We may also issue additional shares of our Common Stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for our Common Stock in connection with future acquisitions, future issuances of our securities for capital raising purposes or for other business purposes. Future sales by us of substantial amounts of our Common Stock, or the perception that sales could occur, could have a material adverse effect on the price of our Common Stock.
We may issue preferred stock in the future, and the terms of the preferred stock may reduce the value of our Common Stock.
Under the terms of our certificate of incorporation, our Board of Directors is authorized to create and issue one or more additional series of preferred stock, and, with respect to each series, to determine number of shares constituting the series and the designations and the powers, preferences and rights, and the qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, which may include dividend rights, conversion or exchange rights, voting rights, redemption rights and terms and liquidation preferences, without stockholder approval. If we create and issue one or more additional series of preferred stock, it could affect your rights or reduce the value of our outstanding Common Stock. Our Board of Directors could, without stockholder approval, issue preferred stock with voting and other rights that could adversely affect the voting power of the holders of our Common Stock and which could have certain anti-takeover effects. For example, in connection with the Chubb Acquisition, in January 2022 we issued a series of preferred stock which had quarterly dividend rights and which were converted into 32,803,519 shares of Common Stock (inclusive of shares attributable to accrued and unpaid dividends thereon).
Delaware law and our organizational documents contain certain provisions, including anti-takeover provisions, which limit the ability of stockholders to take certain actions and could delay or discourage takeover attempts that stockholders may consider favorable.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, and the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”), contain provisions that could have the effect of rendering more difficult, delaying, or preventing an acquisition deemed undesirable by our Board of Directors and therefore depress the trading price of our Common Stock. These provisions could also make it difficult for stockholders to take certain actions, including electing directors who are not nominated by the current members of our board of directors or taking other corporate actions, including effecting changes in our management. These provisions, alone or together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our Board of Directors or management.
In addition, Section 203 of the DGCL restricts certain “business combinations” with “interested stockholders” for three years following the date that a person becomes an interested stockholder unless: (1) the “business combination” or the transaction which caused the person or entity to become an interested stockholder is approved by the Board of Directors prior to such business combination or transactions; (2) upon the completion of the transaction in which the person or entity becomes an “interested stockholder,” such interested stockholder holds at least 85% of our voting stock not including (i) shares held by officers and directors and (ii) shares held by employee benefit plans under certain circumstances; or (3) at or after the person or entity becomes an “interested stockholder,” the “business combination” is approved by the board of directors and holders of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding voting stock, excluding shares held by such interested stockholder. A Delaware corporation may elect not to be governed by Section 203. We have not made such an election.
Our stockholders may be required to bring certain actions or proceedings relating to us in the Delaware Court of Chancery and certain actions asserting claims arising under the Securities Act in the federal district courts of the United States.
Pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, unless we consent in writing to an alternative forum, the Delaware Court of Chancery is the sole and exclusive forum for: (1) derivative actions or proceedings brought on behalf of us; (2) actions asserting a claim of fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or employees to us or our stockholders; (3) civil actions to interpret, apply, enforce or determine the validity of the our certificate of incorporation or bylaws; or (4) actions asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine. Under our certificate of incorporation, if the Delaware Court of Chancery lacks jurisdiction over any of the foregoing actions or proceedings, then the sole and exclusive forum for such actions or proceedings will be another state or federal court located in the State of Delaware, as long as such court has jurisdiction over the parties. These Delaware forum provisions require our stockholders to bring certain types of actions and proceedings relating to Delaware law in the Delaware Court of Chancery or another state or federal court located in the State of Delaware and therefore may prevent our stockholders from bringing such actions or proceedings in another court that a stockholder may view as more convenient, cost-effective or advantageous to the stockholder or the claims made in such action or proceeding, or may discourage them from bringing such actions or proceedings.
In addition, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, unless we consent in writing to an alternative forum, the U.S. federal district courts will, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, be the sole and exclusive forum for any action asserting a claim arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). This forum provision prevents our stockholders from bringing claims arising under the Securities Act in state court, which court our stockholders may view as more convenient, cost effective or advantageous to the claims made in such action and therefore may discourage such actions. In addition, while the Delaware Supreme Court has recently upheld provisions of the certificates of incorporation of other Delaware corporations that are similar to this forum provision, a court of a state other than the State of Delaware could decide that such provisions are not enforceable under the laws of that state.
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