As Filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 2, 2005

                                                                                                                                                                Registration No.:  333-______

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

                                                               

 

FORM S 8

Registration Statement

Under

The Securities Act of 1933

                                                               

 

AMERICAN TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

                                                                 

2005 Equity Incentive Plan

(Full Title of the Plan)

                                                                 

Kalani Jones

President and Chief Operating Officer

AMERICAN TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION

13114 Evening Creek Drive South

San Diego, California 92128

(Name and Address of Agent For Service)

 

(858) 679-2114

(Telephone Number, Including Area Code, for Agent For Service)

 

Copy to:

John D. Tishler, Esq.

Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton llp

12544 High Bluff Drive, Suite 300

San Diego, CA 92130

                                                               

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

(1)   In accordance with Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this Registration Statement shall be deemed to cover any additional securities that may from time to time be offered or issued to prevent dilution resulting from stock splits, stock dividends or similar transactions.

 

(2)   Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee in accordance with Rules 457(c) and (h) promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, based upon the average of the high and low prices of our common stock as reported on the NASDAQ SmallCap Market on May 26, 2005.

 

 

EXPLANATORY NOTE

 

 This Registration Statement on Form S 8 registers up to 3,249,564 shares of our common stock which may be issued pursuant to our 2005 Equity Incentive Plan (where we sometimes refer to as our 2005 Plan), comprised of

As permitted by the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission, this Registration Statement omits the information specified in Part I of Form S-8.  Document(s) containing the information required by Part I of this Registration Statement will be sent or given to participants in the plan subject to this Registration Statement as specified by Rule 428(b)(1) under the Securities Act of 1933.  Such document(s) are not filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act.  Such document(s) and the documents incorporated by reference pursuant to Item 3 of 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 following documents filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC ) are hereby incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement:

In addition, all documents subsequently filed by us pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act, after the date of this Registration Statement and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment which indicates that all securities offered have been sold or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, will be incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement from the date of filing of such documents.

Any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded for the purposes of this Registration Statement to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration Statement.

Item 4.  Description of Securities.

    Not applicable.

Item 5.  Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

    Not applicable.

Item 6.  Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

    As permitted by Delaware law, our Certificate of Incorporation provides that the we will indemnify our officers, directors, employees and agents against attorneys fees and other expenses and liabilities they incur to defend, settle or satisfy any civil or criminal action brought against them arising out of their association with or activities on behalf of us unless, in any such action, they are adjudged to have acted with gross negligence or to have engaged in willful misconduct.  We may also bear the expenses of such litigation for any such persons upon their promise to repay such sums if it is ultimately determined that they are not entitled to indemnification.  Such expenditures could be substantial and may not be recouped, even if we are so entitled.  Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that, in the opinion of the Commission, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable.

 

    Pursuant to the General Corporation Law of Delaware, our Certificate of Incorporation excludes personal liability on the part of its directors to us for monetary damages based upon any violation of their fiduciary duties as directors, except as to liability for any breach of the duty of loyalty, acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, acts in violation of Section 174 of the General Corporation Law of Delaware, or any transaction from which a director receives an improper personal benefit.  This exclusion of liability does not limit any right which a director may have to be indemnified and does not affect any director s liability under federal or applicable state securities laws.

    We currently have directors and officers liability insurance to provide our directors and officers with insurance coverage for losses arising from claims based on breaches of duty, negligence, errors and other wrongful acts.

Item 7.  Exemption From Registration Claimed.

    Not applicable.

Item 8.  Exhibits.

 

⁽¹⁾     Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.10 to the Form S-3, File No. 333-122264, dated March 25, 2005.

 

Item 9.  Undertakings.

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:

 

(i)

To include any prospectus required by section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933;

 

(ii)

To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than a 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement;

 

(iii)

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;

 

 

Provided, however, That paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) of this section do not apply if the registration statement is on Form S-3 or Form S-8 or Form F-3, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference 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.

 

(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)

If the registration is a foreign private issuer, to file a post-effective amendment to the registration statement to include any financial statements required by §210.3-19 of this chapter at the start of any delayed offering or throughout a continuous offering. Financial statements and information otherwise required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Act need not be furnished, provided that the registrant includes in the prospectus, by means of a post-effective amendment, financial statements required pursuant to this paragraph (a)(4) and other information necessary to ensure that all other information in the prospectus is at least as current as the date of those financial statements. Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to registration statements on Form F-3, a post-effective amendment need not be filed to include financial statements and information required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Act or § 210.3-19 of this chapter if such financial statements and information are contained in periodic reports filed with or furnished to the Commission by the registrant pursuant to section 13 or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 that are incorporated by reference in the Form F-3.

 

The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each filing of the registrant's annual report pursuant to section 13(a) or section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan s annual report pursuant to section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) 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.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 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 of 1933 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 of 1933 and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

 

Name		Title		Date
/s/ Elwood G. Norris            Elwood G. Norris		Chairman of the Board (Co-Principal Executive Officer) and Director		May 31, 2005
/s/ Kalani Jones                   Kalani Jones		President and Chief Operating Officer (Co-Principal Executive Officer) and Director		May 31, 2005
/s/ Michael A. Russell       Michael A. Russell		Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer)		May 31, 2005
/s/ Richard M. Wagner      Richard M. Wagner		Director		May 31, 2005
/s/ Daniel Hunter               Daniel Hunter		Director		May 31, 2005

Exhibit Number		Description of Document
4.1		Specimen Common Stock Certificate (1)
5.1		Opinion of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP
23.1		Consent of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1)
23.2		Consent of BDO Seidman, LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
24.1		Power of Attorney (included on the signature page to this Registration Statement)
99.1		2005 Equity Incentive Plan
99.2		Form of Stock Option Agreement (2005 Equity Incentive Plan)
99.3		Form of Stock Award Agreement (2005 Equity Incentive Plan)