Form: S-8

Initial registration statement for securities to be offered to employees pursuant to employee benefit plans

April 3, 2024

Documents

Exhibit 5.1

 

 

 

To:

Mynd.ai, Inc.

PO Box 309, Ugland House

Grand Cayman KY1-1104

Cayman Islands

 

3 April 2024

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

We have acted as counsel as to Cayman Islands law to Mynd.ai, Inc. (the "Company") in connection with the Company's registration statement on Form S-8 (the "Form S-8") to be filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "Commission") under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Act") (the "Registration Statement", which term does not include any other document or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit or schedule thereto) relating to the registration with the Commission of 54,777,338 Ordinary Shares of a par value of US$0.001 each in the capital of the Company (the "Shares") authorised for issuance pursuant to the Equity Incentive Plan adopted by the directors of the Company on 9 January 2024 (the "Plan", which term does not include any other document or agreement whether or not specifically referred to therein or attached as an exhibit or schedule thereto).

 

1 Documents Reviewed

 

We have reviewed originals, copies, drafts or conformed copies of the following documents:

 

1.1 The certificate of incorporation of the Company dated 11 January 2007 and the certificates of incorporation on change of name of the Company dated 23 June 2017, 13 May 2022 and 13 December 2023.

 

1.2 The sixth amended and restated memorandum and articles of association of the Company as adopted by special resolution passed on 11 September 2023 and effective on 13 December 2023 (the "Memorandum and Articles").

 

1.3 The minutes (the "Minutes") of the meeting of the board of directors of the Company held on 9 January 2024 (the "Meeting") and the corporate records of the Company maintained at its registered office in the Cayman Islands.

 

 

 

 

1.4 The Unanimous Written Consent of the board of directors of the Company dated 2 April 2024 (the “Resolutions”).

 

1.5 A certificate from a director of the Company a copy of which is attached to this opinion letter (the "Director's Certificate").

 

1.6 The Registration Statement.

 

1.7 The Plan.

 

2 Assumptions

 

The following opinions are given only as to, and based on, circumstances and matters of fact existing and known to us on the date of this opinion letter. These opinions only relate to the laws of the Cayman Islands which are in force on the date of this opinion letter. In giving the following opinions, we have relied (without further verification) upon the completeness and accuracy, as at the date of this opinion letter, of the Director's Certificate. We have also relied upon the following assumptions, which we have not independently verified:

 

2.1 The Plan has been or will be authorised and duly executed and unconditionally delivered by or on behalf of all relevant parties in accordance with all relevant laws (other than, with respect to the Company, the laws of the Cayman Islands).

 

2.2 The Plan is, or will be, legal, valid, binding and enforceable against all relevant parties in accordance with their terms under the laws of Delaware (the "Relevant Law") and all other relevant laws (other than, with respect to the Company, the laws of the Cayman Islands).

 

2.3 The choice of the Relevant Law as the governing law of the Plan has been made in good faith and would be regarded as a valid and binding selection which will be upheld by the courts of Delaware and any other relevant jurisdiction (other than the Cayman Islands) as a matter of the Relevant Law and all other relevant laws (other than the laws of the Cayman Islands).

 

2.4 Copies of documents, conformed copies or drafts of documents provided to us are true and complete copies of, or in the final forms of, the originals, and translations of documents provided to us are complete and accurate.

 

2.5 All signatures, initials and seals are genuine.

 

2.6 The capacity, power, authority and legal right of all parties under all relevant laws and regulations (other than, with respect to the Company, the laws and regulations of the Cayman Islands) to enter into, execute, unconditionally deliver and perform their respective obligations under the Plan.

 

2.7 There is no contractual or other prohibition or restriction (other than as arising under Cayman Islands law) binding on the Company prohibiting or restricting it from entering into and performing its obligations under the Plan.

 

2.8 No monies paid to or for the account of any party under the Plan or any property received or disposed of by any party to the Plan in each case in connection with the Plan or the consummation of the transactions contemplated thereby represent or will represent proceeds of criminal conduct or criminal property or terrorist property (as defined in the Proceeds of Crime Act (As Revised) and the Terrorism Act (As Revised), respectively).

 

 

 

 

2.9 There is nothing under any law (other than the laws of the Cayman Islands) which would or might affect the opinions set out below. Specifically, we have made no independent investigation of the Relevant Law.

 

2.10 The Company will receive money or money's worth in consideration for the issue of the Shares and none of the Shares were or will be issued for less than par value. Upon the issuance of any Shares pursuant to the terms of the Plan, the Company will have sufficient authorised but unissued share capital in order to facilitate the issuance of Shares pursuant to the Plan.

 

2.11 There are no circumstances or matters of fact existing which may properly form the basis for an application for an order for rectification of the register of members of the Company.

 

2.12 The Registration Statement has been, or will be, authorised and duly executed and delivered by or on behalf of all relevant parties in accordance with all relevant laws.

 

2.13 No invitation has been made or will be made by or on behalf of the Company to the public in the Cayman Islands to subscribe for any of the Shares.

 

2.14 The Shares to be issued pursuant to the Plan have been, or will be, duly registered, and will continue to be registered, in the Company's register of members (shareholders).

 

Save as aforesaid we have not been instructed to undertake and have not undertaken any further enquiry or due diligence in relation to the transaction the subject of this opinion letter.

 

3 Opinions

 

Based upon, and subject to, the foregoing assumptions and the qualifications set out below, and having regard to such legal considerations as we deem relevant, we are of the opinion that the Shares to be issued by the Company pursuant to the provisions of the Plan, have been duly authorised for issue, and when such Shares are issued by the Company pursuant to the provisions of the Plan and in accordance with the Minutes and the Resolutions for the consideration fixed thereto and duly registered in the Company's register of members (shareholders), will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. As a matter of Cayman Islands law, a share is only issued when it has been entered in the register of members (shareholders).

 

4 Qualifications

 

The opinions expressed above are subject to the following qualifications:

 

4.1 The obligations assumed by the Company under the Plan will not necessarily be enforceable in all circumstances in accordance with their terms. In particular:

 

(a) enforcement may be limited by bankruptcy, insolvency, liquidation, reorganisation, readjustment of debts or moratorium or other laws of general application relating to protecting or affecting the rights of creditors and/or contributories;

 

(b) enforcement may be limited by general principles of equity. For example, equitable remedies such as specific performance may not be available, inter alia, where damages are considered to be an adequate remedy;

 

(c) where obligations are to be performed in a jurisdiction outside the Cayman Islands, they may not be enforceable in the Cayman Islands to the extent that performance would be illegal under the laws of that jurisdiction; and

 

 

 

 

(d) some claims may become barred under relevant statutes of limitation or may be or become subject to defences of set off, counterclaim, estoppel and similar defences.

 

4.2 Under Cayman Islands law, the register of members (shareholders) is prima facie evidence of title to shares and this register would not record a third party interest in such shares. However, there are certain limited circumstances where an application may be made to a Cayman Islands court for a determination on whether the register of members reflects the correct legal position. Further, the Cayman Islands court has the power to order that the register of members maintained by a company should be rectified where it considers that the register of members does not reflect the correct legal position. As far as we are aware, such applications are rarely made in the Cayman Islands and for the purposes of the opinion given in paragraph 3, there are no circumstances or matters of fact known to us on the date of this opinion letter which would properly form the basis for an application for an order for rectification of the register of members of the Company, but if such an application were made in respect of the Shares, then the validity of such shares may be subject to re-examination by a Cayman Islands court.

 

4.3 In this opinion letter the phrase "non-assessable" means, with respect to the issuance of shares, that a shareholder shall not, in respect of the relevant shares and in the absence of a contractual arrangement, or an obligation pursuant to the memorandum and articles of association, to the contrary, have any obligation to make further contributions to the Company's assets (except in exceptional circumstances, such as involving fraud, the establishment of an agency relationship or an illegal or improper purpose or other circumstances in which a court may be prepared to pierce or lift the corporate veil).

 

We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion letter as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and to the references to our firm in the Registration Statement. In providing our consent, we do not thereby 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 thereunder.

 

We express no view as to the commercial terms of the Plan or whether such terms represent the intentions of the parties and make no comment with regard to warranties or representations that may be made by the Company.

 

The opinions in this opinion letter are strictly limited to the matters contained in the opinions section above and do not extend to any other matters. We have not been asked to review and we therefore have not reviewed any of the ancillary documents relating to the Plan and express no opinion or observation upon the terms of any such document.

 

This opinion letter is addressed to and for the benefit solely of the addressee and may not be relied upon by any other person for any purpose. This opinion letter is limited to the matters detailed herein and is not to be read as an opinion with respect to any other matter.

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

/s/ Maples and Calder (Cayman) LLC

Maples and Calder (Cayman) LLP