date hereof; provided that this restriction shall lapse with respect to an increment as specified only if the Employee is employed by the Company on the specified date for such increment. Shares representing the Securities shall bear a legend to such effect.

The schedule set forth above is cumulative, so that the Securities as to which the restriction has lapsed on and after a date indicated by the schedule may be transferred, assigned, or sold at any subsequent date.

(b)  Acceleration of Lapse of Restriction . Upon a Change of Control or Corporate Organization, as defined below, the restriction set forth in Section 5(a) shall accelerate so as to lapse as to all of the Securities to which the restriction applies on the date of such event.

(i) A “Change in Control” shall be deemed to have occurred if, after the class of stock then subject to this Agreement becomes publicly traded, (1) the direct or indirect beneficial ownership (within the meaning of Section 13(d) of the Act and Regulation 13D thereunder) of fifty percent (50%) or more of the class of securities then subject to this Agreement is acquired or becomes held by any person or group of persons (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) of the Act), but excluding the Company and any employee benefit plan sponsored or maintained by the Company, or (2) assets or earning power constituting more than fifty percent (50%) of the assets or earning power of the Company and its subsidiaries (taken as a whole) is sold, mortgaged, leased or otherwise transferred, in one or more transactions not in the ordinary course of the Company’s business, to any such person or group of persons; provided, however, that a Change in Control shall not be deemed to have occurred upon an investment by one or more venture capital funds, Small Business Investment Companies (as defined in the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, as amended) or similar financial investors. For the purposes of this Agreement, the class of stock then subject to this Agreement shall be deemed to be “publicly traded” if such stock is listed or admitted to unlisted trading privileges on a national securities exchange or as to which sales or bid and offer quotations are reported in the automated system operated by the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc.

(ii) A “Corporate Reorganization” means the happening of any one (1) of the following events: (1) the dissolution or liquidation of the Company; (2) a capital reorganization, merger or consolidation involving the Company, unless (A) the transaction involves only the Company and one or more of the Company’s parent corporation and wholly-owned (excluding interests held by employees, officers and directors) subsidiaries; or (B) the shareholders who had the power to elect a majority of the board of directors of the Company immediately prior to the transaction have the power to elect a majority of the board of directors of the surviving entity immediately following the transaction; (3) the sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company to another corporation, person or business entity; or (4) an acquisition of Company stock, unless the shareholders who had the power to elect a majority of the board of directors of the Company immediately prior to the acquisition have the power to elect a majority of the board of directors of the Company immediately following the transaction; provided, however, that a Corporate Reorganization shall not be deemed to have occurred upon an investment by one or more venture capital funds, Small Business Investment Companies (as defined in the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, as amended) or similar financial investors.

5.  Effect of Termination of Service . The restriction on the Securities shall lapse as specified in Section 4 above until the Termination of Service of the Employee for reasons other than death, Disability or Retirement. Pursuant to Section 7.6 of the Plan, where the Termination of Service is for death, Disability or Retirement, than the Committee shall determine, in its sole discretion, whether to waive any remaining restriction.

All shares of the Securities still subject to the restriction set forth in Section 5 shall be forfeited by the Employee and reacquired by the Company on such date. Upon such date, the Employee shall have no further rights to any Securities to which the restriction has not lapsed.

6.  Rights as Stockholder . The Employee shall have all rights as a stockholder with respect to the Securities; provided , however , any dividends or distributions on the Securities shall be automatically deferred and reinvested as restricted Securities subject to the same restrictions set forth in this Agreement.

7.  Incorporation of the Plan . The terms and conditions included in the Plan, the receipt of a copy of which Participant hereby acknowledges by execution of this Agreement, are incorporated by reference herein, and to the extent that any conflict may exist between any term or provision of this Agreement and any term or provision of the Plan, such term or provision of the Plan shall control.

8.  Governing Law . This Agreement shall be enforced, governed and construed in all respects in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware, as such laws are applied by Delaware courts to agreements entered into and to be performed in Delaware, and shall be binding upon the Employee, the Employee’s heirs, estate, legal representatives, successors and assigns and shall inure to the benefit of the Company and its successors and assigns.

9.  Miscellaneous . This Agreement and the Plan constitute the entire agreement among the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes any and all prior or contemporaneous representations, warranties, agreements and understandings in connection therewith, other than any existing “lock-up” or similar agreements between the parties which by their terms would apply to the Securities. This Agreement may be amended only by a writing executed by all parties hereto. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Employee has executed this Restricted Stock Agreement effective as of the date first written above.

     
EMPLOYEE:
  SMART ONLINE, INC.
By:      
  By:      
Name:      
Title:      

Print Name:      
Address:      

     

     

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