such election shall become irrevocable as of the last day such election may be made. Provided, however, newly elected Non-Employee Directors may, at any time within thirty (30) days after their original election to the Board, make an irrevocable election with respect the portion of their Annual Retainer earned and payable on or after the first day of the next succeeding calendar quarter following such election through the rest of the then current calendar year. Unless the Non-Employee Director notifies the Secretary of the Company otherwise prior to the beginning of each subsequent calendar year, each election hereunder will renew automatically for an additional calendar year.
Deferral elections under the Plan made prior to November 21, 1997, shall remain in place through the end of 1997, and all such deferrals shall be credited to the Cash Deferral Account and continue to earn interest in accordance with Section 6.3.
(i) persons who become Directors after November 19, 2004, shall elect the timing of the payout of their Cash Deferral Account (their “Post 2004 CDA Deferrals”) no later than the time they first make a deferral election into their Cash Deferral Account; and
(ii) each Participant in the Plan as of November 19, 2004 who has not irrevocably elected the timing of the payout of his or her Cash Deferral Account shall make such an election by December 31, 2004 with respect to all amounts from deferrals into such Participant’s Cash Deferral Account of Annual Retainers or fees earned after December 31, 2004 (the “Post 2004 CDA Deferrals”).
One election shall apply to a Participant’s Post 2004 CDA Deferrals and earnings thereon (each such payout schedule is hereinafter referred to as a “Cash Account Schedule”); and a separate election shall apply to amounts that are not Post 2004 CDA Deferrals and earnings thereon. A Participant’s Cash Deferral Account shall, with respect to each Cash Account Schedule (if more than one), be paid out in a lump sum payment or in up to fifteen (15) annual installments, as elected by the Participant. The lump sum payment or the first installment, as the case may be, for each Cash Account Schedule shall be payable on the first Business Day of February of the year following the calendar year of the termination of the Participant’s service as a Director. Each
subsequent annual installment shall be payable on the first Business Day of February. If the Director fails to make a timely election as to the number of installments for any Cash Account Schedule, the Participant’s Cash Deferral Account shall be paid out in four (4) annual installments. Each installment shall equal the amount available for payout under such Cash Account Schedule, divided by the number of remaining installments (including the installment being made).
6.5 Conversion of a Participant’s Cash Deferral Account to Deferred Stock Units. Each year, on or before the close of trading in Shares on the NYSE on the tenth day (if the tenth day is not a Trading Day, then the next preceding Trading Day) following the Company’s public release of its annual summary statement of earnings (typically in January of each year) (such Trading Day to be the “Conversion Date”), a Non-Employee Director may elect to convert all or part of the balance of his or her Cash Deferral Account into Stock Units. Notwithstanding the foregoing, however, no such conversion of Post 2004 CDA Deferrals shall be permitted unless the payout schedules for such Participant’s Post 2004 CDA Deferrals and Post 2004 Stock Units are identical. Each such election shall become irrevocable as of the last time such election may be made. A Non-Employee Director who elects to convert his or her Cash Deferral Account shall receive the number of Stock Units found by dividing the Non-Employee Director’s balance in the Cash Deferral Account, together with all accrued but not yet credited interest, or such lesser amount of the Cash Deferral Account elected by the Non-Employee Director, by the Fair Market Value of a Share on the Conversion Date. Upon such conversion, the Participant’s Cash Deferral Account shall be reduced by the amount so converted.
Article 7. Amendment, Modification, and Termination
7.1 Amendment, Modification, and Termination. Subject to the terms set forth in this Article 7, the Board may terminate, amend, or modify the Plan at any time and from time to time.
7.2 Awards Previously Granted. Unless required by law, no termination, amendment, or modification of the Plan shall in any material manner adversely affect any Award previously provided under the Plan, without the written consent of the Participant holding the Award.
Article 8. Miscellaneous
8.1 Elections. All elections and notices of any kind hereunder shall be in writing and provided to the Secretary of the Company in a form prescribed by the Secretary. Unless marked as irrevocable, an election may be modified or revoked at any time prior to, and shall not be effective until, the deadline for making such election.
8.2 Assignment. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, no rights under this Plan may be assigned by a Participant.
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8.3 Savings Clause. In the event any provision of the Plan shall be held illegal or invalid for any reason, the illegality or invalidity shall not affect the remaining parts of the Plan, and the Plan shall be construed and enforced as if the illegal or invalid provision had not been included. Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in this Plan, each provision in this Plan shall be interpreted to permit the deferral of compensation in accordance with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and any provision that would conflict with such requirements shall not be valid or enforceable.
8.4 Death of a Director/Beneficiary Designation. Each Participant under the Plan may, from time to time, name any beneficiary or beneficiaries (who may be named primarily or contingently) to whom any benefit under the Plan is to be paid in the event of his or her death. Each designation will revoke all prior designations by the same Participant, shall be in a form prescribed by the Secretary of the Company, and will be effective only when provided by the Participant in writing to the Secretary during such Participant’s lifetime. In the absence of any such designation, benefits remaining unpaid at the Participant’s death shall be paid to the Participant’s estate.
In the event of the death of a Participant before full payment of all amounts due hereunder, the balance shall be paid in a lump sum as soon as administratively possible in accordance with the foregoing. Notwithstanding this, if the Participant so elects as part of the Participant’s deferral elections, the Stock Units and/or the Cash Deferral Account will be paid out in the number of annual installments elected by the Participant, beginning on the first Business Day of February following the calendar year of the Participant’s death and occurring annually thereafter; provided, however, if distributions to the Participant have already commenced at the time of the Participant’s death, then under this election, distributions will continue as scheduled.
8.5 No Right of Nomination. Nothing in the Plan shall be deemed to create any obligation on the part of the Board to nominate any Director for reelection by the Company’s stockholders.
8.6 Shares Available/Fractional Shares. The Shares delivered under the Plan may be either authorized but unissued Shares, or Shares that have been or may be reacquired by the Company, as determined from time to time by the Board.
In no case shall a fractional Share be issued under this Plan. Any fractional Share payable hereunder, upon the conversion of a Stock Unit or otherwise, shall be payable in cash in an amount equal to such fraction of a Share times the Fair Market Value of a Share on the date the fractional Share would otherwise be payable.
No more than one million (1,000,000) Shares may be issued under the Plan. In the event an acquisition of Stock Units or Shares would cause the total of the number of Shares acquired under the Plan and the number of outstanding Stock Units to exceed the maximum number of Shares that may be issued under the Plan, then: (1) no further Stock Units or Shares may be acquired under the Plan, except that outstanding Stock Units may be converted to Shares in
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accordance with the Plan; and (2) all further dividend equivalents on Stock Units held by a Participant shall be paid in the form of accruals to one or more special Cash Deferral Accounts of the Participant in an amount equal to the number of Stock Units in the account on the dividend record date for a Share multiplied by the dividend (which accruals and interest thereon shall be paid out pursuant to the Stock Unit Schedule as though they were part of the Stock Units, to the extent required to comply with Section 409A).
8.7 Successors. All obligations of the Company under the Plan with respect to Awards granted hereunder shall be binding on any successor to the Company, whether the existence of such successor is the result of a direct or indirect purchase, merger, consolidation, or otherwise, of all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company.
8.8 Requirements of Law. The granting of Awards under the Plan shall be subject to all applicable laws, rules, and regulations, and to such approvals by any governmental agencies or national securities exchanges as may be required.
8.9 Governing Law. The Plan, and all agreements hereunder, shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the internal, substantive laws of the State of Texas.
8.10 Adjustments. In the event of a merger, reorganization, consolidation, recapitalization, separation, liquidation, stock dividend, stock split, share combination, or other change in the corporate structure of the Company affecting the Shares, such adjustment shall be made in the number of shares available under the Plan and in the number and characteristics of outstanding Stock Units and/or the number and class of securities into which the Stock Units may be converted, in each case as may be determined to be appropriate and equitable by the Board, in its sole discretion, to prevent dilution or enlargement of rights.
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