Introduction
This Code of Business Conduct and Ethics (referred to hereinafter
as the “Code”) sets forth Access Integrated Technologies,
Inc.’s (the “Company’s” or “our”) policies with respect
to the way we conduct our business. The provisions of this
Code are designed to promote honest and ethical behavior
among our employees, officers and directors.
In the course of performing our various roles in the Company,
each of us will encounter ethical questions under a variety
of circumstances. Moments of ethical uncertainty may arise
in our dealings with colleagues, with customers or with
other parties such as governmental entities or members
of our community.
In fulfilling the high professional standards of excellence,
integrity and ethical behavior, compliance with governmental
laws is not enough. Our employees should never be content
with simply obeying the letter of the law, but must also
strive
to conduct themselves in an honest and ethical manner.
This Code provides clear rules to assist our employees,
officers
and directors in taking the proper actions when faced with
an ethical dilemma. For guidance with respect to issues
not addressed in this Code, employees are directed to our
Employee
Manual, which sets forth the Company’s policies on a wide
range of issues that arise in the course of employment.
Our reputation is our greatest asset, and it depends on the
character of our employees. In order to protect this
asset, the Company will not tolerate unethical or illegal
behavior
by employees, officers or directors. Those who violate
the standards in this Code will be subject to disciplinary
action.
If you are concerned about taking an action that may
violate the Code or become aware of a violation by another
employee,
officer or director, follow the guidelines set forth
in Sections 10 and 11 of this Code.
This Code applies equally
to all employees, officers and directors of the Company.
All references to employees
contained in this
Code should be understood as referring to officers
and directors as well.
1. Compliance with Laws, Rules and
Regulations
The Company will not tolerate violations of law, rules
or regulations or lapses in ethics or integrity.
All employees must comply
with those laws, rules and regulations that govern
or apply to the Company’s business and must abide
by the
letter and
the spirit of these laws, rules and regulations.
Whenever an applicable law, rule or regulation is unclear
or
seems to conflict
with either another law or any provision of this
Code, all employees are urged to seek clarification from
their supervisor
or the Ethics Officer (the “Ethics Officer”), who
shall
initially be the Chairman of the Company’s Audit
Committee (the “Audit
Committee”). Beyond mere compliance with the law,
we should always conduct our business with the highest
standards of honesty
and integrity. In the final analysis, we should operate
our business in such a way that we would be proud
to
have all the
facts disclosed.
2. Conflicts of Interest
All of the Company’s employees should be scrupulous
in avoiding any action or interest that conflicts
or gives
the appearance
of a conflict with the Company’s interests. A “conflict
of interest” exists whenever an individual’s private
interests
interfere or conflict in any way (or even appear
to interfere or conflict) with the interests of
the Company.
A conflict
situation can arise when an employee, officer or
director takes actions or has interests that may
make it difficult
to perform
his or her work for the Company objectively and
effectively. Conflicts of interest may also arise
when an employee,
officer or director or a member of his or her family
receives improper
personal benefits as a result of his or her position
with the Company, whether from a third party or
from the Company.
In order to avoid a potential conflict of interest,
an employee may not receive any payments, compensation
or
gifts, other
than gifts of nominal value, from any entity
or person that does business or seeks to do business
with the
Company. Employees
must be sensitive to other potential conflicts
of interest that may arise and use their best
efforts to avoid
the conflict.
Conflicts of interest may not always
be clear-cut, so if a question arises, an employee should
consult
with
the Ethics
Officer. If an employee, officer or director
has any questions regarding the Company’s policy
on
conflicts of interest or
needs assistance in avoiding a potential conflict
of
interest, he or she is urged to seek the advice
of a supervisor or the
Ethics Officer. Any employee who is aware of
a transaction or relationship that could reasonably
be expected
to give rise to a conflict of interest in violation
of
this section must
inform the appropriate personnel in accordance
with the procedures set forth in Section 11
of this Code.
3. Corporate Opportunities
Employees are prohibited from taking for themselves
personally opportunities that are discovered
through the use of
Company property, Company information or
their position in the Company.
Furthermore, employees may not use Company
property, information or influence or their
position in
the Company for improper
personal gain. Finally, employees have a
duty to advance the Company’s legitimate interests
when
the opportunity
to do so
arises. Consequently, employees are not permitted
to compete with the Company.
Sometimes the line between personal and Company
benefits is difficult to draw, and sometimes
both personal
and Company
benefits may be derived from certain activities.
The only prudent course of conduct for
our employees is
to make sure that any
use of Company property or services that
is not solely for the benefit of the Company
is
approved
beforehand
through the
Ethics Officer.
4. Insider Trading
Employees may become aware of confidential
non-public information concerning the
Company and the parties
with which the Company
does business. The Company prohibits
employees from using such confidential information
for personal financial gain, such
as for purposes of stock trading, or
for
any other purpose
other than the conduct of the Company’s
business. Employees must maintain the
confidentiality of such
information
and may not make disclosures to third
parties, including members
of
the employee’s family. All non-public
information about the Company should be treated as
confidential
information.
To
use non-public information for personal
financial benefit or to
“tip” others who may make stock trades
on the basis of this information is not
only
unethical
but is
also illegal.
In
addition to possible legal sanctions,
any
employee found to be in violation
of the Company’s insider trading policy
will face decisive disciplinary action.
Employees
are encouraged
to contact
the General Counsel of the Company with
any questions concerning this policy.
5. Confidentiality
In carrying out the Company's business,
employees often learn confidential
or proprietary information
about
the Company,
our customers, prospective customers
or other third parties. Employees must
maintain
the
confidentiality of all information
so entrusted to them, except when disclosure
is
authorized or legally mandated. Confidential
or proprietary
information includes, among other things,
any non-public information
concerning the Company, including our
business, financial performance,
results or prospects, and any non-public
information provided by a third party
with the expectation
that the information
will be kept confidential and used
solely for the business purpose for which it
was conveyed.
All
employees must
exercise care not to misuse confidential
information obtained during
his or her employment.
6. Protection and Proper Use of Company
Assets
All of the Company’s assets should
be used for legitimate business purposes
and all
employees must make all
reasonable efforts
to protect the Company’s assets and
ensure
their
efficient use. Theft, carelessness
and waste have a direct impact
on the Company’s profitability and
must therefore be avoided.
The suspected occurrence of fraud
or theft should be immediately reported
to the appropriate
person
in accordance
with the procedures
set forth in Section 11 of this Code.
An employee’s obligation to protect
the Company’s assets extends to the
Company’s
proprietary
information. Proprietary
information
includes intellectual property such
as patents, trademarks, copyrights
and trade
secrets.
Any employee who uses
or distributes such proprietary information
without the
Company’s explicit
authorization will be subject to
disciplinary measures as well as
potential legal
sanctions.
7. Fair Dealing
We seek to outperform our competition
fairly and honestly. We seek
competitive advantages
through
superior performance,
never through unethical or illegal
business practices. We seek to
maintain a reputation
for fair dealing
among our competitors
and the public alike. In light
of this aim, the Company prohibits employees
from engaging
in
any unethical
or illegal business
practices. An exhaustive list
of unethical
practices cannot be provided.
Instead, the Company relies
on the judgment of
each individual employee to avoid
such practices. Furthermore,
each employee
should endeavor
to deal fairly with the
Company’s customers, suppliers,
competitors and other employees. No employee
should take unfair advantage
of anyone through manipulation, concealment,
abuse of privileged
information, misrepresentation
of material facts, or any other
unfair business practice.
8. Books and Records and Accounting
Controls
The Company takes pride in
the open honesty of its accounting
system
and relies on
the cooperation
of
all employees
who are involved in keeping
financial records of any type
in maintaining
the integrity of the system.
Company policy requires that
all books and
records be
maintained accurately
and that no fund,
asset, liability, revenue or
expense be concealed or incompletely
recorded
for
any purpose.
Furthermore, all entries must
be supported by documentation
adequate
to permit the books
and records to be verified
by audit.
The Company’s internal auditing
mechanism is essential to
ensuring the accurate
reporting of the Company’s
financial information.
The Audit Committee has the
responsibility to review
the Company’s policies and practice
with respect to financial
reporting. By conducting this review,
the
Audit
Committee helps the Company
identify deficiencies
in its practices
so that they
can be
promptly corrected. Auditors
shall have unrestricted access
to all
of the Company
documents and
records. All employees
are required to cooperate
fully with internal and external
audits. In
no case may an
employee make
a false or
misleading statement to any
internal or external auditor,
withhold
records, or otherwise interfere
with an audit. An employee
who has
knowledge of any unreported
or improperly reported
financial activity
must report such information
to a supervisor, the Ethics
Officer
or
the Audit Committee.
Please consult
Section
11 of this Code
regarding an employee’s right
to report questionable accounting
or auditing
practices to the Audit Committee.
9. Waivers
All employees must comply
with the provisions of
this Code.
Any waiver
of this Code
for executive officers
or directors
may be made only by the
Board of Directors of the
Company (the “Board”) or
a Board committee and will
be
promptly
disclosed
to the public as required
by law. When necessary,
a waiver
will be
accompanied
by appropriate
controls designed
to protect the Company.
10. Compliance Guidelines
and Resources
In some situations, our
employees may not be
certain how to
proceed in compliance
with this
Code. This
uncertainty may
concern the ethical nature
of the employee’s own
acts or the employee’s
duty to
report the unethical
acts
of another. When
faced with this uncertainty,
the employee should carefully
analyze
the situation
and make use
of the resources
of the Company when determining
the proper course of
action.
The Company
also encourages employees
to talk
to their
supervisors, when in
doubt about the best
course of
action. The following
items should be considered:
- Gather all the facts.
Do not take any action
that
may violate
the Code
until
you have
gathered all
the facts
that are required
to make a well-informed
decision and, if necessary,
you have
consulted with
your
supervisor, the
Ethics Officer
or the General
Counsel of the Company.
- Is the proposed action
illegal or contrary
to policy? If
the proposed
action is
illegal or
contrary to
the provision of
this Code, you should
not carry out the act.
If you
believe
that the
Code has
been violated
by
an employee,
an officer
or a director, you
must promptly report the violation
in accordance
with the
procedures set forth
in Section 11.
- Discuss the problem
with your supervisor.
It is
your supervisor’s
duty to assist
employees in complying
with this Code. Feel
free to discuss a
situation that raises ethical
issues with your
supervisor if you have any questions.
You will
suffer
no retaliation for
seeking
such guidance. If
you are not comfortable
raising an ethical
issue or
discussing a possible
or
actual violation
with your supervisor,
or you have done
so and the supervisor
has not responded
to your
problem, you
must seek
assistance elsewhere
within the Company.
- Additional resources.
Your supervisor
is available to speak
with you about
problematic
situations.
The General
Counsel
of the Company
is also available
to assist you in
complying with
those aspects
of the Code that
involve
more complex
issues, such as
insider trading and conflicts
of
interest.
11. Reporting Procedures
All employees have
a duty to report
any violations
of this
Code, as well
as violations
of any
laws, rules or
regulations.
The Company does
not permit
retaliation of
any kind against employees
for
good faith
reports of ethical
violations.
If you believe
that the Code
has been
violated by an
employee you
must promptly
report
the violation
to his or her direct
supervisor or
the Ethics
Officer. If a
report is made to a supervisor,
the
supervisor
must
in turn
report
the violation
to the Ethics
Officer. All violations
by an officer
or director of
the Company must
be
reported directly
to
the Ethics Officer.
Every employee
also
has
a
right to submit
reports of questionable
accounting
or
auditing practices
to the
Audit Committee.
Reports may be
made in person,
by telephone
by calling (973)
290-0027,
or in writing
by sending
a description
of the violation
and the names
of the parties involved
to
the
appropriate
personnel mentioned
in
the preceding
paragraph.
Reports to the
Ethics Officer
may be sent
to the following
address: 55 Madison
Avenue, Suite
300 Morristown,
NJ 07960. Reports
to
the Audit Committee
may be sent to
the following
address: 55 Madison
Avenue, Suite
300 Morristown, NJ
07960.
12. Disciplinary
Action
The Company has
implemented the
following disciplinary
policies to ensure
that prompt and
consistent
actions are taken
in response to
Code violations:
- Range
of Penalties. All violations
of this Code
will be treated
seriously and
will
result in
the prompt
imposition
of penalties which
may include
(1) an oral
or written warning,
(2) a reprimand,
(3) suspension,
(4) termination
and/or
(5) restitution.
- Disciplinary
Process.
The penalty for
a particular
violation
will be decided
on
a case-by-case
basis and
will depend
on the nature
and severity
of the violation
as well as
the employee’s
history
of non-compliance
and cooperation
in
the
disciplinary
process.
Significant penalties
will
be imposed
for violations
resulting
from intentional
or reckless
behavior.
Penalties may
also
be imposed
when an employee
fails
to
report a
violation
due to the employee’s
indifference,
deliberate
ignorance
or reckless conduct.
Where
there
is credible
evidence
of a
violation,
the Ethics
Officer will
determine
the appropriate
sanction with the
assistance of the
Board.
- Consistent
Enforcement.
All employees
will be
treated equally
with
respect
to the
imposition
of disciplinary
measures.
Pursuant
to this
policy, all levels
of
employees
will be
subject
to the same
disciplinary
action
for the
commission
of a similar
offense.
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