As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 7, 2023

Registration No. 333-______

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM S-8
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

LADDER CAPITAL CORP
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Ladder Capital Corp 2023 Omnibus Incentive Plan

(Full title of the plan)

Kelly Porcella
Chief Administrative Officer & General Counsel
Ladder Capital Corp
320 Park Avenue, 15th Floor
New York, New York 10022
(Name and address of agent for service)
(212) 715-3170

(Telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copies of all communications, including communications sent to agent for service, should be sent to:

Joshua N. Korff, Esq.
Sharon Freiman, Esq.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
601 Lexington Avenue
New York, New York 10022
(212) 446-4800  

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer”, “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.  ¨

PART I

This registration statement on Form S-8 (this “Registration Statement”) is being filed for the purpose of registering an aggregate of 13,253,867 shares of Class A common stock, $0.001 par value (the “Common Stock”), of Ladder Capital Corp (the “Company” or the “Registrant”) available for issuance to eligible individuals under the Ladder Capital Corp 2023 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) and 3,976,160 additional shares of Common Stock that may again become available for delivery with respect to awards under the Plan pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Plan. The information required by Item 1 and Item 2 of Part I of Form S-8 is omitted from this filing in accordance with Rule 428 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and the introductory note to Part I of Form S-8. The documents containing the information specified in Part I will be delivered to the participants in the Plan covered by this Registration Statement as required by Rule 428(b)(1).

PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

The following documents, which have been previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) by the Registrant pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), are hereby incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement:

All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant with the SEC pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act and prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment hereto which indicate that all securities offered have been sold, or which deregisters all securities then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this Registration Statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents, excluding information contained in such incorporated documents that is deemed furnished and not filed. Any statement contained in a document 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 incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein) modifies or supersedes such earlier statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this Registration Statement.

The documents incorporated by reference herein contain or will contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The Registrant’s actual results may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, the risks identified in the respective documents incorporated by reference.

Item 4. Description of Securities.

Not applicable.

Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

Not applicable.

Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

The Registrant is incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. Section 102(b)(7) of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”) allows a corporation to provide in its certificate of incorporation that a director of the corporation will not be personally liable to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except where the director breached the duty of loyalty, failed to act in good faith, engaged in intentional misconduct or knowingly violated a law, authorized the payment of a dividend or approved a stock repurchase in violation of Delaware corporate law or obtained an improper personal benefit. The Registrant’s Certificate of Incorporation provides for this limitation of liability.

Section 145 of the DGCL (“Section 145”) provides that a Delaware corporation may indemnify any person who was, is or is threatened to be made party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of such corporation), by reason of the fact that such person is or was an officer, director, employee or agent of such corporation or is or was serving at the request of such corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding, provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation’s best interests and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was illegal. A Delaware corporation may indemnify any persons who are, were or are threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation by reason of the fact that such person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit, provided such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the corporation’s best interests, provided that no indemnification is permitted without judicial approval if the officer, director, employee or agent is adjudged to be liable to the corporation. Where an officer or director is successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense of any action referred to above, the corporation must indemnify him or her against the expenses that such officer or director has actually and reasonably incurred.

Section 145 further authorizes a corporation to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or enterprise, against any liability asserted against him or her and incurred by him or her in any such capacity, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the corporation would otherwise have the power to indemnify him or her under Section 145.

The Registrant’s By-laws provide that the Registrant must indemnify its directors and officers to the fullest extent authorized by the DGCL and must also pay expenses incurred in defending any such proceeding in advance of its final disposition; provided, that if and to the extent required by the DGCL, the advancement of expenses will only be made upon delivery of an undertaking, by or on behalf of an indemnified person, to repay all amounts so advanced if it should be determined ultimately that such person is not entitled to be indemnified.

The indemnification rights set forth above will not be exclusive of any other right which an indemnified person may have or hereafter acquire under any statute, provision of the Registrant’s Certificate of Incorporation or By-laws, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise.

The Registrant maintains standard policies of insurance that provide coverage (1) to its directors and officers against loss arising from claims made by reason of breach of duty or other wrongful act and (2) to the Registrant with respect to indemnification payments that it may make to such directors and officers as required by its organizational documents or indemnification agreements between the Registrant and its directors and officers.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.

Not applicable.

Item 8. Exhibits.

Item 9. Undertakings.

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, 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 New York, New York, on June 7, 2023.

POWER OF ATTORNEY

Each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Kelly Porcella and Paul Miceli, and each of them singly, his or her true and lawful attorneys-in-fact and agents, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective amendments) and additions to this registration statement and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith, with the SEC, granting unto each said attorney-in-fact and agents full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as they might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents or either of them or their or his or her substitute or substitutes may lawfully 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 on June 7, 2023 in the capacities indicated.