Exhibit 9(a)
JPM SERIES TRUST
CO-ADMINISTRATION AGREEMENT
CO-ADMINISTRATION AGREEMENT, dated as of October 10, 1996, by and
between JPM Series Trust, an unincorporated business trust organized under the
laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts (the "Trust"), and Funds Distributor,
Inc., a Massachusetts corporation (the "Co-Administrator").
W I T N E S S E T H:
WHEREAS, the Trust is engaged in business as an open-end investment
company registered under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (collectively with
the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, the "1940 Act");
WHEREAS, the Shares of Beneficial Interest (par value $0.001 per share)
of the Trust (the "Shares") are divided into multiple series (together with any
series which may in the future be established, the "Series" or the "Fund"); and
WHEREAS, the Trust wishes to engage the Co-Administrator to provide
certain administrative and management services, and the Co-Administrator is
willing to provide such administrative and management services to the Trust and
each Series, on the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth;
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements
of the parties hereto as herein set forth, the parties covenant and agree as
follows:
1. Duties of the Co-Administrator. Subject to the general direction and
control of the Board of Trustees of the Trust, the Co-Administrator shall
perform the following administrative and management services: (a) providing or
obtaining office space, equipment and clerical personnel necessary for
maintaining the organization of the Trust, including a principal office in
Massachusetts, and for performing the administrative and management functions
herein set forth; (b) arranging for Directors, officers and employees of the
Co-Administrator or its agents, reasonably acceptable to the Trustees, to serve
as Trustees, officers or agents of the Trust and perform the duties incident to
their office, if duly elected or appointed to such positions and subject to
their individual consent and to any limitations imposed by law; (c) preparing
such reports, applications and documents (including reports regarding the sale
and redemption of Shares as reported by the Trust's transfer agent as may be
required in order to comply with state securities laws) as may be necessary or
desirable to register Shares with state securities authorities, monitoring the
sale of Shares as reported by the Trust's transfer agent for compliance with
state securities laws, and filing with the appropriate state securities
authorities the registration statements and reports for the Trust and the Shares
and all amendments thereto, as may be necessary or convenient to register and
keep effective the Trust and the Shares with
state
securities authorities to enable the Trust to make a continuous offering of
Shares; (d) filing documents with regulatory authorities or mailing documents to
investors in or Trustees of the Trust to the extent requested by the Trust; (e)
reviewing and filing with the National Association of Securities Dealers all
marketing and sales literature provided to the Co-Administrator on behalf of the
Trust; and (f) maintaining books and records of the Trust related to the
foregoing. In the performance of its duties under this Agreement, the
Co-Administrator will comply with the provisions of the Declaration of Trust and
By-Laws of the Trust and the Trust's stated investment objectives, policies and
restrictions and will use its best efforts to safeguard and promote the welfare
of the Trust and to comply with other policies which the Board of Trustees may
from time to time determine. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Co-Administrator
shall not be deemed to have assumed any duties with respect to this Agreement,
including, without limitation, any responsibility for the management of the
Trust's assets or the rendering of investment advice and supervision with
respect thereto, nor shall the Co-Administrator be deemed to have assumed or
have any responsibility with respect to functions specifically assumed by any
transfer agent, custodian or other administrative service provider of the Trust.
The Co-Administrator undertakes to comply with all applicable requirements of
the U.S. federal securities laws and any other laws, rules and regulations of
governmental authorities having jurisdiction with respect to the duties to be
performed by it hereunder.
2. Books and Records. In compliance with the requirements of Rule 31a-3
under the 1940 Act, the Co-Administrator hereby agrees that all records which it
maintains for the Trust are the property of the Trust and further agrees to
surrender promptly to the Trust any such records upon the Trust's request.
3. Allocation of Charges and Expenses. The Co-Administrator shall pay
the entire salaries and wages of all of the Trust's Trustees, officers and
agents who devote part or all of their time to the affairs of the
Co-Administrator or its affiliates, and the wages and salaries of such persons
shall not be deemed to be expenses incurred by the Trust for purposes of this
Section 3. Except as provided in the foregoing sentence, the Co-Administrator
shall not pay other expenses relating to the Trust including, without
limitation, compensation of Trustees not affiliated with the Co-Administrator;
governmental fees; interest charges; taxes; membership dues in the Investment
Company Institute allocable to the Trust; fees and expenses of the Trust's
independent auditors, of legal counsel and of any transfer agent, distributor,
shareholder servicing agent, registrar or dividend disbursing agent of the
Trust; expenses of distributing and redeeming Shares and servicing shareholder
accounts; expenses of preparing, printing and mailing prospectuses and
statements of additional information, reports, notices, proxy statements and
reports to shareholders and governmental officers and commissions; expenses of
preparing and mailing agendas and supporting documents for meetings of Trustees
and committees of Trustees; expenses connected with the execution, recording and
settlement of portfolio security transactions; insurance premiums; fees and
expenses of the Trust's custodian for all services to the Trust, including
safekeeping of funds and securities and maintaining required books and accounts;
expenses of calculating the net asset value of the Shares; expenses of
shareholder meetings; and expenses relating to the issuance, registration and
qualification of Shares.
4. Compensation of Co-Administrator. For the services to be
rendered and the facilities to be provided by the Co-Administrator hereunder,
the Co-Administrator shall receive a fee from
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each such Series of the Trust as
agreed by the Trust and the Co-Administrator from time to time as set forth on
Schedule A attached hereto. This fee will be payable as agreed by the Trust and
the Co-Administrator, but no more frequently than monthly.
5. Limitation of Liability of the Co-Administrator. The
Co-Administrator shall not be liable for any error of judgment or mistake of law
or for any act or omission in the administration or management of the Trust or
the performance of its duties hereunder, except for willful misfeasance, bad
faith or gross negligence in the performance of its duties, or by reason of the
reckless disregard of its obligations and duties hereunder. As used in this
Section 5, the term "Co-Administrator" shall include Funds Distributor, Inc.
and/or any of its affiliates and the Directors, officers and employees of Funds
Distributor, Inc. and/or of its affiliates.
6. Activities of the Co-Administrator. The services of the
Co-Administrator to the Trust are not to be deemed to be exclusive, the
Co-Administrator being free to render administrative and/or other services to
other parties. It is understood that Trustees, officers, and shareholders of the
Trust are or may become interested in the Co-Administrator and/or any of its
affiliates, as Directors, officers, employees, or otherwise, and that Directors,
officers and employees of the Co-Administrator and/or any of its affiliates are
or may become similarly interested in the Trust and that the Co-Administrator
and/or any of its affiliates may be or become interested in the Trust as a
shareholder or otherwise.
7. Termination. This Agreement may be terminated as to any Series at
any time, without the payment of any penalty, by the Board of Trustees of the
Trust or by the Co-Administrator, in each case on not more than 60 days' nor
less than 30 days' written notice to the other party.
8. Subcontracting by the Co-Administrator. The Co-Administrator may
subcontract for the performance of its obligations hereunder with any one or
more persons; provided, however, that the Co-Administrator may subcontract
hereunder only with the prior consent of the Trustees of the Trust; and
provided, further, that, unless the Trust otherwise expressly agrees in writing,
the Co-Administrator shall be as fully responsible to the Trust for the acts and
omissions of any subcontractor as it would be for its own acts or omissions.
9. Further Actions. Each party agrees to perform such further acts
and execute such further documents as are necessary to effectuate the purposes
hereof.
10. Amendments. This Agreement may be amended by only mutual written
consent.
11. Confidentiality. The Co-Administrator agrees on behalf of itself
and its employees to treat confidentially and as proprietary information of the
Trust all records and other information not otherwise publicly available
relative to the Trust and its prior, present or potential shareholders and not
to 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 where the Co-Administrator may be exposed to
civil or criminal contempt
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proceedings for failure to comply, when requested to divulge such information by
duly constituted authorities, or when so requested by the Trust.
12. Miscellaneous. This Agreement embodies the entire agreement and
understanding between the parties hereto and supersedes all prior agreements and
understandings relating to the subject matter hereof. 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. 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 and shall inure to the
benefit of the parties hereto and their respective successors, to the extent
permitted by law.
13. Notice. Any notice or other communication required to be given
pursuant to this Agreement shall be deemed duly given if delivered or mailed by
registered mail, postage prepaid, (1) to the Co-Administrator at 00 Xxxxx
Xxxxxx, 00xx Xxxxx, Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxxxxx 00000, Attention: President with a
copy to General Counsel; or (2) to the Trust at 00 Xxxxx Xxxxxx, Xxxxx 0000,
Xxxxxx, Xxxxxxxxxxxxx 00000, Attention: Treasurer, or at such other address as
either party may from time to time specify to the other party pursuant to this
section, with a copy to Xxxxxx Guaranty Trust Company of New York, 000 Xxxxx
Xxxxxx, Xxx Xxxx, Xxx Xxxx 00000, Attention: Funds Management.
14. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by and
construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be
executed and delivered in their names and on their behalf by the undersigned,
thereunto duly authorized, all as of the day and year first above written. The
undersigned officer of the Trust has executed this Agreement not individually,
but as an officer of the Trust under the Trust's Declaration of Trust, dated
August 15, 1996, and the obligations of this Agreement are not binding upon any
of the Trustees or shareholders of the Trust individually, but bind only the
Trust estate.
JPM SERIES TRUST
By
Name:
Title:
FUNDS DISTRIBUTOR, INC.
By
Name:
Title:
PPADMI4
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Schedule A
The Co-Administrator's annual fee charged to and payable by each
Covered Entity as defined below is its share of an annual complex-wide charge.
The annual complex-wide charge is:
(a) $425,000 for all Covered Entities, provided that such charge shall be
increased by $5,000 for each Covered Entity in excess of 100, plus
(b) out-of-pocket charges for any services subcontracted pursuant to
co-administration agreements with Covered Entities.
The portion of this charge payable by each Covered Entity is (i) in the case of
any charges described in paragraph (b) directly attributable to a particular
Covered Entity, the amount attributable to such Covered Entity, plus (ii) in the
case of all other amounts, the amount determined by the proportionate share that
such Covered Entity's net assets bear to the total net assets of the Covered
Entities.
A Covered Entity is any series of The JPM Xxxxxxxx Funds, The JPM Institutional
Funds, The JPM Advisor Funds, the Portfolios in which any series of the
foregoing invest, any series of JPM Series Trust and each other current or
future mutual fund (or series thereof) for which both (1) a tax return is filed
with the Internal Revenue Service under United States tax law and (2) Xxxxxx
Guaranty Trust Company of New York provides investment advice and/or
administrative services and the Co-Administrator provides administration
services.
Approved: _______ __, 1996
Effective _______ __, 1996
PPADMI4
