Section 17. Rights Certificate Holder Not Deemed a Stockholder.
No holder, as such, of any Rights Certificate is entitled to vote, receive dividends or be deemed for any purpose to be the holder of the number of shares of Common Stock or any other securities of the Company that may at any time be issuable upon the exercise of the Rights represented thereby, nor shall anything contained herein or in any Rights Certificate be construed to confer upon the holder of any Rights Certificate, as such, any of the rights of a stockholder of the Company or any right to vote for the election of directors or upon any matter submitted to stockholders at any meeting thereof, or to give or withhold consent to any corporate action, or to receive notice of meetings or other actions affecting stockholders (except as provided in Section 26 hereof), or to receive dividends or subscription rights, or otherwise, until the Right or Rights evidenced by such Rights Certificate have been exercised in accordance with the provisions hereof.
Section 18. Concerning the Rights Agent.
(a) The Company agrees to pay to the Rights Agent reasonable compensation for all services rendered by it hereunder in accordance with a fee schedule to be mutually agreed upon and, from time to time, on demand of the Rights Agent, its reasonable expenses and counsel fees and disbursements and other disbursements incurred in the negotiation, preparation, execution, administration, delivery and amendment of this Agreement and the exercise and performance of its duties hereunder. The Company also covenants and agrees to indemnify the Rights Agent for, and to hold it harmless against, any loss, liability, damage, judgment, fine, penalty, claim, demand, settlement, cost or expense (including the reasonable fees and expenses of legal counsel) that may be paid, incurred or suffered by it, or to which it may become subject, without gross negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct on the part of the Rights Agent (which gross negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct must be determined by a final, non-appealable judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction) for any action taken, suffered or omitted to be taken by the Rights Agent in connection with the execution, acceptance, administration, exercise and performance of its duties under this Agreement, including the reasonable costs and expenses of defending against any claim of liability arising therefrom, directly or indirectly, or of enforcing its rights under this Agreement.
(b) The Rights Agent shall be authorized and protected and shall incur no liability for or in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted to be taken by it in connection with its acceptance and administration of this Agreement and the exercise and performance of its duties hereunder in reliance upon any Rights Certificate or certificate for Common Stock or for other securities of the Company, instrument of assignment or transfer, power of attorney, endorsement, affidavit, letter, notice, instruction, direction, consent, certificate, statement, or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to be duly signed, executed and, where necessary, guaranteed, verified or acknowledged, by the proper Person or Persons, or otherwise upon the advice of counsel as set forth in Section 20 hereof. The Rights Agent shall not be deemed to have knowledge of any event of which it was supposed to receive notice thereof hereunder, and the Rights Agent shall be fully protected and shall incur no liability for failing to take action in connection therewith unless and until it has received such notice in writing.
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