8. Shares Issued on Exercise of Option. It is the intention of the Company that on any exercise of this option it will transfer to Optionee shares of its authorized but unissued stock or transfer Treasury shares, or utilize any combination of Treasury shares and authorized but unissued shares, to satisfy its obligations to deliver shares on any exercise hereof.
9. Committee Administration. This option has been granted pursuant to a determination made by the Committee, and such Committee or any successor or substitute committee authorized by the Board of Directors or the Board of Directors itself, subject to the express terms of this option, shall have plenary authority to interpret any provision of this option and to make any determinations necessary or advisable for the administration of this option and the exercise of the rights herein granted, and may waive or amend any provisions hereof in any manner not adversely affecting the rights granted to Optionee by the express terms hereof.
10. Option Not An Incentive Stock Option. The option granted hereunder is not intended to be, and will not be treated as, an Incentive Stock Option.
11. No Contract of Employment. Nothing contained in this Agreement shall be considered or construed as creating a contract of employment for any specified period of time. The employment relationship shall continue to be at the will of both parties, either of which may terminate the employment relationship at any time for any reason.
12. Restrictions.
(a) During Optionee’s employment with the Company and thereafter, Optionee shall keep confidential, and not use or disclose to any third-parties, except as required for Optionee to perform Optionee’s employment responsibilities, any confidential, proprietary and/or trade secret information of or relating to the Company (“Confidential Information”). All Company records, documents and information obtained by or provided to Optionee, or to which Optionee has or had access, or otherwise made, produced or compiled by Optionee during Optionee’s employment with the Company, which contain any Confidential Information, regardless of the medium in which it is preserved, are the sole and exclusive property of the Company and shall be given to the Company at the Company’s request or upon Optionee’s departure from the Company.
(b) All ideas, inventions, discoveries, patents, patent applications, continuation-in-part patent applications, divisional patent applications, technology, copyrights, derivative works, trademarks, service marks, improvements, developments, trade secrets, other intellectual property and the like, which are developed, conceived, created, discovered, learned, produced and/or otherwise generated by Optionee, whether individually or otherwise, during Optionee’s employment with the Company, whether or not during working hours, that relate to (i) the business and/or activities of the Company or which may be of interest to the Company in its business, (ii) the Company’s anticipated research or development, or (iii) any work performed by
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Optionee for the Company, shall be the sole and exclusive property of the Company, and the Company shall own any and all right, title and interest to such. Optionee assigns and agrees to assign any and all of the foregoing to the Company, whenever requested to do so by the Company, at the Company’s expense, and Option agrees to execute any and all applications, assignments or other instruments which the Company deems desirable or necessary to protect such interests. Optionee shall prepare, keep and maintain detailed and current dated and witnessed records of all of Optionee’s inventions, and shall disclose the details of such inventions to the Company.
(c) During the term of this option, and for a period ending twelve (12) months after exercise of this option: (i) if Optionee breaches Optionee’s obligations under Section 12(a) or (b), or (ii) if Optionee, as an individual or as a partner, employee, agent, advisor, consultant or in any other capacity of or to any person, firm, corporation or other entity, directly or indirectly, carries on any business, or becomes involved in any business activity, competitive with the business of the Company or any of its divisions, subsidiaries or affiliates in which Optionee was employed, or hires or solicits to hire any employee of the Company or any of its divisions, subsidiaries or affiliates, then the option hereby granted shall be void and of no force or effect, and if the option hereby granted or any part thereof has been exercised within the preceding twelve (12) months, Optionee shall owe the Company the excess of the fair market value of the shares subject to the option (or part thereof which has been exercised) as of the date of such exercise, over the option price, and Optionee shall pay such amount to the Company at the time Optionee commits any of the aforementioned acts.
(d) Optionee agrees that the restrictions in this Section 12 are reasonable and should be fully enforceable in light of (among other things) Optionee’s duties and responsibilities with the Company.
13. Severability. Any word, phrase, clause, sentence or other provision hereof which violates or is prohibited by any applicable law, court decree or public policy shall be modified as necessary to avoid the violation or prohibition and so as to make this Agreement enforceable as fully as possible under applicable law, and if such cannot be so modified the same shall be ineffective to the extent of such violation or prohibition without invalidating or affecting the remaining provisions hereof.
14. Governing Law. This agreement is made in and shall be construed and administered in accordance with the laws of the State of Missouri, without regard to conflicts of law principles which might otherwise be applied. Any litigation arising out of, in connection with or concerning any aspect of this agreement shall be conducted exclusively in the State or Federal Courts in the State of Missouri, and Optionee hereby consents to the jurisdiction of said courts.
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