EXHIBIT 3.1
AMENDED AND RESTATED
CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION
OF
ARDENT ACQUISITION CORPORATION
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PURSUANT TO SECTION 245 OF THE
DELAWARE GENERAL CORPORATION LAW
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ARDENT ACQUISITION CORPORATION, a corporation existing under the laws of
the State of Delaware (the "Corporation"), by its Chairman of the Board and
Chief Executive Officer, hereby certifies as follows:
1. The name of the Corporation is "Ardent Acquisition Corporation."
2. The Corporation's Certificate of Incorporation was filed in the office
of the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on September 14, 2004.
3. This Amended Restated Certificate of Incorporation restates, integrates
and amends the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation.
4. This Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation was duly adopted
by joint written consent of the directors and stockholders of the Corporation in
accordance with the applicable provisions of Sections 242 and 245 of the General
Corporation Law of the State of Delaware ("GCL").
5. The text of the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation is
hereby amended and restated to read in full as follows:
FIRST: The name of the corporation is Ardent Acquisition Corporation
(hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "Corporation").
SECOND: The registered office of the Corporation is to be located at 615
S. DuPont Hwy., Kent County, Dover, Delaware. The name of its registered agent
at that address is
National Corporate Research, Ltd.
THIRD: The purpose of the Corporation shall be to engage in any lawful act
or activity for which corporations may be organized under the GCL.
FOURTH: The total number of shares of all classes of capital stock which
the Corporation shall have authority to issue is 21,000,000 of which 20,000,000
shares shall be Common Stock of the par value of $.0001 per share and 1,000,000
shares shall be Preferred Stock of the par value of $.0001 per share.
A. PREFERRED STOCK. The Board of Directors is expressly granted authority
to issue shares of the Preferred Stock, in one or more series, and to fix for
each such series such voting powers, full or limited, and such designations,
preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights and
such qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof as shall be stated and
expressed in the resolution or resolutions adopted by the Board of Directors
providing for the issue of such series (a "Preferred Stock Designation") and as
may be permitted by the GCL. The number of authorized shares of Preferred Stock
may be increased or decreased (but not below the number of shares thereof then
outstanding) by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the voting
power of all of the then outstanding shares of the capital stock of the
Corporation entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting
together as a single class, without a separate vote of the holders of the
Preferred Stock, or any series thereof, unless a vote of any such holders is
required pursuant to any Preferred Stock Designation.
B. COMMON STOCK. Except as otherwise required by law or as otherwise
provided in any Preferred Stock Designation, the holders of the Common Stock
shall exclusively possess all voting power and each share of Common Stock shall
have one vote.
FIFTH: The name and mailing address of the sole incorporator of the
Corporation are as follows:
Name Address
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Jeffrey M. Gallant Graubard Miller
600 Third Avenue, 32nd Floor
New York, New York 10016
SIXTH: The following provisions (A) through (E) shall apply during the
period commencing upon the filing of this Certificate of Incorporation and
terminating upon the consummation of any "Business Combination," and may not be
amended prior to the consummation of any Business Combination. A "Business
Combination" shall mean the acquisition by the Corporation, whether by merger,
capital stock exchange, asset or stock acquisition or other similar type of
transaction, of an operating business ("Target Business").
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A. Prior to the consummation of any Business Combination, the Corporation
shall submit such Business Combination to its stockholders for approval
regardless of whether the Business Combination is of a type which normally would
require such stockholder approval under the GCL. In the event that a majority of
the IPO Shares (defined below) cast at the meeting to approve the Business
Combination are voted for the approval of such Business Combination, the
Corporation shall be authorized to consummate the Business Combination; provided
that the Corporation shall not consummate any Business Combination if 20% or
more in interest of the holders of IPO Shares exercise their conversion rights
described in paragraph B below.
B. In the event that a Business Combination is approved in accordance with
the above paragraph A and is consummated by the Corporation, any stockholder of
the Corporation holding shares of Common Stock ("IPO Shares") issued in the
Corporation's initial public offering ("IPO") of securities who voted against
the Business Combination may, contemporaneous with such vote, demand that the
Corporation convert his IPO Shares into cash. If so demanded, the Corporation
shall convert such shares at a per share conversion price equal to the quotient
determined by dividing (i) the amount in the Trust Fund (as defined below),
inclusive of any interest thereon, calculated as of two business days prior to
the proposed consummation of the Business Combination, by (ii) the total number
of IPO Shares. "Trust Fund" shall mean the trust account established by the
Corporation at the consummation of its IPO and into which a certain amount of
the net proceeds of the IPO are deposited.
C. In the event that the Corporation does not consummate a Business
Combination by the later of (i) 18 months after the consummation of the IPO or
(ii) 24 months after the consummation of the IPO in the event that either a
letter of intent, an agreement in principle or a definitive agreement to
complete a Business Combination was executed but was not consummated within such
18 month period (such later date being referred to as the "Termination Date"),
the officers of the Corporation shall take all such action necessary to dissolve
and liquidate the Corporation as soon as reasonably practicable. In the event
that the Corporation is so dissolved and liquidated, only the holders of IPO
Shares shall be entitled to receive liquidating distributions and the
Corporation shall pay no liquidating distributions with respect to any other
shares of capital stock of the Corporation.
D. A holder of IPO Shares shall be entitled to receive distributions from
the Trust Fund only in the event of a liquidation of the Corporation or in the
event he demands conversion of his shares in accordance with paragraph B, above.
In no other circumstances shall a holder of IPO Shares have any right or
interest of any kind in or to the Trust Fund.
E. The Board of Directors shall be divided into three classes: Class A,
Class B and Class C. The number of directors in each class shall be as nearly
equal as possible. At the first election of directors by the incorporator, the
incorporator shall elect a Class C director for a term
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expiring at the Corporation's third Annual Meeting of Stockholders. The Class C
director shall then elect additional Class A, Class B and Class C directors. The
directors in Class A shall be elected for a term expiring at the first Annual
Meeting of Stockholders, the directors in Class B shall be elected for a term
expiring at the second Annual Meeting of Stockholders and the directors in Class
C shall be elected for a term expiring at the third Annual Meeting of
Stockholders. Commencing at the first Annual Meeting of Stockholders, and at
each annual meeting thereafter, directors elected to succeed those directors
whose terms expire shall be elected for a term of office to expire at the third
succeeding annual meeting of stockholders after their election. Except as the
GCL may otherwise require, in the interim between annual meetings of
stockholders or special meetings of stockholders called for the election of
directors and/or the removal of one or more directors and the filling of any
vacancy in that connection, newly created directorships and any vacancies in the
Board of Directors, including unfilled vacancies resulting from the removal of
directors for cause, may be filled by the vote of a majority of the remaining
directors then in office, although less than a quorum (as defined in the
Corporation's Bylaws), or by the sole remaining director. All directors shall
hold office until the expiration of their respective terms of office and until
their successors shall have been elected and qualified. A director elected to
fill a vacancy resulting from the death, resignation or removal of a director
shall serve for the remainder of the full term of the director whose death,
resignation or removal shall have created such vacancy and until his successor
shall have been elected and qualified.
SEVENTH: The following provisions are inserted for the management of the
business and for the conduct of the affairs of the Corporation, and for further
definition, limitation and regulation of the powers of the Corporation and of
its directors and stockholders:
A. Election of directors need not be by ballot unless the by-laws of the
Corporation so provide.
B. The Board of Directors shall have the power, without the assent or vote
of the stockholders, to make, alter, amend, change, add to or repeal the by-laws
of the Corporation as provided in the by-laws of the Corporation.
C. The directors in their discretion may submit any contract or act for
approval or ratification at any annual meeting of the stockholders or at any
meeting of the stockholders called for the purpose of considering any such act
or contract, and any contract or act that shall be approved or be ratified by
the vote of the holders of a majority of the stock of the Corporation which is
represented in person or by proxy at such meeting and entitled to vote thereat
(provided that a lawful quorum of stockholders be there represented in person or
by proxy) shall be as valid and binding upon the Corporation and upon all the
stockholders as though it had been approved or ratified by every stockholder of
the Corporation, whether or not the contract or act would otherwise be open to
legal attack because of directors' interests, or for any other reason.
D. In addition to the powers and authorities hereinbefore or by statute
expressly
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conferred upon them, the directors are hereby empowered to exercise all such
powers and do all such acts and things as may be exercised or done by the
Corporation; subject, nevertheless, to the provisions of the statutes of
Delaware, of this Certificate of Incorporation, and to any by-laws from time to
time made by the stockholders; provided, however, that no by-law so made shall
invalidate any prior act of the directors which would have been valid if such
by-law had not been made.
EIGHTH: A. A director of the Corporation shall not be personally liable to
the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary
duty as a director, except for liability (i) for any breach of the director's
duty of loyalty to the Corporation or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or
omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing
violation of law, (iii) under Section 174 of the GCL, or (iv) for any
transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. If the
GCL is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the
personal liability of directors, then the liability of a director of the
Corporation shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by
the GCL, as so amended. Any repeal or modification of this paragraph A by the
stockholders of the Corporation shall not adversely affect any right or
protection of a director of the Corporation with respect to events occurring
prior to the time of such repeal or modification.
B. The Corporation, to the full extent permitted by Section
145 of the GCL, as amended from time to time, shall indemnify all persons whom
it may indemnify pursuant thereto. Expenses (including attorneys' fees) incurred
by an officer or director in defending any civil, criminal, administrative, or
investigative action, suit or proceeding for which such officer or director may
be entitled to indemnification hereunder shall be paid by the Corporation in
advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt
of an undertaking by or on behalf of such director or officer to repay such
amount if it shall ultimately be determined that he is not entitled to be
indemnified by the Corporation as authorized hereby.
NINTH: Whenever a compromise or arrangement is proposed between this
Corporation and its creditors or any class of them and/or between this
Corporation and its stockholders or any class of them, any court of equitable
jurisdiction within the State of Delaware may, on the application in a summary
way of this Corporation or of any creditor or stockholder thereof or on the
application of any receiver or receivers appointed for this Corporation under
Section 291 of Title 8 of the Delaware Code or on the application of trustees in
dissolution or of any receiver or receivers appointed for this Corporation under
Section 279 of Title 8 of the Delaware Code order a meeting of the creditors or
class of creditors, and/or of the stockholders or class of stockholders of this
Corporation, as the case may be, to be summoned in such manner as the said court
directs. If a majority in number representing three fourths in value of the
creditors or class of creditors, and/or of the stockholders or class of
stockholders of this Corporation, as the case may be, agree to any compromise or
arrangement and to any reorganization of this Corporation as a consequence of
such compromise or arrangement, the said compromise or arrangement and the
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said reorganization shall, if sanctioned by the court to which the said
application has been made, be binding on all the creditors or class of
creditors, and/or on all the stockholders or class of stockholders, of this
Corporation, as the case may be, and also on this Corporation.
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Corporation has caused this Amended and
Restated Certificate of Incorporation to be signed by Barry J. Gordon, its
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, as of the 18th day of
November, 2004.
/s/ Barry J. Gordon
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Barry J. Gordon, Chairman of the Board
and President
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