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 inSection 25 hereof), or to receive dividends or subscription rights, or otherwise, until the Right or Rights evidenced by such Rights Certificate shall have been exercised or exchanged 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 preparation, delivery, negotiation, amendment, administration and execution of this Agreement and the exercise and performance of its duties hereunder. The Company also agrees to indemnify the Rights Agent for, and to hold it harmless against, any and all loss, liability, damage, judgment, fine, penalty, claim, demand, settlement, cost or expense (including the reasonable fees and expenses of legal counsel), incurred or suffered by it 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 its execution, acceptance and administration of this Agreement and the exercise and performance of its duties under this Agreement, including the costs and expenses of defending against any claim of liability arising therefrom, directly or indirectly, or enforcing its rights hereunder. The provisions under this Section 18 and Section 20 hereof shall survive the expiration of the Rights and the termination of this Agreement and the resignation, replacement or removal of the Rights Agent. The costs and expenses incurred in enforcing this right of indemnification shall be paid by the Company.
(b) The Rights Agent shall be fully authorized and protected and shall incur no liability for or in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted 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, direction, consent, certificate, statement, or other paper or document believed by it to be genuine and to be signed, executed and, where necessary, verified or acknowledged, by the proper Person or Persons. 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.
Section 19.Merger or Consolidation or Change of Name of Rights Agent.
(a) Any Person into which the Rights Agent or any successor Rights Agent may be merged or with which it may be consolidated, or any Person resulting from any merger or consolidation to which the Rights Agent or any successor Rights Agent shall be a party, or any Person succeeding to the corporate trust, stock transfer or other stockholder services business of the Rights Agent or any successor Rights Agent, shall be the successor to the Rights Agent under this Agreement without the execution or filing of any paper or any further act on the part of any of the parties hereto; but only if such Person would be eligible for appointment as a successor Rights Agent under the provisions ofSection 21 hereof. The purchase of all or substantially all of the Rights Agent’s assets employed in the performance of transfer agent activities shall be deemed a merger or consolidation for purposes of thisSection 19. In case at the time such successor Rights Agent shall succeed to the agency created by this Agreement, any of the Rights Certificates shall have been countersigned but not delivered, any such successor Rights Agent may adopt the countersignature of a predecessor Rights Agent and deliver such
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