| Participant’s employment by the Company; or (iii) the information is disclosed to Participant without confidential or proprietary restrictions by a third party who rightfully possesses the information (without confidential or proprietary restrictions) and did not learn of it, directly or indirectly, from the Company. Participant further understands that the Company considers the following information to be included, without limitation, in the definition of Proprietary Information: (A) schematics, techniques, employee suggestions, development tools and processes, computer printouts, computer programs, design drawings and manuals, electronic codes, formulas and improvements; (B) information about costs, profits, markets, sales, customers, prospective customers, customer contracts (including without limitation the terms and conditions of such customer contracts) and bids; (C) plans for business, marketing, future development and new product concepts; (D) customer lists, and distributor and representative lists; (E) all documents, books, papers, drawings, models, sketches, and other data of any kind and description, including electronic data recorded or retrieved by any means, that have been or will be given to Participant by the Company (or any affiliate of it), as well as written or verbal instructions or comments; (F) any information or material not described in (A)-(E) above which relate to the Company’s inventions, technological developments, “know how”, purchasing, accounts, merchandising, or licensing; (G) employee personnel files and information about employee compensation and benefits; and (H) any information of the type described in (A)-(G) above which the Company has a legal obligation to treat as confidential, or which the Company treats as proprietary or designates as confidential, whether or not owned or developed by the Company. Participant acknowledges that Participant’s fulfillment of the obligations contained in this section, including, but not limited to, Participant’s obligation not to interfere with the Company’s business as provided above, is necessary to protect the Proprietary Information and, consequently, to preserve the value and goodwill of the Company. Participant further acknowledges the time, geographic and scope limitations of Participant’s obligations as described above are reasonable, especially in light of the Company’s desire to protect its Proprietary Information, and that Participant will not be precluded from gainful employment if Participant is obligated not to compete with the Company during the specified period and within the specified geography. In accordance with the Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) and other applicable law, nothing in this Proprietary Information policy restricts disclosure of a trade secret to the government in relation to the investigation of a known or suspected violation of law. The covenants contained herein shall be construed as a series of separate covenants, one for each state, province, country and other political subdivision. Except for geographic coverage, each such separate covenant shall be deemed identical in terms of the covenant contained herein. In the event that the scope, territory or period of time of any separate covenant is determined to be unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the court, if allowed under applicable law, shall reduce the scope, territory or period of time of that separate covenant to a level that the court deems enforceable and the remaining separate covenants, as well as all other terms and covenants in this Notice of Grant of Stock Option, shall be valid and be enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law. In the event that any separate covenant is found to be unenforceable in its entirety, the court, if allowed under applicable law, shall eliminate such covenant from this Notice of Grant of Stock Option in that case and the remaining separate covenants, as well as all other terms and covenants in this Notice of Grant of Stock Option, shall be valid and be enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law. The covenants set forth herein are intended to be enforced to the maximum degree permitted by law. |