SUBADVISORY AGREEMENT
This SUBADVISORY AGREEMENT ("Agreement") is made this 1st
day of August, 2006, by and between Xxxx Xxxxx Partners Fund
Advisor, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the
"Manager"), and Western Asset Management Company, a California
corporation (the "Subadviser").
WHEREAS, the Manager has been retained by High Income
Opportunity Fund Inc. (the "Fund"), a registered management
investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as
amended (the "1940 Act") to provide investment advisory,
management, and administrative services to the Fund; and
WHEREAS, the Manager wishes to engage the Subadviser to
provide certain investment advisory services to the Fund, and the
Subadviser is willing to furnish such services on the terms and
conditions hereinafter set forth;
NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the promises and mutual
covenants herein contained, it is agreed as follows:
1. In accordance with and subject to the Management
Agreement between the Fund and the Manager (the "Management
Agreement"), the Manager hereby appoints the Subadviser to act as
Subadviser with respect to the Fund for the period and on the
terms set forth in this Agreement. The Subadviser accepts such
appointment and agrees to render the services herein set forth,
for the compensation herein provided.
2. The Manager shall cause the Subadviser to be kept fully
informed at all times with regard to the securities owned by the
Fund, its funds available, or to become available, for
investment, and generally as to the condition of the Fund's
affairs. Manager shall furnish the Subadviser with such other
documents and information with regard to the Fund's affairs as
the Subadviser may from time to time reasonably request.
3. (a) Subject to the supervision of the Fund's Board of
Directors (the "Board") and the Manager, Subadviser shall
regularly provide the Fund with respect to such portion of the
Fund's assets as shall be allocated to the Subadviser by the
Manager from time to time (the "Allocated Assets") with
investment research, advice, management and supervision and shall
furnish a continuous investment program for the Allocated Assets
consistent with the Fund's investment objectives, policies and
restrictions, as stated in the Fund's Prospectus and Statement of
Additional Information. The Subadviser shall, with respect to the
Allocated Assets, determine from time to time what securities and
other investments will be purchased (including, as permitted in
accordance with this paragraph, swap agreements, options and
futures), retained, sold or exchanged by the Fund and what
portion of the Allocated Assets will be held in the various
securities and other investments in which the Fund invests, and
shall implement those decisions (including the execution of
investment documentation), all subject to the provisions of the
Fund's Articles of Incorporation and By-Laws (collectively, the
"Governing Documents"), the 1940 Act, and the applicable rules
and regulations promulgated thereunder by the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and interpretive guidance issued
thereunder by the SEC staff and any other applicable federal and
state law, as well as the investment objectives, policies and
restrictions of the Fund referred to above, and any other
specific policies adopted by the Board and disclosed to the
Subadviser. The Subadviser is authorized as the agent of the Fund
to give instructions with respect to the Allocated Assets to the
custodian of the Fund as to deliveries of securities and other
investments and payments of cash for the account of the Fund.
Subject to applicable provisions of the 1940 Act, the investment
program to be provided hereunder may entail the investment of all
or substantially all of the assets of the Fund in one or more
investment companies. The Subadviser will place orders pursuant
to its investment determinations for the Fund either directly
with the issuer or with any broker or dealer, foreign currency
dealer, futures commission merchant or others selected by it. In
connection with the selection of such brokers or dealers and the
placing of such orders, subject to applicable law, brokers or
dealers may be selected who also provide brokerage and research
services (as those terms are defined in Section 28(e) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"))
to the Fund and/or the other accounts over which the Subadviser
or its affiliates exercise investment discretion. The Subadviser
is authorized to pay a broker or dealer who provides such
brokerage and research services a commission for executing a
portfolio transaction for the Fund which is in excess of the
amount of commission another broker or dealer would have charged
for effecting that transaction if the Subadviser determines in
good faith that such amount of commission is reasonable in
relation to the value of the brokerage and research services
provided by such broker or dealer. This determination may be
viewed in terms of either that particular transaction or the
overall responsibilities which the Subadviser and its affiliates
have with respect to accounts over which they exercise investment
discretion. The Board may adopt policies and procedures that
modify and restrict the Subadviser's authority regarding the
execution of the Fund's portfolio transactions provided herein.
The Subadviser shall exercise voting rights, rights to consent to
corporate action and any other rights pertaining to the Allocated
Assets subject to such direction as the Board may provide, and
shall perform such other functions of investment management and
supervision as may be directed by the Board.
(b) The Fund hereby authorizes any entity or person
associated with the Subadviser which is a member of a national
securities exchange to effect any transaction on the exchange for
the account of the Fund which is permitted by Section 11(a) of
the Exchange Act and Rule 11a2-2(T) thereunder, and the Fund
hereby consents to the retention of compensation for such
transactions in accordance with Rule 11a2-2(T)(a)(2)(iv).
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Subadviser agrees that it will
not deal with itself, or with members of the Board or any
principal underwriter of the Fund, as principals or agents in
making purchases or sales of securities or other property for the
account of the Fund, nor will it purchase any securities from an
underwriting or selling group in which the Subadviser or its
affiliates is participating, or arrange for purchases and sales
of securities between the Fund and another account advised by the
Subadviser or its affiliates, except in each case as permitted by
the 1940 Act and in accordance with such policies and procedures
as may be adopted by the Fund from time to time, and will comply
with all other provisions of the Governing Documents and the
Fund's Prospectus and Statement of Additional Information
relative to the Subadviser and its directors and officers.
4. The Subadviser may delegate to any other one or more
companies that the Subadviser controls, is controlled by, or is
under common control with, or to specified employees of any such
companies, certain of the Subadviser's duties under this
Agreement, provided in each case the Subadviser will supervise
the activities of each such entity or employees thereof, that
such delegation will not relieve the Subadviser of any of its
duties or obligations under this Agreement and provided further
that any such arrangements are entered into in accordance with
all applicable requirements of the 1940 Act.
5. The Subadviser agrees that it will keep records
relating to its services hereunder in accordance with all
applicable laws, and in compliance with the requirements of Rule
31a-3 under the 1940 Act, the Subadviser hereby agrees that any
records that it maintains for the Fund are the property of the
Fund, and further agrees to surrender promptly to the Fund any of
such records upon the Fund's request. The Subadviser further
agrees to arrange for the preservation of the records required to
be maintained by Rule 31a-1 under the 1940 Act for the periods
prescribed by Rule 31a-2 under the 1940 Act.
6. (a) The Subadviser, at its expense, shall supply the
Board, the officers of the Fund, and the Manager with all
information and reports reasonably required by them and
reasonably available to the Subadviser relating to the services
provided by the Subadviser hereunder.
(b) The Subadviser shall bear all expenses, and shall
furnish all necessary services, facilities and personnel, in
connection with its responsibilities under this Agreement. Other
than as herein specifically indicated, the Subadviser shall not
be responsible for the Fund's expenses, including, without
limitation, advisory fees; distribution fees; interest; taxes;
governmental fees; voluntary assessments and other expenses
incurred in connection with membership in investment company
organizations; organization costs of the Fund; the cost
(including brokerage commissions, transaction fees or charges, if
any) in connection with the purchase or sale of the Fund's
securities and other investments and any losses in connection
therewith; fees and expenses of custodians, transfer agents,
registrars, independent pricing vendors or other agents; legal
expenses; loan commitment fees; expenses relating to share
certificates; expenses relating to the issuing and redemption or
repurchase of the Fund's shares and servicing shareholder
accounts; expenses of registering and qualifying the Fund's
shares for sale under applicable federal and state law; expenses
of preparing, setting in print, printing and distributing
prospectuses and statements of additional information and any
supplements thereto, reports, proxy statements, notices and
dividends to the Fund's shareholders; costs of stationery;
website costs; costs of meetings of the Board or any committee
thereof, meetings of shareholders and other meetings of the Fund;
Board fees; audit fees; travel expenses of officers, members of
the Board and employees of the Fund, if any; and the Fund's pro
rata portion of premiums on any fidelity bond and other insurance
covering the Fund and its officers, Board members and employees;
litigation expenses and any non-recurring or extraordinary
expenses as may arise, including, without limitation, those
relating to actions, suits or proceedings to which the Fund is a
party and the legal obligation which the Fund may have to
indemnify the Fund's Board members and officers with respect
thereto.
7. No member of the Board, officer or employee of the Fund
shall receive from the Fund any salary or other compensation as
such member of the Board, officer or employee while he is at the
same time a director, officer, or employee of the Subadviser or
any affiliated company of the Subadviser, except as the Board may
decide. This paragraph shall not apply to Board members,
executive committee members, consultants and other persons who
are not regular members of the Subadviser's or any affiliated
company's staff.
8. As compensation for the services performed by the
Subadviser, including the services of any consultants retained by
the Subadviser, the Manager shall pay the Subadviser out of the
management fee it receives with respect to the Fund, and only to
the extent thereof, as promptly as possible after the last day of
each month, a fee, computed daily at an annual rate set forth on
Schedule A annexed hereto. The first payment of the fee shall be
made as promptly as possible at the end of the month succeeding
the effective date of this Agreement, and shall constitute a full
payment of the fee due the Subadviser for all services prior to
that date. If this Agreement is terminated as of any date not the
last day of a month, such fee shall be paid as promptly as
possible after such date of termination, shall be based on the
average daily net assets of the Fund or, if less, the portion
thereof comprising the Allocated Assets in that period from the
beginning of such month to such date of termination, and shall be
that proportion of such average daily net assets as the number of
business days in such period bears to the number of business days
in such month. The average daily net assets of the Fund or the
portion thereof comprising the Allocated Assets shall in all
cases be based only on business days and be computed as of the
time of the regular close of business of the New York Stock
Exchange, or such other time as may be determined by the Board.
9. The Subadviser assumes no responsibility under this
Agreement other than to render the services called for hereunder,
in good faith, and shall not be liable for any error of judgment
or mistake of law, or for any loss arising out of any investment
or for any act or omission in the execution of securities
transactions for the Fund, provided that nothing in this
Agreement shall protect the Subadviser against any liability to
the Manager or the Fund to which the Subadviser would otherwise
be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, or gross
negligence in the performance of its duties or by reason of its
reckless disregard of its obligations and duties hereunder. As
used in this Section 9, the term "Subadviser" shall include any
affiliates of the Subadviser performing services for the Fund
contemplated hereby and the partners, shareholders, directors,
officers and employees of the Subadviser and such affiliates.
10. Nothing in this Agreement shall limit or restrict the
right of any director, officer, or employee of the Subadviser who
may also be a Board member, officer, or employee of the Fund, to
engage in any other business or to devote his time and attention
in part to the management or other aspects of any other business,
whether of a similar nature or a dissimilar nature, nor to limit
or restrict the right of the Subadviser to engage in any other
business or to render services of any kind, including investment
advisory and management services, to any other fund, firm,
individual or association. If the purchase or sale of securities
consistent with the investment policies of the Fund or one or
more other accounts of the Subadviser is considered at or about
the same time, transactions in such securities will be allocated
among the accounts in a manner deemed equitable by the
Subadviser. Such transactions may be combined, in accordance with
applicable laws and regulations, and consistent with the
Subadviser's policies and procedures as presented to the Board
from time to time.
11. For the purposes of this Agreement, the Fund's "net
assets" shall be determined as provided in the Fund's Prospectus
and Statement of Additional Information and the terms
"assignment," "interested person," and "majority of the
outstanding voting securities" shall have the meanings given to
them by Section 2(a) of the 1940 Act, subject to such exemptions
as may be granted by the SEC by any rule, regulation or order.
12. This Agreement will become effective with respect to
the Fund on the date set forth opposite the Fund's name on
Schedule A annexed hereto, provided that it shall have been
approved by the Fund's Board and, if so required by the 1940 Act,
by the shareholders of the Fund in accordance with the
requirements of the 1940 Act and, unless sooner terminated as
provided herein, will continue in effect through November 30,
2007. Thereafter, if not terminated, this Agreement shall
continue in effect with respect to the Fund, so long as such
continuance is specifically approved at least annually (i) by the
Board or (ii) by a vote of a majority of the outstanding voting
securities of the Fund, provided that in either event the
continuance is also approved by a majority of the Board members
who are not interested persons of any party to this Agreement, by
vote cast in person at a meeting called for the purpose of voting
on such approval.
13. This Agreement is terminable with respect to the Fund
without penalty by the Board or by vote of a majority of the
outstanding voting securities of the Fund, in each case on not
more than 60 days' nor less than 30 days' written notice to the
Subadviser, or by the Subadviser upon not less than 90 days'
written notice to the Fund and the Manager, and will be
terminated upon the mutual written consent of the Manager and the
Subadviser. This Agreement shall terminate automatically in the
event of its assignment by the Subadviser and shall not be
assignable by the Manager without the consent of the Subadviser.
14. The Subadviser agrees that for any claim by it against
the Fund in connection with this Agreement or the services
rendered under this Agreement, it shall look only to assets of
the Fund for satisfaction and that it shall have no claim against
the assets of any other portfolios of the Fund.
15. No provision of this Agreement may be changed, waived,
discharged or terminated orally, but only by an instrument in
writing signed by the party against which enforcement of the
change, waiver, discharge or termination is sought, and no
material amendment of the Agreement shall be effective until
approved, if so required by the 1940 Act, by vote of the holders
of a majority of the Fund's outstanding voting securities.
16. This Agreement, and any supplemental terms contained on
Annex I hereto, if applicable, embodies the entire agreement and
understanding between the parties hereto, and supersedes all
prior agreements and understandings relating to the subject
matter hereof. Should any part of this Agreement be held or made
invalid by a court decision, statute, rule or otherwise, the
remainder of this Agreement shall not be affected thereby. This
Agreement shall be binding on and shall inure to the benefit of
the parties hereto and their respective successors.
17. This Agreement shall be construed and the provisions
thereof interpreted under and in accordance with the laws of the
State of New York.
[signature page to follow]
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this
Agreement to be executed by their officers thereunto duly
authorized.
XXXX XXXXX PARTNERS FUND ADVISOR,
LLC
By:
_______________________________
Name:
Title:
WESTERN ASSET MANAGEMENT COMPANY
By:
_______________________________
Name:
Title:
The foregoing is acknowledged:
The undersigned officer of the Fund has executed this
Agreement not individually but in his/her capacity as an officer
of the Fund. The Fund does not hereby undertake, on behalf of the
Fund or otherwise, any obligation to the Subadviser.
HIGH INCOME OPPORTUNITY FUND INC.
By:
_______________________________
Name:
Title:
ANNEX I
Not applicable.
SCHEDULE A
High Income Opportunity Fund Inc.
Date:
August 1, 2006
Fee:
The sub-advisory fee will be 70% of the management fee paid to
Xxxx Xxxxx Partners Fund Advisor, LLC, net of expense waivers and
reimbursements.
