Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement
Exhibit (f)(5)
Investment Sub-Advisory Agreement
This Agreement is made as of this 6th day of May, 2024 by and among Destra Investment Trust (the “Trust”), a Massachusetts business trust, on behalf of its series the Altegris/AACA Opportunistic Real Estate Fund (the “Fund”), Destra Capital Advisors LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Adviser”) and registered investment adviser with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), and American Assets Capital Advisers, LLC (the “Sub-Adviser”).
Whereas, the Trust is an open-end management investment company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”);
Whereas, the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, has retained the Adviser to serve as the investment adviser for the Fund pursuant to an Investment Management Agreement between the Adviser and the Trust (as such agreement may be modified from time to time, the “Management Agreement”);
Whereas, the Management Agreement provides that the Adviser may, subject to the initial and periodic approvals required under Section 15 of the 1940 Act, appoint a sub-adviser at its own cost and expense for the purpose of furnishing certain services required under the Management Agreement; and
Whereas, the Trust, on behalf of the Fund, and the Adviser desire to retain the Sub-Adviser to furnish investment advisory services for the Fund’s investment portfolio, upon the terms and conditions hereafter set forth.
Now, Therefore, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein contained, the parties hereto agree as follows:
The Sub-Adviser is authorized to select the brokers or dealers that will execute the purchases and sales of portfolio investments for the Fund, and is directed to use its commercially reasonable efforts to obtain best execution, taking into account all appropriate factors, including price, dealer spread or commission, size and difficulty of the transaction and research or brokerage services provided by a broker or dealer in accordance with the provisions of Section 28(e) under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Subject to approval by the Board of Trustees and compliance with the policies and procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees for the Fund and to the extent permitted by and in conformance with applicable law (including Rule 17e-1 under the 1940 Act), the Sub-Adviser may select brokers or dealers affiliated with the Sub-Adviser. It is understood that the Sub- Adviser will not be deemed to have acted unlawfully, or to have breached a fiduciary duty to the Fund, or be in breach of any obligation owing to the Fund under this Agreement, or otherwise, solely by reason of its having caused the Fund to pay a member of a securities exchange, a broker or a dealer a commission for effecting a securities transaction for the Fund in excess of the amount of commission another member of an exchange, broker or dealer would have charged if the Sub-Adviser determined in good faith that the commission paid was reasonable in relation to the brokerage or research services provided by such member, broker or dealer, viewed in terms of that particular transaction or the Sub-Adviser’s overall responsibilities with respect to its accounts, including the Fund, as to which it exercises investment discretion.
In addition, the Sub-Adviser may aggregate purchase and sale orders of securities placed with respect to the assets of the Fund with similar orders being made simultaneously for other accounts managed by the Sub- Adviser or its affiliates, if in the Sub-Adviser’s reasonable judgment such aggregation is consistent with seeking best execution in accordance with the terms hereof. In the event that a purchase or sale of an asset of the Fund occurs as part of any aggregate sale or purchase orders, the objective of the Sub-Adviser and any of its affiliates involved in such transaction shall be to allocate the securities so purchased or sold, as well as expenses incurred in the transaction, among the Fund and other accounts in an equitable manner. Nevertheless, the Trust, Fund and Adviser acknowledge that under some circumstances, such allocation may adversely affect the Fund with respect to the price or size of the securities positions obtainable or salable. Whenever the Fund and one or more other investment advisory clients of the Sub-Adviser have available funds for investment, investments suitable and appropriate for each will be allocated in a manner believed by the Sub-Adviser to be equitable to each and consistent with the Sub-Adviser’s fiduciary obligations to the Fund, although such allocation may result in a delay in one or more client accounts being fully invested that would not occur if such an allocation were not made. Moreover, it is possible that due to differing investment objectives or for other reasons, the Sub-Adviser and its affiliates may purchase securities of an issuer for one client and at approximately the same time recommend selling or sell the same or similar types of securities for another client.
The Sub-Adviser will vote proxies solicited by or with respect to the issuers of securities in which assets of the Fund’s investment portfolio allocated by the Adviser to the Sub-Adviser are invested, consistent with the Sub- Adviser’s written proxy voting policies and procedures, as communicated by the Sub-Adviser to the Adviser and Fund in writing. The Sub-Adviser will maintain appropriate records in accordance with applicable law detailing its voting of proxies on behalf of the Fund and upon request will provide a report setting forth the proposals voted on and how the Trust’s shares were voted, including the name of the corresponding issuers.
The Sub-Adviser will not arrange purchases or sales of securities between the Fund and other accounts advised by the Sub-Adviser or its affiliates unless (a) such purchases or sales are in accordance with applicable law (including Rule 17a-7 under the 1940 Act) and the Fund’s policies and procedures, (b) the Sub-Adviser determines the purchase or sale is in the best interests of the Fund, and (c) the Board of Trustees or the Trust’s Chief Compliance Officer (as determined under the Fund’s compliance policies) has approved these types of transactions.
The Fund may adopt policies and procedures that modify or restrict the Sub-Adviser’s authority regarding the execution of the Fund’s portfolio transactions provided herein provided that such policies and procedures are communicated by the Fund or the Adviser to the Sub-Adviser in writing.
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The Sub-Adviser will communicate to the officers and trustees of the Fund such information relating to transactions for the Fund as they may reasonably request. In no instance will portfolio securities be purchased from or sold to the Adviser, the Sub-Adviser or any affiliated person of the Fund, the Adviser, or the Sub-Adviser, except as may be permitted under the 1940 Act or rules adopted thereunder.
The Sub-Adviser further agrees that it:
(a) will conform in all material respects to all applicable rules and regulations of the SEC and comply in all material respects with all policies and procedures adopted by the Board of Trustees and communicated to the Sub-Adviser in writing and, in addition, will conduct its activities under this Agreement in all material respects in accordance with any applicable law and regulations of any governmental authority pertaining to its investment advisory activities;
(b) will report to the Adviser and to the Board of Trustees on a quarterly basis and will make appropriate persons available for the purpose of reviewing with representatives of the Adviser and the Board of Trustees on a regular basis at such times as the Adviser or the Board of Trustees may reasonably request in writing regarding the management of the Fund, including, without limitation, review of the general investment strategies of the Fund, the performance of the Fund’s investment portfolio in relation to relevant standard industry indices and general conditions affecting the marketplace and will provide various other reports from time to time as reasonably requested by the Adviser or the Board of Trustees; and
(c) will prepare and maintain such books and records with respect to the Fund’s securities and other transactions for the Fund’s investment portfolio as required for registered investment advisers under applicable law or as otherwise reasonably requested by the Adviser and will prepare and furnish the Adviser and Board of Trustees such periodic and special reports as the Board or the Adviser may reasonably request. The Sub-Adviser further agrees that all records that it maintains for the Fund are the property of the Fund and the Sub-Adviser will surrender promptly to the Fund or promptly destroy any such records upon the reasonable request of the Adviser or the Fund (provided, however, that the Sub-Adviser shall be permitted to retain copies thereof); and shall be permitted to retain originals (with copies to the Fund) to the extent required under Rule 204-2 under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, the Sub- Adviser’s internal recordkeeping policies and procedures, or other applicable law. Notwithstanding anything else to the contrary herein, and for the avoidance of doubt, the Sub-Adviser hereby is granted a perpetual, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use (including, but not limited to, in marketing) the investment performance and track record of the assets in the Fund for which it provides the Services (such assets being referred to herein as the “Allocated Assets”). In conjunction with such license, the Sub-Adviser shall be entitled to use the name of the Fund and the Trust. Further, for the avoidance of doubt, in conjunction with such license, the Sub-Adviser shall be entitled to retain and use records of each of its transactions and other records pertaining to the Allocated Assets and the Fund.
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Except as may otherwise be prohibited by law or regulation (including, without limitation, any then current SEC staff interpretation), the Sub-Adviser may, in its discretion and from time to time, waive all or any portion of the Management Fee.
7. Limitation of Liability and Indemnification.
(a) The Sub-Adviser shall not be liable for, and the Trust, Fund and Adviser will not take any action against the Sub-Adviser to hold the Sub-Adviser liable for, any breach hereof, error of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss suffered by the Trust, Fund or Adviser (including, without limitation, by reason of the purchase, sale or retention of any security or other asset) in connection with the performance of the Sub-Adviser’s duties under this Agreement, except for a loss resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence on the part of the Sub-Adviser in the performance of its duties under this Agreement, or by reason of its reckless disregard of its obligations and duties under this Agreement.
(b) To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Trust, Fund and Adviser, severally and jointly, shall indemnify the Sub-Adviser, its affiliates and the officers, directors, members, employees and agents of the Sub-Adviser and its affiliates (each an “indemnitee”) against any and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including reasonable counsel fees and expenses) resulting from any claim, demand, action or suit relating to the Fund or the Adviser and not resulting from the willful misfeasance, bad faith, negligence, or reckless disregard of any indemnitee in the performance of the obligations and duties of any indemnitee’s office; provided that to the extent that the Trust or the Fund has indemnified an indemnitee, the Adviser shall contribute a portion of the amount paid by the Trust or the Fund as shall be appropriate to reflect the relative fault of the Trust or the Fund, on the one hand, and the Adviser, on the other hand, in causing the act or omission that resulted in the indemnification payment. The federal and state securities laws impose liabilities under certain circumstances on persons who act in good faith, and therefore nothing in this Agreement will waive or limit any rights that the Fund, the Adviser, or any indemnitee may have under those laws. An indemnitee will not confess any claim or settle or make any compromise in any instance in which the Fund or the Adviser will be asked to provide indemnification, except with the Fund’s and the Adviser’s prior written consent. Any amounts payable by the Fund under this section shall be satisfied only against the assets of the Fund and not against the assets of any other investment series of the Trust.
(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnitee of notice of any claim for which indemnification would be sought, the indemnitee shall notify the indemnifying party thereof in writing. If indemnification rights are claimed pursuant to this section, all the indemnitees shall retain one counsel and such counsel shall be approved in advance by the Fund. In addition, if any such claim or action shall be brought against an indemnitee or indemnitees, the indemnifying party shall be entitled to participate therein and, to the extent that it wishes, to assume the defense thereof with counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnitee or indemnitees. After notice from the indemnifying party to the indemnitee or indemnitees of its election to assume the defense of such claim or action, the indemnifying party shall not be liable to the indemnitee or indemnitees under this section for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by the indemnitee or indemnitees in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation.
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(d) Any indemnification made in accordance with this section shall not prevent the recovery from any indemnitee of any amount if the indemnitee subsequently is determined in a final judicial decision on the merits in any action, suit, investigation or proceeding involving the liability or expense that gave rise to the indemnification to be liable to the Fund or its shareholders (or to the Adviser) by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, negligence, or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the indemnitee’s office.
(e) The rights of indemnification provided in this section shall not be exclusive of or affect any other rights to which any person may be entitled by contract or otherwise under law. Nothing contained in this section shall affect the power of the Fund to purchase and maintain liability insurance on behalf of any indemnitee.
This Agreement may be terminated by the Adviser or the Sub-Adviser at any time without the payment of any penalty by the Adviser or the Sub-Adviser upon 60 days’ written notice to the other parties. This Agreement may also be terminated by the Fund by action of the Board of Trustees, including a majority of the Independent Trustees, or by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Fund upon 60 days’ written notice to the Sub-Adviser by the Fund without payment of any penalty.
This Agreement will automatically terminate, without the payment of any penalty, (i) in the event of its assignment (as defined in the 1940 Act), or (ii) in the event the Management Agreement between the Adviser and the Trust is assigned (as defined in the 1940 Act) or terminates for any other reason. This Agreement will also terminate upon written notice to the other party that the other party is in material breach of this Agreement, unless the party in material breach of this Agreement cures such breach to the reasonable satisfaction of the party alleging the breach within thirty (30) days after written notice.
The terms “assignment” and “vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities” shall have the meanings set forth in the 1940 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder.
Termination of this Agreement shall not affect the right of the Sub-Adviser to receive payments on any unpaid balance of the compensation described in Section 5 earned prior to such termination and for any additional period during which the Sub-Adviser serves as such for the Fund, subject to applicable law.
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If to the Adviser or the Trust: | If to the Sub-Adviser: |
Destra Capital Advisors LLC 000 X Xxxxxxx Xxx Email: xxxxx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx.xxx |
American Assets Capital Advisers, LLC 0000 Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx Xx., Xxxxx 000 Xxx Xxxxx, XX 00000 Email: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx |
13. Applicable Law. This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with applicable federal law and (except as to Section 11 hereof which shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts) the laws of the State of Illinois.
Remainder of page left intentionally blank. Signature page follows.
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In Witness Whereof, the Fund, the Adviser and the Sub-Adviser have caused this Agreement to be executed by its duly authorized officer as of the day and year first above written.
DESTRA CAPITAL ADVISORS LLC
By: | Xxxxxx Xxxxxx | |
Title: | President |
DESTRA INVESTMENT TRUST, on behalf
of the Altegris/AACA Opportunistic Real Estate Fund
By: | Xxxxxx Xxxxxx | |
Title: | President |
AMERICAN ASSETS CAPITAL ADVISERS, LLC
By: | Xxxxxxx X. East III | |
Title: | CEO |
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