Other Matters | 8. Other Matters From time to time, the Company is party to various lawsuits, some involving material amounts. Management is not aware of any lawsuits that would have a material adverse impact on the consolidated financial position of the Company. On October 16, 2018, the Company was served with a complaint filed on October 11, 2018 in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Queens County, by Susan Paskowitz, a stockholder of the Company, against the Company; Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes; former directors Christopher Hughes, Raymond A. Roel, Brian J. Mangan, Regina Dowd, James J. Hill, William Kelly, and Eric Stein; as well as stockholders Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC (the "Stockholder Litigation"). The complaint purports to be a class action lawsuit asserting claims on behalf of all minority stockholders of the Company. Ms. Paskowitz alleges the following: the sale by Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes of an aggregate of 819,491 shares of the Company's common stock ("controlling interest") to Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC was in breach of Joseph F. Hughes' and Winifred M. Hughes' fiduciary duties and to the detriment of the Company's minority stockholders; the members of the Board of Directors of the Company named in the complaint breached their fiduciary duties by failing to immediately adopt a rights plan that would have prevented Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes from selling their shares and preserved a higher premium for all stockholders; Zeff, QAR, and Fintech are "partners" and constitute a "group." Ms. Paskowitz also asserts that Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC aided and abetted Joseph F. Hughes' and Winifred M. Hughes' conduct, and ultimately sought to buy out the remaining shares of the Company at an unfair price. The complaint requests declarations from the court that: (1) Joseph F. Hughes' and Winifred M. Hughes' sale of their controlling interest to Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC was in breach of their fiduciary duties, and that those shares may not be voted or sold back to the Company pending further court order, (2) the members of the Board of Directors named in the complaint breached their fiduciary duties by failing to timely adopt a stockholder rights plan, which resulted in the loss of the ability to auction the Company off to the highest bidder without interference from Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC, and (3) Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC must make a number of disclosures regarding their plans for the Company, their relationships with one another, and any agreements with Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes. The complaint has not assigned any monetary values to alleged damages, but it seeks: (1) for Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes, and Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC, to disgorge any benefit they received from the sale of the Hughes' controlling interest, (2) for the Board of Directors to pay damages equal to the reduced value of the class members' shares as auctionable assets, and (3) reasonable attorneys' fees and costs. Although the Company is named as a defendant, there are no claims or damage allegations against the Company, and the complaint states that it names the Company solely to effectuate equitable relief if granted. On May 6, 2019, a stipulation of dismissal was filed in the Stockholder Litigation with respect to defendants Joseph F. Hughes, Winifred M. Hughes, and Regina Dowd, in which the plaintiff and these defendants agreed to the dismissal of all claims asserted by and against them, without prejudice. On July 26, 2019, the Company filed cross-claims against Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC relating to alleged breaches of fiduciary duties and for indemnification and contribution filed. On June 14, 2019, Ms. Paskowitz filed an amended complaint in the Stockholder Litigation in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Queens County against the members of the Board of Directors and Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC, which asserts substantially similar allegations to those contained in the October 11, 2018 complaint. In addition to the members of the Board of Directors named in the original complaint, the amended complaint names current and former directors Ira Cohen, Joseph Pennacchio, and William Kelly as defendants. The amended complaint also asserts a derivative claim purportedly on behalf of the Company against the named members of the Board of Directors. The amended complaint seeks declaratory judgment and unspecified monetary damages. The complaint requests: (1) a declaration from the court that the members of the Board of Directors named in the complaint breached their fiduciary duties by failing to timely adopt a stockholder rights plan, which resulted in the loss of the ability to auction the Company off to the highest bidder without interference from Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC; (2) damages derivatively on behalf of the Company for unspecified harm caused by the Directors' alleged breaches of fiduciary duties; (3) damages and equitable relief derivatively on behalf of the Company for the Directors' alleged failure to adopt proper corporate governance practices; and (4) damages and injunctive relief against Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC based on their knowing dissemination of false or misleading public statements concerning their status as a group. The complaint has not assigned any monetary values to alleged damages. On July 15, 2019, the Company filed an answer to the amended complaint in the Stockholder Litigation and cross-claims against Zeff Capital, L.P., QAR Industries, Inc. and Fintech Consulting LLC for breaches of their fiduciary duties, aiding and abetting breaches of fiduciary duties, and indemnification and contribution based on their misappropriation of material nonpublic information and their failure to disclose complete and accurate information in SEC filings concerning their group actions to attempt a creeping takeover of the Company. In addition, on December 21, 2018, the Company filed a complaint in the United States District Court, Southern District of New York, against Zeff Capital, L.P., Zeff Holding Company, LLC, Daniel Zeff, QAR Industries, Inc., Robert Fitzgerald, Fintech Consulting LLC, and Tajuddin Haslani for violations of the disclosure and anti-fraud requirements of the federal securities laws under Sections 13(d) and 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"), and the related rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC, for failing to disclose to the Company and its stockholders their formation of a group and the group's intention to seize control of the Company. The complaint requests that the court, among other things, declare that the defendants have solicited proxies without filing timely, accurate and complete reports on Schedule 13D and Schedule 14A in violation of Sections 13(d) and 14(a) of the Exchange Act, direct the defendants to file with the SEC complete and accurate disclosures, enjoin the defendants from voting any of their shares prior to such time as complete and accurate disclosures have been filed, and enjoin the defendants from further violations of the Exchange Act with respect to the securities of the Company. The Company has filed motions for preliminary injunction and expedited discovery. The court held an initial pretrial conference on April 23, 2019 during which it ordered the parties to participate in a mediation of the claims raised in the action. The parties subsequently participated in mediation sessions through the Court-annexed Mediation Program; however, no resolution was reached as a result of the mediation. On January 7, 2019, Ms. Paskowitz filed a related action against Zeff Capital, L.P., Zeff Holding Company, LLC, Daniel Zeff, QAR Industries, Inc., Robert Fitzgerald, Fintech Consulting LLC, and Tajuddin Haslani in the Southern District of New York, which asserts claims against them for breach of fiduciary duty and under federal securities laws similar to those asserted in the Company's action. Although the Company is not a party to Ms. Paskowitz's action, the court has determined to treat the Company's and Ms. Paskowitz's respective actions as related. On August 7, 2019, following the Company's initial rescheduling of the 2018 Annual Meeting for September 13, 2019 and the filing of Preliminary Proxy Statements by the Company and Zeff Capital, L.P., Zeff Capital, L.P. filed a complaint in the Delaware Court of Chancery against the Company seeking an order requiring the Company to hold its next annual meeting of stockholders on or around September 13, 2019, and obligating the Company to elect Class I and Class III directors at that annual meeting. On August 30, 2019, the Company entered into the Settlement Agreement with the Investor Parties with respect to the proxy contest pertaining to the election of directors at the 2018 Annual Meeting, which was held on October 22, 2019. Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, the parties have agreed to forever settle and resolve any and all disputes between the parties, including without limitation disputes arising out of or relating to the following litigations: (i) The complaint relating to alleged breaches of fiduciary duties filed on November 1, 2018 by Fintech Consulting LLC against the Company in the Delaware Court of Chancery, which was previously dismissed voluntarily; (ii) The complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief for violations of the federal securities laws filed on December 21, 2018 by the Company against the Investor Parties in the United States District Court in the Southern District of New York; (iii) Cross-claims relating to alleged breaches of fiduciary duties and for indemnification and contribution filed on July 26, 2019 by the Company against the Investor Parties in New York Supreme Court, Queens County; and (iv) The complaint to compel annual meeting of stockholders filed on August 7, 2019 by Zeff Capital, L.P. against the Company in the Delaware Court of Chancery. No party admitted any liability by entering into the Settlement Agreement. The Settlement Agreement did not resolve the Stockholder Litigation filed by Susan Paskowitz against the Company, Joseph F. Hughes, Winifred M. Hughes and certain current and former directors of the Company in the Supreme Court of the State of New York on October 11, 2018. Concurrently with the Settlement Agreement, the parties entered into a share repurchase agreement (the "Repurchase Agreement") which provided for the purchase by the Company and Christopher Hughes, the Company's former President and Chief Executive Officer, of the shares of the Company's Common Stock held by the Investor Parties (the "Repurchase"). The Settlement Agreement also contemplated that, if the Repurchase was completed, the Company would make a settlement payment to the Investor Parties at the closing of the Repurchase in an amount of approximately $1,500,000 (the "Settlement Payment"). However, the Repurchase and Settlement Payment were not completed by the deadline of December 30, 2019. Pursuant to the Settlement Agreement, (1) the Company agreed to adopt an amendment to the Company's Amended and Restated By-Laws, dated April 9, 2015 (the "By-Laws Amendment"), providing that stockholders of the Company owning at least forty percent (40%) of the issued and outstanding Common Stock may request a special meeting of stockholders; (2) the Investor Parties agreed not to take any action to call or otherwise cause a special meeting of stockholders to occur prior to December 30, 2019 (unless the Company had failed to hold the 2018 Annual Meeting); (3) the Company agreed to amend and restate the Company's Rights Agreement, dated August 29, 2018 (the "Amended Rights Agreement"), to confirm that a Distribution Date (as defined in the Amended Rights Agreement) shall not occur as a result of any request by any of the Investor Parties for a special meeting; (4) the Company agreed that prior to the earlier of (A) the completion of the Repurchase and the payment of the Settlement Payment and (B) January 1, 2020, the Board of Directors shall not consist of more than seven (7) directors. Pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement, the two nominees for director made by Zeff Capital, L.P. were elected as directors at the Company's 2018 Annual Meeting held on October 22, 2019. Please see the Company's current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on October 21, 2019 for more information about the background of the election of directors at the Company's 2018 Annual Meeting. Pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement, inasmuch as the Repurchase was not completed and the Settlement Payment was not made by December 30, 2019, the members of the Board of Directors (other than the two directors who were nominated by Zeff Capital, L.P. and elected as directors at the 2018 Annual Meeting) resigned from the Board effective 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on December 30, 2019. Immediately thereafter, the two remaining directors appointed Robert Fitzgerald to the Board of Directors. Please see the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on December 31, 2019 for more information about the background and the appointment of Robert Fitzgerald. In addition, the Settlement Agreement provides for mutual releases between the Company and each of the Investor Parties and certain of their affiliates. Each of the Investor Parties and certain of their affiliates also agreed to certain customary standstill provisions, including without limitation, with regard to certain actions in connection with the 2018 Annual Meeting, Extraordinary Transactions (as defined in the Settlement Agreement) with the Company, and the acquisition of any securities (or beneficial ownership thereof) of the Company, each of which expired on December 30, 2019. The foregoing is not a complete description of the terms of the Settlement Agreement and the Share Repurchase Agreement. For a further description of the terms of the Settlement Agreement and the Share Repurchase Agreement, including copies of the Settlement Agreement and Share Repurchase Agreement, please see the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on September 3, 2019. During the quarter ending February 29, 2020, the Company negotiated a settlement with the Company's largest shareholder to reimburse it for legal expenses of $900,000 (net present value of $818,000), subject to final documentation. (See Note 13) On October 21, 2019, the Company entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (the "MOU") with Susan Paskowitz providing for the settlement of the Stockholder Litigation filed by Ms. Paskowitz on October 11, 2018. The MOU provides for the settlement of the claims by Ms. Paskowitz that (1) the members of the Board named in the original complaint allegedly breached their fiduciary duties by failing to immediately adopt a rights plan that would have prevented the sale by Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes of an aggregate of 819,491 shares of the Company's common stock to the Investor Parties; (2) the members of the Board named in the amended complaint allegedly breached their fiduciary duties and failed to adopt proper corporate governance practices; and (3) the Investor Parties acted as "partners" and constituted a "group" in their purchase of shares from Joseph F. Hughes and Winifred M. Hughes and knowingly disseminated false or misleading public statements concerning their status as a group. Pursuant to the terms of the MOU, the Company will (1) implement certain corporate governance reforms described in the MOU within 30 days of a final order and judgment entered by the court, and keep these corporate governance reforms in place for 5 years from the time of the final order and judgment; and (2) acknowledge that the plaintiff, Ms. Paskowitz, and her counsel provided a substantial benefit to the Company and its stockholders through the prosecution of the Stockholder Litigation and other related actions filed by Ms. Paskowitz described above. On December 16, 2019, the Company entered into a Stipulation and Agreement of Settlement (the "Stipulation") with Susan Paskowitz in the Stockholder Litigation. The Stipulation retains the terms and conditions of settlement of the Stockholder Litigation contained in the MOU described in the preceding paragraph, with the addition that the Company will pay to plaintiff's counsel an award of attorneys' fees and reimbursement of expenses in the amount of $260,000 (collectively, the "Stockholder Litigation Settlement"). The Stockholder Litigation Settlement is intended to fully, finally, and forever compromise, settle, release, resolve, and dismiss with prejudice the Stockholder Litigation and all claims asserted therein directly against all present and former defendants and derivatively against them on behalf of the Company. The Stockholder Litigation Settlement does not contain any admission of liability, wrongdoing or responsibility by any of the parties, and provides for mutual releases by all parties. Each stockholder of the Company is a member of the plaintiff class unless such stockholder opts out of the class. The Company expects that the full amount of the $260,000 settlement payment will be covered by insurance proceeds. The Stipulation remains subject to approval by the court. The Stipulation is independent of the Settlement Agreement and Share Repurchase Agreement that the Company had entered into with the Investor Parties. Although the Company believes that the Stipulation represents a fair and reasonable compromise of the matters in dispute in the Stockholder Litigation, there can be no assurance that the court will approve the Stipulation as proposed, or at all. Under the terms of the Stipulation, plaintiff Ms. Paskowitz has filed the Stipulation with the court and has requested a date for a final hearing on the approval of the Settlement and plaintiff's application for an award of counsel fees and the reimbursement of expenses. The Stipulation is filed as an exhibit to the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on December 17, 2019. Inasmuch as the Company did not complete the Repurchase and make the Settlement Payment prior to the December 30, 2019 deadline, the members of the Board of Directors (other than the two directors who were elected as directors at the 2018 Annual Meeting) resigned from the Board effective at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on December 30, 2019. Immediately thereafter, the two remaining directors, Bradley M. Tirpak and H. Timothy Eriksen, appointed Robert Fitzgerald as a new director. Each of Mr. Tirpak, Mr. Eriksen and Mr. Fitzgerald qualifies as an "independent director" under the NASDAQ Stock Market Rules. These three individuals were also appointed to the Audit Committee, Nominating Committee, Compensation Committee and Special Committee. The Board appointed Mr. Tirpak as Chairman of the Board to succeed Christopher Hughes. Mr. Hughes continued to serve as the Chief Executive Officer, President and Treasurer of the Company until January 17, 2020. Additionally, the Board appointed Mr. Eriksen as Lead Independent Director, Chairman of the Audit Committee and Chairman of the Nominating Committee. The Board also appointed Mr. Fitzgerald as the Chairman of the Compensation Committee and Chairman of the Special Committee. |