Exhibit (h)(3)
TRANSFER AGENT SERVICING AGREEMENT
THIS AGREEMENT is made and entered into on this 1st day of September,
1999, by and between Kinetics Mutual Funds, Inc., (the "Fund") and Firstar
Mutual Fund Services, LLC, a limited liability company organized under the laws
of the State of Wisconsin (the "Agent").
WHEREAS, the Fund is open-ended management investment registered under
the Investment Company Act of 1940; and
WHEREAS, the Agent is a limited liability company and, among other
things, is in the business of administering transfer and dividend disbursing
agent functions for the benefit of its customers;
NOW, THEREFORE, the Fund and the Agent do mutually promise and agree as
follows:
1. TERMS OF APPOINTMENT; DUTIES OF THE AGENT
Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement, the
Fund hereby appoints and employees the Agent to act as transfer agent and
dividend disbursing agent.
The Agent shall perform all of the customary services of a transfer
agent and dividend disbursing agent, and as relevant, agent in connection with
accumulation, open account or similar plans (including without limitation any
periodic investment plan or periodic withdrawal program), including but not
limited to:
A. Receive orders for the purchase of shares;
B. Process purchase orders and issue the appropriate number of
certificated or uncertificated shares with such uncertificated
shares being held in the appropriate shareholder account;
C. Process redemption requests received in good order;
D. Pay monies in accordance with the instructions of redeeming
shareholders;
E. Process transfers of shares in accordance with the shareowner's
instructions;
F. Process exchanges between funds within the same family of funds;
G. Issue and/or cancel certificates as instructed; replace lost,
stolen or destroyed certificates upon receipt of satisfactory
indemnification or surety bond;
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H. Prepare and transmit payments for dividends and distributions
declared by the Fund;
I. Make changes to shareholder records, including, but not limited
to, address changes in plans (i.e., systematic withdrawal,
automatic investment, dividend reinvestment, etc.);
J. Record the issuance of shares of the Fund and maintain, pursuant
to Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Rule 17ad-10(e), a record of
the total number of shares of the Fund which are authorized,
issued and outstanding;
K. Prepare shareholder meeting lists and, if applicable, mail,
receive and tabulate proxies;
L. Mail shareholder reports and prospectuses to current
shareholders;
M. Prepare and file U.S. Treasury Department forms 1099 and other
appropriate information returns required with respect to
dividends and distributions for all shareholders;
N. Provide shareholder account information upon request and prepare
and mail confirmations and statements of account to shareholders
for all purchases, redemptions and other confirmable transactions
as agreed upon with the Fund; and
O. Provide a Blue Sky System which will enable the Fund to monitor
the total number of shares sold in each state. In addition, the
Fund shall identify to the Agent in writing those transactions
and assets to be treated as exempt from the Blue Sky reporting to
the Fund for each state.
P. Support NSCC-Fund/SERV functionality including all networking
levels (1-4).
2. COMPENSATION
The Fund agrees to pay the Agent for performance of the duties listed in
this Agreement; the fees and out-of-pocket expenses include, but are not limited
to the following: printing, postage, forms, stationery, record retention,
mailing, insertion, programming, labels, shareholder lists and proxy expenses.
If the Fund elects to terminate this Agreement prior to the 3rd anniversary of
this Agreement for reasons other than unacceptable service levels, the Fund
agrees to reimburse Agent for the difference between the standard fee schedule
and the discounted fee schedule agreed to between the parties from the date of
termination.
These fees and reimbursable expenses may be changed from time to time
subject to mutual written agreement between the Fund and the Agent.
The Fund agrees to pay all fees and reimbursable expenses within ten
(10) business days following the mailing of the billing notice.
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3. REPRESENTATIONS OF AGENT
The Agent represents and warrants to the Fund that:
A. It is a Limited Liability Company duly organized, existing and in
good standing under the laws of Wisconsin;
B. It is a registered transfer agent under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 as amended.
C. It is duly qualified to carry on its business in the state of
Wisconsin;
D. It is empowered under applicable laws and by its LLC Agreement to
enter into and perform this Agreement;
E. All requisite corporate proceedings have been taken to authorize
it to enter and perform this Agreement; and
F. It has and will continue to have access to the necessary
facilities, equipment and personnel to perform its duties and
obligations under this Agreement.
G. It will comply with all applicable requirements of the Securities
Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended,
the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and any laws,
rules, and regulations of governmental authorities having
jurisdiction.
4. REPRESENTATIONS OF THE FUND
The Fund represents and warrants to the Agent that:
A. The Fund is an open-ended investment company under the Investment
Company Act of 1940;
B. The Fund is a corporation organized, existing, and in good
standing under the laws of Maryland;
C. The Fund is empowered under applicable laws and by its Corporate
Charter and bylaws to enter into and perform this
Agreement;
D. All necessary proceedings required by the Corporate Charter have
been taken to authorize it/them to enter into and perform this
Agreement;
E. The Fund will comply with all applicable requirements of the
Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended, the Investment Company Act
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of 1940, as amended, and any laws, rules and regulations of
governmental authorities having jurisdiction; and
F. A registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933 is
currently effective and will remain effective, and appropriate
state securities law filings have been made and will continue to
be made, with respect to all shares of the Fund being offered for
sale.
5. COVENANTS OF FUND AND AGENT
The Fund shall furnish the Agent a certified copy of the resolution of
the Board of Directors of the Fund authorizing the appointment of the Agent and
the execution of this Agreement. The Fund shall provide to the Agent a copy of
the Corporate Charter, bylaws of the Corporation and all amendments.
The Agent shall keep records relating to the services to be performed
hereunder, in the form and manner as it may deem advisable. To the extent
required by Section 31 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and
the rules thereunder, the Agent agrees that all such records prepared or
maintained by the Agent relating to the services to be performed by the Agent
hereunder are the property of the Fund and will be preserved, maintained and
made available in accordance with such section and rules and will be surrendered
to the Fund on and in accordance with its request.
6. INDEMNIFICATION; REMEDIES UPON BREACH
The Agent shall exercise reasonable care in the performance of its
duties under this Agreement. The Agent shall not be liable for any error of
judgment or mistake of law or for any loss suffered by the Fund in connection
with matters to which this Agreement relates, including losses resulting from
mechanical breakdowns or the failure of communication or power supplies beyond
the Agent's control, except a loss resulting from the Agent's refusal or failure
to comply with the terms of this Agreement or from bad faith, negligence, or
willful misconduct on its part in the performance of its duties under this
Agreement. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the Fund shall
indemnify and hold harmless the Agent from and against any and all claims,
demands, losses, expenses, and liabilities (whether with or without basis in
fact or law) of any and every nature (including reasonable attorneys' fees)
which the Agent may sustain or incur or which may be asserted against the Agent
by any person arising out of any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in
performing the services hereunder (i) in accordance with the foregoing
standards, or (ii) in reliance upon any written or oral instruction provided to
the Agent by any duly authorized officer of the Fund, such duly authorized
officer to be included in a list of authorized officers furnished to the Agent
and as amended from time to time in writing by resolution of the Board of
Directors of the Fund.
Further, the Fund will indemnify and hold the Agent harmless against any
and all losses, claims, damages, liabilities or expenses (including reasonable
counsel fees and expenses)
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resulting from any claim, demand, action, or suit as a result of the
negligence of the Fund or the principal underwriter (unless contributed to by
the Agent's breach of this Agreement or other Agreements between the Fund and
the Agent, or the Agent's own negligence or bad faith); or as a result of the
Agent acting upon telephone instructions relating to the exchange or redemption
of shares received by the Agent and reasonably believed by the Agent under a
standard of care customarily used in the industry to have originated from the
record owner of the subject shares; or as a result of acting in reliance upon
any genuine instrument or stock certificate signed, countersigned, or executed
by any person or persons authorized to sign, countersign, or execute the same.
In the event of a mechanical breakdown or failure of communication or
power supplies beyond its control, the Agent shall take all reasonable steps to
minimize service interruptions for any period that such interruption continues
beyond the Agent's control. The Agent will make every reasonable effort to
restore any lost or damaged data and correct any errors resulting from such a
breakdown at the expense of the Agent. The Agent agrees that it shall, at all
times, have reasonable contingency plans with appropriate parties, making
reasonable provision for emergency use of electrical data processing equipment
to the extent appropriate equipment is available. Representatives of the Fund
shall be entitled to inspect the Agent's premises and operating capabilities at
any time during regular business hours of the Agent, upon reasonable notice to
the Agent.
Regardless of the above, the Agent reserves the right to reprocess and
correct administrative errors at its own expense.
In order that the indemnification provisions contained in this section
shall apply, it is understood that if in any case the Fund may be asked to
indemnify or hold the Agent harmless, the Fund shall be fully and promptly
advised of all pertinent facts concerning the situation in question, and it is
further understood that the Agent will use all reasonable care to notify the
Fund promptly concerning any situation which presents or appears likely to
present the probability of such a claim for indemnification against the Fund.
The Fund shall have the option to defend the Agent against any claim which may
be the subject of this indemnification. In the event that the Fund so elects, it
will so notify the Agent and thereupon the Fund shall take over complete defense
of the claim, and the Agent shall in such situation initiate no further legal or
other expenses for which it shall seek indemnification under this section. The
Agent shall in no case confess any claim or make any compromise in any case in
which the Fund will be asked to indemnify the Agent except with the Fund's prior
written consent.
The Agent shall indemnify and hold the Fund harmless from and against
any and all claims, demands, losses, expenses, and liabilities (whether with or
without basis in fact or law) of any and every nature (including reasonable
attorneys' fees) which may be asserted against the Fund by any person arising
out of any action taken or omitted to be taken by the Agent as a result of the
Agent's refusal or failure to comply with the terms of this Agreement, its bad
faith, negligence, or willful misconduct.
7. CONFIDENTIALITY
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The Agent agrees on behalf of itself and its employees to treat
confidentially all records and other information relative to the Fund and its
shareholders and shall not be disclosed to any other party, except after prior
notification to and approval in writing by the Fund, which approval shall not be
unreasonably withheld and may not be withheld where the Agent may be exposed to
civil or criminal contempt proceedings for failure to comply after being
requested to divulge such information by duly constituted authorities.
8. ADDITIONAL SERIES
In the event that the Fund establishes one or more series of shares with
respect to which it desires to have Agent render transfer agent services, under
the terms hereof, it shall so notify Agent in writing, and if Agent agrees in
writing to provide such services, such series will be subject to the terms and
conditions of this Agreement.
9. RECORDS
The Agent shall keep records relating to the services to be performed
hereunder, in the form and manner, and for such period as it may deem advisable
and is agreeable to the Fund but not inconsistent with the rules and regulations
of appropriate government authorities, in particular, Section 31 of The
Investment Company Act of 1940 as amended (the "Investment Company Act"), and
the rules thereunder. The Agent agrees that all such records prepared or
maintained by The Agent relating to the services to be performed by the Agent
hereunder are the property of the Fund and will be preserved, maintained, and
made available with such section and rules of the Investment Company Act and
will be promptly surrendered to the Fund on and in accordance with its request.
10. GOVERNING LAW
This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the
State of Wisconsin. However nothing herein shall be construed in a manner
inconsistent with the Investment Company Act of 1940 or any rule or regulation
promulgated by the SEC thereunder.
11. TERM AND TERMINATION
The initial term of this Agreement shall be from the date hereof until
April 1, 2000. During the initial term of this Agreement, if the Fund or
Kinetics Asset Management, Inc. terminates any services with Agent, the Fund
agrees to compensate Agent an amount equal to the fees remaining under the
initial term of this Agreement. Subsequent to the initial term, this Agreement
may be terminated by either party at any time upon giving 90 days prior written
notice to the other party or such shorter period as is mutually agreed upon by
the parties. This Agreement may be replaced or modified by a subsequent
agreement between the parties. It is understood and agreed to by the parties
that a notice to terminate one of the servicing contracts constitutes notice of
termination for all servicing contracts that exist between the parties.
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In the event that the Fund gives to the Agent its written intention to
terminate and appoint a successor transfer agent, the Agent agrees to cooperate
in the transfer of its duties and responsibilities to the successor, including
any and all relevant books, records and other data established or maintained by
the Agent under this Agreement. Should the Fund exercise its right to terminate,
all out-of-pocket expenses associated with the movement of records and material
will be paid by the Fund.
12. AMENDMENT, ASSIGNMENT AND NOTICE
A. This Agreement may be amended by the mutual written consent of
the parties.
B. This Agreement and any right or obligation hereunder may not be
assigned by either party without the signed, written consent of
the other party.
C. Any notice required to be given by the parties to each other
under the terms of this Agreement shall be in writing, addressed
and delivered, or mailed to the principal place of business of
the other party. If to the agent, such notice should to be sent
to:
Firstar Mutual Fund Services, LLC
000 Xxxx Xxxxxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxxxxxx, XX 00000
If to the Fund, such notice should be sent to:
Kinetics Mutual Funds, Inc.
000 Xxx Xxxxx Xxxxxx
Xxxxx Xxxxxxx, XX 00000
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be
executed by a duly authorized officer or one or more counterparts as of the day
and year first written above.
Kinetics Mutual Funds, Inc. Firstar Mutual Fund Services, LLC
By: _______________________________ By: ______________________________
Print Name: ________________________ Print Name: ________________________
Title: _____________________________ Title: ______________________________
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