Election of Trustees The members of The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company are its policyholders of insurance policies and deferred annuity contracts. The members exercise control through a Board of Trustees. Elections to the Board are held each year at the annual meeting of members. Members are entitled to vote in person or by proxy. FLEXIBLE PAYMENT VARIABLE ANNUITY-ACCOUNT B AMOUNTS ALLOCATED TO THE SEPARATE ACCOUNT DIVISIONS AND VARIABLE PAYMENTS PROVIDED BY THIS CONTRACT ARE NOT GUARANTEED AS TO FIXED DOLLAR AMOUNT BUT ARE VARIABLE AND MAY INCREASE OR DECREASE TO REFLECT THE INVESTMENT EXPERIENCE OF THE SEPARATE ACCOUNT.
Removal of Trustees No natural person shall serve as Trustee after the holders of record of not less than two-thirds of the outstanding Shares have declared that such Trustee be removed from that office either by declaration in writing filed with the Trust's custodian or by votes cast in person or by proxy at a meeting called for the purpose. The Trustees shall promptly call a meeting of Shareholders for the purpose of voting upon the question of removal of any Trustee when requested in writing so to do by the record holders of not less than 10 per centum of the outstanding Shares. Whenever ten or more Shareholders of record who have been such for at least six months preceding the date of application, and who hold in the aggregate Shares having a net asset value of at least 1 per centum of the outstanding Shares, shall apply to the Trustees in writing, stating that they wish to communicate with other Shareholders with a view to obtaining signatures to a request for a meeting pursuant to this Section and accompanied by a form of communication and request which they wish to transmit, the Trustees shall within five business days after receipt of such application either (a) afford to such applicants access to a list of the names and addresses of all Shareholders as recorded on the books of the Trust; or (b) inform such applicants as to the approximate number of Shareholders of record, and the approximate cost of transmitting to them the proposed communication and form of request. If the Trustees elect to follow the course specified in clause (b), the Trustees, upon the written request of such applicants, accompanied by a tender of the material to be transmitted and of the reasonable expenses of transmittal, shall, with reasonable promptness, transmit such material to all Shareholders of record at their addresses as recorded on the books of the Trust (or at the telephone or facsimile number or e-mail or other electronic address most recently furnished to the Trust (or its agent) by the Shareholder), unless within five business days after such tender the Trustees shall transmit to such applicants and file with the Commission, together with a copy of the material proposed to be transmitted, a written statement signed by at least a majority of the Trustees to the effect that in their opinion either such material contains untrue statements of fact or omits to state facts necessary to make the statements contained therein not misleading, or would be in violation of applicable law, and specifying the basis of such opinion. If the Commission shall enter an order refusing to sustain any of the objections specified in the written statement so filed, or if, after the entry of an order sustaining one or more of such objections, the Commission shall find, after notice and opportunity for hearing, that all objections so sustained have been met, and shall enter an order so declaring, the Trustees shall transmit copies of such material to all Shareholders with reasonable promptness after the entry of such order and the renewal of such tender.
Rights of Trustee (a) The Trustee may conclusively rely upon any document believed by it to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper Person. The Trustee need not investigate any fact or matter stated in the document.