EXPENSE LIMITATION AGREEMENT
EXPENSE LIMITATION AGREEMENT, effective as of March 1, 2005 by and between Rice
Xxxx Xxxxx & Associates, LLC (the "Adviser") and The Advisors' Inner Circle Fund
(the "Trust") ("Agreement"), on behalf of each series of the Trust set forth in
Schedule A attached hereto (each a "Fund," and collectively, the "Funds").
WHEREAS, the Trust is a Massachusetts business trust organized under the
Agreement and Declaration of Trust ("Declaration of Trust"), and is registered
under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended ("1940 Act"), as an
open-end management company of the series type, and each Fund is a series of the
Trust;
WHEREAS, the Trust and the Adviser have entered into an Advisory Agreement dated
June 24, 2003 ("Advisory Agreement"), pursuant to which the Adviser provides
investment advisory services to each Fund for compensation based on the value of
the average daily net assets of each such Fund;
WHEREAS, the Trust and the Adviser have determined that it is appropriate and in
the best interests of each Fund and its shareholders to maintain the expenses of
each Fund at a level below the level to which each such Fund would normally be
subject in order to maintain each Fund's expense ratios at the Maximum Annual
Operating Expense Limit (as hereinafter defined) specified for such Fund in
Schedule A hereto;
NOW THEREFORE, the parties hereto agree that the Expense Limitation Agreement is
hereby modified, amended and restated in its entirety as of the date hereof as
follows:
1. EXPENSE LIMITATION.
1.1. APPLICABLE EXPENSE LIMIT. To the extent that the aggregate
expenses of every character incurred by a Fund in any fiscal year, including but
not limited to investment advisory fees of the Adviser (but excluding interest,
taxes, brokerage commissions, other expenditures which are capitalized in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, other extraordinary
expenses not incurred in the ordinary course of such Fund's business and amounts
payable pursuant to any plan adopted in accordance with Rule 12b-1 under the
0000 Xxx) and expenses for which payment has been made through the use of all or
a portion of brokerage commissions (or markups or markdowns) generated by that
Fund ("Fund Operating Expenses"), exceed the Maximum Annual Operating Expense
Limit, as defined in Section 1.2 below, such excess amount (the "Excess Amount")
shall be the liability of the Adviser.
1.2. MAXIMUM ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSE LIMIT. The Maximum Annual
Operating Expense Limit with respect to each Fund shall be the amount specified
in Schedule A based on a percentage of the average daily net assets of each
Fund. That Maximum Annual Operating Expense Limit for each Fund contemplates
that certain expenses for each Fund may be paid through the use of all or a
portion of brokerage commissions (or markups or markdowns) generated by that
Fund.
1
1.3. METHOD OF COMPUTATION. To determine the Adviser's liability with
respect to the Excess Amount, each month the Fund Operating Expenses for each
Fund shall be annualized as of the last day of the month. If the annualized Fund
Operating Expenses for any month of a Fund exceed the Maximum Annual Operating
Expense Limit of such Fund, the Adviser shall first waive or reduce its
investment advisory fee for such month by an amount sufficient to reduce the
annualized Fund Operating Expenses to an amount no higher than the Maximum
Annual Operating Expense Limit. If the amount of the waived or reduced
investment Advisory fee for any such month is insufficient to pay the Excess
Amount, the Adviser may also remit to the appropriate Fund or Funds an amount
that, together with the waived or reduced investment advisory fee, is sufficient
to pay such Excess Amount.
1.4. YEAR-END ADJUSTMENT. If necessary, on or before the last day of
the first month of each fiscal year, an adjustment payment shall be made by the
appropriate party in order that the amount of the investment advisory fees
waived or reduced and other payments remitted by the Adviser to the Fund or
Funds with respect to the previous fiscal year shall equal the Excess Amount.
2. REIMBURSEMENT OF FEE WAIVERS AND EXPENSE REIMBURSEMENTS.
2.1. REIMBURSEMENT. If in any year in which the Advisory Agreement is
still in effect and the estimated aggregate Fund Operating Expenses of such Fund
for the fiscal year are less than the Maximum Annual Operating Expense Limit for
that year, subject to approval by the Trust's Board of Trustees as provided in
Section 2.2 below, the Adviser shall be entitled to reimbursement by such Fund,
in whole or in part as provided below, of the investment Advisory fees waived or
reduced and other payments remitted by the Adviser to such Fund pursuant to
Section 1 hereof. The total amount of reimbursement to which the Adviser may be
entitled ("Reimbursement Amount") shall equal, at any time, the sum of all
investment Advisory fees previously waived or reduced by the Adviser and all
other payments remitted by the Adviser to the Fund, pursuant to Section 1
hereof, during any of the previous three (3) fiscal years, less any
reimbursement previously paid by such Fund to the Adviser, pursuant to Sections
2.2 or 2.3 hereof, with respect to such waivers, reductions, and payments. The
Reimbursement Amount shall not include any additional charges or fees
whatsoever, including, e.g., interest accruable on the Reimbursement Amount.
2.2. BOARD APPROVAL. No reimbursement shall be paid to the Adviser with
respect to any Fund pursuant to this provision unless the Trust's Board of
Trustees has determined in advance that the payment of such reimbursement to the
Adviser is in the best interests of such Fund and its shareholders.
2.3. METHOD OF COMPUTATION. To determine each Fund's accrual, if any,
to reimburse the Adviser for the Reimbursement Amount, each month the Fund
Operating Expenses of each Fund shall be annualized as of the last day of the
month. If the annualized Fund Operating Expenses of a Fund for any month are
less than the Maximum Annual Operating Expense Limit of such Fund, such Fund
2
shall accrue into its net asset value an amount payable to the Adviser
sufficient to increase the annualized Fund Operating Expenses of that Fund to an
amount no greater than the Maximum Annual Operating Expense Limit of that Fund,
provided that such amount paid to the Adviser will in no event exceed the total
Reimbursement Amount. For accounting purposes, amounts accrued pursuant to this
Section 2 shall be a liability of the Fund for purposes of determining the Funds
net asset value.
2.4. PAYMENT AND YEAR-END ADJUSTMENT. Amounts accrued pursuant to this
Agreement shall be payable to the Adviser as of the last day of each month. If
necessary, on or before the last day of the first month of each fiscal year, an
adjustment payment shall be made by the appropriate party in order that the
actual Fund Operating Expenses of a Fund for the prior fiscal year (including
any reimbursement payments hereunder with respect to such fiscal year) do not
exceed the Maximum Annual Operating Expense Limit.
3. TERM AND TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT.
This Agreement shall continue in effect with respect to the Fund until March 1,
2006 and shall thereafter continue in effect with respect to the Fund from year
to year provided such continuance is specifically approved by a majority of the
Trustees of the Trust who are not "interested persons" of the Trust or any other
party to this Agreement, as defined in the 1940 Act ("Non-Interested Trustees").
Nevertheless, this Agreement may be terminated by either party hereto, without
payment of any penalty, upon ninety (90) days' prior written notice to the other
party at its principal place of business; provided that, in the case of
termination by the Adviser, such action shall be authorized by resolution of a
majority of the Non-Interested Trustees of the Trust or by a vote of a majority
of the outstanding voting securities of the Trust.
4. MISCELLANEOUS.
4.1. CAPTIONS. The captions in this Agreement are included for
convenience of reference only and in no other way define or delineate any of the
provisions hereof or otherwise affect their construction or effect.
4.2. INTERPRETATION. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to
require the Trust or the Funds to take any action contrary to the Trust's
Declaration of Trust or By-Laws, or any applicable statutory or regulatory
requirement to which it is subject or by which it is bound, or to relieve or
deprive the Trust's Board of Trustees of its responsibility for and control of
the conduct of the affairs of the Trust or the Funds. The parties to this
Agreement acknowledge and agree that all litigation arising hereunder, whether
direct or indirect, and of any and every nature whatsoever shall be satisfied
solely out of the assets of the affected Fund and that no Trustee, officer or
holder of shares of beneficial interest of the Fund shall be personally liable
for any of the foregoing liabilities. The Trust's Agreement and Declaration of
Trust, as amended from time to time, is on file in the Office of the Secretary
of State of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Such Agreement and Declaration of
Trust describes in detail the respective responsibilities and limitations on
liability of the Trustees, officers, and holders of shares of beneficial
interest.
3
4.3. DEFINITIONS. Any question of interpretation of any term or
provision of this Agreement, including but not limited to the investment
advisory fee, the computations of net asset values, and the allocation of
expenses, having a counterpart in or otherwise derived from the terms and
provisions of the Advisory Agreement or the 1940 Act, shall have the same
meaning as and be resolved by reference to such Advisory Agreement or the 0000
Xxx.
4.4. ENFORCEABILITY. Any term or provision of this Agreement which is
invalid or unenforceable in any jurisdiction shall, as to such jurisdiction be
ineffective to the extent of such invalidity or unenforceability without
rendering invalid or unenforceable the remaining terms or provisions of this
Agreement or affecting the validity or enforceability of any of the terms or
provisions of this Agreement in any other jurisdiction.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have caused this Expense Limitation Agreement to
be signed by their respective officers thereunto duly authorized, as of the day
and year first above written.
THE ADVISORS' INNER CIRCLE FUND,
on behalf of each series of the Trust set forth in Schedule A
/s/ Xxxxx Xxxxxx
-----------------------------------
Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Vice President and Secretary
RICE XXXX XXXXX & ASSOCIATES, LLC
/s/ Xxxx X. Xxxxx
-----------------------------------
Xxxx X. Xxxxx
Chief Administrative Officer
4
SCHEDULE A
MAXIMUM ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSE LIMITS
This Agreement relates to the following Funds of the Trust:
NAME OF FUND MAXIMUM ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSE LIMIT
Rice Xxxx Xxxxx Mid Cap Portfolio, 1.40%
Investor Shares
5
