as required by the Nasdaq Governance Standards, the Board has made a subjective determination as to each independent director that no relationships exist, which, in the opinion of our Board, would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director.
Based on information provided by each director concerning his or her background, employment and affiliations, we believe that all of the directors other than Mr. Berkman are “independent” directors for the purposes of the Nasdaq Governance Standards required of U.S. domestic issuers. Mr. Berkman, who serves as our Chief Executive Officer, is an executive director and is therefore not considered to be independent.
Code of Conduct and Governance Guidelines
The Company is firmly committed to high standards of corporate governance and maintaining a sound framework through which the strategy and objectives of the Company are set and the means of attaining these objectives and monitoring performance are determined.
The Company has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics (the “Code of Conduct”) that is applicable to all of our and our subsidiaries’ employees, officers and directors. The Code of Conduct addresses, among other things, compliance with law, rules and regulations, conflicts of interest, corporate opportunity requirements, competition and fair dealing, anti-discrimination and harassment, financial controls and reporting, confidentiality, proper use of company assets and the process for reporting violations of the Code of Conduct or any other company policy or any illegal or unethical behavior. The Code of Conduct is available on our website. The Audit Committee is responsible for overseeing the Code of Conduct and may be required to approve any waivers of the Code of Conduct for employees, officers or directors. Any amendments to the Code of Conduct, or any waivers of its requirements, will be disclosed on our website or in filings under the Exchange Act as required by applicable law or regulation.
In addition, the Board adopted Corporate Governance Guidelines (the “Governance Guidelines”), which it believes reflects the Board’s commitment to monitor and oversee the effectiveness of policy- and decision- making both at the Board and at the senior management level. The Governance Guidelines address, among other things, director independence, director retirement and tenure, director resignation, Board duties and responsibilities, frequency and confidentiality of Board meetings, director communication, director access to management, employees and outside counsel and auditors, director and Board performance evaluation and conflicts of interest. The Governance Guidelines are available on our website.
Board Leadership Structure
Michael D. Fascitelli and William H. Berkman currently serve as Co-Chairmen of the Board. Mr. Berkman also serves as our Chief Executive Officer. The Board believes that having two Co-Chairmen of the Board creates an environment that encourages objective oversight of management’s performance and enhances the effectiveness of the Board as a
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