Duties as Sub-Adviser (a) Subject to the supervision of the Trust's Board of Trustees ("Board") and Adviser, the Sub-Adviser will provide a continuous investment program for each Fund, including investment research and management, with respect to all or a portion of the securities and investments and cash equivalents of the Fund (the "Sub-Advised Assets"), such Sub-Advised Assets to be determined by the Adviser. The Sub-Adviser will determine from time to time what securities and other investments will be purchased, retained or sold with respect to the Sub-Advised Assets of each Fund, and the brokers and dealers through whom trades will be executed.
(b) The Sub-Adviser agrees that, in placing orders with brokers and dealers, it will attempt to obtain the best net result in terms of price and execution. Consistent with this obligation, the Sub-Adviser may, in its discretion, purchase and sell portfolio securities from and to brokers and dealers who sell shares of the Funds or provide the Funds, Adviser's other clients, or Sub-Adviser's other clients with research, analysis, advice and similar services. The Sub-Adviser may pay to brokers and dealers, in return for such research and analysis, a higher commission or spread than may be charged by other brokers and dealers, subject to the Sub-Adviser determining in good faith that such commission or spread is reasonable in terms either of the particular transaction or of the overall responsibility of the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser to the Funds and their other clients and that the total commissions or spreads paid by each Fund will be reasonable in relation to the benefits to the Fund over the long term. In no instance will portfolio securities be purchased from or sold to the Sub-Adviser, or any affiliated person thereof, except in accordance with the applicable securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder and any exemptive orders currently in effect. Whenever the Sub-Adviser simultaneously places orders to purchase or sell the same security on behalf of a Fund and one or more other accounts advised by the Sub-Adviser, such orders will be allocated as to price and amount among all such accounts in a manner believed to be equitable to each account.
(c) The Sub-Adviser will maintain all required books and records with respect to the securities transactions of the Funds, and will furnish the Board and Adviser with such periodic and special reports as the Board or Adviser reasonably may request. Sub-Adviser hereby agrees that all records which it maintains for the Adviser are the property of the Adviser, and agrees to preserve for the periods prescribed by applicable law any records which it maintains for the Adviser and which are required to be maintained, and further agrees to surrender promptly to the Adviser any records which it maintains for the Adviser upon request by the Adviser.
Rights, Duties and Responsibilities of Escrow Agent It is understood and agreed that the duties of the Escrow Agent are purely ministerial in nature, and that:
5.1 The Escrow Agent shall notify the Issuer, on a daily basis, of the Escrow Amounts which have been deposited in the Bank Account and of the amounts, constituting the Fund, which have cleared the banking system and have been collected by the Escrow Agent.
5.2 The Escrow Agent shall not be responsible for or be required to enforce any of the terms or conditions of any agreement between the Issuer and third parties nor shall the Escrow Agent be responsible for the performance by the Issuer of its respective obligations under this Agreement.
5.3 The Escrow Agent shall not be required to accept from the Issuer any Subscription Information pertaining to prospective purchasers unless such Subscription Information is accompanied by checks, cash, or wire transfers meeting the requirements of Section 3.1, nor shall the Escrow Agent be required to keep records of any information with respect to payments deposited except as to the names, addresses and amounts of such payments; however, the Escrow Agent shall notify the Issuer promptly of any discrepancy between the amount set forth in any Subscription Information and the amount delivered to the Escrow Agent therewith. Such amount need not be accepted for deposit in the Escrow Account until such discrepancy has been resolved.
5.4 The Escrow Agent shall be under no duty or responsibility to enforce collection of any check delivered to it hereunder. The Escrow Agent, within a reasonable time, shall return to the Issuer any check received which is dishonored, together with Subscription Information, if any, which accompanied such check.
5.5 The Escrow Agent shall be entitled to rely upon the accuracy, act in reliance upon the contents, and assume the genuineness of any notice, instruction, certificate, signature, instrument or other document which is given to the Escrow Agent pursuant to this Agreement without the necessity of the Escrow Agent verifying the truth or accuracy thereof. The Escrow Agent shall not be obligated to make any inquiry as to the authority, capacity, existence or identity of any person purporting to give any such notice or instructions or to execute any such certificate, instrument or other document.
5.6 If the Escrow Agent is uncertain as to its duties or rights hereunder or shall receive instructions with respect to the Bank Account, the Escrow Amounts or the Fund which, in its sole determination, are in conflict either with other instructions received by it or with any provision of this Agreement, it shall be entitled to hold the Escrow Amounts, the Fund, or a portion thereof, in the Bank Account pending the resolution of such uncertainty to the Escrow Agent’s sole satisfaction, by final judgment of a court or courts of competent jurisdiction or otherwise; or the Escrow Agent, at its sole option, may deposit the Fund (and any other Escrow Amounts that thereafter become part of the Fund) with the Clerk of a court of competent jurisdiction in a proceeding to which all parties in interest are joined. Upon the deposit by the Escrow Agent of the Fund with the Clerk of any such court, the Escrow Agent shall be relieved of all further obligations and released from all liability hereunder.
5.7 The Escrow Agent shall not be liable for any action taken or omitted hereunder, or for the misconduct of any employee, agent or attorney appointed by it, except in the case of willful misconduct or gross negligence. The Escrow Agent shall be entitled to consult with counsel of its own choosing and shall not be liable for any action taken, suffered or omitted by it in accordance with the advice of such counsel.
5.8 The Escrow Agent shall have no responsibility at any time to ascertain whether or not any security interest exists in the Escrow Amounts, the Fund or any part thereof or to file any financing statement under the Uniform Commercial Code with respect to the Fund or any part thereof.
Specific Duties Manager’s duties include the following:
Certain Duties and Responsibilities of the Trustee In entering into this Supplemental Indenture, the Trustee shall be entitled to the benefit of every provision of the Indenture relating to the conduct or affecting the liability or affording protection to the Trustee, whether or not elsewhere herein so provided.
Duties and Responsibilities of the Escrow Agent The Escrow Agent's duties and responsibilities shall be subject to the following terms and conditions:
(a) The Subscriber and Company acknowledge and agree that the Escrow Agent (i) shall not be responsible for or bound by, and shall not be required to inquire into whether either the Subscriber or Company is entitled to receipt of the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents pursuant to, any other agreement or otherwise; (ii) shall be obligated only for the performance of such duties as are specifically assumed by the Escrow Agent pursuant to this Agreement; (iii) may rely on and shall be protected in acting or refraining from acting upon any written notice, instruction, instrument, statement, request or document furnished to it hereunder and believed by the Escrow Agent in good faith to be genuine and to have been signed or presented by the proper person or party, without being required to determine the authenticity or correctness of any fact stated therein or the propriety or validity or the service thereof; (iv) may assume that any person believed by the Escrow Agent in good faith to be authorized to give notice or make any statement or execute any document in connection with the provisions hereof is so authorized; (v) shall not be under any duty to give the property held by Escrow Agent hereunder any greater degree of care than Escrow Agent gives its own similar property; and (vi) may consult counsel satisfactory to Escrow Agent, the opinion of such counsel to be full and complete authorization and protection in respect of any action taken, suffered or omitted by Escrow Agent hereunder in good faith and in accordance with the opinion of such counsel.
(b) The Subscriber and Company acknowledge that the Escrow Agent is acting solely as a stakeholder at their request and that the Escrow Agent shall not be liable for any action taken by Escrow Agent in good faith and believed by Escrow Agent to be authorized or within the rights or powers conferred upon Escrow Agent by this Agreement. The Subscriber and Company, jointly and severally, agree to indemnify and hold harmless the Escrow Agent and any of Escrow Agent's partners, employees, agents and representatives for any action taken or omitted to be taken by Escrow Agent or any of them hereunder, including the fees of outside counsel and other costs and expenses of defending itself against any claim or liability under this Agreement, except in the case of gross negligence or willful misconduct on Escrow Agent's part committed in its capacity as Escrow Agent under this Agreement. The Escrow Agent shall owe a duty only to the Subscriber and Company under this Agreement and to no other person.
(c) The Subscriber and Company jointly and severally agree to reimburse the Escrow Agent for outside counsel fees, to the extent authorized hereunder and incurred in connection with the performance of its duties and responsibilities hereunder.
(d) The Escrow Agent may at any time resign as Escrow Agent hereunder by giving five (5) days prior written notice of resignation to the Subscriber and the Company. Prior to the effective date of the resignation as specified in such notice, the Subscriber and Company will issue to the Escrow Agent a Joint Instruction authorizing delivery of the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents to a substitute Escrow Agent selected by the Subscriber and Company. If no successor Escrow Agent is named by the Subscriber and Company, the Escrow Agent may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction in the State of New York for appointment of a successor Escrow Agent, and to deposit the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents with the clerk of any such court.
(e) The Escrow Agent does not have and will not have any interest in the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents, but is serving only as escrow agent, having only possession thereof. The Escrow Agent shall not be liable for any loss resulting from the making or retention of any investment in accordance with this Escrow Agreement.
(f) This Agreement sets forth exclusively the duties of the Escrow Agent with respect to any and all matters pertinent thereto and no implied duties or obligations shall be read into this Agreement.
(g) The Escrow Agent shall be permitted to act as counsel for the Subscriber in any dispute as to the disposition of the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents, in any other dispute between the Subscriber and Company, whether or not the Escrow Agent is then holding the Company Documents and Subscriber Documents and continues to act as the Escrow Agent hereunder.
(h) The provisions of this Section 4.1 shall survive the resignation of the Escrow Agent or the termination of this Agreement.
Certain Duties and Responsibilities of Trustee (a) The Trustee, prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to the Securities of a series and after the curing of all Events of Default with respect to the Securities of that series that may have occurred, shall undertake to perform with respect to the Securities of such series such duties and only such duties as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee. In case an Event of Default with respect to the Securities of a series has occurred (that has not been cured or waived), the Trustee shall exercise with respect to Securities of that series such of the rights and powers vested in it by this Indenture, and use the same degree of care and skill in their exercise, as a prudent man would exercise or use under the circumstances in the conduct of his or her own affairs.
(b) No provision of this Indenture shall be construed to relieve the Trustee from liability for its own negligent action, its own negligent failure to act, or its own willful misconduct, except that:
(i) prior to the occurrence of an Event of Default with respect to the Securities of a series and after the curing or waiving of all such Events of Default with respect to that series that may have occurred:
(A) the duties and obligations of the Trustee shall with respect to the Securities of such series be determined solely by the express provisions of this Indenture, and the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to the Securities of such series except for the performance of such duties and obligations as are specifically set forth in this Indenture, and no implied covenants or obligations shall be read into this Indenture against the Trustee; and
(B) in the absence of bad faith on the part of the Trustee, the Trustee may with respect to the Securities of such series conclusively rely, as to the truth of the statements and the correctness of the opinions expressed therein, upon any certificates or opinions furnished to the Trustee and conforming to the requirements of this Indenture; but in the case of any such certificates or opinions that by any provision hereof are specifically required to be furnished to the Trustee, the Trustee shall be under a duty to examine the same to determine whether or not they conform to the requirements of this Indenture;
(ii) the Trustee shall not be liable to any Securityholder or to any other Person for any error of judgment made in good faith by a Responsible Officer or Responsible Officers of the Trustee, unless it shall be proved that the Trustee was negligent in ascertaining the pertinent facts;
(iii) the Trustee shall not be liable with respect to any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith in accordance with the direction of the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the Securities of any series at the time Outstanding relating to the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the Trustee, or exercising any trust or power conferred upon the Trustee under this Indenture with respect to the Securities of that series;
(iv) none of the provisions contained in this Indenture shall require the Trustee to expend or risk its own funds or otherwise incur personal financial liability in the performance of any of its duties or in the exercise of any of its rights or powers if there is reasonable ground for believing that the repayment of such funds or liability is not reasonably assured to it under the terms of this Indenture or adequate indemnity against such risk is not reasonably assured to it;
(v) The Trustee shall not be required to give any bond or surety in respect of the performance of its powers or duties hereunder;
(vi) The permissive right of the Trustee to do things enumerated in this Indenture shall not be construed as a duty of the Trustee; and
(vii) No Trustee shall have any duty or responsibility for any act or omission of any other Trustee appointed with respect to a series of Securities hereunder.
Terms of Appointment; Duties of the Bank 1.1 Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, each Trust, on behalf of its respective Funds, hereby employs and appoints the Bank to act as, and the Bank agrees to act as, its transfer agent for the authorized and issued shares of beneficial interest, no par value per share of the Funds (“Shares”), and as the Trust’s dividend disbursing agent.
1.2 The Bank agrees that it will perform the following services:
(a) In accordance with the terms and conditions of the form of Participant Agreement, attached hereto as Exhibit A, the Bank shall:
(i) Perform and facilitate the performance of purchases and redemption of Creation Units;
(ii) Prepare and transmit by means of DTC’s book-entry system payments for dividends and distributions declared by each Trust on behalf of the applicable Fund;
(iii) Maintain the record of the name and address of the Shareholder and the number of Shares issued by each Trust and held by the Shareholder;
(iv) Record the issuance of Shares of each Trust and maintain a record of the total number of Shares of the Funds outstanding. The Bank shall have no obligation, when recording the issuance of Shares, to monitor the issuance of such Shares or to take cognizance of any laws relating to the issue or sale of such Shares, which functions shall be the sole responsibility of each Trust;
(v) Prepare and transmit to each Trust and any designated administrator and to any applicable securities exchange (as specified to the Bank by the Trust) information with respect to purchases and redemptions of Shares;
(vi) On days that the Trusts may accept orders for purchases or redemptions, calculate and transmit to the Bank and the Trust’s administrator the number of outstanding Shares for each Fund;
(vii) On days that the Trusts may accept orders for purchases or redemptions (pursuant to the Participant Agreement), transmit to the Bank, the Trusts and DTC the amount of Shares purchased on such day;
(viii) Confirm to DTC the number of Shares issued to the Shareholder, as DTC may reasonably request;
(ix) Prepare and deliver other reports, information and documents to DTC as DTC may reasonably request;
(x) Extend the voting rights to the Shareholder and/or beneficial owners of Shares in accordance with the policies and procedures of DTC for book-entry only securities;
(xi) Maintain those books and records of each Trust specified by the Trusts in Schedule A attached hereto;
(xii) Prepare a monthly report of all purchases and redemptions during such month on a gross transaction basis. The monthly report shall show the counterpart and amount of each purchase on a daily basis net number of shares either redeemed or created for such Business Day;
(xiii) Receive from the Distributor (as defined in the Participant Agreement) purchase orders from Authorized Participants (as defined in the Participant Agreement) for Creation Unit aggregations of Shares received in good form and accepted by or on behalf of each Trust by the Distributor, transmit appropriate trade instructions to the National Securities Clearance Corporation, if applicable, and pursuant to such orders issue the appropriate number of Shares of the applicable Fund and hold such Shares in the account of the Shareholder for each of the respective Funds of each Trust;
(xiv) Receive from the Authorized Participants (as defined in the Participant Agreement) redemption requests, deliver the appropriate documentation thereof to The Bank of New York as custodian for each Trust, generate and transmit or cause to be generated and transmitted confirmation of receipt of such redemption requests to the Authorized Participants submitting the same; transmit appropriate trade instructions to the National Securities Clearance Corporation, if applicable, and redeem the appropriate number of Creation Unit Aggregations of Shares held in the account of the Shareholder;
(xv) Confirm the name, U.S. taxpayer identification number and principal place of business of each Authorized Participant; and
(b) In addition to, and neither in lieu nor in contravention of, the services set forth in the above paragraph (a), the Bank shall perform the customary services of a transfer agent and dividend disbursing agent, including, but not limited to: maintaining the account of the Shareholder, obtaining a list of DTC participants holding interests in the Global Certificate at the request of a Trust, mailing proxy materials, shareholder reports and prospectuses to the Shareholder or DTC participants or beneficial owners of Shares at the request of a Trust and those services set forth on Schedule A attached hereto.
(c) The following shall be delivered to DTC for delivery to beneficial owners in accordance with the procedures for book-entry only securities of DTC:
(i) Annual and semi-annual reports of the Trusts;
(ii) Proxies, proxy statements and other proxy soliciting materials;
(iii) Prospectus and amendments and supplements to the Prospectus, including stickers; and
(iv) Other communications as may be required by law or reasonably requested by a Trust.
(d) If the Shares are represented by individual Certificates, the Bank shall perform the services agreed to in writing by the Bank and the Trusts.
(e) The Bank shall provide additional services (if any) on behalf of a Trust (i.e., escheatment services) which may be agreed upon in writing between a Trust and the Bank.
(f) The Bank shall keep records relating to the services to be performed hereunder, in the form and manner as it may deem advisable. To the extent required by Section 31 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the Rules thereunder, the Bank agrees that all such records prepared or maintained by the Bank relating to the services to be performed by the Bank hereunder are the property of each respective Trust and will be preserved, maintained and made available in accordance with such Section and Rules, and will be surrendered promptly to that Trust on and in accordance with its request.
Duties of Escrow Agent Acceptance by the Escrow Agent of its duties under this Escrow Agreement is subject to the following terms and conditions, which all parties to this Escrow Agreement agree shall govern and control with respect to the rights, duties, liabilities and immunities of the Escrow Agent.
(a) The duties and responsibilities of the Escrow Agent shall be limited to those expressly set forth in this Escrow Agreement and the Escrow Agent shall not be subject to, nor obligated to recognize, any other agreements between the Corporation, Underwriter and any Subscriber.
(b) The duties of the Escrow Agent are only such as are herein specifically provided and such duties are purely ministerial in nature. The Escrow Agent's primary duty shall be to keep custody of and safeguard the Escrow Fund during the period of the escrow, to invest monies held in the Escrow Fund in accordance with Section 2 hereof and to make disbursements from the Escrow Fund in accordance with Section 4 hereof.
(c) The Escrow Agent shall be under no obligations in respect of the Escrow Fund other than to faithfully follow the instructions herein contained or delivered to the Escrow Agent in accordance with this Escrow Agreement. The Escrow Agent may rely and act upon any written notice, instruction, direction, request, waiver, consent, receipt or other paper or document which it in good faith believes to be genuine and what it purports to be and the Escrow Agent shall be subject to no liability with respect to the form, execution or validity thereof. If, in the opinion of the Escrow Agent, the instructions it receives are ambiguous, uncertain or in conflict with any previous instructions or this Escrow Agreement, then the Escrow Agent is authorized to hold and preserve intact the Escrow Fund pending the settlement of any such controversy by final adjudication of a court or courts of proper jurisdiction.
(d) The Escrow Agent shall not be liable for any error of judgment or for any act done or step taken or omitted by it, in good faith, or for any mistake of fact or law, or for anything which it may in good faith do or refrain from doing in connection herewith, unless caused by its willful misconduct or gross negligence. The Corporation shall indemnify and hold the Escrow Agent harmless from and against any and all claims, losses, damages, liabilities and expenses, including reasonable attorneys' fees, which may be imposed upon the Escrow Agent or incurred by the Escrow Agent in connection with its acceptance of the appointment as Escrow Agent hereunder or the performance of its duties hereunder, unless the Escrow Agent is determined to have committed an intentional wrongful act or to have been grossly negligent with respect to its duties under this Escrow Agreement.
(e) The Escrow Agent shall return to the Corporation any sums delivered to the Escrow Agent pursuant to this Escrow Agreement for which the Escrow Agent has not received release instructions pursuant to Section 4 hereof, and as to which four years have passed since delivery.
(f) The Escrow Agent may consult with, and obtain advice from, legal counsel (which may not be counsel to the Corporation) in the event of any dispute or questions as to the construction of any of the provisions hereof or its duties hereunder, and it shall incur no liability in acting in good faith in accordance with the written opinion and instructions of such counsel. The fees for consultation with such counsel shall be paid by the Corporation.
(g) Reference in this Escrow Agreement to the Registration Statement is for identification purposes only, and its terms and conditions are not thereby incorporated herein.
Administrative Duties of the Custodian The Custodian shall perform the following administrative duties with respect to Investments of the Fund.
Title; Duties During the Term, Executive shall serve as the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, reporting directly to the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”). Executive shall perform such specific duties as are commensurate with such positions and such other duties as may be assigned to Executive from time to time by the Board.
