“Competitive Activity” means to:
(a) form, or acquire a 5% or greater equity ownership, voting or profit participation interest in, any Competitive Enterprise; or
(b) associate (including, but not limited to, association as an officer, employee, partner, director, consultant, agent or advisor) with any Competitive Enterprise and in connection with such association engage in, or directly or indirectly manage or supervise personnel engaged in, any activity (1) which is similar or substantially related to any activity in which the Participant or Former Participant was engaged, in whole or in part, at the Firm, (2) for which as had direct or indirect managerial or supervisory responsibility at the Firm, or (3) which calls for the application of the same or similar specialized knowledge or skills as those utilized by the Participant or Former Participant in the Participant’s or Former Participant’s activities at the Firm at any time during theone-year period immediately prior to the Termination of Employment of the Participant or Former Participant, and, in any such case, irrespective of the purpose of the activity or whether the activity is or was in furtherance of advisory, agency, proprietary or fiduciary business of either the Firm or the Competitive Enterprise. (By way of example only, an “advisory” investment banker joining a leveraged-buyout firm or a research analyst becoming a proprietary trader or joining a hedge fund would constitute a Competitive Activity.)
“Competitive Enterprise” is a business enterprise that engages in, or owns or controls a significant interest in any entity that engages in, financial services such as investment banking, public or private finance, financial advisory services, provision of investment advice, products or services, private investing (for anyone other than the Participant or Former Participant and members of the Participant’s or Former Participant’s family), merchant banking, asset or hedge fund management, securities brokerage, sales, lending, custody, clearance, settlement or trading.
“Firm” means the Company and any Affiliated Company.
“Person” means an individual, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, association, trust or other entity or organization, including a government or political subdivision or an agency or instrumentality thereof.
“Solicit” means any direct or indirect communication of any kind whatsoever, regardless of by whom initiated, inviting, advising, encouraging or requesting any person or entity, in any manner, to take or refrain from taking any action.
“SolicitingActivity” means to: directly or indirectly, (1) Solicit a Client to transact business with a Competitive Enterprise or to reduce or refrain from doing any business with the Firm, (2) interfere with or damage (or attempt to interfere with or damage) any relationship between the Firm and a Client, or (3) Solicit any person who is an Employee to resign from the Firm or to apply for or accept employment with, or agree to perform services for, any Competitive Enterprise.
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