As filed with Securities and Exchange Commission on August 7, 2013
Registration No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM S-8
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
TASER International, Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware | 86-0741227 | |
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
17800 North 85th Street, Scottsdale, Arizona 85255
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
NONQUALIFIED DEFERRED COMPENSATION PLAN
(Full title of the plan)
Douglas E. Klint
President, Corporate Secretary and General Counsel
17800 North 85th Street
Scottsdale, Arizona 85255
(480) 991-0797
(Name, address and telephone number (including area code) of agent for service)
With a copy to:
Jeffrey E. Beck
Snell & Wilmer L.L.P.
One Arizona Center
400 East Van Buren
Phoenix, Arizona 85004
(602) 382-6000
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of large accelerated filer, accelerated filer, and smaller reporting company in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
Large accelerated filer | ¨ | Accelerated filer | x | |||
Non-accelerated filer | ¨ (Do not check if a smaller reporting company) | Smaller reporting company | ¨ |
This Registration Statement shall become effective upon filing in accordance with Rule 462 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
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Title of securities to be registered | Amount to be registered |
Proposed maximum offering |
Proposed maximum aggregate |
Amount of registration fee | ||||
Taser International, Inc. Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan Obligations(2) |
100% | n/a | $10,000,000 | $1,364.00 | ||||
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(1) | Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the amount of the registration fee, pursuant to Rule 457(h) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act). |
(2) | The Plan obligations are unsecured obligations of TASER International, Inc. to pay deferred compensation in the future in accordance with the Plan for a select group of eligible employees. |
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PART I |
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS | 1 | ||||
Item 1. |
Plan Information | 1 | ||||
Item 2. |
Registrant Information and Employee Plan Annual Information | 1 | ||||
PART II |
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT | 1 | ||||
Item 3. |
Incorporation of Documents by Reference | 1 | ||||
Item 4. |
Description of Securities | 1 | ||||
Item 5. |
Interests of Named Experts and Counsel | 2 | ||||
Item 6. |
Indemnification of Directors and Officers | 3 | ||||
Item 7. |
Exemption From Registration Claimed | 4 | ||||
Item 8. |
Exhibits | 4 | ||||
Item 9. |
Undertakings | 5 | ||||
6 | ||||||
8 | ||||||
EX-5.1 |
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EX-23.1 |
PART I
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS
Item 2. Registrant Information and Employee Plan Annual Information.*
* The documents containing the information specified in Part I of this Form S-8 will be delivered to each employee who is eligible to participate in the TASER International, Inc. Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan (the Plan) in accordance with Rule 428(b)(1) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the Securities Act). These documents are not being filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) either as part of this registration statement or as prospectuses or prospectus supplements pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act. These documents and the documents incorporated by reference into this registration statement pursuant to Item 3 of Part II of this Form S-8, taken together, constitute a prospectus that meets the requirements of Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.
PART II
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT
Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.
The following documents filed by TASER International, Inc. (the Company) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) are incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and are deemed to be a part hereof from the date of filing:
(a) The Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012.
(b) The Companys Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the quarterly periods ended March 31, 2013 and June 30, 2013.
(c) The Companys Current Reports on Form 8-K filed on February 26, 2013, May 24, 2013 and July 12, 2013.
(d) The description of the Companys Common Stock, $0.00001 par value (the Common Stock), is contained in the Companys Form 8-A, filed with the SEC on March 7, 2001 (Reg. No. 333-55658) including any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such information.
In addition, all documents subsequently filed by the Company pursuant to Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Act) after the date of this Registration Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment that indicates that all securities offered have been sold or that deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents. Any statement contained in a document incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document that is incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such earlier statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration Statement.
Item 4. Description of Securities.
The deferred compensation obligations being registered represent obligations (the Obligations) of Company to make future payments to Plan participants. The Obligations consist of Companys commitment under the Plan to deliver at a future date deferrals of participants compensation in such amounts as timely elected by participants under the Plan.
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The amount of compensation deferred by each participant will be determined in accordance with the Plan based on the elections of the participant, and will be credited to a separate bookkeeping account in the name of the participant. The participants account reflects units of one or more hypothetical investment media selected pursuant to the Plan, including Company stock in the case of deferral of compensation related to Company stock. The participants account will be credited, or debited, as the case may be, based on the earnings or losses incurred on the hypothetical investment media or the Company stock, pursuant to established procedures under the Plan. The earnings and losses will be used only for the purpose of calculating hypothetical returns, and the amounts in participants Plan accounts need not actually be invested in actual investments. Dividends paid on any Company stock will be reflected in the participants account by crediting an amount to the participants Account equal to the value of the dividends. The participants account will also be adjusted periodically to reflect any stock splits or other adjustments to the common stock. All participant deferrals credited to the participants account are fully vested. However, Employer contributions credited to the participants account may be subject to a vesting schedule. If the participant is not fully vested in the Employer contributions credited to his or her account at a termination of employment, the non-vested portion of their account will be forfeited.
The Obligations are distributable in cash or, in the case of Common stock deferred, in whole shares of Company stock. The distributions generally will be made or begin in the month following the month in which a distribution event occurs.
There is no trading market for the Obligations. The Obligations are unsecured general obligations of Company to make future distributions of cash or Company stock to participants in accordance with the terms of the Plan. Obligations will rank without preference with other unsecured and unsubordinated indebtedness of Company from time to time outstanding and are, therefore, subject to the risks of the Companys insolvency. No trustee has been appointed to take action with respect to the Obligations and each participant in the Plan will be responsible for acting independently with respect to, among other things, the giving of notices, responding to requests for consents, waivers or amendments pertaining to the Obligations, enforcing covenants and taking action upon default.
A participants rights to any amounts credited to his accounts may not be alienated, sold, transferred, assigned, pledged, attached or otherwise encumbered by the participant and may only pass upon the participants death pursuant to a beneficiary designation made by a participant in accordance with the terms of the Plan. The Obligations are not convertible into any other security of Company. All of the Obligations are payable in cash or shares of Company stock, as described above. Company reserves the right to amend, merge, consolidate or terminate the Plan at any time or from time to time, except that no such action may, without the consent of the affected participant, affect any of the participants rights with respect to the amount then credited to the participants account.
Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.
Not applicable.
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Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.
The Company is a Delaware corporation. Section 145(a) of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the DGCL) provides that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative, other than an action by or in the right of the corporation, by reason of the fact that such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he or she acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his or her conduct was unlawful.
Section 145(b) of the DGCL provides that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of a corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that such person acted in any of the capacities set forth above, against expenses (including attorneys fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if he or she acted under similar standards to those set forth above, except that no indemnification may be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Delaware Chancery Court or the court in which such action or suit was brought determines that, despite the adjudication of liability, but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to be indemnified for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other court deems proper.
Further subsections of DGCL Section 145 provide that:
(1) to the extent that a present or former director or officer of a corporation has been successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in subsections (a) and (b) of Section 145 or in the defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, such person shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection therewith;
(2) any indemnification under subsections (a) and (b) of Section 145 (unless ordered by a court) shall be made by the corporation only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the present or former director, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because the person has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in subsections (a) and (b) of Section 145. Such determination shall be made, with respect to a person who is a director or officer at the time of such determination, (i) by a majority vote of the directors who are not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, even though less than a quorum, or (ii) by a committee of such directors designated by majority vote of such directors, even though less than a quorum, or (iii) if there are no such directors, or if such directors so direct, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion, or (iv) by the stockholders;
(3) expenses (including attorneys fees) incurred by an officer or director in defending any civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding may 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 such person is not entitled to be indemnified by the corporation as authorized in Section 145. Such expenses (including attorneys fees) incurred by former directors and officers or other employees and agents may be so paid upon such terms and conditions, if any, as the corporation deems appropriate;
(4) the indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, Section 145 shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise, both as to action in such persons official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office; and
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(5) a corporation shall have the power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against any liability asserted against such person and incurred by such person in any such capacity, or arising out of such persons status as such, whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify such person against such liability under Section 145.
The Companys Certificate of Incorporation allows and its Bylaws require that the Company indemnify its directors and officers who are or were a party to, or are threatened to be made a party to, any proceeding (including a derivative action if the director or officer is not found liable to the Company), against all expenses reasonably incurred by a director or officer in connection with such a proceeding (including expenses, judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement), if the director or officer acted in good faith, in a manner he or she believed was not opposed to the Companys best interests and, with respect to a criminal proceeding, had no reason to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.
The Company has entered into separate indemnification agreements with each of its directors and officers. The agreements provide for mandatory indemnification for and limit the liability of the Companys directors and officers in serving the Company to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law. Specifically, under the agreements, the Companys directors and officers will not be personally liable for monetary damages for their errors or omissions, except for liability for the breach of a directors or officers duty of loyalty to the Company or its stockholders, for intentional misconduct or acts not in good faith, for making any unlawful distribution, for any transaction from which the director or officer derived an improper benefit, or for violating Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act or similar laws.
The Companys Bylaws and indemnification agreements generally require that the Company advance to its directors and officers expenses incurred by them in defending a proceeding in advance of its final disposition, provided that the director or officer agrees to reimburse the Company for such advances if it is ultimately found that the director or officer is not entitled to indemnification. The Company maintains directors and officers liability insurance under which the Companys directors and officers are insured against claims for errors, neglect, breach of duty and other matters.
Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.
Not applicable.
See Exhibit Index
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A. The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) | To file, during any period in which offers of sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement: |
(i) | To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933; |
(ii) | To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the Calculation of Registration Fee table in the effective registration statement. |
(iii) | To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement; |
provided, however, that Paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) of this section do not apply if the registration statement is on Form S-8, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement.
(2) | That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
(3) | To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering. |
(4) | That, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrants annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plans annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof. |
(5) | Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue. |
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Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Scottsdale, State of Arizona on this 7th day of August, 2013.
TASER INTERNATIONAL, INC. | ||
By | /s/ Douglas E. Klint | |
Douglas E. Klint | ||
President, Corporate Secretary and General Counsel |
POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENT that each person whose signature appears below hereby constitutes and appoints Patrick W. Smith and Daniel M. Behrendt his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of substitution for him or her in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments or post-effective amendments to this Registration Statement, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto such attorneys and agents full power and authority to do any and all acts and things necessary or advisable in connection with such matters, and hereby ratifying and confirming all that the attorneys and agents, or his or her substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the date(s) indicated:
Signature |
Title |
Date | ||
/s/ PATRICK W. SMITH |
Director and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) | August 7, 2013 | ||
Patrick W. Smith | ||||
/s/ DANIEL M. BEHRENDT |
Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | August 7, 2013 | ||
Daniel M. Behrendt | ||||
/s/ MATTHEW R. MCBRADY |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Matthew R. McBrady | ||||
/s/ HADI PARTOVI |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Hadi Partovi | ||||
/s/ JUDY MARTZ |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Judy Martz | ||||
/s/ MARK W. KROLL |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Mark W. Kroll | ||||
/s/ MICHAEL GARNREITER |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Michael Garnreiter | ||||
/s/ JOHN S. CALDWELL |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
John S. Caldwell | ||||
/s/ RICHARD H. CARMONA |
Director | August 7, 2013 | ||
Richard H. Carmona |
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THE PLAN. Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, the trustees (or other persons who administer the employee benefit plan) have duly caused this registration statement to be signed on the Plans behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Scottsdale, State of Arizona, on this 7th day of August, 2013.
TASER INTERNATIONAL, INC. | ||
By | /s/ Douglas E. Klint | |
Douglas E. Klint | ||
President, Corporate Secretary and General Counsel |
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Exhibit Number |
Exhibit | |||
4.1 | Certificate of Incorporation, as amended | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Registration Statement on Form SB-2, effective May 11, 2001 (Registration No. 333-55658), as amended | ||
4.2 | Certificate of Amendment to Certificate of Incorporation dated September 1, 2004 | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.3 to the Annual Report on Form 10-KSB, filed March 31, 2005 | ||
4.3 | Bylaws, as amended | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.2 to Registration Statement on Form SB-2, effective May 11, 2001 (Registration No. 333-55658), as amended | ||
5.1 | Opinion of Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. | Filed herewith | ||
23.1 | Consent of Grant Thornton LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm | Filed herewith | ||
23.2 | Consent of Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. (included in Exhibit 5.1) | See Exhibit 5.1 | ||
24.1 | Power of Attorney (on signature page) | See Signature Page | ||
99.1 | Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan | Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Form 8-K filed on July 12, 2013 |
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