INVESTMENT ADVISORY AGREEMENT
NATIONS SEPARATE ACCOUNT TRUST
THIS AGREEMENT is made as of September 30, 2005, by and between NATIONS
SEPARATE ACCOUNT TRUST, a Delaware statutory trust (the "Trust"), and COLUMBIA
MANAGEMENT ADVISORS, LLC (formerly, BANC OF AMERICA CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC), a
Delaware limited liability company (the "Adviser"), on behalf of those
portfolios of the Trust now or hereafter identified on Schedule I hereto (each a
"Portfolio" and collectively, the "Portfolios").
WHEREAS, the Trust is registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the "Commission") as an open-end management investment company under
the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "1940 Act");
WHEREAS, the Adviser is registered with the Commission under the
Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (the "Advisers Act") as an
investment adviser;
WHEREAS, the Trust and the Adviser desire to enter into an agreement to
provide for investment advisory services to the Trust upon the terms and
conditions hereinafter set forth; and
WHEREAS, the Trust and the Adviser contemplate that certain duties of the
Adviser under this Agreement will be delegated to one or more investment
sub-adviser(s) (the "Sub-Adviser(s)") pursuant to separate sub-advisory
agreement(s) (the "Sub-Advisory Agreement(s)");
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants herein contained,
it is agreed between the parties hereto as follows:
1. APPOINTMENT. The Trust hereby appoints the Adviser to act as investment
adviser to each Portfolio for the period and on the terms set forth in this
Agreement. The Adviser accepts such appointment and agrees to furnish the
services herein set forth for the compensation herein provided. In the event
that the Trust establishes one or more portfolios other than the Portfolios with
respect to which it desires to retain the Adviser to act as investment adviser
hereunder, it shall notify the Adviser in writing. If the Adviser is willing to
render such services under this Agreement it shall notify the Trust in writing
whereupon such portfolio shall become a Portfolio hereunder and shall be subject
to the provisions of this Agreement except to the extent that said provisions
(including those relating to the compensation payable by the Portfolio to the
Adviser) are modified with respect to such Portfolio in writing by the Trust and
the Adviser at the time.
2. DELEGATION OF RESPONSIBILITIES. Subject to the approval of the Trust's
Board of Trustees and, if required, the shareholders of the Portfolios, the
Adviser may, pursuant to the Sub-Advisory Agreement(s), delegate to the
Sub-Adviser(s) those of its duties hereunder identified in the Sub-Advisory
Agreement(s), provided that the Adviser shall continue to supervise and monitor
the performance of the duties delegated to the Sub-Adviser(s) and any such
delegation shall not relieve the Adviser of its duties and obligations under
this Agreement.
-1-
The Adviser shall be solely responsible for compensating the Sub-Adviser(s) for
services rendered under the Sub-Advisory Agreement(s).
3. DELIVERY OF DOCUMENTS. The Trust has furnished the Adviser with copies,
properly certified or authenticated, of each of the following:
(a) the Trust's Certificate of Trust as filed with the Secretary of
State of Delaware on November 24, 1997, and Declaration of Trust and all
amendments thereto (such Declaration of Trust, as presently in effect and as it
shall from time to time be amended, is herein called the "Declaration of
Trust");
(b) the Trust's By-Laws and amendments thereto (such By-Laws, as
presently in effect and as it shall from time to time be amended, is herein
called the "By-Laws");
(c) votes of the Trust's Board of Trustees authorizing the
appointment of the Adviser and approving this Agreement;
(d) the Trust's Registration Statement, as amended, on Form N-1A
under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act") (File No.
333-40265) and under the 1940 Act (File No. 811-08481); and
(e) the most recent prospectus of the Trust relating to each
Portfolio (such prospectus) together with the related statement of additional
information, as presently in effect and all amendments and supplements thereto,
are herein called the "Prospectus").
The Trust will furnish the Adviser from time to time with copies of all
amendments of or supplements to the foregoing, if any.
4. MANAGEMENT. Subject to the supervision of the Trust's Board of
Trustees, the Adviser will provide a continuous investment program for each
Portfolio, including investment research and management with respect to all
securities, investments, cash and cash equivalents in each Portfolio. The
Adviser will determine from time to time what securities and other investments
will be purchased, retained or sold by the Portfolios and will place the daily
orders for the purchase or sale of securities. The Adviser will provide the
services rendered by it under this Agreement in accordance with each Portfolio's
investment objective, policies and restrictions as stated in the Prospectus and
votes of the Trust's Board of Trustees. The Adviser further agrees that it will:
(a) update each Portfolio's cash availability throughout the day as
required;
(b) maintain historical tax lots for each portfolio security held by
each Portfolio;
(c) transmit trades to the Trust's custodian for proper settlement;
-2-
(d) maintain all books and records with respect to each Portfolio's
securities and transactions;
(e) supply the Trust and its Board of Trustees with reports and
statistical data as requested; and
(f) prepare a quarterly broker security transaction summary and
monthly security transaction listing for each Portfolio.
5. OTHER COVENANTS. The Adviser agrees that it:
(a) will comply with all applicable Rules and Regulations of the
Commission and will in addition conduct its activities under this Agreement in
accordance with other applicable law, including but not limited to the 1940 Act
and the Advisers Act;
(b) will use the same skill and care in providing such services as
it uses in providing services to fiduciary accounts for which it has investment
responsibilities;
(c) will not make loans to any person to purchase or carry Portfolio
shares;
(d) will place orders pursuant to its investment determinations for
the Portfolios either directly with the issuer or with any broker or dealer.
Subject to the other provisions of this paragraph, in executing portfolio
transactions and selecting brokers or dealers, the Adviser will use its best
efforts to seek on behalf of each Portfolio the best overall terms available. In
assessing the best overall terms available for any transaction, the Adviser
shall consider all factors that it deems relevant, including the breadth of the
market in the security, the price of the security, the financial condition and
execution capability of the broker or dealer, and the reasonableness of the
commission, if any, both for the specific transaction and on a continuing basis.
In evaluating the best overall terms available, and in selecting the
broker/dealer to execute a particular transaction, the Adviser may also consider
the brokerage and research services (as those terms are defined in Section 28(e)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) provided to the Portfolio(s)
and/or other accounts over which the Adviser or an affiliate of the Adviser
exercises investment discretion. The Adviser is authorized, subject to the prior
approval of the Trust's Board of Trustees, to pay to a broker or dealer who
provides such brokerage and research services a commission for executing a
portfolio transaction for any Portfolio which is in excess of the amount of
commission another broker or dealer would have charged for effecting that
transaction if, but only if, the Adviser determines in good faith that such
commission was reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and research
services provided by such broker or dealer, viewed in terms of that particular
transaction or in terms of the overall responsibilities of the Adviser to the
particular Portfolio and to the Trust. In addition, the Adviser is authorized to
take into account the sale of shares of the Trust in allocating purchase and
sale orders for portfolio securities to brokers or dealers (including brokers
and dealers that are affiliated with the Adviser or the Trust's principal
underwriter), provided that the Adviser believes that the quality of the
transaction and the commission are comparable to what they would be with other
qualified firms. In no instance, however, will portfolio securities be purchased
from or sold to the Adviser
-3-
or the Trust's principal underwriter for the Portfolios or an affiliated person
of either acting as principal or broker, except as permitted by the Commission
or applicable law;
(e) will maintain a policy and practice of conducting its investment
advisory services hereunder independently of the commercial banking operations
of its affiliates. In making investment recommendations for a Portfolio, its
investment advisory personnel will not inquire or take into consideration
whether the issuer (or related supporting institution) of securities proposed
for purchase or sale for the Portfolio's account are customers of the commercial
departments of its affiliates. In dealing with commercial customers, such
commercial departments will not inquire or take into consideration whether
securities of those customers are held by the Portfolio; and
(f) will treat confidentially, and as proprietary information of the
Trust, all records and other information relative to the Trust and prior,
present or potential shareholders, and will not use such records and information
for any purpose other than performance of its responsibilities and duties
hereunder (except after prior notification to and approval in writing by the
Trust, which approval shall not be unreasonably withheld and may not be withheld
and will be deemed granted where the Adviser may be exposed to civil or criminal
contempt proceedings for failure to comply, when requested to divulge such
information by duly constituted authorities, or when so requested by the Trust).
6. SERVICES NOT EXCLUSIVE. The services furnished by the Adviser hereunder
are deemed not to be exclusive, and the Adviser shall be free to furnish similar
services to others so long as its services under this Agreement are not impaired
thereby. To the extent that the purchase or sale of securities or other
investments of the same issuer may be deemed by the Adviser to be suitable for
two or more accounts managed by the Adviser, the available securities or
investments may be allocated in a manner believed by the Adviser to be equitable
to each account. It is recognized that in some cases this procedure may
adversely affect the price paid or received by a Portfolio or the size of the
position obtainable for or disposed of by a Portfolio.
7. BOOKS AND RECORDS. In compliance with the requirements of Rule 31a-3
under the 1940 Act, the Adviser hereby agrees that all records which it
maintains for each Portfolio are the property of the Trust and further agrees to
surrender promptly to the Trust any of such records upon the Trust's request.
The Adviser further agrees to preserve for the periods prescribed by Rule 31a-2
under the 1940 Act the records required to be maintained by Rule 31a-1 under the
1940 Act.
8. EXPENSES. During the term of this Agreement, the Adviser will pay all
expenses incurred by it in connection with its activities under this Agreement
other than the cost of securities, commodities and other investments (including
brokerage commissions and other transaction charges, if any) purchased or sold
for the Portfolios. In addition, if the aggregate expenses borne by any
Portfolio in any fiscal year exceed the applicable expense limitations imposed
by the securities regulations of any state in which its shares are registered or
qualified for sale to the public, the Adviser together with the Portfolio's
administrator(s) shall reimburse such Portfolio for such excess in proportion to
the fees otherwise payable to them for such year.
-4-
The obligation of the Adviser to reimburse the Trust hereunder is limited in any
fiscal year to the amount of its fee hereunder for such fiscal year, provided,
however, that notwithstanding the foregoing, the Adviser shall reimburse the
Trust for the full amount of its share of any such excess expenses regardless of
the fees paid to it during such fiscal year to the extent that the securities
regulations of any state having jurisdiction over the Trust so require. Such
expense reimbursement, if any, will be estimated, reconciled and paid on a
monthly basis.
9. COMPENSATION. For the services provided to each Portfolio and the
expenses assumed pursuant to this Agreement, the Trust will pay the Adviser and
the Adviser will accept as full compensation therefor a fee for that Portfolio
determined in accordance with Schedule I attached hereto. The fee attributable
to each Portfolio shall be a separate charge to such Portfolio and shall be the
several (and not joint or joint and several) obligation of each such Portfolio.
The Trust and the Adviser may, from time to time, agree to reduce, limit or
waive the amounts payable hereunder with respect to one or more Portfolios for
such period or periods they deem advisable.
10. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. The Adviser shall not be liable for any error
of judgment or mistake of law or for any loss suffered by the Trust in
connection with the performance of this Agreement, except a loss resulting from
a breach of fiduciary duty with respect to the receipt of compensation for
services or a loss resulting from willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross
negligence on the part of the Adviser or any of its officers, directors,
employees or agents, in the performance of its duties or from reckless disregard
by it of its obligations and duties under this Agreement.
11. DURATION AND TERMINATION. This Agreement shall become effective with
respect to a Portfolio when approved in accordance with the requirements of the
1940 Act, and shall continue in effect for a period of two years from the date
first written above. This Agreement shall thereafter continue from year to year,
provided that the continuation of the Agreement is specifically approved at
least annually:
(a) (i) by the Trust's Board of Trustees, or (ii) by the vote of "a
majority of the outstanding voting securities" of the Portfolio (as defined
in Section 2(a)(42) of the 0000 Xxx); and
(b) by the affirmative vote of a majority of the Trust's Trustees who
are not parties to this Agreement or "interested persons" (as defined in the
0000 Xxx) of a party to this Agreement (other than as Trustees of the Trust),
by votes cast in person at a meeting specifically called for such purpose.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, this Agreement may be terminated as to any
Portfolio at any time, without the payment of any penalty, by the Trust (by vote
of the Trust's Board of Trustees or by vote of a majority of the outstanding
voting securities of the particular Portfolio), or by the Adviser on sixty (60)
days' written notice. The notice provided for herein may be waived by the party
entitled to receipt thereof. This Agreement will immediately terminate in the
event of its assignment. As used in this Agreement, the terms "majority of the
outstanding voting
-5-
securities," "interested persons" and "assignment" shall have the same meanings
as such terms have in the 1940 Act.
12. AMENDMENT OF THIS AGREEMENT. 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. No amendment of this Agreement affecting a
Portfolio shall be effective until approved by vote of a majority of the
outstanding voting securities of such Portfolio. However, this shall not prevent
the Adviser from reducing, limiting or waiving its fee.
13. RELEASE. The names "Nations Separate Account Trust" and "Trustees of
Nations Separate Account Trust" refer respectively to the Trust created and the
Trustees, as trustees but not individually or personally, acting from time to
time under a Declaration of Trust and the Certificate of Trust dated October 17,
1997, as amended on May 1, 2001, which is hereby referred to and a copy of which
is on file at the office of the Secretary of State of Delaware and the principal
office of the Trust. The obligations of "Nations Separate Account Trust" entered
into in the name or on behalf thereof by any of the Trustees, representatives or
agents are made not individually, but in such capacities, and are not binding
upon any of the Trustees, shareholders, or representatives of the Trust
personally, but bind only the Trust Property (as defined in the Declaration of
Trust) and all persons dealing with any class of shares of the Trust must look
solely to the Trust Property belonging to such class for the enforcement of any
claims against the Trust.
14. MISCELLANEOUS. The captions in this Agreement are included for
convenience of reference only and in no way define or delimit any of the
provisions hereof or otherwise affect their construction or effect. If any
provision of this Agreement shall 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 upon, and shall inure to the
benefit of, the parties hereto and their respective successors and shall be
governed by Delaware law.
15. COUNTERPARTS. This Agreement may be executed in any manner of
counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original.
-6-
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this instrument to be
executed by their officers designated below as of the day and year first above
written.
NATIONS SEPARATE ACCOUNT TRUST
on behalf of the Portfolios
By: /s/ Xxxxxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
------------------------------
Xxxxxxxxxxx X. Xxxxxx
President
COLUMBIA MANAGEMENT ADVISORS, LLC
By: /s/ Xxxxx Xxxxxx
------------------------------
Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Executive Vice President
-7-
SCHEDULE I
The Trust shall pay the Adviser as full compensation for services provided
and expenses assumed hereunder an advisory fee for each Portfolio, computed
daily and payable monthly at the annual rates listed below as a percentage of
the average daily net assets of the Portfolio:
RATE OF
PORTFOLIO COMPENSATION EFFECTIVE DATE
--------- ------------ --------------
Nations Xxxxxxx Focused Equities Portfolio 0.74% up to $500 million 2/25/1998
0.69% up to $1 billion amended rate
0.64% up to $1.5 billion 12/01/04
0.59% up to $3 billion
0.57% up to $6 billion
0.55% in excess of $6 billion
Nations Xxxxxxx Growth Portfolio 0.74% up to $500 million 2/25/1998
0.69% up to $1 billion amended rate
0.64% up to $1.5 billion 12/01/04
0.59% up to $3 billion
0.57% up to $6 billion
0.55% in excess of $6 billion
Nations Value Portfolio 0.54% up to $500 million 2/25/1998
0.49% up to $1 billion amended rate
0.44% up to $1.5 billion 12/01/04
0.39% up to $3 billion
0.37% up to $6 billion
0.35% in excess of $6 billion
Approved: November 21, 2002
Last Amended: December 1, 2004
-8-
