Blueprint
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON,
D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE
14A INFORMATION
Proxy Statement
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1934
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appropriate box:
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14a-6(e)(2))
☒
Definitive Proxy Statement
☐
Definitive Additional Materials
☐
Soliciting Material under Rule 14a-12
CEL-SCI
CORPORATION
|
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)
|
|
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the
Registrant)
|
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CEL-SCI CORPORATION
8229 Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna, Virginia 22l82
(703) 506-9460
NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
TO BE HELD MAY 20, 2019
To the
Shareholders of CEL-SCI Corporation:
Notice
is hereby given that the annual meeting of the shareholders of
CEL-SCI Corporation (“CEL-SCI”) will be held at 4820-C
Seton Drive, Baltimore, MD 21215, on May 20, 2019 at 10:30 a.m.
local time, for the following purposes:
(1)
to elect the
directors who shall constitute CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors
for the ensuing year;
(2)
to approve the
adoption of CEL-SCI’s 2019 Non-Qualified Stock Option Plan
which provides that up to 3,000,000 shares of common stock may be
issued upon the exercise of options granted pursuant to the
Plan;
(3)
to approve the
adoption of CEL-SCI’s 2019 Stock Compensation Plan which
provides that up to 500,000 shares of common stock may be
issued pursuant to the Plan;
(4)
to ratify the
appointment of BDO USA, LLP as CEL-SCI’s independent
registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2019; and
to
transact such other business as may properly come before the
meeting or any adjournments or postponements thereof.
March
26, 2019 is the record date for the determination of shareholders
entitled to notice of and to vote at the meeting. Shareholders are
entitled to one vote for each share held. As of March 26, 2019,
there were 29,769,709 outstanding shares of CEL-SCI’s common
stock.
|
CEL-SCI
CORPORATION
|
|
|
March
26, 2019
|
Geert
R. Kersten, Chief Executive Officer
|
The Board of Directors solicits the enclosed proxy. Your vote is
important no matter how large or small your holdings. To assure
your representation at the meeting, please vote
promptly.
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for
the Shareholder Meeting to be held on May 20, 2019. This Proxy
Statement is available at: https://cel-sci.com/sec-filings/.
If you
need additional copies of this Proxy Statement or the enclosed
proxy card, or if you have other
questions
about the proposals or how to vote your shares, you may contact our
proxy solicitor:
|
ADVANTAGE PROXY
|
(877)
870-8565 (toll free) or (206) 870-8565 (collect)
Or by email at: ksmith@advantageproxy.com
|
PLEASE INDICATE YOUR VOTING INSTRUCTIONS ON THE ATTACHED PROXY
CARD,
AND SIGN, DATE AND RETURN THE PROXY CARD, OR VOTE VIA THE
INTERNET
OR BY TELEPHONE
TO SAVE THE COST OF FURTHER SOLICITATION, PLEASE VOTE
PROMPTLY
CEL-SCI CORPORATION
8229 Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna, Virginia 22l82
(703) 506-9460
PROXY
STATEMENT
The
accompanying proxy is solicited by CEL-SCI’s directors for
voting at the annual meeting of shareholders to be held on May 20,
2019, and at any and all adjournments of such meeting. If the proxy
is executed and returned, it will be voted at the meeting in
accordance with any instructions, and if no specification is made,
the proxy will be voted for the proposals set forth in the
accompanying notice of the annual meeting of shareholders.
Shareholders who execute proxies may revoke them at any time before
they are voted, either by writing to CEL-SCI at the address shown
above or in person at the time of the meeting. Additionally, any
later dated proxy will revoke a previous proxy from the same
shareholder. This proxy statement was posted on the CEL-SCI’s
website on or about March 26, 2019.
There
is one class of capital stock outstanding. Provided a quorum
consisting of one-third of the shares entitled to vote is present
at the meeting, the affirmative vote of a majority of the shares of
common stock voting in person or represented by proxy is required
to elect directors. Cumulative voting in the election of directors
is not permitted. The other proposals to come before the meeting
will be adopted if votes cast in favor of the proposal exceed the
votes cast against the proposal.
Shares
of CEL-SCI’s common stock represented by properly executed
proxies that reflect abstentions or "broker non-votes" will be
counted as present for purposes of determining the presence of a
quorum at the annual meeting. “Broker non-votes”
represent shares held by brokerage firms in "street-name" with
respect to which the broker has not received instructions from the
customer or otherwise does not have discretionary voting authority.
Abstentions and broker non-votes will not be counted as having
voted against the proposals to be considered at the
meeting.
Preliminary
voting results will be announced at the Annual Meeting. In
addition, final voting results will be published in a current
report on Form 8-K that we expect to file within four business days
after the Annual Meeting.
PRINCIPAL SHAREHOLDERS
The
following table lists, as of March
26, 2019, information with respect to the persons owning
beneficially 5% or more of CEL-SCI’s outstanding common stock
and the number and percentage of outstanding shares owned by each
director and officer of CEL-SCI and by the officers and directors
as a group. Unless otherwise indicated, each owner has sole voting
and investment powers over his or her shares of common
stock.
Name and
Address
|
Number of
Shares (1)
|
Percent of
Class
|
|
|
|
Geert
R. Kersten
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
2,415,570
(2)
|
7.8%
|
|
|
|
Patricia
B. Prichep
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
387,990
|
1.3%
|
|
|
|
Eyal
Talor, Ph.D.
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
283,203
|
*
|
|
|
|
Daniel
H. Zimmerman, Ph.D.
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
178,122
|
*
|
|
|
|
John
Cipriano
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
210,842
|
*
|
|
|
|
Peter
R. Young, Ph.D.
208
Hewitt Drive, Suite 103-143
Waco,
TX 76712
|
83,792
|
*
|
|
|
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
8229
Boone Blvd., Suite 802
Vienna,
VA 22182
|
55,001
|
*
|
|
|
|
Robert
Watson
245 N.
Highland Ave. NE
Suite
230-296
Atlanta,
GA 30307
|
30,001
|
*
|
|
|
|
All
Officers and Directors
as a
Group (8 persons)
|
3,644,521
|
11.46%
|
* Less
than 1% of outstanding shares.
(1)
Includes shares
issuable prior to July 31, 2019 upon the exercise of options or
warrants held by the following persons:
Name
|
Options or
Warrants Exercisable
Prior to July
31, 2019
|
Geert R. Kersten,
Esq.
|
1,338,689(3)
|
Patricia B.
Prichep
|
196,230
|
Eyal Talor,
Ph.D.
|
166,208
|
Daniel Zimmerman,
Ph.D.
|
73,533
|
John
Cipriano
|
114,649
|
Peter R. Young,
Ph.D.
|
66,701
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
|
55,001
|
Robert
Watson
|
30,001
|
(2)
Amount includes
shares held in trust for the benefit of Mr. Kersten's children and
securities held in a separate trust, for which Mr. Kersten is a
beneficiary.
(3)
Amount includes
shares issuable upon the exercise of warrants held by Mr. Kersten
directly and in the trust.
OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS
Information
concerning CEL-SCI’s officers and directors
follows:
Name
|
Age
|
Position
|
Committees
|
Geert
R. Kersten, Esq.
|
60
|
Director,
Chief Executive Officer and Treasurer
|
|
Patricia
B. Prichep
|
68
|
Senior
Vice President of Operations and Corporate Secretary
|
|
Eyal
Talor, Ph.D.
|
63
|
Chief
Scientific Officer
|
|
Daniel
H. Zimmerman, Ph.D.
|
78
|
Senior
Vice President of Research, Cellular Immunology
|
|
John
Cipriano
|
77
|
Senior
Vice President of Regulatory Affairs
|
|
Peter
R. Young, Ph.D. (1)
|
74
|
Director,
Independent
|
Audit,
Compensation, and Nominating
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
|
65
|
Director,
Independent
|
Audit,
Compensation, and Nominating
|
Robert
Watson
|
62
|
Director,
Independent
|
Audit,
Compensation, and Nominating
|
(1)
Dr. Young is the
chairman of the Audit, Compensation and Nominating
committees.
The
directors of CEL-SCI serve in such capacity until the next annual
meeting of CEL-SCI's shareholders and until their successors have
been duly elected and qualified. The officers of CEL-SCI serve at
the discretion of CEL-SCI's directors. CEL-SCI’s officers
devote substantially all of their time to CEL-SCI’s
business.
Geert
Kersten has served in his current leadership role at CEL-SCI since
1995. Mr. Kersten has been with CEL-SCI since 1987. He has been
involved in the pioneering field of cancer immunotherapy for over
two decades and has successfully steered CEL-SCI through many
challenging cycles in the biotechnology industry. Mr. Kersten also
provides CEL-SCI with significant expertise in the fields of
finance and law and has a unique vision of how CEL-SCI's Multikine
product could potentially change the way cancer is treated. Prior
to joining CEL-SCI, Mr. Kersten worked at the law firm of Finley
& Kumble and worked at Source Capital, an investment banking
firm located in McLean, VA. He is a native of Germany, graduated
from high school in England, and completed his studies in the US.
Mr. Kersten received his Undergraduate Degree in Accounting and an
M.B.A. from George Washington University and a law degree (J.D.)
from American University in Washington, DC. Mr. Kersten’s
experience overseeing the financing and research and development of
CEL-SCI for over 25 years qualifies him to continue to serve on
CEL-SCI’s board of directors. Mr. Kersten is also the
inventor of a patent on the potential use of Multikine® (Leukocyte
Interleukin, Injection) in managing cholesterol.
Patricia B. Prichep
joined CEL-SCI in 1992 and has been CEL-SCI's Senior Vice President
of Operations since March 1994. Between December 1992 and March
1994, Ms. Prichep was CEL-SCI's Director of Operations. Ms. Prichep
became CEL-SCI's Corporate Secretary in May 2000. She is
responsible for all day-to-day operations of CEL-SCI, including
human resources and is the liaison with CEL-SCI’s independent
registered public accounting firm for financial reporting. From
June 1990 to December 1992, Ms. Prichep was the Manager of Quality
and Productivity for the NASD’s Management, Systems and
Support Department and was responsible for the internal auditing
and work flow analysis of operations. Between 1982 and 1990, Ms.
Prichep was Vice President and Operations Manager for Source
Capital, Ltd. She handled all operations and compliance for Source
Capital and was licensed as a securities broker. Ms. Prichep
received her B.A. from the University of Bridgeport in
Connecticut.
Eyal
Talor, Ph.D. joined CEL-SCI in October 1993. In October 2009, Dr.
Talor was promoted to Chief Scientific Officer. Between this
promotion and March of 1994 he was the Senior Vice President of
Research and Manufacturing. He is a clinical immunologist with over
19 years of hands-on management of clinical research and drug
development for immunotherapy application; pre-clinical to Phase
III, in the biopharmaceutical industry. His expertise includes;
biopharmaceutical R&D and Biologics product development, GMP
(Good Manufacturing Practices) manufacture, Quality Control
testing, and the design and building of GMP manufacturing and
testing facilities. He served as Director of Clinical Laboratories
(certified by the State of Maryland) and has experience in the
design of clinical trials (Phase I – III) and GCP (Good
Clinical Practices) requirements. He also has broad experience in
the different aspects of biological assay development, analytical
methods validation, raw material specifications, and QC (Quality
Control) tests development under FDA/GMP, USP, and ICH guidelines.
He has extensive experience in the preparation of documentation for
IND and other regulatory submissions. His scientific area of
expertise encompasses immune response assessment. He is the author
of over 25 publications and has published a number of reviews on
immune regulations in relation to clinical immunology. Before
coming to CEL-SCI, he was Director of R&D and Clinical
Development at CBL, Inc., Principal Scientist - Project Director,
and Clinical Laboratory Director at SRA Technologies, Inc. Prior to
that he was a full time faculty member at The Johns Hopkins
University, Medical Institutions; School of Public Health. He has
invented technologies which are covered by two US patents; one on
Multikine’s composition of matter and method of use in
cancer, and one on a platform Peptide technology
(‘Adapt’) for the treatment of autoimmune diseases,
asthma, allergy, and transplantation rejection. He also is
responsible for numerous product and process inventions as well as
a number of pending US and PCT patent applications. He received his
Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Ottawa,
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and had post-doctoral training in clinical
and cellular immunology at The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore,
Maryland, USA. He holds an Adjunct Associate teaching position at
the Johns Hopkins University Medical Institutions.
Daniel
H. Zimmerman, Ph.D. was CEL-SCI's Senior Vice President of Cellular
Immunology between 1996 and December 2008 and again since November
2009. He joined CEL-SCI in January 1996 as the Vice President of
Research, Cellular Immunology. Dr. Zimmerman founded CELL-MED, Inc.
and was its president from 1987-1995. From 1973-1987, Dr. Zimmerman
served in various positions at Electronucleonics, Inc. His
positions included: Scientist, Senior Scientist, Technical Director
and Program Manager. Dr. Zimmerman held various teaching positions
at Montgomery College between 1987 and 1995. Dr. Zimmerman has
invented technologies which are covered by over a dozen US patents
as well as many foreign equivalent patents. He is the author of
over 40 scientific publications in the area of immunology and
infectious diseases. He has been awarded numerous grants from NIH
and DOD. From 1969-1973, Dr. Zimmerman was a Senior Staff Fellow at
NIH. For the following 25 years, he continued on at NIH as a guest
worker. Dr. Zimmerman received a Ph.D. in Biochemistry in 1969, and
a Masters in Zoology in 1966 from the University of Florida as well
as a B.S. in Biology from Emory and Henry College in
1963.
John
Cipriano was CEL-SCI’s Senior Vice President of Regulatory
Affairs between March 2004 and December 2008 and again since
October 2009. Mr. Cipriano brings to CEL-SCI over 30 years of
experience with both biotech and pharmaceutical companies. In
addition, he held positions at the United States Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) as Deputy Director, Division of Biologics
Investigational New Drugs, Office of Biologics Research and Review
and was the Deputy Director, IND Branch, Division of Biologics
Evaluation, Office of Biologics. Mr. Cipriano completed his B.S. in
Pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy in Boston,
Massachusetts and his M.S. in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from Purdue
University in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Peter
R. Young, Ph.D. has been a Director of CEL-SCI since August 2002.
Dr. Young has been a senior executive within the pharmaceutical
industry in the United States and Canada for most of his career,
originally in organizations that are now part of Sanofi S.A. Over
the last 20 years he has primarily held positions of Chief
Executive Officer or Chief Financial Officer and has extensive
experience with acquisitions and equity financing. Since November
2001, Dr. Young has been the President of Agnus Dei, LLC, which has
acted as a partner in an organization managing immune system
clinics which treats patients with diseases such as cancer,
multiple sclerosis and hepatitis. Dr. Young was also the President
and Chief Executive Officer of SRL Technology, Inc., a company
involved in the development of pharmaceutical drug delivery
systems. Between 1998 and 2001, Dr. Young was the Chief Financial
Officer of Adams Laboratories, Inc., the developer of
Mucinex®. Dr. Young received his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry
from the University of Bristol, England after obtaining his
Bachelor's degree in Honors Chemistry, Mathematics and Economics.
Subsequently, he qualified as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute
of Management Accountants. CEL-SCI believes Dr. Young’s
extensive knowledge of the life sciences industry, coupled with his
business acumen and financial expertise, gives him the
qualifications and skills to serve as a director, and the chair of
CEL-SCI’s audit nominating and compensation
committees.
Bruno
Baillavoine joined CEL-SCI’s board of directors in June 2015.
Since 2017 Mr. Baillavoine has been the Director, Head of Pericles
Group UK the subsidiary of the Paris based leading French
consulting firm, Pericles Consulting Holdings SAS. Pericles is an
expert in the field of Banking, Finance, Asset Management and
Insurance with over 350 institutional clients. He has also been an
advisor to the Board of CSL Inc, Combatives Sports League a US Mix
Martial Arts company since 2017 and was appointed to the Board in
2019. Between 2010-2016, Mr. Baillavoine was a partner of Globomass
Holdings Limited, a London, England based developer of renewable
energy projects from concept through final operations. From
2012-2016 Mr. Baillavoine was the Executive Chairman of Globomass
Holdings. Globomass was acquired by CleanBay Inc. in 2016. Mr.
Baillavoine remains a significant sharehold in CleanBay Inc.
Between 1978 and 1982 he was the marketing manager of Ravenhead
Ltd., a manufacturer of glass tableware, and part of United
Distillers Group (later acquired by Grand Metropolitan). During
this time Mr. Baillavoine became the UK Business Manager where he
restored market share and profit for United Distillers. From 1982
to 1986 Mr. Baillavoine was Group Corporate Planning and Group
Marketing Director for Prontaprint where he expanded the number of
shops to 500 locations in four years. Mr. Baillavoine joined Grand
Metropolitan Plc between 1986-1988 (now Diageo Plc), an FTSE 100
beverage, food, hotel and leisure company, as director in the
Special Operations division. In this capacity, he developed plans
for Grand Met’s trouble-shooting division for over 20,000
Grand Met retail outlets. From 1988-1991 he was the Managing
Director of Nutri Systems (UK) Ltd., a subsidiary of the US based
provider of professionally supervised weight loss programs. Between
1991 and 1995, Mr. Baillavoine was Director of BET Group plc, a
multinational business support services group, and in 1992, was
promoted to the Managing Director for the manufacturing businesses.
The £2.3 billion turnaround of BET during his tenure is one of
the most successful turnarounds of a top 100 FTSE company. Since
1995, Mr. Baillavoine has held a number of CEO positions across a
wide range of industries and geographical locations. Mr.
Baillavoine has European and American educations (US high school
and University of Wisconsin Eau Claire 1972-1976). CEL-SCI believes Mr.
Ballavoine is qualified to act as a director due to his extensive
business experience and success in the turnaround and growth of
global businesses.
Robert
Watson has been a director of CEL-SCI since December 2017. Mr.
Watson joined Intermedix, Inc. in July 2017 as President of its
Preparedness Technology Division. Immediately prior to joining
Intermedix, he was the President and Chief Growth Officer of
NantHealth, Inc. (Nasdaq: NH) from January 2015 to May 2017. Prior
to NantHealth, he was President and CEO of Streamline Health, Inc.
(Nasdaq: STRM) from January 2011 to January 2015. Mr. Watson has
over 35 years of experience in the healthcare information
technology industry as a CEO, board member and advisor to multiple
healthcare information technology companies. He has participated in
over 75 acquisitions, raised nearly $750 million in capital,
completed three public offerings and successfully sold four
companies. Mr. Watson holds a MBA from the Wharton School of
Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a BA degree from
Syracuse University. Mr. Watson’s business experience and
educational background makes him qualified to serve as a director
of CEL-SCI.
CEL-SCI’s
nominating committee, consisting of Mr. Baillavoine, Dr. Young and
Mr. Watson, has nominated Geert R. Kersten, Peter R. Young, Bruno
Baillavoine and Robert Watson to stand for election as directors at
the annual meeting. Unless the proxy contains contrary
instructions, it is intended that the proxies will be voted for the
election of the nominees to the board of directors. In case any
nominee shall be unable or shall fail to act as a director by
virtue of an unexpected occurrence, the proxies may be voted for
such other person or persons as shall be determined by the persons
acting under the proxies in their discretion. All nominees to the
board of directors have consented to stand for election.
CEL-SCI’s Nominating Committee Charter can be reviewed at
CEL-SCI’s website: https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/.
CEL-SCI
does not have any policy regarding the consideration of director
candidates recommended by shareholders since a shareholder has
never recommended a nominee to the Board of Directors and under
Colorado law, any shareholder can nominate a person for election as
a director at the annual shareholders’ meeting. However,
CEL-SCI’s nominating committee will consider candidates
recommended by shareholders. To submit a candidate for the Board of
Directors the shareholder should send the name, address and
telephone number of the candidate, together with any relevant
background or biographical information, to Dr. Peter Young at the
address shown on the cover page of this proxy statement.
CEL-SCI’s nominating committee has not established any
specific qualifications or skills a nominee must meet to serve as a
director. Although CEL-SCI does not have any process for
identifying and evaluating director nominees, CEL-SCI does not
believe there would be any differences in the manner in which
CEL-SCI evaluates nominees submitted by shareholders as opposed to
nominees submitted by any other person.
CEL-SCI’s
Board of Directors does not have a “leadership
structure”, as such, since each director is entitled to
introduce resolutions to be considered by the Board and each
director is entitled to one vote on any resolution considered by
the Board. CEL-SCI’s Chief Executive Officer is not the
Chairman of CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors.
CEL-SCI’s
Board of Directors has the ultimate responsibility to evaluate and
respond to risks facing CEL-SCI. CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors
fulfills its obligations in this regard by meeting on a regular
basis and communicating, when necessary, with CEL-SCI’s
officers.
Peter
R. Young, Bruno Baillavoine and Robert Watson are independent as
that term is defined in section 803 of the listing standards of the
NYSE American.
CEL-SCI’s
Board of Directors met 5 times during the fiscal year ended
September 30, 2018. All of the Directors attended these meetings,
either in person or by telephone conference call. In addition, the
Board of Directors had a number of informal telephonic meetings
during the course of the year.
CEL-SCI
has adopted a Code of Ethics which is applicable to CEL-SCI’S
principal executive, financial, and accounting officers and persons
performing similar functions. The Code of Ethics is available on
CEL-SCI’s website, located at https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/.
If a
violation of this code of ethics act is discovered or suspected,
the person suspecting the violation should (anonymously, if
desired) send a detailed note, with relevant documents, to
CEL-SCI’s Audit Committee, c/o Dr. Peter Young, 208 Hewitt
Drive, Suite 103-143, Waco, TX 76712.
CEL-SCI
does not have a policy with regard to Board member’s
attendance at annual meetings. All Board members attended the last
annual shareholder’s meeting held on September 20,
2018.
Holders
of CEL-SCI’s common stock can send written communications to
CEL-SCI’s entire Board of Directors, or to one or more Board
members, by addressing the communication to “the Board of
Directors” or to one or more directors, specifying the
director or directors by name, and sending the communication to
CEL-SCI’s offices in Vienna, Virginia. Communications
addressed to the Board of Directors as whole will be delivered to
each Board member. Communications addressed to a specific director
(or directors) will be delivered to the director (or directors)
specified.
Security holder
communications sent to specified Board members and not sent to the
Board of Directors as a whole are not relayed to other Board
members.
Executive Compensation
Components of Compensation - Executive Officers
CEL-SCI’s
executive officers are compensated through the following three
components:
●
Long-Term
Incentives (stock options and/or grants of stock)
These
components provide a balanced mix of base compensation and
compensation that is contingent upon each executive officer’s
individual performance. A goal of the compensation program is to
provide executive officers with a reasonable level of security
through base salary and benefits. CEL-SCI wants to ensure that the
compensation programs are appropriately designed to encourage
executive officer retention and motivation to create shareholder
value. The Compensation Committee
believes that CEL-SCI’s stockholders are best served when
CEL-SCI can attract and retain talented executives by providing
compensation packages that are competitive but
fair.
Base Salaries
Base
salaries generally have been targeted to be competitive when
compared to the salary levels of persons holding similar positions
in other pharmaceutical companies and other publicly traded
companies of comparable size. Each executive officer’s
respective responsibilities, experience, expertise and individual
performance are considered.
A
further consideration in establishing compensation for the senior
employees is their long term history with CEL-SCI. Taken into
consideration are factors that have helped CEL-SCI survive in times
when it was financially weak, such as: willingness to accept salary
cuts, willingness not to be paid at all for extended time periods,
and in general an attitude that helped CEL-SCI survive during
financially difficult times.
Long-Term Incentives
Stock
grants and option grants help to align the interests of
CEL-SCI’s employees with those of its
shareholders. Options and stock grants are made under
CEL-SCI’s Stock Option, Incentive Stock Bonus, Stock Bonus
and Stock Compensation Plans. Options are granted with
exercise prices equal to the closing price of CEL-SCI’s
common stock on the day immediately preceding the date of grant,
with pro rata vesting at the end of each of the following three
years.
CEL-SCI
believes that grants of equity-based compensation:
●
Enhance the link
between the creation of shareholder value and long-term executive
incentive compensation;
●
Provide focus,
motivation and retention incentive; and
●
Provide competitive
levels of total compensation.
Benefits
In
addition to cash and equity compensation programs, executive
officers participate in the health and welfare benefit programs
available to other employees. In a few limited circumstances,
CEL-SCI provides other benefits to certain executive officers, such
as car allowances.
All
executive officers are eligible to participate in CEL-SCI’s
401(k) plan on the same basis as its other employees. CEL-SCI
matches 100% of each employee’s contribution up to 6% of his
or her salary.
Compensation Table
The
following table sets forth in summary form the compensation
received by (i) the Chief Executive and Financial Officer of
CEL-SCI and (ii) by each other executive officer of CEL-SCI who
received in excess of $100,000 during either of the two fiscal
years ended September 30, 2018.
Name
and
Principal
Position
|
Fiscal
Year
|
|
|
|
|
All Other
Compen-sation
(5)
|
|
|
$
|
$
|
$
|
$
|
$
|
$
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geert R.
Kersten,
|
2018
|
557,756
|
--
|
16,350
|
1,011,048
|
55,631
|
1,640,784
|
Chief
Executive
|
2017
|
437,461
|
--
|
15,900
|
326,961
|
55,631
|
835,953
|
Officer and
Treasurer
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Patricia B.
Prichep,
|
2018
|
162,374
|
--
|
14,679
|
424,557
|
9,031
|
610,641
|
Senior Vice
President
|
2017
|
171,028
|
--
|
13,704
|
217,974
|
9,031
|
411,737
|
of Operations
and
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Secretary
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Eyal Talor,
Ph.D.,
|
2018
|
264,927
|
--
|
9,600
|
681,389
|
6,031
|
961,946
|
Chief Scientific
Officer
|
2017
|
270,163
|
--
|
9,600
|
217,974
|
6,031
|
503,768
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Daniel Zimmerman,
Ph.D.,
|
2018
|
276,159
|
--
|
13,666
|
240,677
|
6,031
|
536,534
|
Senior Vice
President of
|
2017
|
166,320
|
--
|
13,333
|
35,989
|
6,031
|
221,673
|
Research,
Cellular
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Immunology
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
John
Cipriano,
|
2018
|
234,207
|
--
|
--
|
282,928
|
31
|
517,166
|
Senior Vice
President of
|
2017
|
185,592
|
--
|
--
|
163,480
|
31
|
349,103
|
Regulatory
Affairs
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(1)
The dollar value of
base salary (cash and non-cash) earned. As of September 30, 2018,
the Company owed back salaries to the following
employees:
Name
|
|
Geert
Kersten
|
$148,888
|
Patricia
Prichep
|
$155,078
|
Eyal
Talor, Ph.D.
|
$71,696
|
Daniel
Zimmerman, Ph.D.
|
$20,337
|
John
Cipriano
|
$9,041
|
(2)
The dollar value of
bonus (cash and non-cash) earned.
(3)
For all persons
listed in the table, the shares were issued as CEL-SCI's
contribution on behalf of the named officer who participates in
CEL-SCI's 401(k) retirement plan. The value of all stock awarded
during the periods covered by the table is calculated according to
ASC 718-10-30-3 which represented the grant date fair
value.
(4)
The fair value of
all stock options granted during the periods covered by the table
are calculated on the grant date in accordance with ASC 718-10-30-3
which represented the grant date fair value.
(5)
All other
compensation received that CEL-SCI could not properly report in any
other column of the table including the dollar value of any
insurance premiums paid by, or on behalf of, CEL-SCI with respect
to term life insurance for the benefit of the named executive
officer and car allowances paid by CEL-SCI. Includes board of
director fees for Mr. Kersten.
Employee Pension, Profit Sharing or Other Retirement
Plans
CEL-SCI
has a defined contribution retirement plan, qualifying under
Section 401(k) of the Internal Revenue Code and covering
substantially all CEL-SCI’s employees. CEL-SCI’s
contribution to the plan is made in shares of CEL-SCI's common
stock. Each participant's contribution is matched by CEL-SCI with
shares of common stock which have a value equal to 100% of the
participant's contribution, not to exceed the lesser of $1,000 or
6% of the participant's total compensation. CEL-SCI's contribution
of common stock is valued each quarter based upon the closing price
of its common stock. The fiscal 2018 expenses for this plan were
approximately $144,000. Other than the 401(k) Plan, CEL-SCI does
not have a defined benefit, pension plan, profit sharing or other
retirement plan.
Compensation of Directors During Year Ended September 30,
2018
Name
|
|
|
|
|
Geert
Kersten
|
$40,000
|
-
|
1,011,048
|
$1,051,048
|
Peter R.
Young
|
$50,000
|
-
|
152,576
|
$202,576
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
|
$50,000
|
-
|
152,576
|
$202,576
|
Robert Watson
(3)
|
$30,000
|
-
|
168,332
|
$198,332
|
(1)
The fair value of
stock issued for services.
(2)
The fair value of
options granted computed in accordance with ASC 718-10-30-3 on the
date of grant which represents their grant date fair
value.
(3)
Mr. Watson joined
CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors in December 2017.
Directors’
fees paid to Geert Kersten are included in the Executive
Compensation table.
Employment Contracts
Geert Kersten
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Geert Kersten, CEL-SCI’s Chief Executive
Officer. The employment agreement with Mr. Kersten, which is
essentially the same as Mr. Kersten’s prior employment
agreement, as amended on August 30, 2013, provided that, during the
term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Mr. Kersten an annual
salary of $559,052, plus any increases in proportion to salary
increases granted to other senior executive officers of CEL-SCI, as
well any increases approved by the Board of Directors during the
term of the employment agreement.
During
the employment term, Mr. Kersten will be entitled to receive any
other benefits which are provided to CEL-SCI's executive officers
or other full time employees in accordance with CEL-SCI's policies
and practices and subject to Mr. Kersten’s satisfaction of
any applicable conditions of eligibility.
If Mr.
Kersten resigns within ninety (90) days of the occurrence of any of
the following events: (i) a reduction in Mr. Kersten’s salary
(ii) a relocation (or demand for relocation) of Mr. Kersten’s
place of employment to a location more than ten (10) miles from his
current place of employment, (iii) a significant and material
reduction in Mr. Kersten’s authority, job duties or level of
responsibility or the imposition of significant and material
limitations on the Mr. Kersten’s autonomy in his position, or
(iv) a Change in Control, then the employment agreement will be
terminated and Mr. Kersten will be entitled to receive a lump-sum
payment from CEL-SCI equal to 24 months of salary ($1,118,104) and
the unvested portion of any stock options would vest immediately.
For purposes of the employment agreement a change in the control of
CEL-SCI means: (1) the merger of CEL-SCI with another entity if
after such merger the shareholders of CEL-SCI do not own at least
50% of voting capital stock of the surviving corporation; (2) the
sale of substantially all of the assets of CEL-SCI; (3) the
acquisition by any person of more than 50% of CEL-SCI's common
stock; or (4) a change in a majority of CEL-SCI's directors which
has not been approved by the incumbent directors.
The
employment agreement will also terminate upon the death of Mr.
Kersten or Mr. Kersten’s physical or mental
disability.
If the
employment agreement is terminated for any of these reasons, Mr.
Kersten, or his legal representatives, as the case may be, will be
paid the salary provided by the employment agreement through the
date of termination, any options or bonus shares of CEL-SCI then
held by Mr. Kersten will become fully vested and the expiration
date of any options which would expire during the four year period
following his termination of employment will be extended to the
date which is four years after his termination of employment. The
employment agreement will also terminate upon the willful
misconduct, an act of fraud against CEL-SCI, or a breach of the
employment agreement by Mr. Kersten, in which case Mr. Kersten will
be paid the salary provided by the employment agreement through the
date of termination.
Patricia B. Prichep / Eyal Talor, Ph.D.
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Patricia B. Prichep, CEL-SCI’s Senior Vice
President of Operations. The employment agreement with Ms. Prichep,
which is essentially the same as Ms. Prichep’s prior
employment agreement entered into on August 30, 2013 provided that,
during the term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Ms. Prichep an
annual salary of $245,804 plus any increases approved by the Board
of Directors during the period of the employment
agreement.
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Eyal Talor, Ph.D., CEL-SCI’s Chief Scientific
Officer. The employment agreement with Dr. Talor, which is
essentially the same as Dr. Talor’s prior employment
agreement entered into on August 30, 2013, provided that, during
the term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Dr. Talor an annual
salary of $303,453 plus any increases approved by the Board of
Directors during the period of the employment
agreement.
If Ms.
Prichep or Dr. Talor resigns within ninety (90) days of the
occurrence of any of the following events: (i) a relocation (or
demand for relocation) of employee’s place of employment to a
location more than ten (10) miles from the employee’s current
place of employment, (ii) a significant and material reduction in
the employee’s authority, job duties or level of
responsibility or (iii) the imposition of significant and material
limitations on the employee’s autonomy in her or his
position, the employment agreement will be terminated and the
employee will be paid the salary provided by the employment
agreement through the date of termination and the unvested portion
of any stock options held by the employee will vest
immediately.
In the
event there is a change in the control of CEL-SCI, the employment
agreements with Ms. Prichep and Dr. Talor allow Ms. Prichep and/or
Dr. Talor (as the case may be) to resign from her or his position
at CEL-SCI and receive a lump-sum payment from CEL-SCI equal to 18
months of salary ($368,706 and $455,180 respectively). In addition,
the unvested portion of any stock options held by the employee will
vest immediately. For purposes of the employment agreements, a
change in the control of CEL-SCI means: (1) the merger of CEL-SCI
with another entity if after such merger the shareholders of
CEL-SCI do not own at least 50% of voting capital stock of the
surviving corporation; (2) the sale of substantially all of the
assets of CEL-SCI; (3) the acquisition by any person of more than
50% of CEL-SCI's common stock; or (4) a change in a majority of
CEL-SCI's directors which has not been approved by the incumbent
directors.
The
employment agreements with Ms. Prichep and Dr. Talor will also
terminate upon the death of the employee, the employee’s
physical or mental disability, willful misconduct, an act of fraud
against CEL-SCI, or a breach of the employment agreement by the
employee. If the employment agreement is terminated for any of
these reasons the employee, or her or his legal representatives, as
the case may be, will be paid the salary provided by the employment
agreement through the date of termination.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider
Participation
CEL-SCI
has a compensation committee comprised of Mr. Bruno Baillavoine Dr.
Peter Young and Mr. Watson, all of whom are independent
directors.
During
the year ended September 30, 2018, no director of CEL-SCI was also
an executive officer of another entity, which had an executive
officer of CEL-SCI serving as a director of such entity or as a
member of the compensation committee of such entity.
Stock Option, Bonus and Compensation Plans
CEL-SCI
has Incentive Stock Option Plans, Non-Qualified Stock Option, Stock
Bonus Plans, Stock Compensation Plans and an Incentive Stock Bonus
Plan. All Stock Option, Bonus and Compensation Plans have been
approved by the stockholders. A summary description of these Plans
follows. In some cases these Plans are collectively referred to as
the "Plans".
Incentive Stock Option Plan.
The Incentive Stock Option Plans authorize the issuance of shares
of CEL-SCI's common stock to persons who exercise options granted
pursuant to the Plans. Only CEL-SCI’s employees may be
granted options pursuant to the Incentive Stock Option
Plans.
Options
may not be exercised until one year following the date of grant.
Options granted to an employee then owning more than 10% of the
common stock of CEL-SCI may not be exercisable by its terms after
five years from the date of grant. Any other option granted
pursuant to the Plans may not be exercisable by its terms after ten
years from the date of grant.
The
purchase price per share of common stock purchasable under an
option is determined by CEL-SCI’s Compensation Committee but
cannot be less than the fair market value of the common stock on
the date of the grant of the option (or 110% of the fair market
value in the case of a person owning more than 10% of CEL-SCI's
outstanding shares).
Non-Qualified Stock Option
Plans. The Non-Qualified Stock Option Plans authorize the
issuance of shares of CEL-SCI's common stock to persons that
exercise options granted pursuant to the Plans. CEL-SCI's
employees, directors, officers, consultants and advisors are
eligible to be granted options pursuant to the Plans, provided
however that bona fide services must be rendered by such
consultants or advisors and such services must not be in connection
with a capital-raising transaction or promoting CEL-SCI’s
common stock. The option exercise price is determined by
CEL-SCI’s Compensation Committee.
Stock Bonus Plan. Under the
Stock Bonus Plans, shares of CEL-SCI’s common stock may be
issued to CEL-SCI's employees, directors, officers, consultants and
advisors, provided however that bona fide services must be rendered
by consultants or advisors and such services must not be in
connection with a capital-raising transaction or
promoting CEL-SCI’s common stock.
Stock Compensation Plan. Under
the Stock Compensation Plan, shares of CEL-SCI’s common stock
may be issued to CEL-SCI’s employees, directors, officers,
consultants and advisors in payment of salaries, fees and other
compensation owed to these persons. However, bona fide services
must be rendered by consultants or advisors and such services must
not be in connection with a capital-raising transaction or
promoting CEL-SCI’s common stock.
Incentive Stock Bonus Plan.
Under the 2014 Incentive Stock Bonus Plan, shares of
CEL-SCI’s common stock may be issued to executive officers
and other employees who contribute significantly to the success of
CEL-SCI. The purpose of the Plan is to provide long term incentive
for outstanding service to CEL-SCI and its shareholders and to
assist in recruiting and retaining people of outstanding ability
and initiative in executive and management positions.
Other Information Regarding the
Plans. The Plans are administered by CEL-SCI's Compensation
Committee (“the Committee”), each member of which is a
director of CEL-SCI. The members of the Committee were selected by
CEL-SCI's Board of Directors and serve for a one-year tenure and
until their successors are elected. A member of the Committee may
be removed at any time by action of the Board of Directors. Any
vacancies which may occur on the Committee will be filled by the
Board of Directors. The Committee is vested with the authority to
interpret the provisions of the Plans and supervise the
administration of the Plans. In addition, the Committee is
empowered to select those persons to whom shares or options are to
be granted, to determine the number of shares subject to each grant
of a stock bonus or an option and to determine when, and upon what
conditions, shares or options granted under the Plans will vest or
otherwise be subject to forfeiture and cancellation.
In the
discretion of the Committee, any option granted pursuant to the
Plans may include installment exercise terms such that the option
becomes fully exercisable in a series of cumulating portions. The
Committee may also accelerate the date upon which any option (or
any part of any options) is first exercisable. Any shares issued
pursuant to the Stock Bonus Plans or Stock Compensation Plan and
any options granted pursuant to the Incentive Stock Option Plans or
the Non-Qualified Stock Option Plans will be forfeited if the
"vesting" schedule established by the Committee administering the
Plans at the time of the grant is not met. For this purpose,
vesting means the period during which the employee must remain an
employee of CEL-SCI or the period of time a non-employee must
provide services to CEL-SCI. At the time an employee ceases working
for CEL-SCI (or at the time a non-employee ceases to perform
services for CEL-SCI), any shares or options not fully vested will
be forfeited and cancelled. At the discretion of the Committee
payment for the shares of common stock underlying options may be
paid through the delivery of shares of CEL-SCI's common stock
having an aggregate fair market value equal to the option price,
provided such shares have been owned by the option holder for at
least one year prior to such exercise. A combination of cash and
shares of common stock may also be permitted at the discretion of
the Committee.
Options
are generally non-transferable except upon death of the option
holder. Shares issued pursuant to the Stock Bonus Plans will
generally not be transferable until the person receiving the shares
satisfies the vesting requirements imposed by the Committee when
the shares were issued.
The
Board of Directors of CEL-SCI may at any time, and from time to
time, amend, terminate, or suspend one or more of the Plans in any
manner it deems appropriate, provided that such amendment,
termination or suspension will not adversely affect rights or
obligations with respect to shares or options previously
granted.
Stock Options
The
following table show information concerning the options granted
during the fiscal year ended September 30, 2018, to the persons
named below:
Options Granted
|
|
|
|
Expiration
|
Name
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Geert
Kersten
|
5/1/2018
|
530,121
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Patricia
Prichep
|
5/1/2018
|
222,607
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Eyal
Talor
|
5/1/2018
|
193,934
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
Eyal
Talor
|
9/21/2018
|
100,000
|
$3.55
|
9/20/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Daniel
Zimmerman
|
5/1/2018
|
126,194
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
John
Cipriano
|
5/1/2018
|
148,347
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Peter
Young
|
5/1/2018
|
80,000
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
|
5/1/2018
|
80,000
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
Robert
Watson
|
12/18/2017
|
10,000
|
$1.84
|
12/17/2027
|
Robert
Watson
|
5/1/2018
|
80,000
|
$2.45
|
4/30/2028
|
|
|
|
|
The
following table shows the outstanding options held by the persons
named below as of September 30, 2018:
|
Shares underlying unexercised
|
|
|
|
|
|
Expiration
|
Name
|
|
|
|
|
Geert
Kersten
|
7,354
|
|
62.50
|
04/23/19
|
|
10,667
|
5,333
|
95.00
|
07/06/19
|
|
1,200
|
|
95.00
|
07/20/19
|
|
1,200
|
|
120.00
|
07/20/20
|
|
1,200
|
|
172.50
|
04/14/21
|
|
1,800
|
|
3.90
|
05/17/22
|
|
14,336
|
5,664
|
70.00
|
12/17/22
|
|
1,800
|
|
52.50
|
06/30/23
|
|
3,600
|
|
27.25
|
02/25/24
|
|
60,000
|
120,000
|
2.18
|
7/27/2027
|
|
|
530,121
|
2.45
|
04/30/28
|
|
|
|
|
|
Patricia B.
Prichep
|
2,868
|
|
62.50
|
04/23/19
|
|
8,000
|
4,000
|
95.00
|
07/06/19
|
|
600
|
|
95.00
|
07/20/19
|
|
600
|
|
120.00
|
07/20/20
|
|
600
|
|
172.50
|
04/14/21
|
|
1,200
|
|
97.50
|
05/17/22
|
|
6,000
|
|
70.00
|
12/17/22
|
|
1,200
|
|
52.50
|
06/30/23
|
|
2,400
|
|
27.25
|
02/25/24
|
|
40,000
|
80,000
|
2.18
|
07/27/27
|
|
|
222,607
|
2.45
|
04/30/28
|
|
|
|
|
Eyal Talor,
PhD
|
963
|
|
62.50
|
04/23/19
|
|
8,000
|
4,000
|
95.00
|
07/06/19
|
|
600
|
|
95.00
|
07/20/19
|
|
600
|
|
120.00
|
07/20/20
|
|
600
|
|
172.50
|
04/14/21
|
|
1,200
|
|
97.50
|
05/17/22
|
|
6,000
|
|
70.00
|
12/17/22
|
|
1,200
|
|
52.50
|
06/30/23
|
|
2,400
|
|
27.25
|
02/25/24
|
|
40,000
|
80,000
|
2.18
|
07/27/27
|
|
|
193,934
|
2.45
|
04/30/28
|
|
|
100,000
|
3.55
|
09/20/28
|
|
Shares underlying unexercised
|
|
|
|
|
|
Expiration
|
Name
|
|
|
|
|
Daniel Zimmerman,
PhD
|
600
|
|
120.00
|
07/20/20
|
|
600
|
|
172.50
|
04/14/21
|
|
900
|
|
97.50
|
05/17/22
|
|
900
|
|
52.50
|
06/30/23
|
|
1,800
|
|
27.25
|
02/25/24
|
|
8,000
|
|
27.50
|
08/05/24
|
|
4,000
|
|
15.50
|
06/25/25
|
|
2,667
|
1,333
|
11.75
|
07/21/26
|
|
2,000
|
4,000
|
1.87
|
06/28/27
|
|
6,667
|
13,333
|
1.59
|
09/17/27
|
|
|
126,194
|
2.45
|
04/30/28
|
|
|
|
|
|
John
Cipriano
|
600
|
|
120.00
|
07/20/20
|
|
600
|
|
172.50
|
04/14/21
|
|
400
|
|
62.50
|
09/30/19
|
|
900
|
|
97.50
|
05/17/22
|
|
900
|
|
57.50
|
06/30/23
|
|
1,800
|
|
27.25
|
02/25/24
|
|
30,000
|
60,000
|
2.18
|
07/27/27
|
|
|
148,347
|
2.45
|
04/30/28
|
Summary. The following shows
certain information as of September 30, 2018 concerning the stock
options and stock bonuses granted by CEL-SCI. Each option
represents the right to purchase one share of CEL-SCI's common
stock.
Name of
Plan
|
Total Shares
Reserved Under Plans
|
Shares Reserved
for Outstanding Options
|
|
Remaining
Options/Shares Under Plans
|
|
|
|
|
|
Incentive Stock
Option Plans
|
138,400
|
123,558
|
N/A
|
385
|
Non-Qualified Stock
Option Plans
|
3,387,200
|
3,036,569
|
N/A
|
309,526
|
Stock Bonus
Plans
|
783,760
|
N/A
|
300,230
|
483,497
|
Stock Compensation
Plan
|
134,000
|
N/A
|
115,590
|
0
|
Incentive Stock
Bonus Plan
|
640,000
|
N/A
|
624,000
|
16,000
|
Of the
shares issued pursuant to CEL-SCI's Stock Bonus Plans, 217,908
shares were issued as part of CEL-SCI's contribution to its 401(k)
plan.
The
following table shows the weighted average exercise price of the
outstanding options granted pursuant to CEL-SCI’s Incentive
and Non-Qualified Stock Option Plans as of September 30, 2018,
CEL-SCI’s most recent fiscal year end. CEL-SCI’s
Incentive and Non-Qualified Stock Option Plans have been approved
by CEL-SCI's shareholders.
Plan
category
|
Number of
Securities to be Issued Upon Exercise of Outstanding Options
(a)
|
Weighted-Average
Exercise Price of Outstanding Options
|
Number of
Securities
Remaining
Available For
Future
Issuance
Under Equity
Compensation
Plans, Excluding
Securities
Reflected in
Column (a)
|
|
|
|
|
Incentive Stock
Option Plans
|
123,558
|
$37,69
|
385
|
Non-Qualified Stock
Option Plans
|
3,036,569
|
$6.06
|
309,526
|
Compensation Committee
During
the year ending September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI had a Compensation
Committee which was comprised of Peter Young, Bruno Baillavoine and
Robert Watson. During the year ended September 30, 2018, the
Compensation Committee formerly met on one occasion.
The
following is the report of the Compensation Committee:
The key
components of CEL-SCI’s executive compensation program
include annual base salaries and long-term incentive compensation
consisting of stock options. It is CEL-SCI’s policy to target
compensation (i.e., base salary, stock option grants and other
benefits) at approximately the median of comparable companies in
the biotechnology field. Accordingly, data on compensation
practices followed by other companies in the biotechnology industry
is considered.
CEL-SCI’s
long-term incentive program formerly consisted of periodic grants
of stock options with an exercise price equal to the fair market
value of CEL-SCI’s common stock at the close of the previous
trading day. To encourage retention, the ability to exercise
options granted under the program was subject to vesting
restrictions. Decisions made regarding the timing and size of
option grants took into account the performance of both CEL-SCI and
the employee, “competitive market” practices, and the
size of the option grants made in prior years. The weighting of
these factors varied and was subjective.
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Geert Kersten, CEL-SCI’s Chief Executive
Officer. The employment agreement with Mr. Kersten, which is
essentially the same as Mr. Kersten’s prior employment
agreement, as amended on August 30, 2013, provided that, during the
term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Mr. Kersten an annual
salary of $559,052, plus any increases in proportion to salary
increases granted to other senior executive officers of CEL-SCI, as
well any increases approved by the Board of Directors during the
period of the employment agreement.
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Patricia B. Prichep, CEL-SCI’s Senior Vice
President of Operations. The employment agreement with Ms. Prichep,
which is essentially the same as Ms. Prichep’s prior
employment agreement entered into on August 30, 2013 provided that,
during the term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Ms. Prichep an
annual salary of $245,804 plus any increases approved by the Board
of Directors during the period of the employment
agreement.
On
August 31, 2016, CEL-SCI entered into a three-year employment
agreement with Eyal Talor, Ph.D., CEL-SCI’s Chief Scientific
Officer. The employment agreement with Dr. Talor, which is
essentially the same as Dr. Talor’s prior employment
agreement entered into on August 30, 2013, provided that, during
the term of the agreement, CEL-SCI would pay Dr. Talor an annual
salary of $303,453 plus any increases approved by the Board of
Directors during the period of the employment
agreement.
During
the year ending September 30, 2018, the compensation paid to
CEL-SCI’s other executive officers was based on a variety of
factors, including the performance in the executive's area of
responsibility, the executive's individual performance, the
executive's experience in his or her role, the executive's length
of service with CEL-SCI, the achievement of specific goals
established for CEL-SCI and its business, and, in certain
instances, to the achievement of individual goals.
Financial or
stockholder value performance comparisons were not used to
determine the compensation of CEL-SCI’s other executive
officers since CEL-SCI’s financial performance and
stockholder value are influenced to a substantial degree by
external factors and as a result comparing the compensation payable
to the other executive officers to CEL-SCI’s financial or
stock price performance can be misleading.
During
the year ended September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI granted options for the
purchase of 1,321,203 shares of CEL-SCI’s common stock to
CEL-SCI’s executive officers. In granting the options to
CEL-SCI’s executive officers, the Board of Directors
considered the same factors which were used to determine the cash
compensation paid to such officers.
Except
as otherwise disclosed in this proxy statement, during the year
ended September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI did not issue any shares of its
common stock to its officers or directors in return for services
provided to CEL-SCI.
The
foregoing report has been approved by the members of the
Compensation Committee:
Peter
Young
Bruno
Baillavoine
Robert
Watson
CEL-SCI’s
Compensation Committee Charter can be reviewed at CEL-SCI’s
website: https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/#corporategovernance.
Audit Committee
During
the year ended September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI had an Audit Committee
comprised of Peter Young, Bruno Baillavoine and Robert Watson. All
members of the Audit Committee were independent as defined by
Section 803 of the NYSE American Listing Standards. Dr. Young
serves as the audit committee’s financial expert. The purpose
of the Audit Committee is to review and approve the selection of
CEL-SCI’s independent registered public accounting firm and
review CEL-SCI’s financial statements with CEL-SCI’s
independent registered public accounting firm.
During
the fiscal year ended September 30, 2018, the Audit Committee met
eight times. All the members of the Audit Committee attended these
meetings.
The
following is the report of the Audit Committee:
(1)
The Audit Committee
reviewed and discussed CEL-SCI’s audited financial statements
for the year ended September 30, 2018 with CEL-SCI’s
management.
(2)
The Audit Committee
discussed with CEL-SCI’s independent registered public
accounting firm the matters required to be discussed by PCAOB
(Public Company Accounting Oversight Board) Standard No. 16
“Communication with Audit Committees”.
(3)
The Audit Committee
has received the written disclosures and the letter from
CEL-SCI’s independent registered public accounting firm
required by PCAOB independence standards, and had discussed with
CEL-SCI’s independent registered public accounting firm the
independent registered public accounting firm’s independence;
and
(4)
Based on the review
and discussions referred to above, the Audit Committee recommended
to the Board of Directors that the audited financial statements be
included in CEL-SCI’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year
ended September 30, 2018 for filing with the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
(5)
During the year
ended September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI paid BDO USA, LLP,
CEL-SCI’s independent registered public accounting firm, fees
for professional services rendered for the audit of CEL-SCI’s
annual financial statements and the reviews of the financial
statements included in CEL-SCI’s 10-Q reports for the fiscal
year and all regulatory filings. The Audit Committee is of the
opinion that these fees are consistent with BDO USA, LLP
maintaining its independence from CEL-SCI.
The
foregoing report has been approved by the members of the Audit
Committee:
Peter
Young
Bruno
Baillavoine
Robert
Watson
CEL-SCI’s
Board of Directors has adopted a written charter for the Audit
Committee. CEL-SCI’s Audit Committee Charter can be reviewed
at CEL-SCI’s website: https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/#corporategovernance.
PROPOSAL TO APPROVE THE ADOPTION OF THE
2019 NON-QUALIFIED STOCK OPTION PLAN
Shareholders are
being requested to approve the adoption of CEL-SCI’s 2019
Non-Qualified Stock Option Plan. CEL-SCI’s employees,
directors, officers, consultants, and advisors are eligible to be
granted options pursuant to the 2019 Non-Qualified Plan as may be
determined by CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors or the
Compensation Committee, provided however that bona fide services
must be rendered by consultants or advisors and such services must
not be in connection with the offer or sale of securities in a
capital-raising transaction or promoting CEL-SCI’s common
stock.
The
2019 Non-Qualified Plan authorizes the issuance of up to 3,000,000
shares of CEL-SCI’s common stock to persons that exercise
options granted pursuant to the Plan. As of March 26, 2019, CEL-SCI
had not granted any options to purchase shares of common stock
under the 2019 Non-Qualified Stock Option Plan.
The
2019 Non-Qualified Plan will function and be administered in the
same manner as CEL-SCI’s 2018 Non-Qualified Plan, including
provisions providing that any options granted pursuant to the 2019
Plan must have a minimum vesting period of one year and the
exercise price of any options granted pursuant to 2019 Plan may not
be changed, except in the case of stock splits, reorganizations or
recapitalizations. There are no provisions requiring CEL-SCI to pay
cash for an option under any circumstances. The Board of Directors
recommends that the shareholders of CEL-SCI approve the adoption of
the 2019 Non-Qualified Stock Option Plan.
PROPOSAL TO APPROVE THE ADOPTION OF THE
2019 STOCK COMPENSATION PLAN
During
the two years ended September 30, 2018, CEL-SCI issued 0 and 13,000
shares of its common stock, respectively, to its officers,
directors and employees. During the two years ended September 30,
2018, CEL-SCI issued 0 and 219,984 shares, respectively, to
consultants for payment of services of $0 and $60,264. To conserve
cash, CEL-SCI expects that it may continue to offer its officers,
directors, employees and consultants the opportunity to receive
shares of CEL-SCI’s common stock in payment of amounts owed
by CEL-SCI for services rendered.
So that
CEL-SCI may continue to offer shares of its common stock in payment
of compensation owed, CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors, subject
to shareholder approval, has adopted the 2019 Stock Compensation
Plan. The 2019 Stock Compensation Plan is virtually identical to
CEL-SCI’s 2015 Stock Compensation Plan which expired on
December 31, 2017. Up to 500,000 shares of common stock would be
available for issuance under the Plan. The Board of Directors
recommends that the shareholders of CEL-SCI approve the adoption of
the 2019 Stock Compensation Plan.
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
The
Board of Directors has selected BDO USA, LLP, an independent
registered public accounting firm, to audit the books and records
of CEL-SCI for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2019. A
representative of BDO USA, LLP is expected to be present at the
shareholders’ meeting.
BDO
USA, LLP served as CEL-SCI’s auditors for the years ended
September 30, 2018 and 2017. The following table shows the
aggregate fees billed to CEL-SCI during these years by BDO USA,
LLP:
|
|
|
|
|
Audit
Fees
|
$445,000
|
$375,000
|
Audit-Related
Fees
|
--
|
--
|
Tax
Fees
|
--
|
--
|
All Other
Fees
|
--
|
--
|
Audit
fees represent amounts billed for professional services rendered
for the audit of CEL-SCI’s annual financial statements and
the reviews of the financial statements included in CEL-SCI’s
10-Q reports for the fiscal year and all regulatory filings. Before
BDO USA, LLP was engaged by CEL-SCI to render audit or non-audit
services, the engagement was approved by CEL-SCI’s audit
committee. CEL-SCI’s Board of Directors is of the opinion
that the Audit Fees charged by BDO USA, LLP are consistent with BDO
USA, LLP maintaining its independence from CEL-SCI.
The
Board of Directors recommends that the shareholders of CEL-SCI
approve its selection of BDO USA, LLP as CEL-SCI’s
independent public accounting firm to audit the books and records
of CEL-SCI for the year ending September 30, 2019.
AVAILABILITY OF ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K
CEL-SCI’s
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending September 30, 2018
is available at https://cel-sci.com/sec-filings/.
SHAREHOLDER PROPOSALS
Any
shareholder proposal which may properly be included in the proxy
solicitation material for the annual meeting of shareholders
following CEL-SCI’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2019
must be received by the Secretary of CEL-SCI no later than January
2, 2020.
GENERAL
The
cost of preparing, printing and mailing the enclosed proxy,
accompanying notice and proxy statement, and all other costs in
connection with solicitation of proxies will be paid by CEL-SCI
including any additional solicitation made by letter or telephone.
Failure of a quorum to be present at the meeting will necessitate
adjournment and will subject CEL-SCI to additional
expense.
CEL-SCI’s
Board of Directors does not intend to present and does not have
reason to believe that others will present any other items of
business at the annual meeting. However, if other matters are
properly presented to the meeting for a vote, the proxies will be
voted upon such matters in accordance with the judgment of the
persons acting under the proxies.
Please complete, sign and return the attached proxy
promptly
CEL-SCI CORPORATION PROXY
This Proxy is solicited by CEL-SCI’s Board of
Directors
The
undersigned stockholder of CEL-SCI acknowledges receipt of the
Notice of the Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held May 20,
2019, 10:30 a.m. local time, at 4820-C Seton Drive, Baltimore, MD
21215, and hereby appoints Geert R. Kersten with the power of
substitution, as Attorney and Proxy to vote all the shares of the
undersigned at said annual meeting of stockholders and at all
adjournments thereof, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said
Attorney and Proxy may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof. The
above named Attorney and Proxy is instructed to vote all of the
undersigned's shares as follows:
The
Board of Directors recommends a vote FOR all the nominees listed
below:
(1)
|
To elect the persons who shall
constitute CEL-SCI's Board of Directors for the ensuing
year.
|
☐ FOR all nominees listed below
(except as marked to the contrary below)
|
☐ WITHHOLD AUTHORITY
to vote for all nominees listed
below
|
(INSTRUCTION: TO
WITHHOLD AUTHORITY TO VOTE FOR ANY INDIVIDUAL NOMINEE, STRIKE A
LINE THROUGH THE NOMINEE'S NAME IN THE LIST
BELOW)
Nominees:
|
Geert R.
Kersten
|
Peter R. Young
|
Bruno
Baillavoine
|
Robert Watson
|
The Board of Directors recommends you vote FOR the following
proposals;
(2)
|
To approve the adoption of
CEL-SCI’s 2019 Non-Qualified Stock Option Plan which provides
that up to 3,000,000 shares of common stock may be issued upon the
exercise of options granted pursuant to the Non-Qualified Stock
Option Plan.
|
☐
FOR
|
☐
AGAINST
|
☐
ABSTAIN
|
|
|
|
|
|
(3)
|
To approve the adoption of
CEL-SCI’s 2019 Stock Compensation Plan which provides that up
to 500,000 shares of common stock may be issued shares pursuant to
the plan.
|
☐
FOR
|
☐
AGAINST
|
☐
ABSTAIN
|
|
|
|
|
|
(4)
|
To ratify the appointment of BDO
USA, LLP as CEL-SCI’s independent registered public
accounting firm for the fiscal year ending September 30,
2019.
|
☐
FOR
|
☐
AGAINST
|
☐
ABSTAIN
|
To
transact such other business as may properly come before the
meeting or any adjournments or postponements thereof.
THIS
PROXY, WHEN PROPERLY EXECUTED, WILL BE VOTED AS DIRECTED HEREIN BY
THE UNDERSIGNED STOCKHOLDER. IF NO DISCRETION
IS INDICATED, THIS PROXY WILL BE VOTED IN FAVOR OF ALL NOMINEES TO
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND ITEMS 2 THROUGH 4.
Directions to the
Annual Meeting can be found at
https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/.
|
Dated this __
day of ____________
2019.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Signature)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Signature)
|
|
Please
sign your name exactly as it appears on your stock certificate. If
shares are held jointly, each holder should sign. Executors,
trustees, and other fiduciaries should so indicate when
signing.
Please
Sign, Date and Return this Proxy so that your shares may be voted
at the meeting.
Send
the proxy by regular mail, email, or fax to:
CEL-SCI
Corporation
Attn:
Gavin de Windt
8229
Boone Blvd., #802
Vienna,
VA 22182
Phone: 703-506-9460
Fax: 703-506-9471
Email:
gdewindt@cel-sci.com
.
IMPORTANT ANNUAL STOCKHOLDERS’
MEETING INFORMATION — YOUR VOTE COUNTS!
Stockholder
Meeting Notice
Important
Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for
the
CEL-SCI
Corporation Stockholder Meeting to be Held on May 20,
2019.
Under
Securities and Exchange Commission rules, you are receiving this
notice that the proxy materials for the annual stockholders’
meeting are available on the Internet. Follow the instructions
below to view the materials and vote online or request a copy. The
items to be voted on and location of the annual meeting are on the
reverse side. Your vote is important!
This
communication presents only an overview of the more complete proxy
materials that are available to you on the Internet. We encourage
you to access and review all of the important information contained
in the proxy materials before voting. The proxy statement, annual
report and letter to shareholders are available at:
www.envisionreports.com/CVM
Easy
Online Access — A Convenient Way to View Proxy Materials and
Vote
When you go online to view materials, you can also
vote your shares. Step 1: Go to
www.envisionreports.com/CVM
to view
the materials.
Step 2: Click on
Cast Your Vote or Request
Materials.
Step 3:
Follow the instructions on the screen
to log in.
Step 4:
Make your selection as instructed on
each screen to select delivery preferences and
vote.
When
you go online, you can also help the environment by consenting to
receive electronic delivery of future materials.
Obtaining
a Copy of the Proxy Materials - If you want to receive a paper or
e-mail copy of these documents, you must request one. There is no
charge to you for requesting a copy. Please make your request for a
copy as instructed on the reverse side on or before April 27, 2019
to facilitate timely delivery.
Stockholder
Meeting Notice
CEL-SCI
Corporation’s Annual Meeting of Stockholders will be held at
4820-C Seton Drive, Baltimore, MD 21215, on May 20, 2019, at 10:30
a.m. local time.
Proposals to be voted on at the meeting are listed below, along
with the Board of Directors’
recommendations.
The
Board of Directors recommends that you vote FOR the
following:
(1) To elect
the persons who shall constitute CEL-SCI's Board of Directors for
the ensuing year.
The
Board of Directors recommends you vote FOR the following
proposals:
(2) To approve
the adoption of CEL-SCI’s 2019 Non-Qualified Stock Option
Plan which provides that up to 3,000,000 shares of common stock may
be issued upon the exercise of options granted pursuant to the
Plan.
(3) To approve
the adoption of CEL-SCI’s 2019 Stock Compensation Plan which
provides that up to 500,000 shares of common stock may be issued
pursuant to the Plan.
(4) To ratify
the appointment of BDO USA, LLP as CEL-SCI’s independent
registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2019.
To
transact such other business as may properly come before the
meeting or any
adjournments or postponements thereof.
PLEASE
NOTE - YOU CANNOT VOTE BY RETURNING THIS NOTICE. To vote your
shares you must vote online or request a paper copy of the proxy
materials to receive a proxy card. If you wish to attend and vote
at the meeting, please bring this notice with you.
Directions
to attend the meeting can be found on our website at
https://cel-sci.com/new-investor-information/.
Here’s
how to order a copy of the proxy materials and select a future
delivery preference:
Paper
copies: Current and
future paper delivery requests can be submitted via the telephone,
Internet or email options below. Email
copies: Current and
future email delivery requests must be submitted via the Internet
by following the instructions below.
If
you request an email copy of current materials you will receive an
email with a link to the materials.
PLEASE NOTE: You must
use the number in the shaded bar on the reverse side when
requesting a set of proxy materials.
●
Internet - Go to
www.envisionreports.com/CVM. Click Cast
Your Vote or Request Materials. Follow the instructions to log in
and order a paper or
email copy of the current meeting materials and submit your
preference for email or paper delivery of future meeting
materials.
●
Telephone
-
Call us free of charge at 1-866-641-4276 using a touch-tone phone
and follow the instructions to log in and order a paper copy of the
materials by mail for the current meeting. You can also submit a
preference to receive a paper copy for future
meetings.
●
Email - Send email to
investorvote@computershare.com with “Proxy Materials CEL-SCI
Corporation” in the subject line. Include in the message your
full name and address, plus the number located in the shaded bar on
the reverse, and state in the email that you want a paper copy of
current meeting materials. You can also state your preference to
receive a paper copy for future meetings.