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ANAVEX LIFE SCIENCES CORP.
2007 STOCK OPTION PLAN
This 2007 Stock Option Plan (the "Plan") provides for the grant of options to acquire common shares (the "Common Shares") in the capital of Anavex Life Sciences Corp., a corporation formed under the laws of the State of Nevada (the "Corporation"). Stock options granted under this Plan that qualify under Section 422 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the "Code") are referred to in this Plan as "Incentive Stock Options" and stock options that do not qualify under Section 422 of the Code are referred to as "Non-Qualified Stock Options". Incentive Stock Options and Non-Qualified Stock Options granted under this Plan are collectively referred to as "Options".
1.1 The purpose of this Plan is to retain the services of valued key employees and consultants of the Corporation and such other persons as the Plan Administrator shall select in accordance with Section 2 below, and to encourage such persons to acquire a greater proprietary interest in the Corporation, thereby strengthening their incentive to achieve the objectives of the shareholders of the Corporation, and to serve as an aid and inducement in the hiring of new employees and to provide an equity incentive to consultants and other persons selected by the Plan Administrator.
1.2 This Plan shall at all times be subject to all legal requirements relating to the administration of stock option plans, if any, under applicable corporate laws, applicable United States federal and state securities laws, the Code, the rules of any applicable stock exchange or stock quotation system, and the rules of any foreign jurisdiction applicable to Options granted to residents therein (collectively, the "Applicable Laws").
2.1 This Plan shall be administered initially by the Board of Directors of the Corporation (the "Board"), except that the Board may, in its discretion, establish a committee composed of two (2) or more members of the Board or two (2) or more other persons to administer the Plan, which committee (the "Committee") may be an executive, compensation or other committee, including a separate committee especially created for this purpose. The Board or, if applicable, the Committee is referred to herein as the "Plan Administrator".
2.2 If and so long as the Common Shares are registered under Section 12(b) or 12(g) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act") and the Corporation wishes to grant Incentive Stock Options, then the Board shall consider in selecting the Plan Administrator and the membership of any Committee, with respect to any persons subject or likely to become subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act, the provisions regarding (a) "outside directors" as contemplated by Section 162(m) of the Code, and (b) "Non-Employee Directors" as contemplated by Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act.
2.3 The Committee shall have the powers and authority vested in the Board hereunder (including the power and authority to interpret any provision of the Plan or of any Option). The members of any such Committee shall serve at the pleasure of the Board. A majority of the
members of the Committee shall constitute a quorum, and all actions of the Committee shall be taken by a majority of the members present. Any action may be taken by a written instrument signed by all of the members of the Committee and any action so taken shall be fully effective as if it had been taken at a meeting.
2.4 Subject to the provisions of this Plan and any Applicable Laws, and with a view to effecting the purpose of the Plan, the Plan Administrator shall have sole authority, in its absolute discretion, to:
2.5 All decisions, determinations and interpretations made by the Plan Administrator shall be binding and conclusive on all participants in the Plan and on their legal representatives, heirs and beneficiaries.
3.1 Incentive Stock Options may be granted to any individual who, at the time the Option is granted, is an employee of the Corporation or any Related Corporation (as defined below) ("Employees").
3.2 Non-Qualified Stock Options may be granted to Employees and to such other persons who are not Employees as the Plan Administrator shall select, subject to any Applicable Laws.
3.3 Options may be granted in substitution for outstanding Options of another corporation in connection with the merger, consolidation, acquisition of property or stock or other reorganization between such other corporation and the Corporation or any subsidiary of the Corporation. Options also may be granted in exchange for outstanding Options.
3.4 Any person to whom an Option is granted under this Plan is referred to as an "Optionee". Any person who is the owner of an Option is referred to as a "Holder".
3.5 As used in this Plan, the term "Related Corporation" shall mean any corporation (other than the Corporation) that is a "Parent Corporation" of the Corporation or "Subsidiary Corporation" of the Corporation, as those terms are defined in Sections 424(e) and 424(f), respectively, of the Code (or any successor provisions) and the regulations thereunder (as amended from time to time).
The Plan Administrator is authorized to grant Options to acquire up to a total of 3,000,000 Common Shares. The number of Common Shares with respect to which Options may be granted hereunder is subject to adjustment as set forth in Section 5.13 hereof. In the event that any outstanding Option expires or is terminated for any reason, the Common Shares allocable to the unexercised portion of such Option may again be subject to an Option granted to the same Optionee or to a different person eligible under Section 3 of this Plan; provided however, that any cancelled Options will be counted against the maximum number of shares with respect to which Options may be granted to any particular person as set forth in Section 5 hereof.
Each Option granted under this Plan shall be evidenced by a written agreement approved by the Plan Administrator (each, an "Agreement"). Agreements may contain such provisions, not inconsistent with this Plan or any Applicable Laws, as the Plan Administrator in its discretion may deem advisable. All Options also shall comply with the following requirements:
Each Agreement shall state the number of Common Shares to which it pertains and whether the Option is intended to be an Incentive Stock Option or a Non-Qualified Stock Option; provided that:
under this Plan and all other Incentive Stock Option plans of the Corporation, a Related Corporation or a predecessor corporation) shall not exceed U.S.$100,000, or such other limit as may be prescribed by the Code as it may be amended from time to time (the "Annual Limit"); and
Each Agreement shall state the date the Plan Administrator has deemed to be the effective date of the Option for purposes of this Plan (the "Date of Grant").
Each Agreement shall state the price per Common Share at which it is exercisable. The Plan Administrator shall act in good faith to establish the exercise price in accordance with Applicable Laws; provided that:
At the time of the grant of the Option, the Plan Administrator shall designate, subject to Section 5.7 below, the expiration date of the Option, which date shall not be later than ten (10) years from the Date of Grant; provided, that the expiration date of any Incentive Stock Option granted to a greater-than-ten percent ( 10%) shareholder of the Corporation (as determined with reference to Section 424(d) of the Code) shall not be later than five (5) years from the Date of Grant. In the absence of action to the contrary by the Plan Administrator in connection with the grant of a particular Option, and except in the case of Incentive Stock Options as described above, all Options granted under this Section 5 shall expire ten (10) years from the Date of Grant.
No Option shall be exercisable until it has vested. The vesting schedule for each Option shall be specified by the Plan Administrator at the time of grant of the Option prior to the provision of services with respect to which such Option is granted; provided, that if no vesting schedule is specified at the time of grant, the Option shall vest according to the following schedule:
| Number Of Years Following Date Of Grant | Percentage Of Total Option Vested |
| 1 | 25% |
| 2 | 50% |
| 3 | 75% |
| 4 | 100% |
The Plan Administrator may specify a vesting schedule for all or any portion of an Option based on the achievement of performance objectives established in advance of the commencement by the Optionee of services related to the achievement of the performance objectives. Performance objectives shall be expressed in terms of objective criteria, including but not limited to, one or more of the following: return on equity, return on assets, share price, market share, sales, earnings per share, costs, net earnings, net worth, inventories, cash and cash equivalents, gross margin or the Corporation's performance relative to its internal business plan. Performance objectives may be in respect of the performance of the Corporation as a whole (whether on a consolidated or unconsolidated basis), a Related Corporation, or a subdivision, operating unit, product or product line of either of the foregoing. Performance
objectives may be absolute or relative and may be expressed in terms of a progression or a range. An Option that is exercisable (in full or in part) upon the achievement of one or more performance objectives may be exercised only following written notice to the Optionee and the Corporation by the Plan Administrator that the performance objective has been achieved.
The vesting of one or more outstanding Options may be accelerated by the Plan Administrator at such times and in such amounts as it shall determine in its sole discretion.
such Option shall pass by the Optionee's will or by the laws of descent and distribution of the Optionee's domicile at the time of death and only until such Options terminate as provided above.
Upon the exercise of any Option, the aggregate exercise price shall be paid to the Corporation in cash or by certified or cashier's check. In addition, if pre-approved in writing by the Plan Administrator who may arbitrarily withhold consent, the Holder may pay for all or any portion of the aggregate exercise price by complying with one or more of the following alternatives:
A Holder shall have no rights as a shareholder of the Corporation with respect to any Common Shares covered by an Option until such Holder becomes a record holder of such Common Shares, irrespective of whether such Holder has given notice of exercise. Subject to the provisions of Section 5.13 hereof, no rights shall accrue to a Holder and no adjustments shall be made on account of dividends (ordinary or extraordinary, whether in cash, securities or other property) or distributions or other rights declared on, or created in, the Common Shares for which the record date is prior to the date the Holder becomes a record holder of the Common Shares covered by the Option, irrespective of whether such Holder has given notice of exercise.
provisions hereof, or upon the sale, levy or any attachment or similar process upon the rights and privileges conferred by this Plan, such Option shall thereupon terminate and become null and void.
such Holder's Option immediately prior to any such merger, consolidation, acquisition of property or shares, separation, reorganization or liquidation, and to be treated as a shareholder of record for the purposes thereof, to the extent the vesting requirements set forth in the Option agreement have been satisfied.
6.1 Options may be granted by the Plan Administrator from time to time on or after the date on which this Plan is adopted by the Board (the "Effective Date").
6.2 Unless sooner terminated by the Board, this Plan shall terminate on the tenth anniversary of the Effective Date. No Option may be granted after such termination or during any suspension of this Plan.
6.3 Any Incentive Stock Options granted by the Plan Administrator prior to the ratification of this Plan by the shareholders of the Corporation shall be granted subject to approval of this Plan by the holders of a majority of the Corporation's outstanding voting shares, voting either in person or by proxy at a duly held shareholders' meeting within twelve (12) months before or after the Effective Date. If such shareholder approval is sought and not obtained, all Incentive Stock Options granted prior thereto and thereafter shall be considered Non-Qualified Stock Options and any Options granted to Covered Employees will not be eligible for the exclusion set forth in Section 162(m) of the Code with respect to the deductibility
by the Corporation of certain compensation.
The grant of an Option shall impose no obligation upon the Optionee to exercise such Option.
Whether or not any Options are to be granted under this Plan shall be exclusively within the discretion of the Plan Administrator, and nothing contained in this Plan shall be construed as giving any person any right to participate under this Plan. The grant of an Option shall in no way constitute any form of agreement or understanding binding on the Corporation or any Related Corporation, express or implied, that the Corporation or any Related Corporation will employ or contract with an Optionee for any length of time, nor shall it interfere in any way with the Corporation's or, where applicable, a Related Corporation's right to terminate Optionee's employment at any time, which right is hereby reserved.
The proceeds received by the Corporation from the sale of Common Shares issued upon the exercise of Options shall be used for general corporate purposes, unless otherwise directed by the Board.
In addition to all other rights of indemnification they may have as members of the Board, members of the Plan Administrator shall be indemnified by the Corporation for all reasonable expenses and liabilities of any type or nature, including attorneys' fees, incurred in connection with any action, suit or proceeding to which they or any of them are a party by reason of, or in connection with, this Plan or any Option granted under this Plan, and against all amounts paid by them in settlement thereof (provided that such settlement is approved by independent legal counsel selected by the Corporation), except to the extent that such expenses relate to matters for which it is adjudged that such Plan Administrator member is liable for willful misconduct; provided, that within fifteen (15) days after the institution of any such action, suit or proceeding, the Plan Administrator member involved therein shall, in
writing, notify the Corporation of such
action, suit or proceeding, so that the Corporation may have the opportunity to make appropriate arrangements to prosecute or defend the same.
11.1 The Plan Administrator may, at any time, modify, amend or terminate this Plan or modify or amend Options granted under this Plan, including, without limitation, such modifications or amendments as are necessary to maintain compliance with the Applicable Laws. The Plan Administrator may condition the effectiveness of any such amendment on the receipt of shareholder approval at such time and in such manner as the Plan Administrator may consider necessary for the Corporation to comply with or to avail the Corporation and/or the Optionees of the benefits of any securities, tax, market listing or other administrative or regulatory requirements.
Effective Date: April 17, 2007