EXHIBIT (1)(b)
PREMIER CALIFORNIA INSURED MUNICIPAL BOND FUND
(formerly, D 1992-9 Trust)
Amended and Restated Agreement and Declaration of Trust
THIS AMENDED AND RESTATED AGREEMENT AND DECLARATION OF
TRUST, made this 14th day of April, 1993, hereby amends and
restates in its entirety the Agreement and Declaration of Trust
made at Boston, Massachusetts, dated March 12, 1992, by the
Trustee hereunder (hereinafter with any additional and successor
trustees referred to as the "Trustees") and by the holders of
shares of beneficial interest to be issued hereunder as
hereinafter provided.
W I T N E S S E T H :
WHEREAS, the Trustees have agreed to manage all
property coming into their hands as trustees of a Massachusetts
business trust in accordance with the provisions hereinafter set
forth.
NOW, THEREFORE, the Trustees hereby declare that they
will hold all cash, securities and other assets, which they may
from time to time acquire in any manner as Trustees hereunder IN
TRUST to manage and dispose of the same upon the following terms
and conditions for the pro rata benefit of the holders from time
to time of Shares, whether or not certificated, in this Trust as
hereinafter set forth.
ARTICLE I
Name and Definitions
Section 1. Name. This Trust shall be known as
"Premier California Insured Municipal Bond Fund."
Section 2. Definitions. Whenever used herein, unless
otherwise required by the context or specifically provided:
(a) The term "Commission" shall have the meaning
provided in the 1940 Act;
(b) The "Trust" refers to the Massachusetts business
trust established by this Agreement and Declaration of Trust, as
amended from time to time;
(c) "Shareholder" means a record owner of Shares of
the Trust;
(d) "Shares" means the equal proportionate
transferable units of interest into which the beneficial interest
in the Trust shall be divided from time to time or, if more than
one series or class of Shares is authorized by the Trustees, the
equal proportionate transferable units into which each series or
class of Shares shall be divided from time to time, and includes
a fraction of a Share as well as a whole Share;
(e) The "1940 Act" refers to the Investment Company
Act of 1940, and the Rules and Regulations thereunder, all as
amended from time to time;
(f) The term "Manager" is defined in Article IV, Sec-
tion 5;
(g) The term "Person" shall mean an individual or any
corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other
enterprise;
(h) "Declaration of Trust" shall mean this Agreement
and Declaration of Trust as amended or restated from time to
time;
(i) "Bylaws" shall mean the Bylaws of the Trust as
amended from time to time;
(j) The term "series" or "series of Shares" refers to
the one or more separate investment portfolios of the Trust into
which the assets and liabilities of the Trust may be divided and
the Shares of the Trust representing the beneficial interest of
Shareholders in such respective portfolios; and
(k) The term "class" or "class of Shares" refers to
the division of Shares representing any series into two or more
classes as provided in Article III, Section 1 hereof.
ARTICLE II
Purposes of Trust
This Trust is formed for the following purpose or
purposes:
(a) to conduct, operate and carry on the business of
an investment company;
(b) to subscribe for, invest in, reinvest in,
purchase or otherwise acquire, hold, pledge, sell, assign,
transfer, lend, write options on, exchange, distribute or
otherwise dispose of and deal in and with securities of every
nature, kind, character, type and form, including, without
limitation of the generality of the foregoing, all types of
stocks, shares, futures contracts, bonds, debentures, notes,
bills and other negotiable or non-negotiable instruments,
obligations, evidences of interest, certificates of interest,
certificates of participation, certificates,
interests, evidences of ownership, guarantees, warrants, options
or evidences of indebtedness issued or created by or guaranteed
as to principal and interest by any state or local government or
any agency or instrumentality thereof, by the United States
Government or any agency, instrumentality, territory, district or
possession thereof, by any foreign government or any agency,
instrumentality, territory, district or possession thereof, by
any corporation organized under the laws of any state, the United
States or any territory or possession thereof or under the laws
of any foreign country, bank certificates of deposit, bank time
deposits, bankers' acceptances and commercial paper; to pay for
the same in cash or by the issue of stock, including treasury
stock, bonds or notes of the Trust or otherwise; and to exercise
any and all rights, powers and privileges of ownership or
interest in respect of any and all such investments of every kind
and description, including, without limitation, the right to
consent and otherwise act with respect thereto, with power to
designate one or more persons, firms, associations or
corporations to exercise any of said rights, powers and
privileges in respect of any said instruments;
(c) to borrow money or otherwise obtain credit and to
secure the same by mortgaging, pledging or otherwise subjecting
as security the assets of the Trust;
(d) to issue, sell, repurchase, redeem, retire,
cancel, acquire, hold, resell, reissue, dispose of, transfer, and
otherwise deal in, Shares including Shares in fractional
denominations, and to apply to any such repurchase, redemption,
retirement, cancellation or acquisition of Shares any funds or
other assets of the appropriate series or class of Shares,
whether capital or surplus or otherwise, to the full extent now
or hereafter permitted by the laws of The Commonwealth of
Massachu-setts;
(e) to conduct its business, promote its purposes,
and carry on its operations in any and all of its branches and
maintain offices both within and without The Commonwealth of
Massachusetts, in any and all States of the United States of
America, in the District of Columbia, and in any other parts of
the world; and
(f) to do all and everything necessary, suitable,
convenient, or proper for the conduct, promotion, and attainment
of any of the businesses and purposes herein specified or which
at any time may be incidental thereto or may appear conducive to
or expedient for the accomplishment of any of such businesses and
purposes and which might be engaged in or carried on by a Trust
organized under the Massachusetts General Laws, and to have and
exercise all of the powers conferred by the laws of The Common-
wealth of Massachusetts upon a Massachusetts business trust.
The foregoing provisions of this Article II shall be
construed both as purposes and powers and each as an independent
purpose and power.
ARTICLE III
Beneficial Interest
Section 1. Shares of Beneficial Interest. The Shares
of the Trust shall be issued in one or more series as the
Trustees may, without Shareholder approval, authorize. Each
series shall be preferred over all other series in respect of the
assets allocated to that series and shall represent a separate
investment portfolio of the Trust. The beneficial interest in
each series at all times shall be divided into Shares, with or
without par value as the Trustees may from time to time
determine, each of which shall, except as provided in the
following sentence, represent an equal proportionate interest in
the series with each other Share of the same series, none having
priority or preference over another. The Trustees may, without
Shareholder approval, divide Shares of any series into two or
more classes, Shares of each such class having such preferences
and special or relative rights and privileges (including
conversion rights, if any) as the Trustees may determine. The
number of Shares authorized shall be unlimited, and the Shares so
authorized may be represented in part by fractional shares. From
time to time, the Trustees may divide or combine the Shares of
any series or class into a greater or lesser number without
thereby changing the proportionate beneficial interests in the
series or class.
Section 2. Ownership of Shares. The ownership of
Shares will be recorded in the books of the Trust or a transfer
agent. The record books of the Trust or any transfer agent, as
the case may be, shall be conclusive as to who are the holders
of Shares of each series and class and as to the number of Shares
of each series and class held from time to time by each. No
certificates certifying the ownership of Shares need be issued
except as the Trustees may otherwise determine from time to
time.
Section 3. Issuance of Shares. The Trustees are
authorized, from time to time, to issue or authorize the
issuance of Shares at not less than the par value thereof, if
any, and to fix the price or the minimum price or the
consideration (in cash and/or such other property, real or
personal, tangible or intangible, as from time to time they may
determine) or minimum consideration for such Shares. Anything
herein to the contrary notwithstanding, the Trustees may issue
Shares pro rata to the Shareholders of a series at any time as a
stock dividend, except to the extent otherwise required or
permitted by the preferences and special or relative rights and
privileges of any classes of Shares of that series, and any stock
dividend to the Shareholders of a particular class of Shares
shall be made to such Shareholders pro rata in proportion to the
number of Shares of such class held by each of them.
All consideration received by the Trust for the issue
or sale of Shares of each series, together with all income,
earnings, profits, and proceeds thereof, including any proceeds
derived from the sale, exchange or liquidation thereof, and any
funds or payments derived from any reinvestment of such proceeds
in whatever form the same may be, shall belong irrevocably to the
series of Shares with respect to which the same were received by
the Trust for all purposes, subject only to the rights of
creditors, and shall be so handled upon the books of account of
the Trust and are herein referred to as "assets of" such series.
Shares may be issued in fractional denominations to
the same extent as whole Shares, and Shares in fractional
denominations shall be Shares having proportionately to the
respective fractions represented thereby all the rights of whole
Shares, including, without limitation, the right to vote, the
right to receive dividends and distributions, and the right to
participate upon liquidation of the Trust or of a particular
series of Shares.
Section 4. No Preemptive Rights; Derivative Suits.
Shareholders shall have no preemptive or other right to
subscribe for any additional Shares or other securities issued by
the Trust. No action may be brought by a Shareholder on behalf
of the Trust or a series unless a prior demand regarding such
matter has been made on the Trustees and the Shareholders of the
Trust or such series.
Section 5. Status of Shares and Limitation of
Personal Liability. Shares shall be deemed to be personal
property giving only the rights provided in this instrument.
Every Shareholder by virtue of having become a Shareholder shall
be held to have expressly assented and agreed to the terms hereof
and to have become a party hereto. The death of a Shareholder
during the continuance of the Trust shall not operate to
terminate the same nor entitle the representative of any deceased
Shareholder to an accounting or to take any action in court or
elsewhere against the Trust or the Trustees, but only to the
rights of said decedent under this Trust. Ownership of Shares
shall not entitle the Shareholder to any title in or to the whole
or any part of the Trust property or right to call for a
partition or division of the same or for an accounting, nor shall
the ownership of Shares constitute the Shareholders partners.
Neither the Trust nor the Trustees, nor any officer, employee or
agent of the Trust shall have any power to bind any Shareholder
or Trustee personally or to call upon any Shareholder for the
payment of any sum of money or assessment whatsoever other than
such as the Shareholder at any time personally may agree to pay
by way of subscription for any Shares or otherwise. Every note,
bond, contract or other undertaking issued by or on behalf of the
Trust shall include a recitation limiting the obligation
represented thereby to the Trust and its assets or the assets of
a particular series (but the omission of such a recitation shall
not operate to bind any Shareholder or Trustee personally).
ARTICLE IV
Trustees
Section 1. Election. A Trustee may be elected either
by the Trustees or the Shareholders. The Trustees named herein
shall serve until the first meeting of the Shareholders or until
the election and qualification of their successors. Prior to
the first meeting of Shareholders the initial Trustees hereunder
may elect additional Trustees to serve until such meeting and
until their successors are elected and qualified. The Trustees
also at any time may elect Trustees to fill vacancies in the
number of Trustees. The number of Trustees shall be fixed from
time to time by the Trustees and, at or after the commencement of
the business of the Trust, shall be not less than three. Each
Trustee, whether named above or hereafter becoming a Trustee,
shall serve as a Trustee during the lifetime of this Trust, until
such Trustee dies, resigns, retires, or is removed, or, if
sooner, until the next meeting of Shareholders called for the
purpose of electing Trustees and the election and qualification
of his successor. Subject to Section 16(a) of the 1940 Act, the
Trustees may elect their own successors and, pursuant to this
Section, may appoint Trustees to fill vacancies.
Section 2. Powers. The Trustees shall have all
powers necessary or desirable to carry out the purposes of the
Trust, including, without limitation, the powers referred to in
Article II hereof. Without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, the Trustees may adopt By-Laws not inconsistent with
this Declaration of Trust providing for the conduct of the
business of the Trust and may amend and repeal them to the extent
that they do not reserve that right to the Shareholders; they may
fill vacancies in their number, including vacancies resulting
from increases in their own number, and may elect and remove such
officers and employ, appoint and terminate such employees or
agents as they consider appropriate; they may appoint from their
own number and terminate any one or more committees; they may
employ one or more custodians of the assets of the Trust and may
authorize such custodians to employ subcustodians and to deposit
all or any part of such assets in a system or systems for the
central handling of securities, retain a transfer agent and a
Shareholder servicing agent, or both, provide for the
distribution of Shares through a principal underwriter or
otherwise, set record dates, and in general delegate such
authority as they consider desirable (including, without
limitation, the authority to purchase and sell
securities and to invest funds, to determine the net income of
the Trust for any period, the value of the total assets of the
Trust and the net asset value of each Share, and to execute such
deeds, agreements or other instruments either in the name of the
Trust or the names of the Trustees or as their attorney or
attorneys or otherwise as the Trustees from time to time may deem
expedient) to any officer of the Trust, committee of the
Trustees, any such employee, agent, custodian or underwriter or
to any Manager.
Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the
Trustees shall have full power and authority:
(a) To invest and reinvest cash and to hold cash
uninvested;
(b) To vote or give assent, or exercise any rights of
ownership, with respect to stock or other securities or
property; and to execute and deliver proxies or powers of
attorney to such person or persons as the Trustees shall deem
proper, granting to such person or persons such power and
discretion with relation to securities or property as the
Trustees shall deem proper;
(c) To hold any security or property in a form not
indicating any trust whether in bearer, unregistered or other
negotiable form or in the name of the Trust or a custodian,
subcustodian or other depository or a nominee or nominees or
otherwise;
(d) To consent to or participate in any plan for the
reorganization, consolidation or merger of any corporation or
concern, any security of which is held in the Trust; to consent
to any contract, lease, mortgage, purchase or sale of property by
such corporation or concern, and to pay calls or subscriptions
with respect to any security held in the Trust;
(e) To join with other security holders in acting
through a committee, depositary, voting trustee or otherwise,
and in that connection to deposit any security with, or transfer
any security to, any such committee, depositary or trustee, and
to delegate to them such power and authority with relation to any
security (whether or not so deposited or transferred) as the
Trustees shall deem proper, and to agree to pay, and to pay,
such portion of the expenses and compensation of such committee,
depositary or trustee as the Trustees shall deem proper;
(f) To compromise, arbitrate, or otherwise adjust
claims in favor of or against the Trust or any matter in
controversy, including, but not limited to, claims for taxes;
(g) Subject to the provisions of Article III, Section
3, to allocate assets, liabilities, income and expenses of the
Trust to a particular series of Shares or to apportion the same
among two or more series, provided that any liabilities or
expenses incurred by a particular series of Shares shall be
payable solely out of the assets of that series; and to the
extent necessary or appropriate to give effect to the preferences
and special or relative rights and privileges of any classes of
Shares, to allocate assets, liabilities, income and expenses of
a series to a particular class of Shares of that series or to
apportion the same among two or more classes of Shares of that
series;
(h) To enter into joint ventures, general or limited
partnerships and any other combinations or associations;
(i) To purchase and pay for entirely out of Trust
property such insurance as they may deem necessary or
appropriate for the conduct of the business, including, without
limitation, insurance policies insuring the assets of the Trust
and payment of distributions and principal on its portfolio
investments, and insurance policies insuring the Shareholders,
Trustees, officers, employees, agents, investment advisers or
Managers, principal underwriters, or independent contractors of
the Trust individually against all claims and liabilities of
every nature arising by reason of holding, being or having held
any such office or position, or by reason of any action alleged
to have been taken or omitted by any such person as Shareholder,
Trustee, officer, employee, agent, investment adviser or Manager,
principal underwriter, or independent contractor, including any
action taken or omitted that may be determined to constitute
negligence, whether or not the Trust would have the power to
indemnify such person against such liability; and
(j) To pay pensions for faithful service, as deemed
appropriate by the Trustees, and to adopt, establish and carry
out pension, profit-sharing, share bonus, share purchase,
savings, thrift and other retirement, incentive and benefit
plans, trusts and provisions, including the purchasing of life
insurance and annuity contracts as a means of providing such
retirement and other benefits, for any or all of the Trustees,
officers, employees and agents of the Trust.
Further, without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, the Trustees shall have full power and authority to
incur and pay out of the principal or income of the Trust such
expenses and liabilities as may be deemed by the Trustees to be
necessary or proper for the purposes of the Trust; provided,
however, that all expenses and liabilities incurred by or
arising in connection with a particular series of Shares, as
determined by the Trustees, shall be payable solely out of the
assets of that series.
Any determination made in good faith and, so far as
accounting matters are involved, in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles by or pursuant to the authority
granted by the Trustees, as to the amount of the assets, debts,
obligations or liabilities of the Trust or a particular series
or class of Shares; the amount of any reserves or charges set up
and the propriety thereof; the time of or purpose for creating
such reserves or charges; the use, alteration or cancellation of
any reserves or charges (whether or not any debt, obligation or
liability for which such reserves or charges shall have been
created shall have been paid or discharged or shall be then or
thereafter required to be paid or discharged); the price or
closing bid or asked price of any investment owned or held by
the Trust or a particular series; the market value of any
investment or fair value of any other asset of the Trust or a
particular series; the number of Shares outstanding; the
estimated expense to the Trust or a particular series in
connection with purchases of its Shares; the ability to liquidate
investments in an orderly fashion; and the extent to which it is
practicable to deliver a cross-section of the portfolio of the
Trust or a particular series in payment for any such Shares, or
as to any other matters relating to the issue, sale, purchase
and/or other acquisition or disposition of investments or Shares
of the Trust or a particular series, shall be final and
conclusive, and shall be binding upon the Trust or such series
and its Shareholders, past, present and future, and Shares are
issued and sold on the condition and understanding that any and
all such determinations shall be binding as aforesaid.
Section 3. Meetings. At any meeting of the Trustees,
a majority of the Trustees then in office shall constitute a
quorum. Any meeting may be adjourned from time to time by a
majority of the votes cast upon the question, whether or not a
quorum is present, and the meeting may be held as adjourned
without further notice.
When a quorum is present at any meeting, a majority of
the Trustees present may take any action, except when a larger
vote is required by this Declaration of Trust, the By-Laws or
the 1940 Act.
Any action required or permitted to be taken at any
meeting of the Trustees or of any committee thereof may be taken
without a meeting, if a written consent to such action is signed
by a majority of the Trustees or members of any such committee
then in office, as the case may be, and such written consent is
filed with the minutes of proceedings of the Trustees or any
such committee.
The Trustees or any committee designated by the
Trustees may participate in a meeting of the Trustees or such
committee by means of a conference telephone or similar
communications equipment by means of which all persons
participating in the meeting can hear each other at the same
time. Participation by such means shall constitute presence in
person at a meeting.
Section 4. Ownership of Assets of the Trust. Title
to all of the assets of each series of Shares of the Trust at all
times shall be considered as vested in the Trustees.
Section 5. Investment Advice and Management Services.
The Trustees shall not in any way be bound or limited by any
present or future law or custom in regard to investments by
trustees. The Trustees from time to time may enter into a
written contract or contracts with any person or persons (herein
called the "Manager"), including any firm, corporation, trust or
association in which any Trustee or Shareholder may be
interested, to act as investment advisers and/or managers of the
Trust and to provide such investment advice and/or management as
the Trustees from time to time may consider necessary for the
proper management of the assets of the Trust, including, without
limitation, authority to determine from time to time what
investments shall be purchased, held, sold or exchanged and what
portion, if any, of the assets of the Trust shall be held
uninvested and to make changes in the Trust's investments. Any
such contract shall be subject to the requirements of the 1940
Act with respect to its continuance in effect, its termination
and the method of authorization and approval of such contract, or
any amendment thereto or renewal thereof.
Any Trustee or any organization with which any Trustee
may be associated also may act as broker for the Trust in making
purchases and sales of securities for or to the Trust for its
investment portfolio, and may charge and receive from the Trust
the usual and customary commission for such service. Any
organization with which a Trustee may be associated in acting as
broker for the Trust shall be responsible only for the proper
execution of transactions in accordance with the instructions of
the Trust and shall be subject to no further liability of any
sort whatever.
The Manager, or any affiliate thereof, also may be a
distributor for the sale of Shares by separate contract or may
be a person controlled by or affiliated with any Trustee or any
distributor or a person in which any Trustee or any distributor
is interested financially, subject only to applicable provisions
of law. Nothing herein contained shall operate to prevent any
Manager, who also acts as such a distributor, from also
receiving compensation for services rendered as such distributor.
Section 6. Removal and Resignation of Trustees. The
Trustees or the Shareholders (by vote of 66-2/3% of the
outstanding Shares entitled to vote thereon) may remove at any
time any Trustee with or without cause, and any Trustee may
resign at any time as Trustee, without penalty by written notice
to the Trust; provided that sixty days' advance written notice
shall be given in the event that there are only three or fewer
Trustees at the time a notice of resignation is submitted.
ARTICLE V
Shareholders' Voting Powers and Meetings
Section 1. Voting Powers. The Shareholders shall
have power to vote only (i) for the election of Trustees as
provided in Article IV, Section 1, of this Declaration of Trust;
provided, however, that no meeting of Shareholders is required to
be called for the purpose of electing Trustees unless and until
such time as less than a majority of the Trustees have been
elected by the Shareholders, (ii) for the removal of Trustees as
provided in Article IV, Section 6, (iii) with respect to any
Manager as pro-vided in Article IV, Section 5, (iv) with respect
to any amendment of this Declaration of Trust as provided in
Article IX, Section 8, (v) with respect to the termination of the
Trust or a series of Shares as provided in Article IX, Section 5,
and (vi) with respect to such additional matters relating to the
Trust as may be required by law, by this Declaration of Trust, or
the By-Laws of the Trust or any registration of the Trust with
the Commission or any state, or as the Trustees may consider
desirable. Each whole Share shall be entitled to one vote as to
any matter on which it is entitled to vote (except that in the
election of Trustees said vote may be cast for as many persons as
there are Trustees to be elected), and each fractional Share
shall be entitled to a proportionate fractional vote.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Declaration of Trust,
on any matter submitted to a vote of Shareholders, all Shares of
the Trust then entitled to vote shall be voted in the aggregate
as a single class without regard to series or classes of Shares,
except (i) when required by the 1940 Act or when the Trustees
shall have determined that the matter affects one or more series
or classes differently Shares shall be voted by individual series
or class and (ii) when the Trustees have determined that the
matter affects only the interests of one or more series or
classes then only Shareholders of such series or classes shall be
entitled to vote thereon. There shall be no cumulative voting in
the election of Trustees.
Shares may be voted in person or by proxy. A proxy with respect
to Shares held in the name of two or more persons shall be valid
if executed by any one of them, unless at or prior to exercise
of the proxy the Trust receives a specific written notice to the
contrary from any one of them. A proxy purporting to be
executed by or on behalf of a Shareholder shall be deemed valid
unless challenged at or prior to its exercise and the burden of
proving invalidity shall rest on the challenger. Whenever no
Shares of any series or class are issued and outstanding, the
Trustees may exercise with respect to such series or class all
rights of Shareholders and may take any action required by law,
this Declaration of Trust or any By-Laws of the Trust to be taken
by Shareholders.
Section 2. Meetings. Meetings of the Shareholders
may be called by the Trustees or such other person or persons as
may be specified in the By-Laws and shall be called by the
Trustees upon the written request of Shareholders owning at least
30% of the outstanding Shares entitled to vote. Shareholders
shall be entitled to at least ten days' prior notice of any
meeting.
Section 3. Quorum and Required Vote. Thirty percent
(30%) of the outstanding Shares shall be a quorum for the
transaction of business at a Shareholders' meeting, except that
where any provision of law or of this Declaration of Trust
permits or requires that holders of any series or class shall
vote as a series or class, then thirty percent (30%) of the
aggregate number of Shares of that series or class entitled to
vote shall be necessary to constitute a quorum for the
transaction of business by that series or class. Any lesser
number, however, shall be sufficient for adjournment and any
adjourned session or sessions may be held within 90 days after
the date set for the original meeting without the necessity of
further notice. Except when a larger vote is required by any
provision of this Declaration of Trust or the By-Laws of the
Trust and subject to any applicable requirements of law, a
majority of the Shares voted shall decide any question and a
plurality shall elect a Trustee, provided
that where any provision of law or of this Declaration of Trust
permits or requires that the holders of any series or class shall
vote as a series or class, then a majority of the Shares of that
series or class voted on the matter (or a plurality with respect
to the election of a Trustee) shall decide that matter insofar as
that series or class is concerned.
Section 4. Action by Written Consent. Any action
required or permitted to be taken at any meeting may be taken
without a meeting if a consent in writing, setting forth such
action, is signed by a majority of Shareholders entitled to vote
on the subject matter thereof (or such larger proportion thereof
as shall be required by any express provision of this
Declaration of Trust) and such consent is filed with the records
of the Trust.
Section 5. Additional Provisions. The By-Laws may
include further provisions for Shareholders' votes and meetings
and related matters.
ARTICLE VI
Distributions and Redemptions
Section 1. Distributions. The Trustees shall
distribute periodically to the Shareholders of each series of
Shares an amount approximately equal to the net income of that
series, determined by the Trustees or as they may authorize and
as herein provided. Distributions of income may be made in one
or more payments, which shall be in Shares, cash or otherwise,
and on a date or dates and as of a record date or dates
determined by the Trustees. At any time and from time to time in
their discretion, the Trustees also may cause to be distributed
to the Shareholders of any one or more series as of a record date
or dates determined by the Trustees, in Shares, cash or
otherwise, all or part of any gains realized on the sale or
disposition of the assets of the series or all or part of any
other principal of the Trust attributable to the series. Each
distribution pursuant to this Section 1 shall be made ratably
according to the number of Shares of the series held by the
several Shareholders on the record date for such distribution,
except to the extent otherwise required or permitted by the
preferences and special or relative rights and privileges of any
classes of Shares of that series, and any distribution to the
Shareholders of a particular class of Shares shall be made to
such Shareholders pro rata in proportion to the number of Shares
of such class held by each of them. No distribution need be made
on Shares purchased pursuant to orders received, or for which
payment is made, after such time or times as the Trustees may
determine.
Section 2. Determination of Net Income. In
determining the net income of each series or class of Shares for
any period, there shall be deducted from income for that period
(a) such portion of all charges, taxes, expenses and liabilities
due or accrued as the Trustees shall consider properly chargeable
and fairly applicable to income for that period or any earlier
period and (b) whatever reasonable reserves the Trustees shall
consider advisable for possible future charges, taxes, expenses
and liabilities which the Trustees shall consider properly
chargeable and fairly applicable to income for that period or any
earlier period. The net income of each series or class for any
period may be adjusted for amounts included on account of net
income in the net asset value of Shares issued or redeemed or
repurchased during that period. In determining the net income of
a series or class for a period ending on a date other than the
end of its fiscal year, income may be estimated as the Trustees
shall deem fair. Gains on the sale or disposition of assets
shall not be treated as income, and losses shall not be charged
against income unless appropriate under applicable accounting
principles, except in the exercise of the discretionary powers of
the Trustees. Any amount contributed to the Trust which is
received as income pursuant to a decree of any court of competent
jurisdiction shall be applied as required by the said decree.
Section 3. Redemptions. Any Shareholder shall be
entitled to require the Trust to redeem and the Trust shall be
obligated to redeem at the option of such Shareholder all or any
part of the Shares owned by said Shareholder, at the redemption
price, pursuant to the method, upon the terms and subject to the
conditions hereinafter set forth:
(a) Certificates for Shares, if issued, shall be
presented for redemption in proper form for transfer to the
Trust or the agent of the Trust appointed for such purpose, and
these shall be presented with a written request that the Trust
redeem all or any part of the Shares represented thereby.
(b) The redemption price per Share shall be the net
asset value per Share when next determined by the Trust at such
time or times as the Trustees shall designate, following the
time of presentation of certificates for Shares, if issued, and
an appropriate request for redemption, or such other time as the
Trustees may designate in accordance with any provision of the
1940 Act, or any rule or regulation made or adopted by any
securities association registered under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as determined by the Trustees, less any applicable
charge or fee imposed from time to time as determined by the
Trustees.
(c) Net asset value of each series or class of Shares
(for the purpose of issuance of Shares as well as redemptions
thereof) shall be determined by dividing:
(i) the total value of the assets of such series
or class determined as provided in paragraph (d) below
less, to the extent determined by or pursuant to the
direction of the Trustees in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles, all debts, obligations
and liabilities of such series or class (which debts,
obligations and liabilities shall include, without
limitation of the generality of the foregoing, any and
all debts, obligations, liabilities, or claims, of any
and every kind and nature, fixed, accrued and
otherwise, including the estimated accrued expenses of
management and supervision, administration and
distribution and any reserves or charges for any or all
of the foregoing, whether for taxes, expenses, or
otherwise, and the price of Shares redeemed but not
paid for) but excluding the Trust's liability upon its
Shares and its surplus, by
(ii) the total number of Shares of such series or
class outstanding.
The Trustees are empowered, in their absolute
discretion, to establish other methods for determining such net
asset value whenever such other methods are deemed by them to be
necessary to enable the Trust to comply with applicable law, or
are deemed by them to be desirable, provided they are not
inconsistent with any provision of the 1940 Act.
(d) In determining for the purposes of this
Declaration of Trust the total value of the assets of each series
or class of Shares at any time, investments and any other assets
of such series or class shall be valued in such manner as may be
determined from time to time by or pursuant to the order of the
Trustees.
(e) Payment of the redemption price by the Trust may
be made either in cash or in securities or other assets at the
time owned by the Trust or partly in cash and partly in
securities or other assets at the time owned by the Trust. The
value of any part of such payment to be made in securities or
other assets of the Trust shall be the value employed in
determining the redemption price. Payment of the redemption
price shall be made on or before the seventh day following the
day on which the Shares are properly presented for redemption
hereunder, except that delivery of any securities included in any
such payment shall be made as promptly as any necessary transfers
on the books of the issuers whose securities are to be delivered
may be made and, except as postponement of the date of payment
may be permissible under the 1940 Act.
Pursuant to resolution of the Trustees, the Trust may
deduct from the payment made for any Shares redeemed a
liquidating charge not in excess of an amount determined by the
Trustees from time to time.
(f) The right of any holder of Shares redeemed by the
Trust as provided in this Article VI to receive dividends or
distributions thereon and all other rights of such Shareholder
with respect to such Shares shall terminate at the time as of
which the redemption price of such Shares is determined, except
the right of such Shareholder to receive (i) the redemption
price of such Shares from the Trust in accordance with the
provisions hereof, and (ii) any dividend or distribution to which
such Shareholder previously had become entitled as the record
holder of such Shares on the record date for such dividend or
distribution.
(g) Redemption of Shares by the Trust is conditional
upon the Trust having funds or other assets legally available
therefor.
(h) The Trust, either directly or through an agent,
may repurchase its Shares, out of funds legally available
therefor, upon such terms and conditions and for such
consideration as the Trustees shall deem advisable, by agreement
with the owner at a price not exceeding the net asset value per
Share as determined by or pursuant to the order of the Trustees
at such time or times as the Trustees shall designate, less any
applicable charge, if and as fixed by the Trustees from time to
time, and to take all other steps deemed necessary or advisable
in connection therewith.
(i) Shares purchased or redeemed by the Trust shall
be cancelled or held by the Trust for reissue, as the Trustees
from time to time may determine.
(j) The obligations set forth in this Article VI may
be suspended or postponed, (1) for any period (i) during which
the New York Stock Exchange is closed other than for customary
weekend and holiday closings, or (ii) during which trading on the
New York Stock Exchange is restricted, (2) for any period during
which an emergency exists as a result of which (i) the disposal
by the Trust of investments owned by it is not reasonably
practicable, or (ii) it is not reasonably practicable for the
Trust fairly to determine the value of its net assets, or (3) for
such other periods as the Commission or any successor
governmental authority by order may permit.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section 3
of Article VI, if certificates representing such Shares have been
issued, the redemption or repurchase price need not be paid by
the Trust until such certificates are presented in proper form
for transfer to the Trust or the agent of the Trust appointed for
such purpose; however, the redemption or repurchase shall be
effective, in accordance with the resolution of the Trustees,
regardless of whether or not such presentation has been made.
Section 4. Redemptions at the Option of the Trust.
The Trust shall have the right at its option and at any time to
redeem Shares of any Shareholder at the net asset value thereof
as determined in accordance with Section 3 of Article VI of this
Declaration of Trust: (i) if at such time such Shareholder owns
fewer Shares than, or Shares having an aggregate net asset value
of less than, an amount determined from time to time by the
Trustees; or (ii) to the extent that such Shareholder owns
Shares of a particular series or class of Shares equal to or in
excess of a percentage of the outstanding Shares of that series
or class determined from time to time by the Trustees; or (iii)
to the extent that such Shareholder owns Shares of the Trust
representing a percentage equal to or in excess of such
percentage of the aggregate number of outstanding Shares of the
Trust or the aggregate net asset value of the Trust determined
from time to time by the Trustees.
Section 5. Dividends, Distributions, Redemptions and
Repurchases. No dividend or distribution (including, without
limitation, any distribution paid upon termination of the Trust
or of any series) with respect to, nor any redemption or
repurchase of, the Shares of any series shall be effected by the
Trust other than from the assets of such series.
ARTICLE VII
Compensation and Limitation of
Liability of Trustees
Section 1. Compensation. The Trustees shall be
entitled to reasonable compensation from the Trust and may fix
the amount of their compensation.
Section 2. Limitation of Liability. The Trustees
shall not be responsible or liable in any event for any neglect
or wrongdoing of any officer, agent, employee or Manager of the
Trust, nor shall any Trustee be responsible for the act or
omission of any other Trustee, but nothing herein contained
shall protect any Trustee against any liability to which he would
otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad
faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties
involved in the conduct of his office.
Every note, bond, contract, instrument, certificate,
share, or undertaking and every other act or thing whatsoever
executed or done by or on behalf of the Trust or the Trustees or
any of them in connection with the Trust, shall be deemed
conclusively to have been executed or done only in their or his
capacity as Trustees or Trustee, and such Trustees or Trustee
shall not be personally liable thereon.
ARTICLE VIII
Indemnification
Section 1. Indemnification of Trustees, Officers,
Employees and Agents. Each person who is or was a Trustee,
officer, employee or agent of the Trust or who serves or has
served at the Trust's request as a director, officer or trustee
of another entity in which the Trust has or had any interest as a
shareholder, creditor or otherwise shall be entitled to
indemnification out of the assets of the Trust to the extent
provided in, and subject to the provisions of, the By-Laws,
provided that no indemnification shall be granted by the Trust
in contravention of the 1940 Act.
Section 2. Merged Corporations. For the purposes of
this Article VIII references to "the Trust" include any
constituent corporation (including any constituent of a
constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger which, if its
separate existence had continued, would have had power and
authority to indemnify its directors, officers, employees or
agents as well as the resulting or surviving entity; so that any
person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of
such a constituent corporation or is or was serving at the
request of such a constituent corporation as a trustee, director,
officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership,
joint venture, trust or other enterprise shall stand in the same
position under the provisions of this Article VIII with respect
to the resulting or surviving entity as he would have with
respect to such a constituent corporation if its separate
existence had continued.
Section 3. Shareholders. In case any Shareholder or
former Shareholder shall be held to be personally liable solely
by reason of his being or having been a Shareholder and not
because of his acts or omissions or for some other reason, the
Shareholder or former Shareholder (or his heirs, executors,
administrators or other legal representatives or in the case of a
corporation or other entity, its corporate or other general
successor) shall be entitled out of the assets of the particular
series of Shares of which he is or was a Shareholder to be held
harmless from and indemnified against all losses and expenses
arising from such liability. Upon request, the Trust shall cause
its counsel to assume the defense of any claim which, if
successful, would result in an obligation of the Trust to
indemnify the Shareholder as aforesaid.
ARTICLE IX
Status of the Trust and Other General Provisions
Section 1. Trust Not a Partnership. It is hereby
expressly declared that a trust and not a partnership is created
hereby. Neither the Trust nor the Trustees, nor any officer,
employee or agent of the Trust shall have any power to bind
personally either the Trust's Trustees or officers or any Share-
holders. All persons extending credit to, contracting with or
having any claim against the Trust or a particular series of
Shares shall look only to the assets of the Trust or the assets
of that particular series for payment under such credit, contract
or claim; and neither the Shareholders nor the Trustees, nor any
of the Trust's officers, employees or agents, whether past,
present or future, shall be personally liable therefor. Nothing
in this Declaration of Trust shall protect any Trustee against
any liability to which such Trustee otherwise would be subject by
reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or
reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of the
office of Trustee hereunder.
Section 2. Trustee's Good Faith Action, Expert
Advice, No Bond or Surety. The exercise by the Trustees of their
powers and discretion hereunder under the circumstances then
prevailing, shall be binding upon everyone interested. A Trustee
shall be liable for his or her own willful misfeasance, bad
faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties
involved in the conduct of the office of Trustee, and for nothing
else, and shall not be liable for errors of judgment or mistakes
of fact or law.
The Trustees may take advice of counsel or other experts with
respect to the meaning and operation of this Declaration of
Trust, and subject to the provisions of Section 1 of this Article
IX shall be under no liability for any act or omission in
accordance with such advice or for failing to follow such advice.
The Trustees shall not be required to give any bond as such, nor
any surety if a bond is required.
Section 3. Liability of Third Persons Dealing with
Trustees. No person dealing with the Trustees shall be bound to
make any inquiry concerning the validity of any transaction made
or to be made by the Trustees pursuant hereto or to see to the
application of any payments made or property transferred to the
Trust or upon its order.
Section 4. Trustees, Shareholders, etc. Not
Personally Liable; Notice. All persons extending credit to,
contracting with or having any claim against the Trust or a
particular series of Shares shall look only to the assets of the
Trust or the assets of that particular series of Shares for
payment under such credit, contract or claim; and neither the
Shareholders nor the Trustees, nor any of the Trust's officers,
employees or agents, whether past, present or future, shall be
personally liable therefor.
Section 5. Termination of Trust. Unless terminated
as provided herein, the Trust shall continue without limitation
of time. The Trust may be terminated at any time by vote of
Shareholders holding at least a majority of the Shares of each
series entitled to vote or by the Trustees by written notice to
the Shareholders. Any series of Shares may be terminated at any
time by vote of Shareholders holding at least a majority of the
Shares of such series entitled to vote or by the Trustees by
written notice to the Shareholders of such series.
Upon termination of the Trust or of any one or more
series of Shares, after paying or otherwise providing for all
charges, taxes, expenses and liabilities, whether due or accrued
or anticipated as may be determined by the Trustees, the Trust
shall reduce, in accordance with such procedures as the Trustees
consider appropriate, the remaining assets to distributable form
in cash or shares or other securities, or any combination
thereof, and distribute the proceeds to the Shareholders of the
series involved, ratably according to the number of Shares of
such series held by the several Shareholders of such series on
the date of termination, except to the extent otherwise required
or permitted by the preferences and special or relative rights
and privileges of any classes of Shares of that series, provided
that any distribution to the Shareholders of a particular class
of Shares shall be made to such Shareholders pro rata in
proportion to the number of Shares of such class held by each of
them.
Section 6. Filing of Copies, References, Headings.
The original or a copy of this instrument and of each amendment
hereto and of each Declaration of Trust supplemental hereto shall
be kept at the office of the Trust where it may be inspected by
any Shareholder. A copy of this instrument and of each such
amendment and supplemental Declaration of Trust shall be filed by
the Trust with the Secretary of State of The Commonwealth of
Massachusetts and the Boston City Clerk, as well as any other
governmental office where such filing may from time to time be
required. Anyone dealing with the Trust may rely on a
certificate by an officer of the Trust as to whether or not any
such amendments or supplemental Declarations of Trust have been
made and as to matters in connection with the Trust hereunder;
and, with the same effect as if it were the original, may rely on
a copy certified by an officer of the Trust to be a copy of this
instrument or of any such amendment or supplemental Declaration
of Trust. In this instrument or in any such amendment or
supplemental Declaration of Trust, references to this instrument,
and all expressions like "herein," "hereof," and "hereunder,"
shall be deemed to refer to this instrument as amended or
affected by any such amendment or supplemental Declaration of
Trust. Headings are placed herein for convenience of reference
only and in case of any conflict, the text of this instrument,
rather than the headings, shall control. This instrument may be
executed in any number of counterparts each of which shall be
deemed an original.
Section 7. Applicable Law. The Trust set forth in
this instrument is made in The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and
it is created under and is to be governed by and construed and
administered according to the laws of said Commonwealth. The
Trust shall be of the type commonly called a Massachusetts
business trust, and without limiting the provisions hereof, the
Trust may exercise all powers which are ordinarily exercised by
such a trust.
Section 8. Amendments. This Declaration of Trust may
be amended at any time by an instrument in writing signed by a
majority of the then Trustees when authorized so to do by a vote
of Shareholders holding a majority of the Shares outstanding and
entitled to vote, except that an amendment which shall affect
the holders of one or more series or class of Shares but not the
holders of all outstanding series or classes of Shares shall be
authorized by vote of the Shareholders holding a majority of the
Shares entitled to vote of the series or classes affected and no
vote of Shareholders of a series or class not affected shall be
required. Amendments having the purpose of changing the name of
the Trust or of supplying any omission, curing any ambiguity or
curing, correcting or supplementing any defective or
inconsistent provision contained herein shall not require
authorization by Shareholder vote.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned Trustee has
hereunto set his hand and seal for himself and his assigns as of
the day and year first above written.
/s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxxx
Xxxx X. Xxxxxx, Trustee
c/o The Dreyfus Corporation
000 Xxxx Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, XX
00000
Address of the Trust:
c/o The Dreyfus Corporation
000 Xxxx Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxxx, Xx.,
Trustee
Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000 000 X Xxxxxx XX
Xxxxxxxxxx, X.X. 00000
Resident Agent:
CT Corp. Xxxxx X. Xxxxx, Trustee
0 Xxxxxx Xxxxxx Xxx Xxxx University School of Law
Xxxxxx, XX 00000 000 Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000
Xxxx X. Xxxxxx, Trustee
000-X Xxxxxx Xxxxxx Xxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxx Xxxxxx, XX 00000
Xxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx, Trustee
00 Xxxxxxx Xxxxxx Xxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000
Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx, Trustee
000 Xxxx Xxxxxx
Xxx Xxxx, XX 00000
STATE OF NEW YORK )
: ss.:
COUNTY OF NEW YORK )
On this 14th day of April 1993, before me personally
came the above-named Trustee of the Fund, to me known, and known
to me to be the person described in and who executed the
foregoing instrument, and who duly acknowledged to me that he had
executed the same.
Notary Public
