LIBERTY TAX, INC. (NASDAQ:TAX) Files An 8-K Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain OfficersItem 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
Departure of Directors
On November 6, 2017, Thomas Herskovits and Robert Howard were both removed from the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Liberty Tax, Inc. (the “Company”) to unanimous written consent by John T. Hewitt, the sole holder of Class B Common Stock and Chairman of the Board. Mr. Herskovits served on the Company’s Compensation Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, and Mr. Howard served on the Company’s Audit Committee and Compensation Committee.
Election of Directors
Mr. Hewitt also appointed Nicole Ossenfort and John Seal to the Board by John T. Hewitt, Chairman of the Board. The Certificate of Incorporation of the Company permits Mr. Hewitt, as the owner of all the Class B Common Stock of the Company, to elect a majority of the members of the Board. The Board has not made any determinations regarding committee assignments for Mr. Seal or Ms. Ossenfort at this time.
Nicole Ossenfort, a Certified Public Accountant, operates her own accounting practice, which she founded in 2000. Ms. Ossenfort previously served as Vice President of the Company’s 360 Accounting Solutions business from April 2017 to October 2017. Ms. Ossenfort also has been a franchisee of Liberty Tax Service since 2002 with offices in South Dakota and Wyoming and as an Area Developer from 2004 to September 2017. Ms. Ossenfort previously worked in public accounting as an auditor at McGladrey & Pullen from 1994 to 1996. Ms. Ossenfort holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting (1994) and CPA Certificate.
John Seal has served as a Liberty Tax Area Developer for the south part of Houston, TX since 2012 and as President, Secretary and Director of JMS Tax Inc. Previously, he was a Liberty Tax franchisee in Hampton Roads, VA and Las Vegas, NV since 2000 and served as VP Finance of Liberty Tax Service, where he assisted in the purchase of U&R Tax Depot (Liberty Tax Canada) and development of Liberty Tax Service in the U.S. He joined the franchise tax preparation industry 28 years ago as a franchisee with Jackson Hewitt Tax Service and, after four tax seasons, joined Jackson Hewitt Corporation as Director of Field Operations. Prior to joining Jackson Hewitt, Mr. Seal spent eight years in operating-division financial management with General Foods Corp. Mr. Seal received his MBA degree from Indiana University.
Compensatory Arrangements
Ms. Ossenfort and Mr. Seal will receive the same compensation as other non-employee Company directors as described in the Company’s 2017 Proxy Statement under “Non-Employee Director Compensation.”
About LIBERTY TAX, INC. (NASDAQ:TAX)
Liberty Tax, Inc. is the holding company for JTH Tax, Inc. The Company is a provider of tax preparation services. The Company provides retail federal and state income tax preparation services and related tax settlement products in the United States and Canada. The Company’s tax preparation services and related tax settlement products are offered primarily through franchised locations. All of the Company’s offices are operated under the Liberty Tax Service and SiempreTax+ brands. The Company also provides an online digital Do-It-Yourself (DIY) tax program in the United States. The Company offers two types of tax settlement financial products: refund transfer products, which include providing a means by which a customer receives his or her refund, and refund-based loans. The Company’s LibTax software allows tax customers to have their federal and state income tax returns filed electronically.