Letter to SEC
Morrison & Foerster LLP
1290 Avenue of the Americas
New York, NY 10104
Telephone: 212-468-8000
Facsimile: 212-468-7900
www.mofo.com
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January 10, 2007
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Writers Direct Contact
212.468.8163
JTanenbaum@mofo.com |
Mr. Adé K. Heyliger
Ms. Elaine Wolfe
Ms. Pam Carmody
Attorney-Advisors
Division of Corporate Finance
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F. Street, N.E., Mail Stop 7010
Washington, D.C. 20549
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RE:
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Orthodontix, Inc.
Schedule 14C filed on December 15, 2006
Schedule 14F-1 filed on December 18, 2006
File No. 005-50118
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Ladies and Gentlemen:
On behalf of our client, Orthodontix, Inc., a Florida corporation (the Company),
transmitted herewith are responses to the Staffs comments to the Information Statement filed on
Schedule 14F-1 by the Company (the Schedule 14F-1), which comments were set forth in the
Staffs letter dated December 28, 2006 (the Comment Letter) to Glenn Halpryn, the former
Chief Executive Officer of the Company. In addition, through telephonic discussions with Elaine
Wolfe of the Division of Corporate Finance and other counsel to the Company, we understand the
Staff has similar comments to the Information Statement filed on Schedule 14C by the Company (the
Schedule 14C and, together with the Schedule 14F-1, the Information
Statements).
For ease of reference, we have noted the Staffs comments in bold faced type and the responses
in regular type. We have also attached to this Letter as Exhibit A, the statement that the
Commission has requested from the Company. Per our discussions with the Staff, no amendments to
the Schedule 14F-1 are being made.
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The Company supplementally advises the Staff that, given the timing of when the Schedule 14C
will be mailed as compared to the closing of the merger of Protalix Acquisition Co. Ltd., the
Companys wholly-owned subsidiary, with Protalix Ltd, some of the disclosures in the Schedule 14C
will be revised to reflect that the merger has already occurred.
The Merger, Page 2
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Please amend your disclosure to describe the corporate action taken to approve
the Merger, reverse stock split and related transactions. For example, was a vote
taken or were written consents or authorizations collected it no meeting was held?
Please provide us with your analysis of your corporate action taken and the relevant
Florida state law and proxy rules of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Please see
Section 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rules 14a-3 and Rule 14c-2 of
Regulation 14A. In this regard, tell us why a Schedule 14C was not filed in connection
with the Merger? |
The Company supplementally advises the Staff that the only corporate action taken by
the Company with respect to (i) the merger of Protalix Acquisition Co. Ltd., a
wholly-owned Israeli subsidiary of the Company, with and into Protalix Ltd., an
Israeli company and (ii) a 1-for-10 reverse stock split of the Companys common
stock, par value $.0001, was unanimous approval by the Companys Board of Directors.
As discussed below, applicable Florida law does not require further corporate
action be taken.
In the case of the reverse stock split, Section 607.10025 of the Florida Business
Corporation Act, or FBCA, provides that unless the articles of incorporation
provide otherwise, a division or combination may be effected solely by the action of
the board of directors. Subsection (2) of this provision goes further to allow a
board to amend the articles of incorporation to effect this combination without
shareholder approval as well. The FBCA clarifies that a combination is intended to
refer to a reverse stock split by defining the term as combining shares of any
issued and outstanding class or series into a lesser number of shares of the same
class or series.
With respect to the merger, Section 607.1101 of the FBCA requires approval only from
those shareholders who hold shares in a company that is subject to the merger.
Because the parties to the merger were Protalix Ltd. and Protalix Acquisition Co.
Ltd., the Companys wholly-owned Israeli subsidiary, shareholder approval by the
Companys shareholders was not required. Although the Company was not a party to
the merger and, accordingly, was not required to obtain approval from its
shareholders, it provided the consideration paid to the Protalix Ltd. shareholders -
namely, shares of the Companys common stock. Sections 607.1101 and 607.1106 of the
FBCA permit this. Section 607.1101 provides that the applicable plan of merger
shall set forth the manner and basis of converting the shares of each corporation
[subject to the merger] into shares, obligations, or other securities of the
surviving corporation or any other
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corporation (emphasis added), and Section 607.1106 provides that when a
merger becomes effective...the shares (and the rights to acquire shares,
obligations, or other securities) of each corporation party to the merger that are
to be converted into shares, rights, obligations or other securities of the
surviving or any other corporation ... are converted. (emphasis added) The
words or any other corporation allows the Company to issue shares of its common
stock in the merger to the Protalix Ltd. shareholders even though the Company,
itself, was not subject to the merger.
Furthermore, because the Company is not listed on any stock exchange, the typical
exchange rules requiring shareholder approval for the issuance of shares in excess
of a number equal to 20% of an issuers outstanding shares did not apply.
Rules 14a-2 and 14a-3 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, require
the mailing of a proxy statement or information statement when proxies for
shareholder votes are solicited or action has already been taken by shareholders.
As explained above, no such shareholder action was required or solicited in
connection with the aforementioned transactions and, accordingly, without any such
shareholder action these rules are not implicated and no mailing is required.
To the extent a transaction required shareholder approval or a mailing of an
information statement to the Companys shareholders, the Company believes it has
complied with all such requirements. Accordingly, the Company filed the Schedule 14C
to disclose it had obtained shareholder approval with respect to the Companys
adoption of its new 2006 Stock Incentive Plan and with respect to its proposed name
change to Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc.. Furthermore, the Company filed the
Schedule 14F-1 because the merger resulted in a change in a majority of the
directors of the Company.
In accordance with Staffs request, the Company will amend its disclosure in the
Schedule 14C to describe the corporate action taken to approve the Merger, reverse
stock split, and related transactions. Specifically, the Company has included the
below disclosure:
Our Board of Directors unanimously approved the
reverse stock split and the merger. We did not
obtain, and we are not soliciting shareholder
approval of these transactions. Florida law allowed
us to effect these transactions without obtaining or
soliciting this approval. Florida law does, however,
require us to obtain approval from our shareholders
to amend our Articles of Incorporation to change our
name to Protalix BioTherapeutics, Inc. In
addition, applicable tax law and SEC rules require us
to obtain shareholder approval of our new 2006 Stock
Incentive Plan. Accordingly, we obtained the
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written consent of at least a majority of our
shareholders approving these actions and are mailing
this information statement disclosing that we
obtained this consent to our remaining shareholders.
In addition, the merger resulted in a change of a
majority of our directors and, accordingly, we are
also mailing an information statement disclosing this
change to our shareholders.
Corporate Governance and Independent Directors, page 17
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We note that you have no standing audit, nominating or
compensation committees of the Board of Directors or committees performing
similar functions. Please identify each director who participates in the
consideration of director nominees. See Item 7(d)(2)(i) of Schedule 14A. |
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As discussed with the Staff telephonically, information regarding the
Companys director nomination process has been provided in the Companys
Current Report on Form 8-K that was filed with the SEC on January 8, 2007. |
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Please provide the information regarding the registrants
director nomination process required by Item 7(d)(2)(ii). Please note that the
information regarding the registrants director nomination process required by
Item 7(d)(2)(ii), is required not only for nominating committees and committees
performing similar functions, but also for groups of directors fulfilling the
role of a nominating committee, including the entire board of directors. See
Instruction to paragraph (d)(2)(ii) of Item 7 of Schedule 14A. |
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As discussed with the Staff telephonically, information regarding the
Companys director nomination process has been provided in the Companys
Current Report on Form 8-K that was filed with the SEC on January 8, 2007. |
In addition, please note that the Company has authorized us to inform you that it acknowledges
that the Company is responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosure in the filing; that
Staff comments or changes to disclosure in response to staff comments do not foreclose the
Commission from taking any action with respect to the filing; and that the Company may not assert
staff comments as a defense in any proceeding initiated by the Commission or any person under the
federal securities laws of the United States.
Please call the undersigned at the telephone number set forth above or Joseph Magnas at (212)
336-4170 with any questions or comments you may have regarding the responses set forth herein. In
addition, please send all written correspondence directly to the undersigned and Joseph
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Magnas of Morrison & Foerster LLP, 1290 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10104,
telecopy (212) 468-7900, with copies to David Aviezer, Ph.D., the Companys Chief Executive Officer
at 2 Snunit Street, Science Park, P.O.B. 455, Carmiel 20100, Israel, telecopy +972-4-988-9489.
Sincerely,
/s/ James R. Tanenbaum
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cc: |
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David Aviezer, Ph.D.
Yossi Maimon |