Date
of report (Date of earliest event reported)
|
November
12, 2010
|
VARIAN
MEDICAL SYSTEMS, INC.
|
(Exact
Name of Registrant as Specified in its
Charter)
|
Delaware
|
1-7598
|
94-2359345
|
(State
or Other Jurisdiction
of
Incorporation)
|
(Commission
File
Number)
|
(IRS
Employer
Identification
No.)
|
3100
Hansen Way, Palo Alto, CA
|
94304-1030
|
(Address
of Principal Executive Offices)
|
(Zip
Code)
|
Registrant's
telephone number, including area code
|
(650)
493-4000
|
Not
Applicable
|
(Former
Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last
Report)
|
¨
|
Written
communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR
230.425)
|
¨
|
Soliciting
material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14a-12)
|
¨
|
Pre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.14d-2(b))
|
¨
|
Pre-commencement
communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR
240.13e-4(c))
|
Item
5.02.
|
Departure of Directors or Certain Officers;
Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory
Arrangements of Certain
Officers.
|
Timothy
E. Guertin...........................115%
|
|
||
Robert
H. Kluge................................65%
|
|
Item
5.03
|
Amendments to Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws;
Change in Fiscal Year
|
1.
|
Amend
and restate Section 3 (Annual Meetings) to provide that the annual meeting
of stockholders shall be held on the second Thursday of February in each
year (or if a legal holiday, the next business day) unless otherwise
provided by resolution of the Board.
|
||
2.
|
Amend
and restate Section 4 (Business Conducted at Annual Meeting)
to:
|
||
·
|
Specify
that complying with the notice provisions of Section 4 shall be the
exclusive means for a stockholder to submit business (other than
nominations of directors and other than business properly brought under
Rule 14a-8 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) before an Annual
Meeting of Stockholders.
|
||
·
|
Revise
the notice period to bring such business from receipt at the Company’s
General Offices not less than 60 days or more than 90 days prior to the
anniversary of the mailing of the preceding year’s proxy materials for the
preceding year’s annual meeting of stockholders to receipt not less than
90 days or more than 120 days prior to the anniversary of the preceding
annual meeting of stockholders.
|
||
·
|
Make
the same adjustment to the notice period if the meeting is advanced more
than 30 days or delayed more than 60 days from the anniversary of the
prior year’s annual meeting.
|
||
·
|
Require
the notice to include the text of any resolution proposed for adoption and
if the business includes amendment of the By-Laws, the text of the
amendment.
|
·
|
Expand
and add specificity to the information that the stockholder proponent must
provide about his/her beneficial ownership of Company securities,
including direct or indirect ownership of derivative instruments, proxies
held, short interest and performance-related fees, and such other
information that would be required to be disclosed in proxy
statement related to a contested election of director; require a
description of arrangements between the stockholder proponent and any
other person in connection with the proposal; and require the stockholder
proponent to make certain representations.
|
||
·
|
Effect
several additional minor clarifications and revisions to Section
4.
|
||
3.
|
Amend
and restate Section 8 (Nomination of Directors) to:
|
||
·
|
Require
any prospective nominee to complete a questionnaire that includes such
background and qualifications as would be required to be disclosed to
stockholders pursuant to applicable law or stock exchange
rules.
|
||
·
|
Require
any prospective nominee to represent that he/she will not enter into an
agreement with any person as to how the nominee will vote if elected a
director that has not been disclosed to the Company or any agreement that
would limit or interfere with the prospective nominee’s ability to comply
with his/her fiduciary duties, that he/she will not enter into an
agreement with any person for compensation for serving as a director that
has not been disclosed and that he/she will comply with all corporate
governance, conflict of interest, confidentiality and stock ownership and
trading policies.
|
||
·
|
Revise
the notice period for a stockholder to make such a nomination at an annual
meeting from receipt at the Company’s General Offices not less than 60
days or more than 90 days prior to the anniversary of the mailing of the
preceding year’s proxy materials for the preceding year’s annual meeting
of stockholders to receipt not less than 90 days or more than 120 days
prior to the anniversary of the preceding annual meeting of
stockholders.
|
||
·
|
Make
the same adjustment to the notice period if the annual meeting is advanced
more than 30 days or delayed more than 60 days from the anniversary of the
prior year’s annual meeting.
|
||
·
|
Revise
the notice period for a stockholder to make such a nomination at a special
meeting from receipt at the Company’s General Offices not less than 60
days or more than 90 days prior to the special meeting of stockholders to
receipt not less than 90 days or more than 120 days prior to special
meeting of stockholders.
|
||
·
|
Extend
the period when no Company announcement is made of all director nominees
in the event the number of directors to be elected at the annual meeting
is expanded from 70 to 100 days with respect to nominations of persons to
be additional directors but retain the requirement that notice be provided
within 10 days of public announcement.
|
·
|
Expand
and add specificity to the information that a nominating stockholder must
provide in the notice to include a description of all material
monetary agreements during the past three years and any other material
relationships, between such stockholder and his/her affiliates and
associates, or others acting in concert, on the one hand, and each
proposed nominee, and his/her affiliates and associates, or others acting
in concert, on the other hand, including all information that would be
required to be disclosed pursuant to Rule 404 under
Regulation S-K if the stockholder were a “registrant;” and require
the nominating stockholder to make certain
representations.
|
||
·
|
Clarify
that the stockholder nominating procedure will not affect the rights of
the holders of any series of preferred stock to elect directors pursuant
to any provision of the Restated Certificate of
Incorporation.
|
||
·
|
Effect
several additional minor clarifications and revisions to Section
8.
|
||
4.
|
Amend
and restate Section 13 (Inspector of Election; Polls) to clarify that the
inspector of elections may be an employee of the
Company.
|
||
5.
|
Amend
and restate Section 14 (Organization) to:
|
||
·
|
Provide
that the Board may adopt by such rules for the conduct of a meeting of
stockholders as it shall deem appropriate.
|
||
·
|
Provide
that, except to the extent inconsistent with rules adopted by the Board,
the chairman of any meeting shall have the right to prescribe
such rules, and to do all such acts as, in his/her judgment are
appropriate, and specify examples of such rules.
|
||
·
|
Make
clear that if a stockholder (or qualified representative) does not appear
at the annual or special meeting of stockholders to
present a nomination or business proposed by such stockholder pursuant to
Section 4 or 8, such nomination shall be disregarded and such
proposed business shall not be transacted, and sets forth the requirements
for a qualified representative of a stockholder.
|
||
6.
|
Add
a new Section 72 (Forum Selection) to provide that the Court of Chancery
of the State of Delaware shall be the exclusive forum for (i) any
derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Company,
(ii) any action asserting a claim for breach of a fiduciary duty owed
by any director or officer of the Company (iii) any action asserting
a claim against the Company arising pursuant to any provision of the
General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware or the Restated
Certificate of Incorporation or the By-Laws, (iv) any action
involving the Restated Certificate of Incorporation or the By-Laws, or
(v) any action asserting a claim against the Company governed by the
internal affairs doctrine.
|
||
7.
|
Amend
and restate prior Section 72 as Section 73 (Amendments) to clarify that
amendment of the By-Laws by the stockholders must be by affirmative vote
of the holders of a majority of the common stock issued and outstanding at
an annual or special meeting.
|
Varian
Medical Systems, Inc.
|
||
By:
|
/s/ John W. Kuo
|
|
Name:
|
John
W. Kuo
|
|
Title:
|
Corporate
Vice President, General Counsel
and
Secretary
|
|
Dated: November
16, 2010
|