INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT is made this 4th day of May, 1999 by and between
American Skandia Trust, a Massachusetts business trust (the "Fund"), and
American Skandia Investment Services, Incorporated, a Connecticut corporation
(the "Investment Manager");
W I T N E S E T H
WHEREAS, the Fund is registered as an open-end, diversified
management investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as
amended (the "Investment Company Act"), and the rules and regulations
promulgated thereunder; and
WHEREAS, the Investment Manager is registered as an investment
adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment
Advisers Act"); and
WHEREAS, the Fund and the Investment Manager desire to enter into
an agreement to provide for the management of the assets of the AST AIM Balanced
Portfolio (the "Portfolio") on the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth.
NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein
contained and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt whereof is
hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:
1. Management. The Investment Manager shall act as investment manager for
the Portfolio and shall, in such capacity, manage the investment operations of
the Portfolio, including the purchase, retention, disposition and lending of
securities, subject at all times to the policies and control of the Fund's Board
of Trustees. The Investment Manager shall give the Portfolio the benefit of its
best judgments, efforts and facilities in rendering its services as investment
manager.
2. Duties of Investment Manager. In carrying out its obligation under
paragraph 1 hereof, the Investment Manager shall:
(a) supervise and manage all aspects of the Portfolio's operations:
(b) provide the Portfolio or obtain for it, and thereafter supervise,
such executive, administrative, clerical and shareholder
servicing services as are deemed advisable by the Fund's Board of
Trustees;
(c) arrange, but not pay for, the periodic updating of prospectuses
and supplements thereto, proxy material, tax returns, reports to
the Portfolio's shareholders, reports to and filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, state Blue Sky authorities
and other applicable regulatory authorities;
(d) provide to the Board of Trustees of the Fund on a regular basis,
written financial reports and analyses on the Portfolio's
securities transactions and the operations of comparable
investment companies;
(e) obtain and evaluate pertinent information about significant
developments and economic, statistical and financial data,
domestic, foreign or otherwise, whether affecting the economy
generally or the Portfolio, and whether concerning the individual
issuers whose securities are included in the Portfolio or the
activities in which they engage, or with respect to securities
which the Investment Manager considers desirable for inclusion in
the Portfolio;
(f) determine what issuers and securities shall be represented in the
Portfolio's portfolio and regularly report them in writing to the
Board of Trustees;
(g) formulate and implement continuing programs for the purchases and
sales of the securities of such issuers and regularly report in
writing thereon to the Board of Trustees; and
(h) take, on behalf of the Portfolio, all actions which appear to the
Fund necessary to carry into effect such purchase and sale
programs and supervisory functions as aforesaid, including the
placing of orders for the purchase and sale of portfolio
securities.
3. Broker-Dealer Relationships. The Investment Manager is responsible for
decisions to buy and sell securities for the Portfolio, broker-dealer selection,
and negotiation of its brokerage commission rates. The Investment Manager shall
determine the securities to be purchased or sold by the Portfolio pursuant to
its determinations with or through such persons, brokers or dealers, in
conformity with the policy with respect to brokerage as set forth in the Fund's
Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information, or as the Board of Trustees
may determine from time to time. Generally, the Investment Manager's primary
consideration in placing Portfolio securities transactions with broker-dealers
for execution is to obtain and maintain the availability of, execution at the
best net price and in the most effective manner possible. The Investment Manager
may consider sale of the shares of the Portfolio, subject to the requirements of
best net price and most favorable execution.
Consistent with this policy, the Investment Manager will take the following
into consideration: the best net price available; the reliability, integrity and
financial condition of the broker-dealer; the size of and difficulty in
executing the order; and the value of the expected contribution of the
broker-dealer to the investment performance of the Portfolio on a continuing
basis. Accordingly, the cost of the brokerage commissions to the Portfolio may
be greater than that available from other brokers if the difference is
reasonably justified by other aspects of the portfolio execution services
offered. Subject to such policies and procedures as the Board of Trustees of the
Fund may determine, the Investment Manager shall not be deemed to have acted
unlawfully or to have breached any duty solely by reason of its having caused
the Portfolio to pay a broker or dealer that provides research services to the
Investment Manager for the Portfolio's use an amount of commission for effecting
a portfolio investment transaction in excess of the amount of commission another
broker or dealer would have charged for effecting that transaction, if the
Investment Manager, determines in good faith that such amount of commission was
reasonable in relation to the value of the research services provided by such
broker, viewed in terms of either that particular transaction or the Investment
Manager's ongoing responsibilities with respect to the Portfolio. The Investment
Manager is further authorized to allocate the orders placed by it on behalf of
the Portfolio to such brokers and dealers who also provide research or
statistical material, or other services to the Fund or the Investment Manager.
Such allocation shall be in such amounts and proportions as the Investment
Manager shall determine and the Investment Manager will report on said
allocations to the Board of Trustees of the Fund regularly as requested by the
Board and, in any event, at least once each calendar year if no specific request
is made, indicating the brokers to whom such allocations have been made and the
basis therefor.
4. Control by Board of Trustees. Any investment program undertaken by the
Investment Manager pursuant to this Agreement, as well as any other activities
undertaken by the Investment Manager on behalf of the Fund pursuant thereto,
shall at all times be subject to any directives of the Board of Trustees of the
Fund.
5. Compliance with Applicable Requirements. In carrying out its obligations
under this Agreement, the Investment Manager shall at all times conform to:
(a) all applicable provisions of the Investment Company Act and
Investment Advisers Act and any rules and regulations adopted
thereunder, as amended; and
(b) the provisions of the Registration Statements of the Fund under
the Securities Act of 1933 and the Investment Company Act,
including the investment objectives, policies and restrictions,
and permissible investments specified therein; and
(c) the provisions of the Declaration of Trust of the Fund, as
amended; and
(d) the provisions of the By-laws of the Fund, as amended; and
(e) any other applicable provisions of state and federal law.
6. Expenses. The expenses connected with the Fund shall be allocable
between the Fund and the Investment Manager as follows:
(a) The Investment Manager shall furnish, at its expense and without
cost to the Fund, the services of a President, Secretary, and one
or more Vice Presidents of the Fund, to the extent that such
additional officers may be required by the Fund for the proper
conduct of its affairs.
(b) The Investment Manager shall further maintain, at its expense and
without cost to the Fund, a trading function in order to carry
out its obligations under subparagraphs (f), (g) and (h) of
paragraph 2 hereof to place orders for the purchase and sale of
portfolio securities for the Portfolio.
(c) Nothing in subparagraph (a) hereof shall be construed to require
the Investment Manager to bear:
(i) any of the costs (including applicable office space,
facilities and equipment) of the services of a principal
financial officer of the Fund whose normal duties consist of
maintaining the financial accounts and books and records of the
Fund; including the reviewing of calculations of net asset value
and preparing tax returns; or
(ii) any of the costs (including applicable office space,
facilities and equipment) of the services of any of the personnel
operating under the direction of such principal financial
officer. Notwithstanding the obligation of the Fund to bear the
expense of the functions referred to in clauses (i) and (ii) of
this subparagraph (c), the Investment Manager may pay the
salaries, including any applicable employment or payroll taxes
and other salary costs, of the principal financial officer and
other personnel carrying out such functions and the Fund shall
reimburse the Investment Manager therefor upon proper accounting.
(d) All of the ordinary business expenses incurred in the operations
of the Fund and the offering of its shares shall be borne by the
Fund unless specifically provided otherwise in this paragraph
6. These expenses include but are not limited to brokerage commissions,
legal, auditing, taxes or governmental fees, the cost of preparing share
certificates, custodian, depository, transfer and shareholder service agent
costs, expenses of issue, sale, redemption and repurchase of shares, expenses of
registering and qualifying shares for sale, insurance premiums on property or
personnel (including officers and trustees if available) of the Fund which inure
to its benefit, expenses relating to trustee and shareholder meetings, the cost
of preparing and distributing reports and notices to shareholders, the fees and
other expenses incurred by the Fund in connection with membership in investment
company organizations and the cost of printing copies of prospectuses and
statements of additional information distributed to shareholders.
7. Delegation of Responsibilities. Upon the request of the Fund's Board of
Trustees, the Investment Manager may perform services on behalf of the Fund
which are not required by this Agreement. Such services will be performed on
behalf of the Fund and the Investment Manager's cost in rendering such services
may be billed monthly to the Fund, subject to examination by the Fund's
independent accountants. Payment or assumption by the Investment Manager of any
Fund expense that the Investment Manager is not required to pay or assume under
this Agreement shall not relieve the Investment Manager of any of its
obligations to the Fund nor obligate the Investment Manager to pay or assume any
similar Fund expense on any subsequent occasion.
8. Engagement of Sub-advisors and Broker-Dealers. The Investment Manager
may engage, subject to approval of the Fund's Board of Trustees, and where
required, the shareholders of the Portfolio, a sub-advisor to provide advisory
services in relation to the Portfolio. Under such sub-advisory agreement, the
Investment Manager may delegate to the sub-advisor the duties outlined in
subparagraphs (e), (f), (g) and (h) of paragraph 2 hereof.
9. Compensation. The Fund shall pay the Investment Manager in full
compensation for services rendered hereunder an annual investment advisory fee,
payable monthly, of .75% of the average daily net assets of the Portfolio not in
excess of $300 million; plus .70% of the Portfolio's average daily net assets in
excess of $300 million.
10. Expense Limitation. If, for any fiscal year of the Fund, the total of
all ordinary business expenses of the Portfolio, including all investment
advisory and administration fees but excluding brokerage commissions and fees,
taxes, interest and extraordinary expenses such as litigation, would exceed
1.25% of the average daily net assets of the Portfolio, the Investment Manager
agrees to pay the Fund such excess expenses, and if required to do so pursuant
to such applicable statute or regulatory authority, to pay to the Fund such
excess expenses no later than the last day of the first month of the next
succeeding fiscal year of the Fund. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term
"fiscal year" shall exclude the portion of the Fund's current fiscal year which
shall have elapsed prior to the date hereof and shall include the portion of the
then current fiscal year which shall have elapsed at the date of termination of
this Agreement.
11. Non-Exclusivity. The services of the Investment Manager to the
Portfolio are not to be deemed to be exclusive, and the Investment Manager shall
be free to render investment advisory and corporate administrative or other
services to others (including other investment companies) and to engage in other
activities. It is understood and agreed that officers or directors of the
Investment Manager may serve as officers or trustees of the Fund, and that
officers or trustees of the Fund may serve as officers or directors of the
Investment Manager to the extent permitted by law; and that the officers and
directors of the Investment Manager are not prohibited from engaging in any
other business activity or from rendering services to any other person, or from
serving as partners, officers or directors of any other firm or corporation,
including other investment companies.
12. Term and Approval. This Agreement shall become effective on October 15,
1996 and shall continue in force and effect from year to year, provided that
such continuance is specifically approved at least annually:
(a) (i) by the Fund's Board of Trustees or (ii) by the vote of a
majority of the Portfolio's outstanding voting securities (as
defined in Section 2(a)(42) of the Investment Company Act); and
(b) by the affirmative vote of a majority of the trustees who are not
parties to this Agreement or interested persons of a party to
this Agreement (other than as Fund trustees), by votes cast in
person at a meeting specifically called for such purpose.
13. Termination. This Agreement may be terminated at any time without the
payment of any penalty or prejudice to the completion of any transactions
already initiated on behalf of the Portfolio, by vote of the Fund's Board of
Trustees or by vote of a majority of the Portfolio's outstanding voting
securities, or by the Investment Manager, on sixty (60) days' written notice to
the other party. The notice provided for herein may be waived by either party.
This Agreement automatically terminates in the event of its assignment, the term
"assignment" for the purpose having the meaning defined in Section 2(a)(4) of
the Investment Company Act.
14. Liability of Investment Manager and Indemnification. In the absence of
willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of
obligations or duties hereunder on the part of the Investment Manager or any of
its officers, trustees or employees, it shall not be subject to liability to the
Fund or to any shareholder of the Portfolio for any act or omission in the
course of, or connected with, rendering services hereunder or for any losses
that may be sustained in the purchase, holding or sale of any security.
15. Liability of Trustees and Shareholders. A copy of the Agreement and
Declaration of Trust of the Fund is on file with the Secretary of The
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and notice is hereby given that this instrument
is executed on behalf of the trustees of the Fund as trustees and not
individually and that the obligations of this instrument are not binding upon
any of the trustees or shareholders individually but are binding only upon the
assets and property of the Fund. Federal and state laws impose responsibilities
under certain circumstances on persons who act in good faith, and therefore,
nothing herein shall in any way constitute a waiver of limitation of any rights
which the Fund or Investment Manager may have under applicable law.
16. Notices. Any notices under this Agreement shall be in writing,
addressed and delivered or mailed postage paid to the other party at such
address as such other party may designate for the receipt of such notice. Until
further notice, it is agreed that the address of the Fund shall be 000 Xxxx
Xxxxxx, Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxxxxx, 00000, and the address of the Investment Manager
shall be Xxx Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxx, Xxxxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxxx 00000.
17. Questions of Interpretation. Any question of interpretation of any term
or provision of this Agreement having a counterpart in or otherwise derived from
a term or provision of the Investment Company Act, shall be resolved by
reference to such term or provision of the Act and to interpretations thereof,
if any, by the United States Courts or in the absence of any controlling
decision of any such court, by rules, regulations or orders of the Securities
and Exchange Commission issued pursuant to said Act. In addition, where the
effect of a requirement of the Investment Company Act, reflected in any
provision of this Agreement is released by rules, regulation or order of the
Securities and Exchange Commission, such provision shall be deemed to
incorporate the effect of such rule, regulation or order.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement
to be executed in duplicate by their respective officers on the day and year
first above written.
AMERICAN SKANDIA TRUST
Attest: By: ___________________________________
Xxxxxx X. Xxxxxxx
___________________________________ Vice President
AMERICAN SKANDIA INVESTMENT
SERVICES, INCORPORATED
Attest: By: ___________________________________
Xxxx Xxxxx
___________________________________ Senior Vice President &
Chief Operating Officer
