FORM 8-A12B
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-A
FOR REGISTRATION OF CERTAIN CLASSES OF SECURITIES
PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR 12(g) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
GSC INVESTMENT CORP.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
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Maryland
(State of Incorporation or Organization)
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N/A
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
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12 East 49th Street, New York, New York
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)
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10017
(Zip Code) |
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If this form relates to the
registration of a class of securities
pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange
Act and is effective pursuant to General
Instruction A.(c), please check the
following box. þ
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If this form relates to the registration of a class of securities pursuant to
Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act and is effective pursuant to General
Instruction A.(d), please check the following box. o |
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Securities Act registration statement file number to which this form relates: |
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333-138051 |
Securities to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
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Title of Each Class
to be so Registered
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Name of Each Exchange on Which
Each Class is to be Registered |
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Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share
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New York Stock Exchange |
Securities to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
N/A
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Item 1: Description of Registrants Securities to be Registered
The description under the heading Description of Our Common Stock relating to the
Registrants Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share (the Common Stock), in the Prospectus
included in the Registrants Registration Statement on Form N-2 (Registration No. 333-138051 ) (the
Registration Statement on Form N-2) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October
18, 2006, as amended, and the description under the heading Description of Our Common Stock
relating to the Common Stock in the Registrants final Prospectus filed with the Securities and
Exchange Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, are
incorporated herein by reference.
Item 2: Exhibits
The following exhibits are hereby filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission:
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1. |
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Form of Charter of GSC Investment Corp. |
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Form of Bylaws of GSC Investment Corp. |
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Specimen Certificate of GSC Investment Corp.s Common Stock, par value $0.0001
per share. |
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
Registrant has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereto duly authorized.
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GSC Investment Corp.
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By: |
/s/ Thomas V. Inglesby
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Name: |
Thomas V. Inglesby |
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Title: |
Director and Chief Executive Officer |
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Date:
March 21,
2007 o
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EX-99.1
GSC INVESTMENT CORP.
ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION
ARTICLE I
INCORPORATOR
The undersigned, David L. Goret, whose address is 300 Campus Drive, Florham Park, New Jersey
07932, being at least 18 years of age, does hereby form a corporation under the general laws of the
State of Maryland.
ARTICLE II
NAME
The name of the corporation (the Corporation) is:
GSC Investment Corp.
ARTICLE III
PURPOSE
The purposes for which the Corporation is formed are to conduct and carry on the business of a
business development company, subject to making an election under the Investment Company Act of
1940, as amended, and the rules promulgated thereunder (the 1940 Act), and to engage in any
lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the general laws of the State
of Maryland as now or hereafter in force.
ARTICLE IV
PRINCIPAL OFFICE IN STATE AND RESIDENT AGENT
The address of the principal office of the Corporation in the State of Maryland is c/o The
Corporation Trust Incorporated, 300 East Lombard Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. The name and
address of the resident agent of the Corporation are The Corporation Trust Incorporated, 300 East
Lombard Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202. The resident agent is a Maryland corporation.
ARTICLE V
PROVISIONS FOR DEFINING, LIMITING
AND REGULATING CERTAIN POWERS OF THE
CORPORATION AND OF THE STOCKHOLDERS AND DIRECTORS
Section 5.1 Number, Classification and Election of Directors. The business and
affairs of the Corporation shall be managed under the direction of the Board of Directors. The
number of directors of the Corporation is seven, which number may be increased or decreased only by
the Board of Directors pursuant to the Bylaws of the Corporation (the Bylaws), but shall never be
less than the minimum number required by the Maryland General Corporation Law (the MGCL). The
names of the directors who shall serve until the first meeting of stockholders and until their
successors are duly elected and qualify are:
Peter K Barker
Robert F. Cummings, Jr.
Richard M. Hayden
Thomas V. Inglesby
Steven M. Looney
Charles S. Whitman III
G. Cabell Williams
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These directors may increase the number of directors and may fill any vacancy, whether
resulting from an increase in the number of directors or otherwise, on the Board of Directors
occurring before the first annual meeting of stockholders in the manner provided in the Bylaws.
The Corporation elects, at such time as it becomes eligible to make the election provided for
under Section 3-802(b) of the MGCL, that, subject to any requirements of the 1940 Act applicable to
the Corporation and except as may be provided by the Board of Directors in setting the terms of any
class or series of stock pursuant to Section 6.4 hereof, any and all vacancies on the Board of
Directors may be filled only by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining directors in
office, even if the remaining directors do not constitute a quorum, and any director elected to
fill a vacancy shall serve for the remainder of the full term of the directorship in which such
vacancy occurred and until a successor is duly elected and qualifies.
On the first date on which the Corporation shall have more than one stockholder of record, the
directors (other than any director elected solely by holders of one or more classes or series of
stock established pursuant to Section 6.4 hereof) shall be classified, with respect to the terms
for which they severally hold office, into three classes, as nearly equal in number as possible as
determined by the Board of Directors, one class to hold office initially for a term expiring at the
next succeeding annual meeting of stockholders, another class to hold office initially for a term
expiring at the second succeeding annual meeting of stockholders and another class to hold office
initially for a term expiring at the third succeeding annual meeting of stockholders, with the
members of each class to hold office until their successors are duly elected and qualify. At each
annual meeting of the stockholders, the successors to the class of directors whose term expires at
such meeting shall be elected to hold office for a term expiring at the
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annual meeting of stockholders held in the third year following the year of their election and
until their successors are duly elected and qualify.
Section 5.2 Extraordinary Actions. Except as specifically provided in Section 5.9
(relating to removal of directors), and in Section 7.2 (relating to certain actions and certain
amendments to the charter), notwithstanding any provision of the MGCL requiring any action to be
taken or approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of shares entitled to cast a greater
number of votes, any such action shall be effective and valid if declared advisable by the Board of
Directors and taken or approved by the affirmative vote of holders of shares entitled to cast a
majority of all the votes entitled to be cast on the matter.
Section 5.3 Election of Directors. Except as otherwise provided in the Bylaws,
directors shall be elected by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of
stock outstanding and entitled to vote thereon.
Section 5.4 Quorum. The presence in person or by proxy of the holders of shares of
stock of the Corporation entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast (without
regard to class) shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of stockholders, except with respect to
any such matter that, under applicable statutes or regulatory requirements, requires approval by a
separate vote of one or more classes of stock, in which case the presence in person or by proxy of
the holders of shares entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast by each such
class on such a matter shall constitute a quorum.
Section 5.5 Authorization by Board of Stock Issuance. The Board of Directors may
authorize the issuance from time to time of shares of stock of the Corporation of any class or
series, whether now or hereafter authorized, or securities or rights convertible into shares of its
stock of any class or series, whether now or hereafter authorized, for such consideration as the
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Board of Directors may deem advisable (or without consideration in the case of a stock split
or stock dividend), subject to such restrictions or limitations, if any, as may be set forth in the
charter of the Corporation (the Charter) or the Bylaws.
Section 5.6 Preemptive Rights. Except as may be provided by the Board of Directors in
setting the terms of classified or reclassified shares of stock pursuant to Section 6.4 or as may
otherwise be provided by contract approved by the Board of Directors, no holder of shares of stock
of the Corporation shall, as such holder, have any preemptive right to purchase or subscribe for
any additional shares of stock of the Corporation or any other security of the Corporation which it
may issue or sell.
Section 5.7 Appraisal Rights. No holder of stock of the Corporation shall be entitled
to exercise the rights of an objecting stockholder under Title 3, Subtitle 2 of the MGCL or any
successor statute unless the Board of Directors, upon the affirmative vote of a majority of the
Board of Directors, shall determine that such rights apply, with respect to all or any classes or
series of stock, to one or more transactions occurring after the date of such determination in
connection with which holders of such shares would otherwise be entitled to exercise such rights.
Section 5.8 Determinations by Board. The determination as to any of the following
matters, made in good faith by or pursuant to the direction of the Board of Directors consistent
with the Charter shall be final and conclusive and shall be binding upon the Corporation and every
holder of shares of its stock: the amount of the net income of the Corporation for any period and
the amount of assets at any time legally available for the payment of dividends, redemption of its
stock or the payment of other distributions on its stock; the amount of paid-in surplus, net
assets, other surplus, annual or other net profit, net assets in excess of capital, undivided
profits or excess of profits over losses on sales of assets; the amount,
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purpose, time of creation, increase or decrease, alteration or cancellation of any reserves or
charges and the propriety thereof (whether or not any obligation or liability for which such
reserves or charges shall have been created shall have been paid or discharged); any interpretation
of the terms, preferences, conversion or other rights, voting powers or rights, restrictions,
limitations as to dividends or distributions, qualifications or terms or conditions of redemption
of any class or series of stock of the Corporation; the fair value, or any sale, bid or asked price
to be applied in determining the fair value, of any asset owned or held by the Corporation or of
any shares of stock of the Corporation; the number of shares of stock of any class of the
Corporation; any matter relating to the acquisition, holding and disposition of any assets by the
Corporation; or any other matter relating to the business and affairs of the Corporation or
required or permitted by applicable law, the Charter or Bylaws or otherwise to be determined by the
Board of Directors.
Section 5.9 Removal of Directors. Subject to the rights of holders of one or more
classes or series of stock established pursuant to Section 6.4 hereof to elect or remove one or
more directors, any director, or the entire Board of Directors, may be removed from office at any
time only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled
to be cast generally in the election of directors. For the purpose of this paragraph, cause
shall mean, with respect to any particular director, conviction of a felony or a final judgment of
a court of competent jurisdiction holding that such director caused demonstrable, material harm to
the Corporation through bad faith or active and deliberate dishonesty.
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ARTICLE VI
STOCK
Section 6.1 Authorized Shares. The Corporation has authority to issue 100,000,000
shares of stock, initially consisting of 100,000,000 shares of Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per
share (Common Stock). The aggregate par value of all authorized shares of stock having par value
is $10,000. If shares of one class of stock are classified or reclassified into shares of another
class of stock pursuant to this Article VI, the number of authorized shares of the former class
shall be automatically decreased and the number of shares of the latter class shall be
automatically increased, in each case by the number of shares so classified or reclassified, so
that the aggregate number of shares of stock of all classes that the Corporation has authority to
issue shall not be more than the total number of shares of stock set forth in the first sentence of
this paragraph. The Board of Directors, with the approval of a majority of the entire Board of
Directors and without any action by the stockholders of the Corporation, may amend the Charter from
time to time to increase or decrease the aggregate number of shares of stock or the number of
shares of stock of any class or series that the Corporation has authority to issue.
Section 6.2 Common Stock. Except as may otherwise be specified in the terms of any
class or series of Common Stock, each share of Common Stock shall entitle the holder thereof to one
vote. The Board of Directors may reclassify any unissued shares of Common Stock from time to time
in one or more classes or series of stock.
Section 6.3 Preferred Stock. The Board of Directors may classify any unissued shares
of stock and reclassify any previously classified but unissued shares of stock of any class
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or series from time to time, in one or more classes or series of preferred stock (Preferred
Stock).
Section 6.4 Classified or Reclassified Shares. Prior to issuance of classified or
reclassified shares of any class or series, the Board of Directors by resolution shall: (a)
designate that class or series to distinguish it from all other classes and series of stock of the
Corporation; (b) specify the number of shares to be included in the class or series; (c) set or
change, subject to the express terms of any class or series of stock of the Corporation outstanding
at the time, the preferences, conversion or other rights, voting powers, restrictions, limitations
as to dividends or other distributions, qualifications and terms and conditions of redemption for
each class or series; and (d) cause the Corporation to file articles supplementary with the State
Department of Assessments and Taxation of Maryland (SDAT). Any of the terms of any class or
series of stock set or changed pursuant to clause (c) of this Section 6.4 may be made dependent
upon facts or events ascertainable outside the Charter (including determinations by the Board of
Directors or other facts or events within the control of the Corporation) and may vary among
holders thereof, provided that the manner in which such facts, events or variations shall operate
upon the terms of such class or series of stock is clearly and expressly set forth in the articles
supplementary or other charter document.
Section 6.5 Inspection of Books and Records. A stockholder that is otherwise eligible
under applicable law to inspect the Corporations books of account or stock ledger or other
specified documents of the Corporation shall have no right to make such inspection if the Board of
Directors determines that such stockholder has an improper purpose for requesting such inspection.
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Section 6.6 Charter and Bylaws. The rights of all stockholders of the Corporation,
and the terms of all shares of stock in the Corporation, are subject to the provisions of the
Charter and the Bylaws. The Board of Directors of the Corporation shall have the exclusive power
to make, alter, amend or repeal the Bylaws.
ARTICLE VII
AMENDMENTS; CERTAIN EXTRAORDINARY TRANSACTIONS
Section 7.1 Amendments Generally. The Corporation reserves the right from time to
time to make any amendment to the Charter, now or hereafter authorized by law, including any
amendment altering the terms or contract rights, as expressly set forth in the Charter, of any
shares of outstanding stock. All rights and powers conferred by the Charter on stockholders,
directors and officers are granted subject to this reservation.
Section 7.2 Approval of Certain Extraordinary Actions and Charter Amendments.
(a) Required Votes. The affirmative vote of the holders of shares entitled to cast
at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, each voting as a separate
class, shall be necessary to effect:
(i) Any amendment to the Charter to make the Common Stock a redeemable security or to
convert the Corporation, whether by merger or otherwise, from a closed-end company to an
open-end company (as such terms are defined in the 1940 Act);
(ii) The liquidation or dissolution of the Corporation and any amendment to the Charter to
effect any such liquidation or dissolution; and
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(iii) Any amendment to Section 5.1, Section 5.2, Section 5.9, Section 7.1 or this Section
7.2;
provided, however, that, if the Continuing Directors (as defined herein), by a vote of at
least two-thirds of such Continuing Directors, in addition to approval by the Board of Directors,
approve such proposal or amendment, the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the votes
entitled to be cast shall be required to approve such matter.
(b) Continuing Directors. Continuing Directors means the directors identified in
Article V, Section 5.1 and the directors whose nomination for election by the stockholders or whose
election by the directors to fill vacancies is approved by a majority of the Continuing Directors
then on the Board.
ARTICLE VIII
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY; INDEMNIFICATION AND ADVANCE OF EXPENSES
Section 8.1 Limitation of Liability. To the maximum extent that Maryland law in
effect from time to time permits limitation of the liability of directors and officers of a
corporation, no present or former director or officer of the Corporation shall be liable to the
Corporation or its stockholders for money damages.
Section 8.2 Indemnification and Advance of Expenses. The Corporation shall have the
power, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law in effect from time to time, to obligate
itself to indemnify, and to pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of
a proceeding to, (a) any individual who is a present or former director or officer of the
Corporation or (b) any individual who, while a director or officer of the Corporation and at the
request of the Corporation, serves or has served as a director, officer, partner, manager,
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member or trustee of another corporation, real estate investment trust, partnership, limited
liability company, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or any other enterprise from and
against any claim or liability to which such person may become subject or which such person may
incur by reason of his or her service in such capacity. The Corporation shall have the power, with
the approval of the Board of Directors, to provide such indemnification and advancement of expenses
to a person who served a predecessor of the Corporation in any of the capacities described in (a)
or (b) above and to any employee or agent of the Corporation or a predecessor of the Corporation.
Section 8.3 1940 Act. The provisions of this Article VIII shall be subject to the
limitations of the 1940 Act applicable to the Corporation.
Section 8.4 Amendment or Repeal. Neither the amendment nor repeal of this Article
VIII, nor the adoption or amendment of any other provision of the Charter or Bylaws inconsistent
with this Article VIII, shall apply to or affect in any respect the applicability of the preceding
sections of this Article VIII with respect to any act or failure to act which occurred prior to
such amendment, repeal or adoption.
[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]
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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have signed these Articles of Incorporation and acknowledge the
same to be my act as of this 21st day of March, 2006.
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EX-99.2
GSC INVESTMENT CORP.
BYLAWS
ARTICLE I
OFFICES
Section 1. PRINCIPAL OFFICE. The principal office of the Corporation in the State of
Maryland shall be located at such place as the Board of Directors may designate.
Section 2. ADDITIONAL OFFICES. The Corporation may have additional offices, including
a principal executive office, at such places as the Board of Directors may from time to time
determine or the business of the Corporation may require.
ARTICLE II
MEETINGS OF STOCKHOLDERS
Section 1. PLACE. All meetings of stockholders shall be held at the principal
executive office of the Corporation or at such other place as shall be set by the Board of
Directors and stated in the notice of the meeting.
Section 2. ANNUAL MEETING. An annual meeting of the stockholders for the election of
directors and the transaction of any business within the powers of the Corporation shall be held on
a date and at the time set by the Board of Directors during the month of May in each year,
beginning in the year 2008.
Section 3. SPECIAL MEETINGS.
(a) General. The chairman of the board, chief executive officer, president or Board
of Directors may call a special meeting of the stockholders. Subject to subsection (b) of this
Section 3, a special meeting of stockholders shall also be called by the secretary of the
Corporation upon the written request of stockholders entitled to cast not less than a majority of
all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting. Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if no
directors remain in office, a special meeting of stockholders for the purpose of electing directors
shall be called by the secretary of the Corporation upon the written request of stockholders
entitled to cast at least ten percent of all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting.
(b) Stockholder Requested Special Meetings.
(1) Any stockholder of record seeking to have stockholders request a special meeting shall, by
sending written notice to the secretary (the Record Date
Request Notice) by registered mail, return receipt requested, request the Board of Directors
to fix a record date to determine the stockholders entitled to request a special meeting (the
Request Record Date). The Record Date Request Notice shall set forth the purpose of the meeting
and the matters proposed to be acted on at it, shall be signed by one or more stockholders of
record as of the date of signature (or their agents duly authorized in a writing accompanying the
Record Date Request Notice), shall bear the date of signature of each such stockholder (or such
agent) and shall set forth all information relating to each such stockholder that must be disclosed
in solicitations of proxies for election of directors in an election contest (even if an election
contest is not involved), or is otherwise required, in each case pursuant to Regulation 14A (or any
successor provision) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act).
Upon receiving the Record Date Request Notice, the Board of Directors may fix a Request Record
Date. The Request Record Date shall not precede and shall not be more than ten days after the
close of business on the date on which the resolution fixing the Request Record Date is adopted by
the Board of Directors. If the Board of Directors, within ten days after the date on which a valid
Record Date Request Notice is received, fails to adopt a resolution fixing the Request Record Date,
the Request Record Date shall be the close of business on the tenth day after the first date on
which the Record Date Request Notice is received by the secretary.
(2) In order for any stockholder to request a special meeting, one or more written requests
for a special meeting signed by stockholders of record (or their agents duly authorized in a
writing accompanying the request) as of the Request Record Date entitled to cast not less than a
majority (the Special Meeting Percentage) of all of the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting
(the Special Meeting Request) shall be delivered to the secretary. In addition, the Special
Meeting Request (a) shall set forth the purpose of the meeting and the matters proposed to be acted
on at it (which shall be limited to those lawful matters set forth in the Record Date Request
Notice received by the secretary), (b) shall bear the date of signature of each such stockholder
(or such agent) signing the Special Meeting Request, (c) shall set forth the name and address, as
they appear in the Corporations books, of each stockholder signing such request (or on whose
behalf the Special Meeting Request is signed), the class, series and number of all shares of stock
of the Corporation which are owned by each such stockholder, and the nominee holder for, and number
of, shares owned by such stockholder beneficially but not of record, (d) shall be sent to the
secretary by registered mail, return receipt requested, and (e) shall be received by the secretary
within 60 days after the Request Record Date. Any requesting stockholder (or agent duly authorized
in a writing accompanying the revocation or the Special Meeting Request) may revoke his, her or its
request for a special meeting at any time by written revocation delivered to the secretary.
(3) The secretary shall inform the requesting stockholders of the reasonably estimated cost of
preparing and mailing the notice of meeting (including the Corporations proxy materials). The
secretary shall not be required to call a special meeting upon stockholder request and such meeting
shall not be held unless, in addition to the documents required by paragraph (2) of this Section
3(b), the secretary receives payment of such reasonably estimated cost prior to the mailing of any
notice of the meeting.
(4) Except as provided in the next sentence, any special meeting shall be held at such place,
date and time as may be designated by the chairman of the board, chief executive officer, president
or Board of Directors, whoever has called the meeting.
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In the case of any special meeting called by the secretary upon the request of stockholders (a
Stockholder Requested Meeting), such meeting shall be held at such place, date and time as may be
designated by the Board of Directors; provided, however, that the date of any Stockholder
Requested Meeting shall be not more than 90 days after the record date for such meeting (the
Meeting Record Date); and provided further that if the Board of Directors fails
to designate, within ten days after the date that a valid Special Meeting Request is actually
received by the secretary (the Delivery Date), a date and time for a Stockholder Requested
Meeting, then such meeting shall be held at 2:00 p.m. local time on the 90th day after
the Meeting Record Date or, if such 90th day is not a Business Day (as defined below),
on the first preceding Business Day; and provided further that in the event that
the Board of Directors fails to designate a place for a Stockholder Requested Meeting within ten
days after the Delivery Date, then such meeting shall be held at the principal executive office of
the Corporation. In fixing a date for any special meeting, the chairman of the board, chief
executive officer, president or Board of Directors may consider such factors as he, she or it deems
relevant within the good faith exercise of business judgment, including, without limitation, the
nature of the matters to be considered, the facts and circumstances surrounding any request for the
meeting and any plan of the Board of Directors to call an annual meeting or a special meeting. In
the case of any Stockholder Requested Meeting, if the Board of Directors fails to fix a Meeting
Record Date that is a date within 30 days after the Delivery Date, then the close of business on
the 30th day after the Delivery Date shall be the Meeting Record Date. The Board of
Directors may revoke the notice for any Stockholder Requested Meeting in the event that the
requesting stockholders fail to comply with the provisions of paragraph (3) of this Section 3(b).
(5) If written revocations of requests for the special meeting have been delivered to the
secretary and the result is that stockholders of record (or their agents duly authorized in
writing), as of the Request Record Date, entitled to cast less than the Special Meeting Percentage
have delivered, and not revoked, requests for a special meeting to the secretary, the secretary
shall: (i) if the notice of meeting has not already been mailed, refrain from mailing the notice of
the meeting and send to all requesting stockholders who have not revoked such requests written
notice of any revocation of a request for the special meeting, or (ii) if the notice of meeting has
been mailed and if the secretary first sends to all requesting stockholders who have not revoked
requests for a special meeting written notice of any revocation of a request for the special
meeting and written notice of the secretarys intention to revoke the notice of the meeting, revoke
the notice of the meeting at any time before ten days before the commencement of the meeting. Any
request for a special meeting received after a revocation by the secretary of a notice of a meeting
shall be considered a request for a new special meeting.
(6) The chairman of the board, chief executive officer, president or Board of Directors may
appoint regionally or nationally recognized independent inspectors of elections to act as the agent
of the Corporation for the purpose of promptly performing a ministerial review of the validity of
any purported Special Meeting Request received by the secretary. For the purpose of permitting the
inspectors to perform such review, no such purported request shall be deemed to have been delivered
to the secretary until the earlier of (i) five Business Days after receipt by the secretary of such
purported request and (ii) such date as the independent inspectors certify to the Corporation that
the valid requests received by the secretary represent not less than the Special Meeting
Percentage. Nothing contained in
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this paragraph (6) shall in any way be construed to suggest or imply that the Corporation or
any stockholder shall not be entitled to contest the validity of any request, whether during or
after such five Business Day period, or to take any other action (including, without limitation,
the commencement, prosecution or defense of any litigation with respect thereto, and the seeking of
injunctive relief in such litigation).
(7) For purposes of these Bylaws, Business Day shall mean any day other than a Saturday, a
Sunday or a day on which banking institutions in the State of New York are authorized or obligated
by law or executive order to close.
Section 4. NOTICE. Not less than ten nor more than 90 days before each meeting of
stockholders, the secretary shall give to each stockholder entitled to vote at such meeting and to
each stockholder not entitled to vote who is entitled to notice of the meeting written or printed
notice stating the time and place of the meeting and, in the case of a special meeting or as
otherwise may be required by any statute, the purpose for which the meeting is called, either by
mail, by presenting it to such stockholder personally, by leaving it at the stockholders residence
or usual place of business or by any other means permitted by Maryland law. If mailed, such notice
shall be deemed to be given when deposited in the United States mail addressed to the stockholder
at the stockholders address as it appears on the records of the Corporation, with postage thereon
prepaid.
Subject to Section 11(a) of this Article II, any business of the Corporation may be transacted
at an annual meeting of stockholders without being specifically designated in the notice, except
such business as is required by any statute to be stated in such notice. No business shall be
transacted at a special meeting of stockholders except as specifically designated in the notice.
Section 5. ORGANIZATION AND CONDUCT. Every meeting of stockholders shall be conducted
by an individual appointed by the Board of Directors to be chairman of the meeting or, in the
absence of such appointment, by the chairman of the board or, in the case of a vacancy in the
office or absence of the chairman of the board, by one of the following officers present at the
meeting: the vice chairman of the board, if there be one, the president, the vice presidents in
their order of rank and seniority, or, in the absence of such officers, a chairman chosen by the
stockholders by the vote of a majority of the votes cast by stockholders present in person or by
proxy. The secretary, or, in the secretarys absence, an assistant secretary, or in the absence of
both the secretary and assistant secretaries, an individual appointed by the Board of Directors or,
in the absence of such appointment, an individual appointed by the chairman of the meeting shall
act as secretary. In the event that the secretary presides at a meeting of the stockholders, an
assistant secretary, or in the absence of assistant secretaries, an individual appointed by the
Board of Directors or the chairman of the meeting, shall record the minutes of the meeting. The
order of business and all other matters of procedure at any meeting of stockholders shall be
determined by the chairman of the meeting. The chairman of the meeting may prescribe such rules,
regulations and procedures and take such action as, in the discretion of such chairman, are
appropriate for the proper conduct of the meeting, including, without limitation, (a) restricting
admission to the time set for the commencement of the meeting; (b) limiting attendance at the
meeting to stockholders of record of the Corporation, their duly authorized proxies and other such
individuals as the chairman of
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the meeting may determine; (c) limiting participation at the meeting on any matter to
stockholders of record of the Corporation entitled to vote on such matter, their duly authorized
proxies and other such individuals as the chairman of the meeting may determine; (d) limiting the
time allotted to questions or comments by participants; (e) determining when the polls should be
opened and closed; (f) maintaining order and security at the meeting; (g) removing any stockholder
or any other individual who refuses to comply with meeting procedures, rules or guidelines as set
forth by the chairman of the meeting; and (h) concluding a meeting or recessing or adjourning the
meeting (whether or not a quorum is present) to a later date and time and at a place announced at
the meeting. Unless otherwise determined by the chairman of the meeting, meetings of stockholders
shall not be required to be held in accordance with the rules of parliamentary procedure.
Section 6. QUORUM. The presence in person or by proxy of the holders of shares of
stock of the Corporation entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast (without
regard to class) shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the stockholders, except with respect
to any such matter that, under applicable statutes or regulatory requirements, requires approval by
a separate vote of one or more classes of stock, in which case the presence in person or by proxy
of the holders of shares entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast by each such
class on such matter shall constitute a quorum. This section shall not affect any requirement
under any statute or the charter of the Corporation (the Charter) for the vote necessary for the
adoption of any measure. If, however, such quorum shall not be present at any meeting of the
stockholders, the chairman of the meeting shall have the power to adjourn the meeting from time to
time to a date not more than 120 days after the original record date without notice other than
announcement at the meeting. At such adjourned meeting at which a quorum shall be present, any
business may be transacted which might have been transacted at the meeting as originally notified.
The stockholders present either in person or by proxy, at a meeting which has been duly called
and convened, may continue to transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal
of enough stockholders to leave less than a quorum.
Section 7. VOTING. Directors shall be elected by the affirmative vote of the holders
of a majority of the shares of stock outstanding and entitled to vote thereon. Each share may be
voted for as many individuals as there are directors to be elected and for whose election the share
is entitled to be voted. A majority of the votes cast at a meeting of stockholders duly called and
at which a quorum is present shall be sufficient to approve any other matter which may properly
come before the meeting, unless more than a majority of the votes cast is required by statute,
including, without limitation, the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules
promulgated thereunder (the Investment Company Act), or by the Charter. Unless otherwise
provided by statute or by the Charter, each outstanding share, regardless of class, shall be
entitled to one vote on each matter submitted to a vote at a meeting of stockholders. Voting on any
question or in any election may be viva voce unless the chairman of the meeting shall order
that voting be by ballot.
Section 8. PROXIES. A stockholder may cast the votes entitled to be cast by the
shares of stock owned of record by the stockholder in person or by proxy executed by the
stockholder or by the stockholders duly authorized agent in any manner permitted by law. Such
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proxy or evidence of authorization of such proxy shall be filed with the secretary of the
Corporation before or at the meeting. No proxy shall be valid more than eleven months after its
date unless otherwise provided in the proxy.
Section 9. VOTING OF STOCK BY CERTAIN HOLDERS. Stock of the Corporation registered in
the name of a corporation, partnership, trust or other entity, if entitled to be voted, may be
voted by the president or a vice president, a general partner or trustee thereof, as the case may
be, or a proxy appointed by any of the foregoing individuals, unless some other person who has been
appointed to vote such stock pursuant to a bylaw or a resolution of the governing body of such
corporation or other entity or agreement of the partners of a partnership presents a certified copy
of such bylaw, resolution or agreement, in which case such person may vote such stock. Any
director or other fiduciary may vote stock registered in his or her name as such fiduciary, either
in person or by proxy.
Shares of stock of the Corporation directly or indirectly owned by it shall not be voted at
any meeting and shall not be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares entitled
to be voted at any given time, unless they are held by it in a fiduciary capacity, in which case
they may be voted and shall be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares at any
given time.
The Board of Directors may adopt by resolution a procedure by which a stockholder may certify
in writing to the Corporation that any shares of stock registered in the name of the stockholder
are held for the account of a specified person other than the stockholder. The resolution shall
set forth the class of stockholders who may make the certification, the purpose for which the
certification may be made, the form of certification and the information to be contained in it; if
the certification is with respect to a record date or closing of the stock transfer books, the time
after the record date or closing of the stock transfer books within which the certification must be
received by the Corporation; and any other provisions with respect to the procedure which the Board
of Directors considers necessary or desirable. On receipt of such certification, the person
specified in the certification shall be regarded as, for the purposes set forth in the
certification, the stockholder of record of the specified stock in place of the stockholder who
makes the certification.
Section 10. INSPECTORS. The Board of Directors, in advance of any meeting, may, but
need not, appoint one or more individual inspectors or one or more entities that designate
individuals as inspectors to act at the meeting or any adjournment thereof. If an inspector or
inspectors are not appointed, the person presiding at the meeting may, but need not, appoint one or
more inspectors. In case any person who may be appointed as an inspector fails to appear or act,
the vacancy may be filled by appointment made by the Board of Directors in advance of the meeting
or at the meeting by the chairman of the meeting. The inspectors, if any, shall determine the
number of shares outstanding and the voting power of each, the shares represented at the meeting,
the existence of a quorum, the validity and effect of proxies, and shall receive votes, ballots or
consents, hear and determine all challenges and questions arising in connection with the right to
vote, count and tabulate all votes, ballots or consents, determine the result, and do such acts as
are proper to conduct the election or vote with fairness to all stockholders. Each such report
shall be in writing and signed by him or her or by a majority of them if there is more than one
inspector acting at such meeting. If there is more than one
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inspector, the report of a majority shall be the report of the inspectors. The report of the
inspector or inspectors on the number of shares represented at the meeting and the results of the
voting shall be prima facie evidence thereof.
Section 11. ADVANCE NOTICE OF STOCKHOLDER NOMINEES FOR DIRECTOR AND OTHER STOCKHOLDER
PROPOSALS.
(a) Annual Meetings of Stockholders.
(1) Nominations of individuals for election to the Board of Directors and the proposal of
other business to be considered by the stockholders may be made at an annual meeting of
stockholders (i) pursuant to the Corporations notice of meeting, (ii) by or at the direction of
the Board of Directors or (iii) by any stockholder of the Corporation who was a stockholder of
record both at the time of giving of notice by the stockholder as provided for in this Section
11(a) and at the time of the annual meeting, who is entitled to vote at the meeting and who has
complied with this Section 11(a).
(2) For nominations or other business to be properly brought before an annual meeting by a
stockholder pursuant to clause (iii) of paragraph (a)(1) of this Section 11, the stockholder must
have given timely notice thereof in writing to the secretary of the Corporation and such other
business must otherwise be a proper matter for action by the stockholders. To be timely, a
stockholders notice shall set forth all information required under this Section 11 and shall be
delivered to the secretary at the principal executive office of the Corporation not earlier than
the 150th day nor later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on the 120th day prior
to the first anniversary of the date of mailing of the notice for the preceding years annual
meeting; provided, however, that in the event that the date of the annual meeting is advanced or
delayed by more than 30 days from the first anniversary of the date of the preceding years annual
meeting, notice by the stockholder to be timely must be so delivered not earlier than the
150th day prior to the date of such annual meeting and not later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern
Time, on the later of the 120th day prior to the date of such annual meeting or the
tenth day following the day on which public announcement of the date of such meeting is first made.
The public announcement of a postponement or adjournment of an annual meeting shall not commence a
new time period for the giving of a stockholders notice as described above. Such stockholders
notice shall set forth (i) as to each individual whom the stockholder proposes to nominate for
election or reelection as a director, (A) the name, age, business address and residence address of
such individual, (B) the class, series and number of any shares of stock of the Corporation that
are beneficially owned by such individual, (C) the date such shares were acquired and the
investment intent of such acquisition, (D) whether such stockholder believes any such individual
is, or is not, an interested person of the Corporation as defined in the Investment Company Act
or is, or is not, independent as set forth in the requirements established by the NASDAQ National
Market or any other exchange or automated quotation service on which the Corporations securities
are listed, and information regarding such individual that is sufficient, in the discretion of the
Board of Directors or any committee thereof or any authorized officer of the Corporation, to make
either such determination and (E) all other information relating to such individual that is
required to be disclosed in solicitations of proxies for election of directors in an election
contest (even if an election contest is not involved), or is otherwise required, in each case
pursuant to Regulation 14A (or any successor provision) under the Exchange Act and the
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rules thereunder (including such individuals written consent to being named in the proxy
statement as a nominee and to serving as a director if elected); (ii) as to any other business that
the stockholder proposes to bring before the meeting, a description of such business, the reasons
for proposing such business at the meeting and any material interest in such business of such
stockholder and any Stockholder Associated Person (as defined below), individually or in the
aggregate, including any anticipated benefit to the stockholder and the Stockholder Associated
Person therefrom and all other information relating to such proposal that is required pursuant to
Regulation 14A (or any successor provision) under the Exchange Act and the rules thereunder; (iii)
as to the stockholder giving the notice and any Stockholder Associated Person, the class, series
and number of all shares of stock of the Corporation which are owned by such stockholder and by
such Stockholder Associated Person, if any, and the nominee holder for, and number of, shares owned
beneficially but not of record by such stockholder and by any such Stockholder Associated Person;
(iv) as to the stockholder giving the notice and any Stockholder Associated Person covered by
clauses (ii) or (iii) of this paragraph (2) of this Section 11(a), the name and address of such
stockholder, as they appear on the Corporations stock ledger and current name and address, if
different, and of such Stockholder Associated Person; and (v) to the extent known by the
stockholder giving the notice, the name and address of any other stockholder supporting the nominee
for election or reelection as a director or the proposal of other business on the date of such
stockholders notice.
(3) Notwithstanding anything in this subsection (a) of this Section 11 to the contrary, in
the event the Board of Directors increases or decreases the maximum or minimum number of directors
in accordance with Article III, Section 2 of these Bylaws, and there is no public announcement of
such action at least 130 days prior to the first anniversary of the date of mailing of the notice
of the preceding years annual meeting, a stockholders notice required by this Section 11(a) shall
also be considered timely, but only with respect to nominees for any new positions created by such
increase, if it shall be delivered to the secretary at the principal executive office of the
Corporation not later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time, on the tenth day following the day on which
such public announcement is first made by the Corporation.
(4) For purposes of this Section 11, Stockholder Associated Person of any stockholder shall
mean (i) any person controlling, directly or indirectly, or acting in concert with, such
stockholder, (ii) any beneficial owner of shares of stock of the Corporation owned of record or
beneficially by such stockholder and (iii) any person controlling, controlled by or under common
control with such Stockholder Associated Person.
(b) Special Meetings of Stockholders. Only such business shall be conducted at a
special meeting of stockholders as shall have been brought before the meeting pursuant to the
Corporations notice of meeting. Nominations of individuals for election to the Board of Directors
may be made at a special meeting of stockholders at which directors are to be elected (i) pursuant
to the Corporations notice of meeting, (ii) by or at the direction of the Board of Directors,
(iii) provided that the Board of Directors has determined that directors shall be elected at such
special meeting, by any stockholder of the Corporation who is a stockholder of record both at the
time of giving of notice provided for in this Section 11 and at the time of the special meeting,
who is entitled to vote at the meeting and who complied with the notice procedures set forth in
this Section 11 or (iv) provided that such special meeting has been called
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for the purpose of electing directors when no directors remain in office, by any stockholder
of the Corporation who is entitled to vote at the meeting. In the event the Corporation calls a
special meeting of stockholders for the purpose of electing one or more individuals to the Board of
Directors, any such stockholder may nominate an individual or individuals (as the case may be) for
election as a director as specified in the Corporations notice of meeting, if the stockholders
notice required by paragraph (2) of this Section 11(a) shall be delivered to the secretary at the
principal executive office of the Corporation not earlier than the 150th day prior to
such special meeting and not later than 5:00 p.m., Eastern Time on the later of the
120th day prior to such special meeting or the tenth day following the day on which
public announcement is first made of the date of the special meeting and of the nominees proposed
by the Board of Directors to be elected at such meeting. The public announcement of a postponement
or adjournment of a special meeting shall not commence a new time period for the giving of a
stockholders notice as described above.
(c) General.
(1) Upon written request by the secretary or the Board of Directors or any committee thereof,
any stockholder proposing a nominee for election as a director or any proposal for other business
at a meeting of stockholders shall provide, within five Business Days of delivery of such request
(or such other period as may be specified in such request), written verification, satisfactory, in
the discretion of the Board of Directors or any committee thereof or any authorized officer of the
Corporation, to demonstrate the accuracy of any information submitted by the stockholder pursuant
to this Section 11. If a stockholder fails to provide such written verification within such
period, the information as to which written verification was requested may be deemed not to have
been provided in accordance with this Section 11.
(2) Only such individuals who are nominated in accordance with this Section 11 shall be
eligible for election by stockholders as directors, and only such business shall be conducted at a
meeting of stockholders as shall have been brought before the meeting in accordance with this
Section 11. The chairman of the meeting shall have the power to determine whether a nomination or
any other business proposed to be brought before the meeting was made or proposed, as the case may
be, in accordance with this Section 11.
(3) For purposes of this Section 11, (a) the date of mailing of the notice shall mean the
date of the proxy statement for the solicitation of proxies for election of directors and (b)
public announcement shall mean disclosure (i) in a press release reported by the Dow Jones News
Service, Associated Press, Business Wire, PR Newswire or comparable news service or (ii) in a
document publicly filed by the Corporation with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to
the Exchange Act or the Investment Company Act.
(4) Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 11, a stockholder shall also
comply with all applicable requirements of state law and of the Exchange Act and the rules and
regulations thereunder with respect to the matters set forth in this Section 11. Nothing in this
Section 11 shall be deemed to affect any right of a stockholder to request inclusion of a proposal
in, nor the right of the Corporation to omit a proposal from, the
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Corporations proxy statement pursuant to Rule 14a-8 (or any successor provision) under the
Exchange Act.
Section 12. CONTROL SHARE ACQUISITION ACT. Notwithstanding any other provision of the
Charter or these Bylaws, Title 3, Subtitle 7 of the Maryland General Corporation Law (the MGCL)
(or any successor statute) shall not apply to any acquisition by any person of shares of stock of
the Corporation. This section may be repealed, in whole or in part, at any time, whether before or
after an acquisition of control shares and, upon such repeal, may, to the extent provided by any
successor bylaw, apply to any prior or subsequent control share acquisition.
ARTICLE III
DIRECTORS
Section 1. GENERAL POWERS. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be
managed under the direction of its Board of Directors.
Section 2. NUMBER, TENURE AND QUALIFICATIONS. At any regular meeting or at any
special meeting called for that purpose, a majority of the entire Board of Directors may establish,
increase or decrease the number of directors, provided that the number thereof shall never be less
than three, nor more than eleven, and further provided that the tenure of office of a director
shall not be affected by any decrease in the number of directors.
Section 3. ANNUAL AND REGULAR MEETINGS. An annual meeting of the Board of Directors
shall be held immediately after and at the same place as the annual meeting of stockholders, no
notice other than this Bylaw being necessary. In the event such meeting is not so held, the
meeting may be held at such time and place as shall be specified in a notice given as hereinafter
provided for special meetings of the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors may provide, by
resolution, the time and place for the holding of regular meetings of the Board of Directors
without other notice than such resolution.
Section 4. SPECIAL MEETINGS. Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called
by or at the request of the chairman of the board, the chief executive officer, the president or by
a majority of the directors then in office. The person or persons authorized to call special
meetings of the Board of Directors may fix any place as the place for holding any special meeting
of the Board of Directors called by them. The Board of Directors may provide, by resolution, the
time and place for the holding of special meetings of the Board of Directors without other notice
than such resolution.
Section 5. NOTICE. Notice of any special meeting of the Board of Directors shall be
delivered personally or by telephone, electronic mail, facsimile transmission, United States mail
or courier to each director at his or her business or residence address. Notice by personal
delivery, telephone, electronic mail or facsimile transmission shall be given at least 24 hours
prior to the meeting. Notice by United States mail shall be given at least three days prior to the
meeting. Notice by courier shall be given at least two days prior to the meeting.
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Telephone notice shall be deemed to be given when the director or his or her agent is
personally given such notice in a telephone call to which the director or his or her agent is a
party. Electronic mail notice shall be deemed to be given upon transmission of the message to the
electronic mail address given to the Corporation by the director. Facsimile transmission notice
shall be deemed to be given upon completion of the transmission of the message to the number given
to the Corporation by the director and receipt of a completed answer-back indicating receipt.
Notice by United States mail shall be deemed to be given when deposited in the United States mail
properly addressed, with postage thereon prepaid. Notice by courier shall be deemed to be given
when deposited with or delivered to a courier properly addressed. Neither the business to be
transacted at, nor the purpose of, any annual, regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors
need be stated in the notice, unless specifically required by statute or these Bylaws.
Section 6. QUORUM. A majority of the directors shall constitute a quorum for
transaction of business at any meeting of the Board of Directors, provided that, if less than a
majority of such directors are present at said meeting, a majority of the directors present may
adjourn the meeting from time to time without further notice, and provided further that if,
pursuant to applicable law, the Charter or these Bylaws, the vote of a majority of a particular
group of directors is required for action, a quorum must also include a majority of such group.
The directors present at a meeting which has been duly called and convened may continue to
transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal of enough directors to leave
less than a quorum.
Section 7. VOTING. The action of the majority of the directors present at a meeting
at which a quorum is present shall be the action of the Board of Directors, unless the concurrence
of a greater proportion is required for such action by applicable law, the Charter or these Bylaws.
If enough directors have withdrawn from a meeting to leave less than a quorum but the meeting is
not adjourned, the action of the majority of that number of directors necessary to constitute a
quorum at such meeting shall be the action of the Board of Directors, unless the concurrence of a
greater proportion is required for such action by applicable law, the Charter or these Bylaws.
Section 8. CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD. The Board of Directors may designate a chairman of
the board and/or a vice chairman of the board. The chairman of the board or vice chairman of the
board, as applicable, shall preside over the meetings of the Board of Directors and of the
stockholders at which he or she shall be present. The chairman of the board or vice chairman of
the board shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him or her by the Board of
Directors. Neither the Chairman of the Board nor any Vice Chairman of the Board shall be deemed to
be officers of the Company.
Section 9. ORGANIZATION. At each meeting of the Board of Directors, the chairman of
the board or, in the absence of the chairman, the vice chairman of the board, if any, shall act as
chairman of the meeting. In the absence of both the chairman and vice chairman of the board, the
chief executive officer or in the absence of the chief executive officer, the president or in the
absence of the president, a director chosen by a majority of the directors present, shall act as
chairman of the meeting. The secretary or, in his or her absence, an assistant
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secretary of the Corporation, or in the absence of the secretary and all assistant
secretaries, a person appointed by the Chairman, shall act as secretary of the meeting.
Section 10. TELEPHONE MEETINGS. Directors may participate in a meeting by means of a
conference telephone or other communications equipment if all persons participating in the meeting
can hear each other at the same time; provided however, this Section 10 does not apply to any
action of the directors pursuant to any provision of the Investment Company Act applicable to the
Corporation that requires the vote of the directors to be cast in person at a meeting.
Participation in a meeting by these means shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.
Section 11. CONSENT BY DIRECTORS WITHOUT A MEETING. Any action required or permitted
to be taken at any meeting of the Board of Directors may be taken without a meeting, if a consent
in writing or by electronic transmission to such action is given by each director and is filed with
the minutes of proceedings of the Board of Directors; provided however, this Section 11 does not
apply to any action of the directors pursuant to any provision of the Investment Company Act
applicable to the Corporation that requires the vote of the directors to be cast in person at a
meeting.
Section 12. VACANCIES. If for any reason any or all the directors cease to be
directors, such event shall not terminate the Corporation or affect these Bylaws or the powers of
the remaining directors hereunder (even if fewer than three directors remain). Until such time as
the Corporation becomes subject to Section 3-804(c) of the MGCL, any vacancy on the Board of
Directors for any cause other than an increase in the number of directors shall be filled by a
majority of the remaining directors, even if such majority is less than a quorum; any vacancy in
the number of directors created by an increase in the number of directors may be filled by a
majority vote of the entire Board of Directors; and any individual so elected as director shall
serve until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until his or her successor is elected and
qualifies. At such time as the Corporation becomes subject to Section 3-804(c) of the MGCL,
subject to applicable requirements of the Investment Company Act and except as may be provided by
the Board of Directors in setting the terms of any class or series of stock, any vacancy on the
Board of Directors may be filled only by a majority of the remaining directors, even if the
remaining directors do not constitute a quorum, and any director elected to fill a vacancy shall
serve for the remainder of the full term of the class in which the vacancy occurred and until a
successor is elected and qualifies.
Section 13. COMPENSATION. Directors shall not receive any stated salary for their
services as directors but, by resolution of the Board of Directors, may receive compensation per
year and/or per meeting of the Board of Directors or of any committee of the Board of Directors and
for any service or activity they performed or engaged in as directors. Directors may be reimbursed
for expenses of attendance, if any, at each annual, regular or special meeting of the Board of
Directors or of any committee thereof and for their expenses, if any, in connection with each
property visit and any other service or activity they performed or engaged in as directors; but
nothing herein contained shall be construed to preclude any directors from serving the Corporation
in any other capacity and receiving compensation therefor.
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Section 14. LOSS OF DEPOSITS. No director shall be liable for any loss which may
occur by reason of the failure of the bank, trust company, savings and loan association, or other
institution with whom moneys or stock have been deposited.
Section 15. SURETY BONDS. Unless required by law, no director shall be obligated to
give any bond or surety or other security for the performance of any of his or her duties.
Section 16. RELIANCE. Each director, officer, employee and agent of the Corporation
shall, in the performance of his or her duties with respect to the Corporation, be fully justified
and protected with regard to any act or failure to act in reliance in good faith upon the books of
account or other records of the Corporation, upon an opinion of counsel or upon reports made to the
Corporation by any of its officers or employees or by the adviser, accountants, appraisers or other
experts or consultants selected by the Board of Directors or officers of the Corporation,
regardless of whether such counsel or expert may also be a director.
ARTICLE IV
COMMITTEES
Section 1. NUMBER, TENURE AND QUALIFICATIONS. The Board of Directors may appoint from
among its members an Audit Committee, a Nominating Committee and other committees, composed of one
or more directors, to serve at the pleasure of the Board of Directors.
Section 2. POWERS. The Board of Directors may delegate to committees appointed under
Section 1 of this Article any of the powers of the Board of Directors, except as prohibited by law.
Section 3. MEETINGS. Notice of committee meetings shall be given in the same manner
as notice for special meetings of the Board of Directors. A majority of the members of the
committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting of the
committee. The act of a majority of the committee members present at a meeting shall be the act of
such committee. The Board of Directors may designate a chairman of any committee, and such
chairman or, in the absence of a chairman, any two members of any committee (if there are at least
two members of the committee) may fix the time and place of its meeting unless the Board shall
otherwise provide. In the absence of any member of any such committee, the members thereof present
at any meeting, whether or not they constitute a quorum, may appoint another director to act in the
place of such absent member. Each committee shall keep minutes of its proceedings.
Section 4. TELEPHONE MEETINGS. Members of a committee of the Board of Directors may
participate in a meeting by means of a conference telephone or other communications equipment if
all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other at the same time; provided, however,
this Section 4 does not apply to any action of the committee pursuant to any provision of the
Investment Company Act applicable to the Corporation that
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requires the vote of the committee to be cast in person at the meeting. Participation in a
meeting by these means shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.
Section 5. CONSENT BY COMMITTEES WITHOUT A MEETING. Any action required or permitted
to be taken at any meeting of a committee of the Board of Directors may be taken without a meeting,
if a consent in writing or by electronic transmission to such action is given by each member of the
committee and is filed with the minutes of proceedings of such committee.
Section 6. VACANCIES. Subject to the provisions hereof, the Board of Directors shall
have the power at any time to change the membership of any committee, to fill all vacancies, to
designate alternate members to replace any absent or disqualified member or to dissolve any such
committee. Subject to the power of the Board of Directors, the members of the committee shall have
the power to fill any vacancies on the committee.
ARTICLE V
OFFICERS
Section 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS. The officers of the Corporation shall include a
president, a secretary and a treasurer and may include a chief executive officer, one or more vice
presidents, a chief operating officer, a chief financial officer, one or more assistant secretaries
and one or more assistant treasurers. In addition, the Board of Directors may from time to time
elect such other officers with such powers and duties as they shall deem necessary or desirable.
The Board of Directors may designate a chairman of the board and a vice chairman of the board, who
shall not be officers of the Corporation but shall have such powers and duties as determined by the
Board of Directors from time to time. The officers of the Corporation shall be elected annually by
the Board of Directors, except that the chief executive officer or president may from time to time
appoint one or more vice presidents, assistant secretaries and assistant treasurers or other
officers. Each officer shall hold office until his or her successor is elected and qualifies or
until his or her death, or his or her resignation or removal in the manner hereinafter provided.
Any two or more offices except president and vice president may be held by the same person.
Election of an officer or agent shall not of itself create contract rights between the Corporation
and such officer or agent.
Section 2. REMOVAL AND RESIGNATION. Any officer or agent of the Corporation may be
removed, with or without cause, by the Board of Directors if in its judgment the best interests of
the Corporation would be served thereby, but such removal shall be without prejudice to the
contract rights, if any, of the person so removed. Any officer of the Corporation may resign at
any time by giving written notice of his or her resignation to the Board of Directors, the chairman
of the board, the president or the secretary. Any resignation shall take effect immediately upon
its receipt or at such later time specified in the notice of resignation. The acceptance of a
resignation shall not be necessary to make it effective unless otherwise stated in the resignation.
Such resignation shall be without prejudice to the contract rights, if any, of the Corporation.
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Section 3. VACANCIES. A vacancy in any office may be filled by the Board of Directors
for the balance of the term.
Section 4. CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief
executive officer. The chief executive officer shall have general responsibility for
implementation of the policies of the Corporation, as determined by the Board of Directors, and for
the management of the business and affairs of the Corporation. He or she may execute any deed,
mortgage, bond, contract or other instrument, except in cases where the execution thereof shall be
expressly delegated by the Board of Directors or by these Bylaws to some other officer or agent of
the Corporation or shall be required by law to be otherwise executed; and in general shall perform
all duties incident to the office of chief executive officer and such other duties as may be
prescribed by the Board of Directors from time to time.
Section 5. CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief
operating officer. The chief operating officer shall have the responsibilities and duties as set
forth by the Board of Directors or the chief executive officer.
Section 6. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief
financial officer. The chief financial officer shall have the responsibilities and duties as set
forth by the Board of Directors or the chief executive officer.
Section 7. PRESIDENT. In the absence of a chief executive officer, the president
shall in general supervise and control all of the business and affairs of the Corporation. In the
absence of a designation of a chief operating officer by the Board of Directors, the president
shall be the chief operating officer. He or she may execute any deed, mortgage, bond, contract or
other instrument, except in cases where the execution thereof shall be expressly delegated by the
Board of Directors or by these Bylaws to some other officer or agent of the Corporation or shall be
required by law to be otherwise executed; and in general shall perform all duties incident to the
office of president and such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors from time
to time.
Section 8. VICE PRESIDENTS. In the absence of the president or in the event of a
vacancy in such office, the vice president (or in the event there be more than one vice president,
the vice presidents in the order designated at the time of their election or, in the absence of any
designation, then in the order of their election) shall perform the duties of the president and
when so acting shall have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the
president; and shall perform such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to such vice
president by the president or by the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors may designate one
or more vice presidents as executive vice president, senior vice president, or as vice president
for particular areas of responsibility.
Section 9. SECRETARY. The secretary shall (a) keep the minutes of the proceedings of
the stockholders, the Board of Directors and committees of the Board of Directors in one or more
books provided for that purpose; (b) see that all notices are duly given in accordance with the
provisions of these Bylaws or as required by law; (c) be custodian of the corporate records and of
the seal of the Corporation; (d) keep a register of the post office address of each stockholder
which shall be furnished to the secretary by such stockholder; (e) have
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general charge of the stock transfer books of the Corporation; and (f) in general perform such
other duties as from time to time may be assigned to him by the chief executive officer, the
president or by the Board of Directors.
Section 10. TREASURER. The treasurer shall have the custody of the funds and
securities of the Corporation and shall keep full and accurate accounts of receipts and
disbursements in books belonging to the Corporation and shall deposit all moneys and other valuable
effects in the name and to the credit of the Corporation in such depositories as may be designated
by the Board of Directors. In the absence of a designation of a chief financial officer by the
Board of Directors, the treasurer shall be the chief financial officer of the Corporation.
The treasurer shall disburse the funds of the Corporation as may be ordered by the Board of
Directors, taking proper vouchers for such disbursements, and shall render to the president and
Board of Directors, at the regular meetings of the Board of Directors or whenever it may so
require, an account of all his or her transactions as treasurer and of the financial condition of
the Corporation.
If required by the Board of Directors, the treasurer shall give the Corporation a bond in such
sum and with such surety or sureties as shall be satisfactory to the Board of Directors for the
faithful performance of the duties of his or her office and for the restoration to the Corporation,
in case of his or her death, resignation, retirement or removal from office, of all books, papers,
vouchers, moneys and other property of whatever kind in his or her possession or under his or her
control belonging to the Corporation.
Section 11. ASSISTANT SECRETARIES AND ASSISTANT TREASURERS. The assistant
secretaries and assistant treasurers, in general, shall perform such duties as shall be assigned to
them by the secretary or treasurer, respectively, or by the president or the Board of Directors.
The assistant treasurers shall, if required by the Board of Directors, give bonds for the faithful
performance of their duties in such sums and with such surety or sureties as shall be satisfactory
to the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE VI
CONTRACTS, LOANS, CHECKS AND DEPOSITS
Section 1. CONTRACTS. The Board of Directors or a committee of the Board of Directors
within the scope of its delegated authority may authorize any officer or agent to enter into any
contract or to execute and deliver any instrument in the name of and on behalf of the Corporation
and such authority may be general or confined to specific instances. Any agreement, deed,
mortgage, lease or other document shall be valid and binding upon the Corporation when duly
authorized or ratified by action of the Board of Directors or such committee and executed by an
authorized person.
Section 2. CHECKS AND DRAFTS. All checks, drafts or other orders for the payment of
money, notes or other evidences of indebtedness issued in the name of the
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Corporation shall be signed by such officer or agent of the Corporation in such manner as
shall from time to time be determined by the Board of Directors.
Section 3. DEPOSITS. All funds of the Corporation not otherwise employed shall be
deposited from time to time to the credit of the Corporation in such banks, trust companies or
other depositories as the Board of Directors may designate.
ARTICLE VII
STOCK
Section 1. CERTIFICATES; REQUIRED INFORMATION. In the event that the Corporation
issues shares of stock represented by certificates, such certificates shall be signed by the
officers of the Corporation in the manner permitted by the MGCL and contain the statements and
information required by the MGCL. In the event that the Corporation issues shares of stock without
certificates, the Corporation shall provide to holders of such shares a written statement of the
information required by the MGCL to be included on stock certificates.
Section 2. TRANSFERS WHEN CERTIFICATES ISSUED. Upon surrender to the Corporation or
the transfer agent of the Corporation of a stock certificate duly endorsed or accompanied by proper
evidence of succession, assignment or authority to transfer, the Corporation shall issue a new
certificate to the person entitled thereto, cancel the old certificate and record the transaction
upon its books.
The Corporation shall be entitled to treat the holder of record of any share of stock as the
holder in fact thereof and, accordingly, shall not be bound to recognize any equitable or other
claim to or interest in such share or on the part of any other person, whether or not it shall have
express or other notice thereof, except as otherwise provided by the laws of the State of Maryland.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, transfers of shares of any class of stock will be subject in
all respects to the Charter and all of the terms and conditions contained therein.
Section 3. REPLACEMENT CERTIFICATE. Any officer designated by the Board of Directors
may direct a new certificate to be issued in place of any certificate previously issued by the
Corporation alleged to have been lost, stolen or destroyed upon the making of an affidavit of that
fact by the person claiming the certificate to be lost, stolen or destroyed. When authorizing the
issuance of a new certificate, an officer designated by the Board of Directors may, in his or her
discretion and as a condition precedent to the issuance thereof, require the owner of such lost,
stolen or destroyed certificate or the owners legal representative to advertise the same in such
manner as he shall require and/or to give bond, with sufficient surety, to the Corporation to
indemnify it against any loss or claim which may arise as a result of the issuance of a new
certificate.
Section 4. CLOSING OF TRANSFER BOOKS OR FIXING OF RECORD DATE. The Board of Directors
may set, in advance, a record date for the purpose of determining
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stockholders entitled to notice of or to vote at any meeting of stockholders or determining
stockholders entitled to receive payment of any dividend or the allotment of any other rights, or
in order to make a determination of stockholders for any other proper purpose. Such date, in any
case, shall not be prior to the close of business on the day the record date is fixed and shall be
not more than 90 days and, in the case of a meeting of stockholders, not less than ten days, before
the date on which the meeting or particular action requiring such determination of stockholders of
record is to be held or taken.
In lieu of fixing a record date, the Board of Directors may provide that the stock transfer
books shall be closed for a stated period but not longer than 20 days. If the stock transfer books
are closed for the purpose of determining stockholders entitled to notice of or to vote at a
meeting of stockholders, such books shall be closed for at least ten days before the date of such
meeting.
If no record date is fixed and the stock transfer books are not closed for the determination
of stockholders, (a) the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to notice of or
to vote at a meeting of stockholders shall be at the close of business on the day on which the
notice of meeting is mailed or the 30th day before the meeting, whichever is the closer
date to the meeting; and (b) the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to
receive payment of a dividend or an allotment of any other rights shall be the close of business on
the day on which the resolution of the directors, declaring the dividend or allotment of rights, is
adopted.
When a determination of stockholders entitled to vote at any meeting of stockholders has been
made as provided in this section, such determination shall apply to any adjournment thereof, except
when (i) the determination has been made through the closing of the transfer books and the stated
period of closing has expired or (ii) the meeting is adjourned to a date more than 120 days after
the record date fixed for the original meeting, in either of which case a new record date shall be
determined as set forth herein.
Section 5. STOCK LEDGER. The Corporation shall maintain at its principal office or at
the office of its counsel, accountants or transfer agent, an original or duplicate share ledger
containing the name and address of each stockholder and the number of shares of each class held by
such stockholder.
Section 6. FRACTIONAL STOCK; ISSUANCE OF UNITS. The Board of Directors may issue
fractional stock or provide for the issuance of scrip, all on such terms and under such conditions
as they may determine. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Charter or these Bylaws, the
Board of Directors may issue units consisting of different securities of the Corporation. Any
security issued in a unit shall have the same characteristics as any identical securities issued by
the Corporation, except that the Board of Directors may provide that for a specified period
securities of the Corporation issued in such unit may be transferred on the books of the
Corporation only in such unit.
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ARTICLE VIII
ACCOUNTING YEAR
The Board of Directors shall have the power, from time to time, to fix the fiscal year of the
Corporation by a duly adopted resolution.
ARTICLE IX
DISTRIBUTIONS
Section 1. AUTHORIZATION. Dividends and other distributions upon the stock of the
Corporation may be authorized by the Board of Directors, subject to the provisions of law and the
Charter. Dividends and other distributions may be paid in cash, property or stock of the
Corporation, subject to the provisions of law and the Charter.
Section 2. CONTINGENCIES. Before payment of any dividends or other distributions,
there may be set aside out of any assets of the Corporation available for dividends or other
distributions such sum or sums as the Board of Directors may from time to time, in its absolute
discretion, think proper as a reserve fund for contingencies, for equalizing dividends or other
distributions, for repairing or maintaining any property of the Corporation or for such other
purpose as the Board of Directors shall determine to be in the best interest of the Corporation,
and the Board of Directors may modify or abolish any such reserve.
ARTICLE X
SEAL
Section 1. SEAL. The Board of Directors may authorize the adoption of a seal by the
Corporation. The seal shall contain the name of the Corporation and the year of its incorporation
and the words Incorporated Maryland. The Board of Directors may authorize one or more duplicate
seals and provide for the custody thereof.
Section 2. AFFIXING SEAL. Whenever the Corporation is permitted or required to affix
its seal to a document, it shall be sufficient to meet the requirements of any law, rule or
regulation relating to a seal to place the word (SEAL) adjacent to the signature of the person
authorized to execute the document on behalf of the Corporation.
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ARTICLE XI
INDEMNIFICATION AND ADVANCE OF EXPENSES
To the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law and the Investment Company Act, in effect from
time to time, the Corporation shall indemnify and, without requiring a preliminary determination of
the ultimate entitlement to indemnification, shall pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance
of final disposition of a proceeding to (a) any individual who is a present or former director or
officer of the Corporation and who is made or threatened to be made a party to the proceeding by
reason of his or her service in that capacity or (b) any individual who, while a director or
officer of the Corporation and at the request of the Corporation, serves or has served as a
director, officer, partner or trustee of such corporation, real estate investment trust,
partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise and who is made or
threatened to be made a party to the proceeding by reason of his or her service in that capacity.
The Corporation may, with the approval of its Board of Directors or any duly authorized committee
thereof, provide such indemnification and advance for expenses to a person who served a predecessor
of the Corporation in any of the capacities described in (a) or (b) above and to any employee or
agent of the Corporation or a predecessor of the Corporation. The indemnification and payment of
expenses provided in these Bylaws shall not be deemed exclusive of or limit in any way other rights
to which any person seeking indemnification or payment of expenses may be or may become entitled
under any bylaw, regulation, insurance, agreement or otherwise.
Neither the amendment nor repeal of this Article, nor the adoption or amendment of any other
provision of these Bylaws or the Charter inconsistent with this Article, shall apply to or affect
in any respect the applicability of the preceding paragraph with respect to any act or failure to
act which occurred prior to such amendment, repeal or adoption.
ARTICLE XII
WAIVER OF NOTICE
Whenever any notice is required to be given pursuant to the Charter or these Bylaws or
pursuant to applicable law, a waiver thereof in writing, signed by the person or persons entitled
to such notice, whether before or after the time stated therein, shall be deemed equivalent to the
giving of such notice. Neither the business to be transacted at nor the purpose of any meeting
need be set forth in the waiver of notice, unless specifically required by statute. The attendance
of any person at any meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where such
person attends a meeting for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any business on
the ground that the meeting is not lawfully called or convened.
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ARTICLE XIII
INSPECTION OF RECORDS
A stockholder that is otherwise eligible under applicable law to inspect the Corporations
books of account, stock ledger, or other specified documents of the Corporation shall have no right
to make such inspection if the Board of Directors determines that such stockholder has an improper
purpose for requesting such inspection.
ARTICLE XIV
INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT
If and to the extent that any provision of the MGCL, including, without limitation, Subtitle 6
and, if then applicable, Subtitle 7 of Title 3 of the MGCL, or any provision of the Charter or
these Bylaws conflicts with any provision of the Investment Company Act applicable to the
Corporation, the applicable provision of the Investment Company Act shall control.
ARTICLE XV
AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS
The Board of Directors shall have the exclusive power to adopt, alter or repeal any provision
of these Bylaws and to make new Bylaws.
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