As Filed Electronically with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
April 7, 2000
Registration No. 333-______
- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM S-8
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
HLM DESIGN, INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
DELAWARE 56-2018819
(State or Other Jurisdiction (I.R.S. Employer
Of Incorporation or Organization) Identification No.)
121 WEST TRADE STREET 28202
SUITE 2950 (Zip Code)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)
HLM DESIGN, INC. 1998 STOCK OPTION PLAN
(Full Title of Plan)
MR. JOSEPH M. HARRIS
PRESIDENT AND CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
HLM DESIGN, INC.
121 WEST TRADE STREET
SUITE 2950
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA 28202
(704) 358-0779
(Name, Address and Telephone Number, including Area Code, of Agent for Service)
COPIES TO:
GARY C. IVEY, ESQ.
PARKER, POE, ADAMS & BERNSTEIN L.L.P.
2500 CHARLOTTE PLAZA, CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA 28244
TELEPHONE (704) 372-9000
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
TITLE OF
SECURITIES AMOUNT PROPOSED MAXIMUM PROPOSED MAXIMUM AMOUNT
TO BE TO BE OFFERING PRICE AGGREGATE OF
REGISTERED REGISTERED PER SHARE OFFERING PRICE REGISTRATION FEE
<S> <C> <C> <C> <C>
Common Stock, par value 154,308 shares $5.335 (1) $823,268.00 (1) $220.00
$0.001 per share
5,647 shares $4.625 (2) $26,118.00 (2) $7.00
</TABLE>
(1) Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee
pursuant to Rule 457 (h)(1) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended
(the "Securities Act"), based on the weighted average exercise price for
options to purchase the Registrant's Common Stock under its 1998 Stock
Option Plan granted to date.
(2) Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee
pursuant to Rule 457 (c) under the Securities Act, based upon the average
of the high and low prices of the Registrant's Common Stock reported on the
American Stock Exchange on April 5, 2000, which prices were $4.75 and
$4.50, respectively.
<PAGE>
PART I
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE
SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS
The documents containing the information specified in Part I of Form
S-8 (plan information and registrant information) will be sent or given to
employees as specified by Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 428(b)(1).
Such documents need not be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
either as part of this Registration Statement or as prospectuses or prospectus
supplements pursuant to Rule 424. These documents, which include the statement
of availability required by Item 2 of Form S-8, and the documents incorporated
by reference in this Registration Statement pursuant to Item 3 of Form S-8 (Part
II hereof), taken together, constitute a prospectus that meets the requirements
of Section 10(a) of the Securities Act.
PART II
INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.
The Securities and Exchange Commission allows us to "incorporate by
reference" the information we file with them, which means that we can disclose
important information to you by referring to those documents. The information
incorporated by reference is considered to be part of this Registration
Statement, and information that we file later with the Securities and Exchange
Commission will automatically update and supersede this information. HLM Design,
Inc. (the "Company," and sometimes referred to herein as the "Registrant")
incorporates by reference the documents listed below and any future filings made
with the Securities and Exchange Commission under Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 or
15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"):
(i) the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for its fiscal year
ended April 30, 1999 (File No. 001-14137);
(ii) the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for its fiscal
quarter ended July 30, 1999;
(iii) the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for its fiscal
quarter ended October 29, 1999;
(iv) the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for its fiscal
quarter ended January 28, 2000;
(v) the description of the Company's Common Stock contained in the
Company's Registration Statement on Form 8-A, as amended,
filed with the SEC as of January 11, 2000 pursuant to Section
12(b) of the Exchange Act.
All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant pursuant to sections 13(a),
13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, prior to the filing of a post-effective
amendment which indicates that all securities offered hereby have been sold or
which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be
incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement and to be a part
hereof from the date of filing of such documents. Any statement contained herein
or in a document, all or a portion of which is incorporated or deemed to be
incorporated by reference herein, shall be deemed to be modified or superseded
for purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement
contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is
deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such
statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed,
except as so modified or amended, to constitute a part of this Registration
Statement.
Item 4. Description of Securities
Not Applicable
Item 5. Interests on Named Experts and Counsel
No
2
<PAGE>
Item 6. Indemnification of Officers and Directors
The Registrant's Bylaws effectively provide that the Registrant shall,
to the full extent permitted by Section 145 of the General Corporation Law of
the State of Delaware, as amended from time to time ("Section 145"), indemnify
all persons whom it may indemnify pursuant thereto. In addition, the
Registrant's Certificate of Incorporation eliminates personal liability of its
directors to the full extent permitted by Section 102(b)(7) of the General
Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, as amended from time to time ("Section
102(b)(7)").
Section 145 permits a corporation to indemnify its directors and
officers against expenses (including attorneys' fees), judgments, fines and
amounts paid in settlements actually and reasonably incurred by them in
connection with any action, suit or proceeding brought by a third party if such
directors or officers acted in good faith and in a manner they reasonably
believed to be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the corporation and,
with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reason to believe
their conduct was unlawful. In a derivative action, indemnification may be made
only for expenses actually and reasonably incurred by directors and officers in
connection with the defense or settlement of an action or suit and only with
respect to a matter as to which they shall have acted in good faith and in a
manner they reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of
the corporation, except that no indemnification shall be made if such person
shall have been adjudged liable to the corporation, unless and only to the
extent that the court in which the action or suit was brought shall determine
upon application that the defendant officers or directors are reasonably
entitled to indemnity for such expenses despite such adjudication of liability.
Section 102(b)(7) provides that a corporation may eliminate or limit
the personal liability of a director to the corporation or its stockholders for
monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, provided that such
provision shall not eliminate or limit the liability of a director (i) for any
breach of the director's duty of loyalty to the corporation or its stockholders,
(ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional
misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) for willful or negligent conduct
in paying dividends or repurchasing stock out of other than lawfully available
funds, or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper
personal benefit. No such provision shall eliminate or limit the liability of a
director for any act or omission occurring prior to the date when such provision
becomes effective.
The Company maintains insurance against liabilities under the
Securities Act for the benefit of its officers and directors.
Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed
Not Applicable
Item 8. Exhibits
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Exhibit Description
Number ------------
------
<S> <C>
4.1* HLM Design, Inc. 1998 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.23 to the Registration Statement
on Form S-1 (Registration No. 333-40617))
5.1 Opinion of Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein L.L.P. regarding
the legality of securities registered
23.1 Consent of Deloitte & Touche LLP
23.2 Consent of Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein L.L.P. (included
in Exhibit 5.1 to this Registration Statement)
24 Power of Attorney (included on the signature page to this
Registration Statement)
</TABLE>
-------------------------
* Filed Previously.
Item 9. Undertakings
3
<PAGE>
(a) The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes:
(1) To file, during any period in which offers or sales
are being made, a post-effective amendment to this
Registration Statement to include any material
information with respect to the plan of distribution
not previously disclosed in the Registration
Statement or any material change to such information
in the Registration Statement;
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability
under the Securities Act of 1933, each such
post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new
registration statement relating to the securities
offered therein, and the offering of such securities
at that time shall be deemed to be the initial BONA
FIDE offering thereof; and
(3) To remove from registration by means of a
post-effective amendment any of the securities being
registered which remain unsold at the termination of
the offering.
(4) That, for purposes of determining any liability under
the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant's
annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or Section
15(d) of the Exchange Act (and, where applicable,
each filing of an employee benefit plan's annual
report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act)
that is incorporated by reference in the Registration
Statement shall be deemed to be a new registration
statement relating to the securities offered therein,
and the offering of such securities at that time
shall be deemed to be the initial BONA FIDE offering
thereof.
(5) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising
under the Securities Act may be permitted to
directors, officers and controlling persons of the
Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or
otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in
the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission
such indemnification is against public policy as
expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore,
unenforceable. In the event that a claim for
indemnification against such liabilities (other than
the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or
paid by a director, officer or controlling person of
the Registrant in the successful defense of any
action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such
director, officer or controlling person in connection
with the securities being registered, the Registrant
will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter
has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to
a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question
whether such indemnification by it is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be
governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
[Signatures begin on next page]
4
<PAGE>
SIGNATURES
THE REGISTRANT. Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, the
Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all
of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration
Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly
authorized, in the City of Charlotte, State of North Carolina, on April 7, 2000.
HLM Design, Inc.
BY:
/s/ Vernon B. Brannon
------------------------------------------------------------
Senior Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer
POWER OF ATTORNEY
We, the undersigned directors and officers of HLM Design, Inc., do
hereby constitute and appoint Messrs. Vernon B. Brannon and Joseph M. Harris,
each with full power of substitution, our true and lawful attorney-in-fact and
agent to do any and all acts and things in our names and in our behalf in our
capacities stated below, which acts and things either of them may deem necessary
or advisable to enable HLM Design, Inc. to comply with the Securities Act, and
any rules, regulations and requirements of the Securities and Exchange
Commission, in connection with this Registration Statement, including
specifically, but not limited to, power and authority to sign for any and all of
us in our names, in the capacities stated below, any and all amendments
(including post-effective amendments) hereto and any subsequent registration
statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and to
file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection
therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and we do hereby ratify
and confirm all that they shall do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration
Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the
date indicated.
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Signature Title Date
--------- ----- ----
<S> <C> <C>
President, Chief Executive Officer (principle executive
/s/ Joseph M. Harris officer) and Chairman April 7, 2000
- ----------------------------
Joseph M. Harris
Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer (principle
/s/ Vernon B. Brannon financial and accounting officer) and Director April 7, 2000
- ----------------------------
Vernon B. Brannon
Director April 7, 2000
- ----------------------------
D. Shannon LeRoy
/s/ James E. Finley Director April 7, 2000
- ----------------------------
James E. Finley
Director April 7, 2000
- ----------------------------
L. Fred Pounds
</TABLE>
5
<PAGE>
INDEX TO EXHIBITS
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
EXHIBIT DESCRIPTION
NUMBER -----------
------
<S> <C>
4.1* HLM Design, Inc. 1998 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by
reference to Exhibit 10.23 to the Registration Statement
on Form S-1 (Registration No. 333-40617))
5.1 Opinion of Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein L.L.P. regarding
the legality of securities registered
23.1 Consent of Deloitte & Touche LLP
23.2 Consent of Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein L.L.P. (included
in Exhibit 5.1 to this Registration Statement)
24 Power of Attorney (included on the signature page to this
Registration Statement)
</TABLE>
-------------------------
* Filed Previously.
Exhibit 5.1
[Letterhead of Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein, L.L.P.]
April 7, 2000
Board of Directors
HLM Design, Inc.
121 West Trade Street, Suite 2950
Charlotte, North Carolina 28202
Dear Sirs:
We are acting as counsel to HLM Design, Inc., a Delaware corporation
(the "COMPANY"), in connection with the preparation, execution, filing and
processing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "COMMISSION"),
pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "ACT"), of a
Registration Statement on Form S-8 (the "REGISTRATION STATEMENT") relating to
the issuance and sale of up to 159,955 shares (the "SHARES") of common stock,
par value $.001 per share (the "COMMON STOCK"), reserved for issuance under the
Company's 1998 Stock Option Plan (the "PLAN"). This opinion is furnished to you
for filing with the Commission pursuant to Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K
promulgated under the Act.
In our representation of the Company, we have examined the Registration
Statement, the Plan, and the Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of
Incorporation and Bylaws, each as amended to date, all pertinent actions of the
Company's Board of Directors recorded in the Company's minute book, the form of
certificate evidencing the Shares and such other documents as we have considered
necessary for purposes of rendering the opinions expressed below.
Based upon the foregoing, we are of the opinion that the Shares
proposed to be offered and sold by the Company under the Plan have been duly
authorized for issuance and, subject to the Registration Statement becoming
effective under the Act and to compliance with any applicable state securities
laws and to the issuance of such Shares in accordance with the provisions of the
Plan, the Shares will be, when so issued, legally issued, fully paid and
non-assessable shares of Common Stock of the Company.
The opinions expressed herein are limited to the General Corporation
Law of the State of Delaware and the Act.
<PAGE>
Board of Directors
HLM Design, Inc.
April 7, 2000
Page 2
We hereby consent to the use of this opinion letter as Exhibit 5.1 to
the Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not admit that we are
in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Act
or the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Parker, Poe, Adams & Bernstein, L.L.P.
Exhibit 23.1
INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT
We consent to the incorporation by reference in this Registration Statement of
HLM Design, Inc. on Form S-8 of our report dated June 21, 1999, appearing in the
Annual Report on Form 10-K of HLM Design, Inc. for the year ended April 30,
1999.
/s/ DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLP
Charlotte, North Carolina
April 7, 2000
