FORM OF AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF REORGANIZATION
[March
__], 2008
In
order to consummate the reorganization contemplated herein (the "Reorganization") and
in consideration of the promises and the covenants and agreements hereinafter
set forth, and intending to be legally bound, BlackRock XXXXXX (the "Target Fund"), a
registered closed-end investment company, File No. 811-XXXX and BlackRock XXXXXX
(the "Acquiring
Fund"), a registered closed-end investment company, File No. 811-XXXX,
each hereby agree as follows:
1.
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REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF
THE ACQUIRING FUND.
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The
Acquiring Fund represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the Target Fund
that:
(a) The Acquiring Fund is a corporation duly organized, validly existing and in
good standing in conformity with the laws of the State of Maryland, and has the power to own all of its
assets and to carry out this Agreement. The Acquiring Fund has all necessary
federal, state and local authorizations to carry on its business as it is now
being conducted and to carry out this Agreement.
(b) The Acquiring Fund is duly registered
under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940
Act") as a diversified, closed-end management
investment company and such registration has not been revoked or rescinded and
is in full force and
effect.
(c) The Target Fund has been furnished with
the Acquiring Fund's Annual
Report to Stockholders for
the fiscal year ended XXXX,
0000, and the audited
financial statements appearing therein, having been audited by Deloitte &
Touche LLP, independent
registered public accounting firm, fairly present the financial position of the
Acquiring Fund as of the respective dates indicated, in conformity with
accounting principles generally accepted in the United States applied on a
consistent basis.
(d) An unaudited statement of assets, liabilities and
capital of the Acquiring Fund and an unaudited schedule of investments of the
Acquiring Fund, each as of the Valuation Time (as defined in Section 5(d)
herein), will be furnished to the Target Fund,
at or prior to the Closing
Date (as defined in Section 7(a) herein), for the purpose of determining the
number of Acquiring Fund Common Shares (as defined in Section 1(l) herein)
to be issued pursuant to
Section 6 of this Agreement; each will fairly present the financial position of the Acquiring Fund as of the
Valuation Time in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles
applied on a consistent basis.
(e) The Acquiring Fund has full power and
authority to enter into and perform its obligations under this
Agreement. The execution, delivery and performance
of this Agreement has been duly authorized by all necessary action of its Board
of Directors, and this Agreement constitutes a valid
and binding contract enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to the
effects of bankruptcy,
insolvency, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance and similar laws relating to or
affecting creditors' rights generally and court decisions with respect
thereto.
(f) There are no material legal,
administrative or other proceedings pending or, to the knowledge of the Acquiring Fund,
threatened against it which assert liability on the part of the Acquiring Fund
or which materially affect its financial condition or its ability to consummate
the Reorganization. The Acquiring Fund is not charged
with or, to the best of its
knowledge, threatened with any violation or investigation of any possible
violation of any provisions of any federal, state or local law or regulation or
administrative ruling relating to any aspect of its
business.
(g) The Acquiring Fund is not obligated under any
provision of its Charter or its Bylaws, each as amended to the
date hereof, and is not a party to any contract or other commitment or
obligation, and is not subject to any order or decree, which would be violated
by its execution of or
performance under this Agreement, except insofar as the Funds have mutually
agreed to amend such contract or other commitment or obligation to cure any
potential violation as a condition precedent to the
Reorganization.
(h) There are no material contracts outstanding to which the
Acquiring Fund is a party that have not been disclosed in the N-14 Registration
Statement (as defined in subsection (k) below) or that will not otherwise be
disclosed to the Target Fund prior to the Valuation Time.
(i) The Acquiring Fund has no known liabilities of
a material amount, contingent or otherwise, other than those shown on its
statements of assets, liabilities and capital referred to in subsection (c)
above, those incurred in the ordinary course of its business as an investment company, and those incurred
in connection with the Reorganization. As of the Valuation Time, the Acquiring
Fund will advise the Target Fund in writing of all known liabilities, contingent
or otherwise, whether or not incurred in the ordinary course of business, existing or accrued
as of such time, except to the extent disclosed in the financial statements
referred to in subsection (c) above.
(j) No consent, approval, authorization or
order of any court or government authority is required for the consummation by the Acquiring Fund of the
Reorganization, except such as may be required under the Securities Act of 1933,
as amended (the "1933
Act"), the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "1934
Act") and the 1940 Act or
state securities laws
(which term as used herein shall include the laws of the District of Columbia
and Puerto Rico).
(k) The registration statement filed by the
Acquiring Fund on Form N-14, which includes the proxy statement of the Target
Fund and the Acquiring Fund with respect to the transactions contemplated herein
(the "Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus"), and
any supplement or amendment thereto or to the documents therein (as amended or
supplemented, the "N-14
Registration Statement"),
on its effective date, at the time of the stockholders' meetings referred to in Section 8(a)
of this Agreement and at the Closing Date, insofar as it relates to the
Acquiring Fund, (i) complied or will comply in all material respects with the
provisions of the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act and the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations
thereunder and (ii) did not or will not contain any untrue statement of a
material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein
or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; and the Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus included
therein did not or will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or
omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the
light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however,
that
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the representations and warranties in
this subsection only shall apply to statements in or omissions from the N-14
Registration Statement made in reliance upon and in conformity with information
furnished by the Acquiring
Fund for use in the N-14 Registration Statement.
(l) The Acquiring Fund is authorized to
issue XXXX shares of common stock, par value $.10 per share (the "Acquiring
Fund Common Shares").
Each outstanding Acquiring Fund Common
Share is fully paid and nonassessable and has full voting
rights.
(m) The Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be
issued to the Target Fund pursuant to this Agreement will have been duly
authorized and, when issued and delivered pursuant to this Agreement, will be
legally and validly issued and will be fully paid and,
nonassessable and will have full voting rights, and no shareholder of the
Acquiring Fund will have any preemptive right of subscription or purchase in
respect thereof.
(n) At or prior to the Closing Date, the
Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be transferred to the Target
Fund for distribution to the stockholders of the Target Fund on the Closing Date
will be duly qualified for offering to the public in all states of the United
States in which the sale of shares of the Funds presently are qualified, and there will be a
sufficient number of such shares registered under the 1933 Act and, as may be
necessary, with each pertinent state securities commission to permit the
transfers contemplated by this Agreement to be consummated.
(o) At or prior to the Closing Date, the Acquiring Fund
will have obtained any and all regulatory, director and shareholder approvals necessary to
issue the Acquiring Fund Common Shares to the Target Fund.
(p) The Acquiring Fund has filed, or intends
to file, or has obtained
extensions to file, all federal, state and local tax returns which are required
to be filed by it, and has paid or has obtained extensions to pay, all federal,
state and local taxes shown on said returns to be due and owing and all
assessments received by it, up to and including the taxable
year in which the Closing Date occurs. All tax liabilities of the Acquiring
Fund have been adequately provided for on its books, and no tax deficiency or
liability of the Acquiring Fund has been asserted and no question with respect thereto has been raised
by the Internal Revenue Service or by any state or local tax authority for taxes
in excess of those already paid, up to and including the taxable year in which
the Closing Date occurs.
(q) The Acquiring Fund: has elected to qualify and has qualified as a
regulated investment
company ("RIC") as of and since its inception; has been
a RIC under the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, (the "Code") at all times since the end of its first
taxable year when it so qualified; qualifies and will continue to qualify
as a RIC under the Code; and has satisfied the distribution requirements imposed
by the Code for each of its taxable years.
2.
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REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES OF
THE TARGET FUND.
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The
Target Fund represents and warrants to, and agrees with, the Acquiring Fund
that:
(a) The Target Fund is a corporation duly organized, validly existing and in
good standing in conformity with the laws of the State of Maryland, and has the power to own all of
its
3
assets and to carry out this
Agreement. The Target Fund has all necessary
federal, state and local authorizations to carry on its business as it is now
being conducted and to carry out this Agreement.
(b) The Target Fund is duly registered under the 1940 Act as a
diversified, closed-end
management investment
company, and such registration has not been revoked or rescinded and is in full
force and effect.
(c) The Target Fund has full power and
authority to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement.
The execution, delivery and
performance of this
Agreement has been duly authorized by all necessary action of its Board of
Directors and this Agreement constitutes a valid
and binding contract enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to the
effects of bankruptcy, insolvency, moratorium, fraudulent conveyance and
similar laws relating to or affecting creditors' rights generally and court
decisions with respect thereto.
(d) The Acquiring Fund has been furnished
with the Target Fund's
Annual Report to Stockholders for the fiscal year ended XXXX, 0000, and the audited financial statements
appearing therein, having been audited by Deloitte & Touche LLP, independent
registered public accounting firm, fairly present the financial position of the
Target Fund as of the respective dates indicated, in conformity with accounting
principles generally accepted in the United States applied on a consistent
basis.
(e) An unaudited statement of assets,
liabilities and capital of the Target Fund and an unaudited schedule of
investments of the Target Fund, each as of the Valuation Time, will be
furnished to the Acquiring Fund at or prior to the Closing Date for the purpose
of determining the number of shares of Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be issued
to the Target Fund pursuant to Section 3 of this Agreement; each will fairly present the
financial position of the Target Fund as of the Valuation Time in conformity
with generally accepted accounting principles applied on a consistent
basis.
(f) There are no material legal,
administrative or other proceedings pending or, to the knowledge of the Target
Fund, threatened against it which assert liability on the part of the Target
Fund or which materially affect its financial condition or its ability to
consummate the Reorganization. The Target Fund is not charged
with or, to the best of its
knowledge, threatened with any violation or investigation of any possible
violation of any provisions of any federal, state or local law or regulation or
administrative ruling relating to any aspect of its
business.
(g) There are no material contracts outstanding to which
the Target Fund is a party that have not been disclosed in the N-14 Registration
Statement or will not otherwise be disclosed to the Acquiring Fund prior to the
Valuation Time.
(h) The Target Fund is not obligated under
any provision of its
Charter or its Bylaws, each as amended to the
date hereof, or a party to any contract or other commitment or obligation, and
is not subject to any order or decree, which would be violated by its execution
of or performance under this Agreement, except insofar as the Funds
have mutually agreed to amend such contract or other commitment or obligation to
cure any potential violation as a condition precedent to the
Reorganization.
4
(i) The Target Fund has no known liabilities
of a material amount,
contingent or otherwise, other than those shown on its statements of assets,
liabilities and capital referred to above, those incurred in the ordinary course
of its business as an investment company and those incurred in connection with
the Reorganization. As of the Valuation Time, the Target
Fund will advise the Acquiring Fund in writing of all known liabilities,
contingent or otherwise, whether or not incurred in the ordinary course of
business, existing or accrued as of such time.
(j) The Target Fund has filed, or intends to file, or has
obtained extensions to file, all federal, state and local tax returns which are
required to be filed by it, and has paid or has obtained extensions to pay, all
federal, state and local taxes shown on said returns to be due and owing and all assessments received
by it, up to and including the taxable year in which the Closing Date occurs.
All tax liabilities of the Target Fund
have been adequately provided for on its books, and no tax deficiency or
liability of the Target Fund has been asserted and no question
with respect thereto has been raised by the Internal Revenue Service or by any
state or local tax authority for taxes in excess of those already paid, up to
and including the taxable year in which the Closing Date occurs.
(k) At both the Valuation Time and the
Closing Date, the Target Fund will have full right, power and authority to sell,
assign, transfer and deliver the Target Fund Investments. As used in this Agreement, the term
"Target Fund
Investments" shall mean (i)
the investments of the
Target Fund shown on the schedule of its investments as of the Valuation Time
furnished to the Acquiring Fund; and (ii) all other assets owned by the Target
Fund or liabilities incurred as of the Valuation Time. At the Closing Date, subject only to the obligation to
deliver the Target Fund Investments as contemplated by this Agreement, the
Target Fund will have good and marketable title to all of the Target Fund
Investments, and the Acquiring Fund will acquire all of the Target
Fund Investments free and clear of any
encumbrances, liens or security interests and without any restrictions upon the
transfer thereof (except those imposed by the federal or state securities laws
and those imperfections of title or encumbrances as do not materially detract from the value or use of
the Target Fund Investments or materially affect title
thereto).
(l) No consent, approval, authorization or
order of any court or governmental authority is required for the consummation by
the Target Fund of the Reorganization, except such as may be required
under the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act, the 1940 Act or state securities
laws.
(m) The N-14 Registration Statement, on its
effective date, at the time of the stockholders' meetings called to vote on this
Agreement and on the Closing Date, insofar as it relates to the
Target Fund (i) complied or will comply in all material respects with the
provisions of the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act and the 1940 Act and the rules and
regulations thereunder, and (ii) did not or will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or
omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to
make the statements therein not misleading; and the Joint Proxy
Statement/Prospectus included therein did not or will not contain any
untrue statement of a material fact or omit
to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the
light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided,
however, that the representations and warranties in this subsection shall apply only to statements
in or omissions from the N-14 Registration Statement made in reliance upon and
in conformity with information furnished by the Target Fund for use in the N-14
Registration Statement.
5
(n) The Target Fund is authorized to
issue XXXX shares of common stock, par value $.10 per share (the "Target Fund
Common Shares"). Each outstanding Target Fund Common
Share is fully paid and nonassessable and has full voting
rights.
(o) All of the issued and outstanding Target
Fund Common Shares were
offered for sale and sold in conformity with all applicable federal and state
securities laws.
(p) The books and records of the Target Fund
made available to the Acquiring Fund and/or its counsel are substantially true
and correct and contain no material misstatements or omissions with respect
to the operations of the Target Fund.
(q) The Target Fund will not sell or
otherwise dispose of any of the Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be received in
the Reorganization, except in distribution to the stockholders of the Target Fund, as provided in Section
3 of this Agreement.
(r) The Target Fund has elected to
qualify and has qualified
as a RIC under the Code as
of and since its inception; has been a RIC under the Code at all times since the
end of its first taxable year when it so qualified; qualifies and
will continue to qualify as a RIC under the Code for its taxable year ending
upon its liquidation; and has satisfied the distribution requirements imposed by
the Code for each of its taxable years.
3.
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THE
REORGANIZATION.
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(a) Subject to receiving the requisite
approvals of the stockholders of the Target Fund, and to the other
terms and conditions
contained herein, the
Target Fund agrees to convey, transfer and deliver to the Acquiring Fund and the
Acquiring Fund agrees to acquire from the Target Fund, on the Closing
Date, all of the Target Fund Investments (including interest accrued as of the
Valuation Time on debt instruments), and assume substantially all of the
liabilities of the Target Fund, in exchange for that number of Acquiring Fund Common Shares provided in Section
4 of this Agreement. Pursuant to this Agreement, as soon as
practicable after the Closing Date, the Target Fund will distribute all
Acquiring Fund Common Shares received by it to its stockholders in exchange for their Target Fund Common Shares.
Such distributions shall be accomplished
by the opening of shareholder accounts on the share ledger records of the
Acquiring Fund in the amounts due the stockholders of the Target Fund based on their
respective holdings in the
Target Fund as of the Valuation Time.
(b) If it is determined that the portfolios
of the Target Fund and the Acquiring Fund, when aggregated, would contain
investments exceeding certain percentage limitations imposed upon the Acquiring
Fund with respect to such
investments, the Target Fund, if requested by the Acquiring Fund, will dispose
of a sufficient amount of such investments as may be necessary to avoid
violating such limitations as of the Closing Date. Notwithstanding the foregoing, (a)
nothing herein will require
the Target Fund to dispose of any portfolios, securities or other investments,
if, in the reasonable judgment of the Target Fund's directors or investment adviser, such disposition
would adversely affect the tax-free nature of the Reorganization for federal income tax
purposes or would otherwise not be in the best interests of the Target Fund, and
(b) nothing will permit the Target Fund to dispose of any portfolio securities
or other investments if, in the reasonable judgment of the Acquiring Fund's directors or investment adviser, such
disposition would adversely affect the
tax-free nature of the Reorganization for federal income tax purposes or would
otherwise not be in the best interests of the Acquiring
Fund.
6
(c) Prior to the Closing Date, the Target Fund shall declare a
dividend or dividends which, together with all such previous dividends, shall
have the effect of distributing to its stockholders all of its net investment company taxable income
to and including the Closing Date, if any (computed without regard to any
deduction for dividends paid), and all of its net capital gain, if any, realized
to and including the Closing Date.
(d) The Target Fund will pay or cause to be
paid to the Acquiring Fund any interest the Target Fund receives on or after the Closing Date with respect
to any of the Target Fund Investments transferred to the Acquiring Fund
hereunder.
(e) The Valuation Time shall be 4:00 p.m.,
Eastern time, on XXXX,
0000, or such earlier or later day and time as
may be mutually agreed upon
in writing (the "Valuation
Time").
(f) Recourse for liabilities assumed from
the Target Fund by the Acquiring Fund in the Reorganization will be limited to
the net assets acquired by the Acquiring Fund. The known liabilities of the Target
Fund, as of the Valuation
Time, shall be confirmed to the Acquiring Fund pursuant to Section
2(i) of this
Agreement.
(g) The Target Fund will be terminated
as soon as practicable
following the Closing Date
by terminating its registration under the 1940 Act and dissolving under Maryland law and will withdraw its authority to
do business in any state
where it is registered.
4.
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ISSUANCE AND VALUATION OF
ACQUIRING FUND COMMON SHARES IN THE
REORGANIZATION.
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Acquiring
Fund Common Shares of an aggregate net asset value equal to the value of the
assets of the Target Fund acquired in the Reorganization determined as
hereinafter provided, reduced by the amount of liabilities of the Target Fund
assumed by the Acquiring Fund in the Reorganization, shall be issued by the
Acquiring Fund to the Target Fund in exchange for such assets of the Target
Fund. The Acquiring Fund will issue to the Target Fund a number of
Acquiring Fund Common Shares, the aggregate net asset value of which will equal
the aggregate net asset value of the Target Fund Common Shares, determined as
set forth below.
The
net asset value of each of the Funds shall be determined as of the Valuation
Time in accordance with the regular procedures of the investment adviser, and no
formula will be used to adjust the net asset value so determined of any Fund to
take into account differences in realized and unrealized gains and
losses. Values in all cases shall be determined as of the Valuation
Time. The value of the Target Fund Investments to be transferred to
the Acquiring Fund shall be determined pursuant to the regular procedures of the
investment adviser.
Such
valuation and determination shall be made by the Acquiring Fund in cooperation
with the Target Fund and shall be confirmed in writing by the Acquiring Fund to
the Target Fund. The net asset value per share of the Acquiring Fund
Common Shares shall be determined in accordance with such procedures and the
Acquiring Fund shall certify the computations involved. For purposes
of determining the net asset value per share of each Fund's Common Shares,
the
7
value of the securities held by the
applicable Fund plus any cash or other assets (including interest accrued but
not yet received) minus all liabilities (including accrued expenses)
shall be divided by the total number of Target
Fund Common Shares or
Acquiring Fund Common Shares, as the case may be, outstanding at such
time. The Acquiring Fund shall issue to the Target Fund certificates
or share deposit receipts for the Acquiring Fund Common Shares registered in the
name of the Target Fund. The Target Fund shall then distribute
the Acquiring Fund Common Shares to the holders of Target Fund Common Shares by
redelivering the certificates or share deposit receipts evidencing ownership of
the Acquiring Fund Common Shares to the transfer agent and registrar for the Acquiring
Fund Common Shares, for distribution to the holders of Target Fund Common Shares
on the basis of such holder's proportionate interest in the aggregate net asset
value of the Target Fund Common Shares. With respect to any Target Fund shareholder holding
certificates evidencing ownership of Target Fund Common Shares as of the Closing
Date, and subject to the Acquiring Fund being informed thereof in writing by the
Target Fund, the Acquiring Fund will not permit such shareholder to receive new certificates
evidencing ownership of the Acquiring Fund Common Shares until notified by the
Target Fund or its agent that such shareholder has surrendered his or her
outstanding certificates evidencing ownership of Target Fund Common Shares or, in the event of lost
certificates, posted adequate bond. The Target Fund, at its own expense,
will request its stockholders to surrender their outstanding
certificates evidencing ownership of Target Fund Common Shares or post adequate
bond therefor.
No
fractional shares of Acquiring Fund Common Shares will be issued to holders of
Target Fund Common Shares unless such shares are held in a Dividend Reinvestment
Plan account. In lieu thereof, the Acquiring Fund's transfer agent
will aggregate all fractional Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be issued in
connection with the Reorganization (other than those issued to a Dividend
Reinvestment Plan account) and sell the resulting full shares on the New York
Stock Exchange at the current market price for Acquiring Fund Common Shares for
the account of all holders of such fractional interests, and each such holder
will receive such holder's pro rata share of the proceeds of such sale upon
surrender of such holder's certificates representing Acquiring Fund Common
Shares.
5.
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PAYMENT OF
EXPENSES.
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(a) The Target Fund, the Acquiring Fund and
any other closed-end investment company that sells substantially all of its
assets to the Acquiring Fund on or about the Closing Date (for purposes of this
Section 5(a) only, a “Fund”) will bear expenses incurred in
connection with the Reorganization, including but not limited to, costs related
to the preparation and distribution of materials distributed to each Fund's
Board of Directors, expenses incurred in connection with the preparation of the Agreement and Plan of
Reorganization and a registration statement on Form N-14, the printing and
distribution of the Joint Proxy Statement/Prospectus and Semi-Annual Reports,
SEC and state securities commission filing fees and legal and audit fees in connection with the
Reorganization, legal fees incurred preparing each Fund's board materials,
attending each Fund's board meetings and preparing the minutes, auditing fees
associated with each Fund's financial statements, stock exchange fees,
transfer agency fees, rating agency fees,
portfolio transfer taxes (if any) and any similar expenses incurred in
connection with the Reorganization, which will be borne directly by the
respective Fund incurring
the expense or allocated among the
Funds based upon some
reasonable methodology as appropriate.
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6.
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COVENANTS OF THE
FUNDS.
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(a) Each Fund covenants to operate its
business as presently conducted between the date hereof and the Closing
Date.
(b) The Target Fund agrees that following the
consummation of the Reorganization, it will dissolve in accordance with the laws of
the State of Maryland and any other applicable law, it will
not make any distributions of any Acquiring Fund Common Shares other than to
its stockholders and without first paying or adequately
providing for the payment of all of its respective liabilities not assumed by
the Acquiring Fund, if any, and on and after the Closing Date it shall not
conduct any business except in connection with its termination.
(c) The Target Fund undertakes that if the
Reorganization is consummated, it will file an application pursuant to Section
8(f) of the 1940 Act for an order declaring that the Target Fund has ceased to
be a registered investment company.
(d) The Acquiring Fund will file the N-14
Registration Statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the
"SEC") and will use its best efforts to
provide that the N-14 Registration Statement becomes effective as promptly as
practicable. Each Fund agrees to cooperate fully with the other, and each
will furnish to the other the information relating to itself to be set forth in
the N-14 Registration Statement as required by the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act the
1940 Act, and the rules and regulations thereunder and the state securities
laws.
(e) The Acquiring Fund has no plan or
intention to sell or otherwise dispose of the Target Fund Investments, except
for dispositions made in the ordinary course of business.
(f) Each of the Funds agrees that by the
Closing Date all of its federal and other tax returns and reports
required to be filed on or before such date shall have been filed and all taxes
shown as due on said returns either have been paid or adequate liability
reserves have been provided for the payment of such taxes.
The
intention of the parties is that the transaction contemplated by this Agreement
will qualify as a reorganization within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the
Internal Revenue Code. Neither the Acquiring Fund nor the Target Fund
shall take any action or cause any action to be taken (including, without
limitation, the filing of any tax return) that is inconsistent with such
treatment or results in the failure of the transaction to qualify as a
reorganization within the meaning of Section 368(a) of the Internal Revenue
Code. At or prior to the Closing Date, the Acquiring Fund and the
Target Fund will take such action, or cause such action to be taken, as is
reasonably necessary to enable Skadden, Arps, Slate, Xxxxxxx & Xxxx LLP
("Skadden"),
special counsel to the Funds, to render the tax opinion
required herein (including, without limitation, each party's execution of
representations reasonably requested by and addressed to Skadden).
9
In
connection with this covenant, the Funds agree to cooperate with each other in
filing any tax return, amended return or claim for refund, determining a
liability for taxes or a right to a refund of taxes or participating in or
conducting any audit or other proceeding in respect of taxes. The
Acquiring Fund agrees to retain for a period of ten (10) years following the
Closing Date all returns, schedules and work papers and all material records or
other documents relating to tax matters of the Target Fund for each of such
Fund's taxable period first ending after the Closing Date and for all prior
taxable periods.
After
the Closing Date, the Target Fund shall prepare, or cause its agents to prepare,
any federal, state or local tax returns required to be filed by such fund with
respect to its final taxable year ending with its complete liquidation and for
any prior periods or taxable years and further shall cause such tax returns to
be duly filed with the appropriate taxing
authorities. Notwithstanding the aforementioned provisions of this
subsection, any expenses incurred by the Target Fund (other than for payment of
taxes) in connection with the preparation and filing of said tax returns after
the Closing Date shall be borne by such Fund to the extent such expenses have
been accrued by such Fund in the ordinary course without regard to the
Reorganization; any excess expenses shall be borne by the investment adviser or
an affiliate thereof.
(g) The Target Fund agrees to mail to its
stockholders of record entitled to vote at the
special meeting of stockholders at which action is to be
considered regarding this
Agreement, in sufficient time to comply with requirements as to notice thereof,
a combined proxy statement and prospectus which complies in all material
respects with the applicable provisions of Section 14(a) of the 1934 Act and
Section 20(a) of the 1940 Act, and the rules
and regulations, respectively, thereunder.
(h) Following the consummation of the
Reorganization, the Acquiring Fund will continue its business as a diversified,
closed-end management investment company registered under the 1940 Act.
7.
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CLOSING
DATE.
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(a) Delivery of the assets of the Target
Fund to be transferred, together with any other Target Fund Investments, and the
Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be issued as provided in this Agreement, shall
be made at such place and time as the Funds shall mutually agree on the
next full business day following the Valuation Time, or at such other time and
date agreed to by the Funds, the date and time upon which such delivery is to
take place being referred to herein as the "Closing
Date." To the extent that any Target Fund
Investments, for any reason, are not transferable on the Closing Date, the
Target Fund shall cause such Target Fund Investments to be transferred to the
Acquiring Fund's account with its custodian at the earliest practicable date
thereafter.
(b) The Target Fund will deliver to the
Acquiring Fund on the Closing Date confirmation or other adequate evidence as to
the tax basis of the Target Fund Investments delivered to the Acquiring Fund
hereunder.
10
(c) As soon as practicable after
the close of business on
the Closing Date, the Target Fund shall deliver to the Acquiring Fund a list of
the names and addresses of all of the stockholders of record of the Target Fund on the
Closing Date and the number of Target Fund Common Shares owned by each such shareholder, certified to
the best of its knowledge and belief by the transfer agent for the Target Fund
or by its President.
8.
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CONDITIONS OF THE TARGET
FUND.
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The
obligations of the Target Fund hereunder shall be subject to the following
conditions:
(a) That this Agreement shall have been
adopted, and the Reorganization shall have been approved, by the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the
members of the Board of
Directors of the Target Fund and by the
affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of each of the outstanding Target Fund
Common Shares; and that the Acquiring Fund shall have
delivered to the Target Fund a copy of the resolution approving this Agreement
adopted by the Board of Directors of the Acquiring Fund, and a
certificate setting forth
the vote of holders of Acquiring Fund Common Shares approving the issuance of
additional Acquiring Fund Common Shares, each certified by its
Secretary.
(b) That the Target Fund shall have received
from the Acquiring Fund a statement of assets, liabilities and capital, with values determined as
provided in Section 4 of this Agreement, together with a schedule of
the Acquiring Fund's investments, all as of the
Valuation Time, certified on the Acquiring Fund's behalf by its President (or any
Vice President) or its
Treasurer, and a certificate signed by the Acquiring Fund's President (or any Vice President)
and its Treasurer, dated as of the Closing Date, certifying that as of the
Valuation Time and as of the Closing Date there has been no material adverse
change in the financial
position of the Acquiring
Fund since the date of
the Acquiring Fund's most recent Annual or Semi-Annual
Report, as applicable, other than changes in its portfolio securities since that
date or changes in the market value of its portfolio securities.
(c) That the Acquiring Fund shall have
furnished to the Target Fund a certificate signed by the Acquiring Fund's
President (or any Vice President) or its Treasurer, dated as of the Closing
Date, certifying that, as of the Valuation Time and as of the Closing Date, all representations and
warranties of the Acquiring Fund made in this Agreement are true and correct in
all material respects with the same effect as if made at and as of such dates,
and that the Acquiring Fund has complied with all of the agreements and satisfied all of the
conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to each of such
dates.
(d) That there shall not be any material
litigation pending with respect to the matters contemplated by this
Agreement.
(e) The Target Fund shall have received the opinion of
Skadden or local Maryland
counsel, each acting as special counsel for the Acquiring Fund, dated as
of the Closing Date, addressed to the Target Fund, substantially in the form and
to the effect that:
(i) the Acquiring Fund is validly existing and in good standing under the laws of
the State of Maryland;
11
(ii)
the Acquiring Fund is registered
as a closed-end management investment company under the 1940
Act;
(iii)
the Acquiring Fund has the power
and authority to execute, deliver and perform all of its obligations under
this Agreement under the
laws of the State of Maryland, the execution and delivery and the
consummation by the Acquiring Fund of the transactions contemplated hereby have
been duly authorized by all requisite action of the Acquiring Fund under the laws of
the State of Maryland, and this Agreement has been duly
executed and delivered by the Acquiring Fund under the laws of the State of Maryland;
(iv) this Agreement constitutes a valid and
binding obligation of the Acquiring Fund (assuming this Agreement is a valid and
binding obligation of the other party hereto);
(v)
the execution and delivery by the
Acquiring Fund of this Agreement and the performance by the Acquiring Fund of
its obligations under this Agreement do not conflict with the Charter or the Bylaws of the Acquiring
Fund;
(vi) neither the execution, delivery or
performance by the Acquiring Fund of this
Agreement nor the compliance by the Acquiring Fund with the terms and provisions
hereof contravene any provision of the laws of the State of Maryland or the federal laws of the United
States;
(vii) no governmental approval, which has not
been obtained or taken and is not in full force and effect, is required to
authorize, or is required in connection with, the execution or delivery of this
Agreement by the Acquiring
Fund or the enforceability of this Agreement against the Acquiring Fund;
and
(viii) the Acquiring Fund Common Shares have
each been duly authorized and, upon issuance thereof in accordance with this
Agreement, each will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.
(f) That the Target Fund shall have obtained
an opinion from Skadden, special counsel for the Acquiring Fund, dated as
of the Closing Date, addressed to the Target Fund, that the consummation of the
transactions set forth in this Agreement comply with the requirements
of a reorganization as described in Section 368(a) of the
Code.
(g) That all proceedings taken by each of
the Funds and its counsel in connection with the Reorganization and all
documents incidental thereto shall be satisfactory in form and substance to the
others.
(h) That the N-14 Registration Statement
shall have become effective under the 1933 Act, and no stop order suspending
such effectiveness shall have been instituted or, to the knowledge of the
Acquiring Fund, be contemplated by the SEC.
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9. CONDITIONS OF THE ACQUIRING
FUND.
The
obligations of the Acquiring Fund hereunder shall be subject to the following
conditions:
(a) That this Agreement shall have been
adopted, and the Reorganization shall have been approved, by the
Board of Directors of the Acquiring Fund and that the
issuance of additional Acquiring Fund Common Shares shall have been approved by
the affirmative vote of a majority of votes cast, where total votes cast
represented over 50% of all securities entitled to vote; and the Target Fund shall have
delivered to the Acquiring Fund a copy of the resolution approving this
Agreement adopted by the Target Fund's Board of Directors, and a certificate setting forth the
vote of the holders of Target Fund Common Shares obtained, each certified by its
Secretary.
(b) That the Target Fund shall have
furnished to the Acquiring Fund a statement of its assets, liabilities and
capital, with values determined as provided in Section 4 of this Agreement,
together with a schedule of investments with their respective dates of
acquisition and tax costs, all as of the Valuation Time, certified on
the Target Fund's behalf by its President (or any
Vice President) or its Treasurer, and a certificate signed by the Target Fund's President (or any
Vice President) or its
Treasurer, dated as of the Closing Date, certifying that as of the Valuation
Time and as of the Closing Date there has been no material adverse change in the
financial position of the Target Fund since the date of the Target Fund's most recent Annual Report or Semi-Annual
Report, as applicable, other than changes in the Target Fund Investments since
that date or changes in the market value of the Target Fund
Investments.
(c) That the Target Fund shall have
furnished to the Acquiring Fund a certificate signed by the Target Fund's President (or any Vice
President) or its Treasurer, dated the Closing Date, certifying that as of the
Valuation Time and as of the Closing Date all representations and warranties of
the Target Fund made in this Agreement are true and correct in all material
respects with the same effect as if made at and as of such dates and the Target
Fund has complied with all of the agreements and satisfied all of the conditions
on its part to be performed or satisfied at or prior to such dates.
(d) That there shall not be any material
litigation pending with respect to the matters contemplated by this
Agreement.
(e) That the Acquiring Fund shall have
received the opinion of Skadden or local Maryland counsel, each acting as special counsel for the Target Fund, dated as of the
Closing Date, addressed to the Acquiring Fund, substantially in the form and to
the effect that:
(i)
the Target Fund is validly
existing and in good
standing under the laws of the State of Maryland;
(ii)
the Target Fund is
registered as a closed-end
management investment company under the 1940 Act;
(iii) the Target Fund has the power and
authority to execute, deliver and perform all of its obligations under this
Agreement under the laws of the State of
13
Maryland, the execution and delivery and the consummation by the Target
Fund of the transactions contemplated hereby have been duly authorized by all
requisite action of the Target Fund under the laws of the State of Maryland, and this Agreement has been duly
executed and delivered by the Target Fund under the laws of
the State of
Maryland;
(iv) this Agreement constitutes a valid and
binding obligation of the Target Fund (assuming this Agreement is a valid and
binding obligation of the other party hereto);
(v) the execution and delivery by the
Target Fund of this
Agreement and the performance by the Target Fund of its obligations under this
Agreement do not conflict with the charter or the Bylaws of the Target
Fund;
(vi) neither the execution, delivery or
performance by the Target Fund of this
Agreement nor the
compliance by the Target Fund with the terms and provisions hereof contravene
any provision of the laws of the State of Maryland or the federal laws of the United
States; and
(vii) no governmental approval, which has not
been obtained or taken and is not in full force and effect, is required to
authorize, or is required in connection with, the execution or delivery of this
Agreement by the Target Fund or the enforceability of this Agreement against the
Target Fund; and
(f) That the Acquiring Fund shall have
obtained an opinion from
Skadden, special
counsel for the Target
Fund, dated as of the Closing Date, addressed to the Acquiring Fund, that the
consummation of the transactions set forth in this Agreement comply with the
requirements of a reorganization as described in Section 368(a) of the
Code.
(g) That the N-14 Registration Statement
shall have become effective under the 1933 Act and no stop order suspending such
effectiveness shall have been instituted or, to the knowledge of the Target
Fund, be contemplated by
the SEC.
(h) That all proceedings taken by the Target
Fund and its counsel in connection with the Reorganization and all documents
incidental thereto shall be satisfactory in form and substance to the Acquiring
Fund.
(i) That prior to the Closing Date the
Target Fund shall have
declared a dividend or dividends which, together with all such previous
dividends, shall have the effect of distributing to its stockholders all of its net investment company
taxable income for the period to and including the Closing Date, if any (computed without regard to any
deduction for dividends paid), and all of its net capital gain, if any, realized
to and including the
Closing Date.
10.
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TERMINATION, POSTPONEMENT AND
WAIVERS.
|
(a) Notwithstanding anything contained in
this Agreement to the contrary, this Agreement may be
terminated and the Reorganization abandoned at any time (whether before or after
adoption thereof by the stockholders of the Funds) prior to the Closing
Date, or the Closing
14
Date may be postponed, (i) by mutual
consent of the Boards of
Directors of the Funds, (ii) by the Board of
Directors of the Target Fund if any condition of
the Target Fund's obligations set forth in Section 8 of this Agreement has not
been fulfilled or waived by such Board; or (iii) by the Board of Directors of the Acquiring Fund if any condition
of the Acquiring Fund's obligations set forth in Section 9 of this Agreement
have not been fulfilled or waived by such Board.
(b) If the transactions contemplated by this
Agreement have not been consummated by December 31, 2008, this Agreement automatically shall
terminate on that date, unless a later date is mutually agreed to by the Boards
of Directors of the Funds.
(c) In the event of termination of this
Agreement pursuant to the provisions hereof, the same shall become void and have no further effect, and
there shall not be any liability on the part of any Fund or persons who are
their directors, trustees, officers, agents or stockholders in respect of this
Agreement.
(d) At any time prior to the Closing Date,
any of the terms or
conditions of this Agreement may be waived by the Board of Directors of any Fund (whichever is entitled to
the benefit thereof), if, in the judgment of such Board after consultation with
its counsel, such action or waiver will not have a material adverse effect on the benefits intended
under this Agreement to the stockholders of their respective fund, on behalf of
which such action is taken.
(e) The respective representations and
warranties contained in Sections 1 and 2 of this Agreement shall expire
with, and be terminated by,
the consummation of the Reorganization, and neither Fund nor any of its
officers, trustees, agents or stockholders shall have any liability with respect
to such representations or warranties after the Closing Date. This provision shall not protect any officer, trustee,
agent or shareholder of either Fund against any liability to the entity for
which that officer, trustee, agent or shareholder so acts or to its stockholders, to which that officer, trustee, agent
or shareholder otherwise
would be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence,
or reckless disregard of the duties in the conduct of such
office.
(f) If any order or orders of the
SEC with respect to this Agreement shall be
issued prior to the Closing Date and shall impose any terms or
conditions which are determined by action of the Boards of Directors of the Funds to be acceptable, such
terms and conditions shall be binding as if a part of this Agreement without
further vote or approval of
the stockholders of the Funds unless such terms and
conditions shall result in a change in the method of computing the number of
Acquiring Fund Common Shares to be issued to the Acquired Funds, as applicable,
in which event, unless such terms and conditions shall have been included in the proxy solicitation
materials furnished to the
stockholders of the Funds
prior to the meetings at which the Reorganization shall have been approved, this
Agreement shall not be consummated and shall terminate unless the Funds promptly
shall call a special
meeting of stockholders at which such conditions so imposed
shall be submitted for approval.
11. INDEMNIFICATION.
(a) Each party (an "Indemnitor") shall indemnify and hold the other
and its officers, trustees, agents and persons controlled by or controlling any of them (each an
"Indemnified
15
Party") harmless from and against any and all
losses, damages, liabilities, claims, demands, judgments, settlements,
deficiencies, taxes, assessments, charges, costs and expenses of any nature
whatsoever (including
reasonable attorneys' fees) including amounts paid in satisfaction of judgments,
in compromise or as fines and penalties, and counsel fees reasonably incurred by
such the Indemnified Party in connection with the
defense or disposition of any claim, action, suit or other proceeding,
whether civil or criminal, before any court or administrative or investigative
body in which such the
Indemnified Party may be or
may have been involved as a party or otherwise or with which such the Indemnified Party may be or may have been threatened
(collectively, the "Losses") arising out of or related to any
claim of a breach of any representation, warranty or covenant made herein by the
Indemnitor; provided, however, that no Indemnified Party shall be
indemnified hereunder
against any Losses arising directly from such the Indemnified Party's (i) willful
misfeasance, (ii) bad faith, (iii) gross negligence or (iv) reckless disregard
of the duties involved in the conduct of such Indemnified Party's
position.
(b) The Indemnified Party shall use its best efforts to
minimize any liabilities, damages, deficiencies, claims, judgments, assessments,
costs and expenses in respect of which indemnity may be sought hereunder.
The Indemnified Party shall give written
notice to Indemnitor within
the earlier of ten (10) days of receipt of written notice to the Indemnified Party or thirty (30) days
from discovery by the
Indemnified Party of any
matters which may give rise to a claim for indemnification or reimbursement
under this Agreement. The failure to give such notice shall
not affect the right of
the Indemnified Party to
indemnity hereunder unless such failure has materially and adversely affected
the rights of the Indemnitor; provided that in any event such notice shall
have been given prior to
the expiration of the Survival Period. At any time after ten (10) days from
the giving of such notice, the Indemnified Party may, at its option,
resist, settle or otherwise compromise, or pay such claim unless it shall have
received notice from the
Indemnitor that
the Indemnitor intends, at the Indemnitor's sole cost and expense, to
assume the defense of any such matter, in which case the Indemnified Party shall have the right,
at no cost or expense to the Indemnitor, to participate in such
defense. If the Indemnitor does not assume the defense
of such matter, and in any event until the Indemnitor states in writing that it
will assume the defense, the Indemnitor shall pay all costs of
the Indemnified Party arising out of the
defense until the defense
is assumed; provided, however, that the Indemnified Party shall consult with
the Indemnitor and obtain indemnitor's prior
written consent to any payment or settlement of any such claim. The Indemnitor shall keep the Indemnified Party fully apprised
at all times as to the
status of the defense. If the Indemnitor does not assume the defense,
the Indemnified Party shall keep
the Indemnitor apprised at all times as to
the status of the defense. Following indemnification as provided
for hereunder, the
Indemnitor shall be subrogated to all
rights of the Indemnified Party with respect to all
third parties, firms or corporations relating to the matter for which
indemnification has been made.
12.
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OTHER
MATTERS.
|
(a) All covenants, agreements,
representations and warranties made under this Agreement and any
certificates delivered pursuant to this Agreement shall be deemed to have been
material and relied upon by each of the parties, notwithstanding any
investigation made by them or on their behalf.
16
(b) All notices hereunder shall be sufficiently given for all
purposes hereunder if in writing and delivered personally or sent by registered
mail or certified mail, postage prepaid. Notice to the Target Fund shall be
addressed to the Target Fund c/o BlackRock Advisors, LLC, [ ], Attention: [ ], or at such other address as the Target
Fund may designate by written notice to the Acquiring Fund. Notice to the Acquiring Fund shall be
addressed to the Acquiring Fund c/o BlackRock Advisors, LLC, [ ], Attention: [ ], or at such other address and to the
attention of such other person as the Acquiring Fund may designate by written
notice to the Target Fund. Any notice shall be deemed to have been
served or given as of the
date such notice is delivered personally or mailed.
(c) This Agreement supersedes all previous
correspondence and oral communications between the parties regarding the
Reorganization, constitutes the only understanding with respect to the
Reorganization, may not be
changed except by a letter of agreement signed by each party and shall be
governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of
New York applicable to agreements made and to be
performed in said state.
(d) It is expressly agreed that
the obligations of the
Funds hereunder shall not be binding upon any of their respective Directors, stockholders, nominees, officers, agents, or
employees personally, but shall bind only the property of the respective
Fund. The execution and delivery of
this Agreement has been
authorized by the Directors of each Fund and signed by authorized
officers of each Fund, acting as such, and neither such authorization by such
Directors, nor such execution and delivery by
such officers shall be deemed to have been made by any of them individually or to
impose any liability on any of them personally, but shall bind only the trust
property of each Fund.
This
Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which, when
executed and delivered, shall be deemed to be an original but all such
counterparts together shall constitute but one instrument.
17
IN
WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have hereunto caused this Agreement to be executed
and delivered by their duly authorized officers as of the day and year first
written above.
BLACKROCK
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
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[Name]
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[Title]
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BLACKROCK
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
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[Name]
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[Title]
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18